In all honesty, I really don't know what I'm doing. I have a tendency to throw things out and see what sticks. I try to pass it off as "Experimental Parenting". I often have that very surreal moment when I realize that these are in fact my children and I alone am responsible for their health, happiness, well being, and that very long future ahead.
I pass off phrases like "Oh, lets test that theory" or "nice hypothesis" or the most frequently used "WE ARE ONLY OBSERVING!!!! YOU ARE GOING TO BREAK ITS TAIL OFF NELLY!!" There are way too many lizards walking around here without tails....My sister told me she saw one the other day and immediately though of Penelope....that's Nelly Bean for ya!
It should come to no surprise that with the last 8 months of them catching crawfish, crabs, lizards, frogs, and going fishing,the stakes would be upped a little.
As I am elbow deep in the never ending pile of laundry Penelope burst through the door "MOM!!! I HAVE A REALLY BIG SURPRISE!!! COME OUTSIDE!! COME OUTSIDE!!"
I look down at the massive stack of clothes....if I don't finish this now, I'm never going too. "What is it Nelly?" I ask trying to defer me from actually going outside.
"OK MOM OK!! ITS A SNAKE!!!" she exclaims. "We caught it! We caught it!"
This gets my attention. I am picturing the time Nelly was carrying around the dead snake, ah yes and there was also the time that Pixie held the dead lizard for three hours....and I'm realizing that it is very probable that they have caught a snake and I'm wondering how big it is and what kind as I hurdle past the stack of clothes I just folded, tripping and knocking it over, awesome.
Outside I find a very defensive snake in a cardboard box. Pixie holding her "BAA" under her chin slightly tilts her head "Mom, he sooo chute! He nice too he welly welly nice!"
"He can still bite you ya know!" How did you get him in the box??" This is followed by jumbled ramblings of "NO don't grab him!" "Stop now!" "THAT IS A STRIKING POSITION!" and likewise...
"I caught him Mom! I just got my net and swiped him up. Hes a rat snake, and he will be my pet and I will catch him crickets." Pres declares. He is unstoppable with that net.
Although I am worried that by the end of the day someone will be bitten, I am really proud of them. They worked together and caught what could have potentially been a deadly snake (but it wasn't!)now I am on board.
"OK maybe we should get a different container?"
Nelly races to get what used to be the hamster cage (story for a different day)as she runs off something apparently startles the snake. I goes leaping, up, over the side of the box squiggling around on the deck. "BAA" goes flying into the air and Pixie pounces on the snake on all fours!
"STOP!" I yell. I probably should have just let the little guy slither away but I could not face the disappointment the kids would have felt. So what do I do, a split second decision, I too pounce on top of it swiping it up a tossing it is the cage Nelly has just dropped on the deck making our timing impeccable.
Of course at this point, I have to use my phrase "we are just observing, he will be released at the end of the day". They are used to this now and there are no objections.
Thank God.
