May 24, 2009

The Green Giants



I spent Saturday morning scrubbing the inside of the house from top to bottom while my husband and the kids tackled the rainforest that was growing in our backyard.

Just as I stood back to marvel at the miracle of my accomplishment--a kitchen floor so clean I could and did lick--two jolly green giants burst through the back door and wiped their hands on their shirts...but not before touching every surface within arm's reach.

"We need to wash our hands and feet," they said together.

That was an understatement.

I directed one giant to side on the step in the garage while I carried his brother to the bathtub upstairs. After delivering Twin A to the bathroom, I returned to the kitchen to find Twin B lying on his stomach on my kitchen rug, petting the cat. A long trail of wet grass clippings and green handprints marked his journey from the garage to the bathroom, to the dining room, to the stairs, back through the dining room, and to the pantry, where finally he found a granola bar and a hungry cat.

"I thought I told you to stay in the garage!" I shrieked.

"It's too yuck out there," the giant complained. "I didn't want my shorts to get dirty."

14 comments

Jen@Scrapingirl said...

I often wonder why we even bother to clean. It never stays clean for more than an hour, if we're lucky. And, don't get me started on mopping....

Kelly said...

Hilarious! In a looking back on it kind of way : )

Connie said...

What's that quote? "Cleaning the house when you have children is like shoveling the walk during a blizzard"...or something like that!

If he didn't want to get his shorts yuck in your garage, makes me wonder what your garage looks like! :-) (like mine!)

Kiki said...

that's crazy! i just went through all of that yesterday. hubby has been out of town for two weeks and we have had tons of rain. our front and back yards were covered in tall weeds and fire ant hills. our fears of getting bitten or stepping in dog doodoo have kept us inside. after he mowed my son's toes and crocs, and the dog's paws were all green. disgusting! have a wonderful day and take care.
-Kiki

Strong Family - said...

That is why I clean on Monday...after everyone is back at work and school. :-)

The Yockey Family said...

OMG..the same exact thing happened to me yesterday. I spent two hours cleaning my kitchen and floors. I was SO PROUD! No more then 10 minutes later...my husband and two year old son came running through the house covered in grass after playing in a freshly mowed yard with the water hose...seriously :) Needless to say, he owes me.

Gina said...

Must have been the weekend for it...I posted about something similar today!

Karen said...

OH! It would have been nice to have TWO SECONDS to enjoy all your hard work. How much trouble did hubby get in for sending them in that way instead of hosing them off outside?

A Musing Mother said...

How funny! Children leaving a path of destruction is exactly what I blogged about last night. Is it the season? No. It's a constant battle.

Foursons said...

AHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!- This is only funny because it's at your house and not mine. I would have turned into some sort of manic, crazy, yelling, beast if it was at my house.

Amy said...

lol... sounds like a typical day at my house! I swear, I won't have a clean kitchen floor until my dogs die and my kids move out.

Unknown said...

I love it!! Why is it that when we have the best intentions our little ones have other plans. I have cleaned up all sorts of messes made in one room while I was making great progress in another. I think it is counter productive to do anything other than to spray disinfectant everywhere and hope no one comes to visit.

K~ said...

I go home during lunch on the cleaning lady days just so I can see my clean house with nobody else home dropping toys and food crumbs!

lishajeanne said...

Seriously. I often wonder exactly how their little brains work. That is funny!