What a weekend. Friday afternoon we found out Cale had another ear infection...which I had been suspecting for days. I'm getting pretty good at predicting specific sicknesses based on his behavior. Clingy to the point of wanting to be held constantly + whiney for no apparent reason + no appetite even on foods normally devoured + Dalebert transformation= ear infection for Cale. Also, the doctor said his infection had made his throat very red and sore plus he has 2 molars and a canine coming in. Nothing like good news to start a weekend! Saturday morning I had a garage sale at my brother and sister-in-law's house. Carl and I had to get up at 5:00 that morning which was brutal for a Saturday. Carl had to take our trailor full of stuff over and I stayed with Cale until he got back. Then, I headed over at about 6:00. Wouldn't you know the one time I have something, besides Cale, that forces me to get up early on a Saturday, Cale decides to sleep in. I mean like, unheard of, 8:00 late. I think he's slept until 8:00 maybe twice in his life and those times were a result of hours of wakefulness and screaming in the night. Oh, to sleep until 8:00. What was that like? How did that feel? It's a distant memory. No bags under my eyes, no, so sleepy I have to go to bed by 9:00. Oh, 8:00, maybe we'll meet again one day. I can dream.

The garage sale was pretty successful. We got rid of all of our big things and what little things were left we took to Marva. So, now we actually have room to park in our garage. You see some strange things at garage sales. A truckful of women...er...men...er...men wanting to be women and actually doing an okay job of playing the part, pulled up. It actually took me a few seconds to realize that they weren't just sweet older ladies. I guess taking horomone supplements can work wonders, if you wanna call it that. I knew they all looked rather...how do I describe it, amazon-ish, and a little unattractive at that. But, it wasn't until I started the conversation, that I knew. All in all, they were very friendly and actually contributed to my garage sale success. Yep, they're now the owners of a white bedspread that reminded one of them of Germany and some baby clothes and stuffed animals for their grandchildren.

I'm so glad to have that garage sale over. It's been hanging over my head each and every time I went into the garage. Cale is glad to have more room to play and drive his little cozy coupe around. I'm telling you, that kid manages to cause more trouble! He loves to sit on Carl's new lawn mower, aka tractor, and somehow he managed to turn the key just enough that the whole battery is dead now.

And mealtime, don't even get me started. Who knew toddlers were so hard to feed? Cale's eating situation is the worst now. He wants junk and more junk and it's hard to not give in. He knows where the cookies are and everytime I open the pantry he says "cookie" and doesn't stop. Literally he does-not-stop, until I give in shamefully and he gets one. Same goes for cheese and Coke. Everytime Carl or I have any Coke, Cale begs and begs for a drink. Forget water, milk, juice...he has a one track mind. He's also been very intersted in our coffee. We keep telling him it's hot (he's obsessed with things being hot and if something is even remotely warm he says "hot" and spits it out) Well, finally I got the idea to let him try some, knowing he would absolutely hate it. I mean, coffee is an acquired taste. It took me months to finally start liking it and probably a year before I trained myself to drink it black. So, one evening after my coffee had sufficiently cooled, past the point that I would even consider drinking it, I offered Cale a drink. I waited for the "yucky" face. I waited for it to be spit out. Instead, he said, "poffee" and tried to get more. I should've known. Now, not only does he ask for Coke but also "poffee".

He doesn't want to drink out of a sippy cup either. I've spent a small fortune on cups for him. I've tried every cup imaginable. My cabinet looks like the toddler cup section of Wal-Mart. We've got tractor sippy cups, sippy cups with handles, Mickey Mouse cups, cups with straws, short cups, tall cups, cups that resemble "big people" cups with straws,...you name it. Ever since I took his special "bot, bot" away...he barely drinks. Now I didn't take it away from him because he loves it, it just had a soft nipple that he was chewing through. And that cup is 7 bucks! We had already gone through 4. So, after toying with the idea for a few weeks, I finally threw the "bot bots" in the trash. I figured that after a few days Cale would adjust. I mean, it's just a cup. He can learn to love another, right? Cale's been an angry smurf ever since. He went from drinking about 30 ounces of milk/day to maybe 10 ounces. It worries me a little, but everyone keeps telling me that he'll drink when he's hungry. I don't think they know Cale. He's the most stubborn little boy ever. He's holding out and I think he still believes he'll win...but I'm not giving in. Even if most mornings when I walk in his room, the cup is lying outside the crib where he chunked it, and still pretty much full of the milk I put in it the night before. I'm telling you, he's so strong willed. I hope we're strong enough for him!