okay, maybe the previous post needs a brief explanation.  

Since dan has been on this second/third shift, the kids have been in a great routine of going to bed on time.  Dominic, though, has become a bit of an early riser.  Well, the first one up, at least.  I, on the other hand, have never been staying up, consistently, so late in my life! (Well, maybe those college days!)  So mornings are harder than ever for me, and I tend to wake up slow.

Not DD.  He's out of bed, ready to go.

More than once, I've been aroused from sleep to hear:

"Rose! Get up! Rose! Rose!"

He used to sneak in our room, and ask to watch Curious George, in which his request was usually granted.  He used to sneak in and tell me he was hungry, in which his request was granted, 'in a few minutes.' But at least when he came in, my spidy senses were alerted that I had a kid wandering around, and to use my keen listening for the unusual while trying to catch a few more zzzzs.

But the past couple weeks, either I'm too sleepy to know he sneaks in anymore, or he just doesn't bother to come to me.  I don't always here him get up, so he's got free reign while he's the only one up.

And I think he knows it!

Maybe it all started when they built this 'house'.  The put pillows and a rubbermaid container lid around the end table by the chair in our house, and it's been dd's house.  He loves it, and they all have a good time playing.

Well, first it was the candy.  DD would wake up, unbeknownst to me, and wander in the kitchen.  Somehow, he'd find candy, and eat it.

I would see wrappers, or smell it on his breath, and he got punished.  

Next day, same thing.

Next day, he started getting sneakier.  I saw him exiting his house when I woke up, and he looked suspicious.  I forget what I asked him, about candy, and he said he didn't have any. ok.

Later that morning, he went in the house for a while, came out, and was jumping on my back, giving me a hug.  A very grape-scented breath hug.  The poor kid is so concrete, I think our conversation when something like this:
'Oh, DD. Do you have any candy?'

'no.'

'Not in your pockets. I mean, did you take any candy?'

'no.'

'Where's your candy, dd?'

'In there.  See, I have this and that...'

Ugh!

So he was hiding it in the house.  Out went all the candy, in the trash.

Then later that afternoon, I went in the frig to get lunch and find yogurt missing, and m&m bags misplaced, and my favorite a dozen or so chicken bullion cubes 'hiding' in a little space on the middle shelf.  One plainly open and manipulated.  DD proudly showed them to me.  I had the jar of cubes on the counter, and I guess he thought they needed refrigerated!  I asked if he tried one and if he liked it!  no.

Ok, so candy, and food.  I get it, he's hungry.  I put his cereal out the night before now. So when he wakes up, he can eat.  The first day I did that, I slept in way late.  I was dozing in and out of sleep, overhearing the kids play.

'no, that's my guy.'

'But dd, my guy needs a ???'

'no, he's my guy.'

'I can give you this for your guy.'

'no, he's my guy.'

rose kept trying every angle to persuade, and dominic stood firm (playing playmobil's i later found out).  Well, I kept waiting, and waiting.  Usually arguments like this end with Rose moaning dreadfully because dd hit her (too much persuading).  Or dd crying because Rose took something, or hit him.

But not that morning.  It happened a few times, and I kept waiting for the moaning. But no tears!

The one that's beyond me, though, is the morning dd was up.  I heard him, i guess, and got up to see him exiting his house, once again with a very guilty look.  Why is this still happening!! We threw the candy out!!!  Then I look in his house.  There's my 8" serrated bread knife on the floor.  Hmm.  I had to remain calm.  If I get the least bit excited when asking dominic about this stuff, he lies.  So I'm calm, and say, 

'so what's going on here, dd'

'I got your knives.'

I look up.  My knife block is empty.

A bit firmer,

"so why did you take my knives, dd?"

"Well...I was messin, and just climbed up and got your knives and put them in my house.'

"How did you get up there"

I thought he'd say by pushing a chair over, but he pointed to the drawers and said with those.

I (stupidly) told him to put the knives on the counter.  He did.  I asked if they were all up there, he said yes. I told him to make sure.  He forgot a few steak knives, and was obviously tickled that there were three more knives down there! and laughed and showed them to me.  

Yeah, i was not amused.

I actually wasn't so worried about Dominic hurting himself.   I have no clue what would possess him want all my knives.  I guess I'm just glad I woke up when I did, before he got board and wanted to so something with the knives, or worse, have the other kids around them too.

Well, as a result, I didn't throw my henkle knives away, but dd and I had a nice looong talk about knives and climbing and he was punished.  DD's 'house' is no more.

And we're looking into getting a replacement gate for our kitchen entry, which, in the past, has bought us more peace of mind than we realized!