Shenanigans and Adventures in Motherhood

My boys were in rare form on Friday. We had a busy morning of cleaning house. When we finished, I went to get ready to run some errands and take the car to get the oil changed before our weekend away in Fresno. While I was getting ready, Ryan took it upon himself to make sure he and Jack were looking good. As soon as I was out of the shower, Ryan started yelling for me to hurry and see what he and Jack looked like. He excitedly added, "I even gave us haircuts!" As soon as I saw Ryan, I knew I was in trouble. I saw all the freshly cut hair all over the newly cleaned bathroom floor. I yelled for Jack. He came in smiling with his hair wet and slicked down. It didn't look short so I thought it might be okay... until I saw the back.


I yelled at Ryan for using scissors without permission and showed him his hair in the mirror. What had made him proud of himself only moments before was now making him sob and feel embarrassed. He didn't want to leave the house to get an oil change (or eat a donut in the waiting area). I told him to put on a hat and we'd fix his hair later. After I'd calmed down, I asked him for a picture of his hair, explaining that every kid cuts his hair and every kid has an awful picture of what that haircut looked like. He wouldn't go for it or take off the hat. After we had been at the oil change place for a while, I tried again, this time bribing him with a dollar. No dice. He wanted $20. I said no. I suggested a toy car in exchange for a picture. He said sure, as long as it was Lewis, Miguel Camino, or The Queen from Cars 2. Most Cars 2 Cars cost between $3 and $5. I said I'd do it and snapped my picture. He gave me a huge grin and showed off the horseshoe shape he had cut into his hair.


Once I went online to see about the cars, I saw that Ryan had fleeced me. I found The Queen on eBay for $12.95 and that was the best deal. The other cars were no better. A promise is a promise.


After I got my car back, we headed to Jack's Barber Shop where my dad likes to take the boys for haircuts. I showed the boys to Jim the barber and he laughed, the got to work fixing up the boys' hair. While the boys were getting their haircuts, some firemen popped in who were checking out the buildings on the block. They gave the boys stickers and we got to see the ladder truck.


Their shenanigans turned out to be a fun little adventure at the end of the day.


(This was Jack's last shenanigan at the end of the day. He was standing in the sink happily applying band aids to himself.)