No Title Necessary

I was going to do a whole blog on Project Runway, but realized I didnt have all the "presentation materials" I needed at just this very moment. Rest assured, gentle reader, that tomorrow there will be a FULL rundown of Project runway-the good, the bad and the ugly.

Today I will discus ... My mother.
I love her. I do. But my kids have been grounded from her.
My parents live 5 miles away. My mom and dad get to see my boys several times a week.
they love the boys, they spoil the boys.then they bring them back to me. Usually decked out with new toys, snacks or other nonsense that they don't need.

As many of you know, Transformers has been HUGE in our house.
It seems like every week they were coming home with a new transformer, a new toy, a new SOMETHING.
Yesterday My mom and Dad and I, along with my youngest son, went to Lowes to look at more shelving for my table displays.
Before they came to pick us up, this is the conversation I had with Finn:

FINN: Is Gramma coming with us?
ME: Yes she is.
FINN: Im going to ask her to get me Optimus Prime(something or other)
ME: No, Gramma is done buying you toys and stuff. It is not your birthday and it is not christmas. No more toys from Gram, so dont even ask.
FINN:(in a very snooty tone). Well, we will just wait and see, wont we?

WE WILL JUST WAIT AND SEE, WONT WE????keep in mind this child is 4 1/2. I swear I am raising a teenager sometimes.
We went to Lowes. Dad and I wandered the aisles, getting ideas while my mom and Finn wandered around in search of "kid things".
We met up again and Finn says to me, "mom, can Gram and I go pick up Peter from school? Then she says she will take us to Target....(my mom clamps her hand over Finn's mouth at this point and says "oh no, dont you be saying stuff like that!"
Stupid me, I let it drop, assuming that Finn had decided he could bully my mom into taking him to Target, but that If I told her no she would respect my opinion. (fool me once shame on you, fool me 1136 times, shame on me)

After lunch, I was dropped off at my house. Before they left again I specifically said "NO TOYS. They have enough transformers. Finn it is not your birthday and it is not christmas. Dont ask for anything else. You may not get new toys. Please do not ask, you are not allowed to have anything new". Finn started crying. He had it in his head that he was going to Finagle a new transformer out of Gram one way or the other.
I figured that since I had made my wishes known in front of my mom AND dad, that all would be right with the world.
My mom took Finn and picked Peter up from school. She took them to get haircuts. She took them back to her house to play. THEN She took them to Target."Just to look".
When they got home there was a bag with new transformers in it. Finn looked at me. his eyes were narrowed, his lips were pouty. He was shaking his head with a cocky swagger. (kind of like Stewie from Family guy)
I asked "Where did these come from??"

Very honestly and with great snootery(is that a word?) he said "From Target. Gramma bought them for us. I told you she would".(snottery snootery and more snootery)
I looked at my mom and said "What are these?"
she kind of shrugged, gave me a grimace and said(I KID YOU NOT), "I dont know. Gotta go" and ran out the door. She KNEW she had called down the thunder and didnt want to stick around for the storm.
Peter immediately started to backpedal and said, within seconds of me shutting the door and turning around, "It was Finn's Idea." Well Played Peter.

So mom, I love you. The boys love you. But no means no. You are grounded.

Dad, you should have known better. You were there in the car when I told them no more toys. You have the wallet, refuse to hand over the cash, bro! You are usually pretty good about keeping mom in line when I say no. We're you not availible for the Target Excursion? Did you HONESTLY think they were going there "just to look?". Dad, you're grounded.

sigh.