Shenanigans and other such tomfoolery

So, my dear little Bella has many wonderful qualities, however, efficiency is not one of them. Unfortunately, she inherited my sense of punctuality, which means she runs about 15 minutes behind on everything. And that's with my constant prodding. If left to her own devices, nothing would EVER get done! So, why was I not surprised when she got completely ready for school today all by herself? I mean, hair done, dressed, socks, shoes, backpack, waiting downstairs for my okay to run to the bus stop. (I am assuming her teeth were not brushed, though, because usually that requires a breath check. I know that's gross, and moms with only one or two kids are probably gagging right now, like I would have been a few years back. Trust me, you'll get here!) Anyway, she had also informed me that she did NOT want me to walk her to the bus stop, and she did NOT want a kiss. Now, all of this was happening as I was doing the dishes and absently visiting with Jagger about something. I know she had me approve her hair do, but hindsight tells me that she was hiding her body behind the kitchen wall as I was checking her hair. So, promptly at 11:11, so she has exactly enough time to skip off to meet the bus without having to wait (read: without a minute to spare for last minute wardrobe substitutions), I came downstairs to send her out the door and watch her walk to the bus. SHOCK! SURPRISE! DISMAY! HILARITY! I wish I had had the time and a working camera to take a picture of my sneaky little girl's outfit, but try to picture this: 1. Cherry red Gap Product Red t-shirt that says something like Ado(red) in cutesy baby pink lettering 2.Fuchsia pink skirt 3. multi-colored striped leggings 4. no socks 5. brown suede loafers 6. deep turquoise hoodie with soft laura-ashley inspired print in hood and on front applique. 7. bright turquoise Scott Foresman tote bag that came with last year's reading curriculum. .......... If I hadn't been laughing so hard, I probably would have been mad. Bella frequently comes up with funky outfits that she thinks are stylish, but most of the time she ends up looking like a polygamist's daughter. I ALWAYS let her wear her creations around the house, and I NEVER let her go out in public looking ridiculous. Well, my friends, today is the exception! I wish I could be a fly on the wall in her classroom when her teacher sees her - she'll think I've flipped my lid. Or, maybe she'll think I'm out of town and dad was in charge of dressing the children. I swear, not even Shawn would have allowed this one!
Then, I came in the house to discover Jagger crouched on TOP of the kitchen counter like a little frog (sans shirt due to a syrup incident from breakfast), poised and ready to knock several clean pans and glass bakeware off of the counter to their death on the tile floor. Whew, caught just in the nick of time! But, the cat-that-got-the-canary grin on his face, and his so-proud-of-himself laugh were priceless!
No sneakiness to report from Emma, she's much more of a serious gal. But, she has been writing stories lately. It's so fun to see the inner workings of her mind. She's so much like me in that way - very grounded in reality, likes to build on what she knows. And talk about stream of consciousness! One thing flows right into another, but I can tell that to her, at the time, it made sense. I hope she keeps it up - maybe she'll turn into a better journal writer than her mama, and hopefully use that talent to help her sort out all the adolescent girl drama that is to come!