The holidays are over! Now we enter the “dead zone” Only birthdays until the next major holiday; St. Patrick’s day.

No ladies, Valentines day doesn’t count. A holiday so the candy companies have SOME income between Christmas and Easter? A holiday to sell flowers, negligees, jewelry and cards? A holiday with the initials VD?

Got VD?

As men, we have to VD. We have to prove to the women we love, on one day a year, that we love them. But why don’t the things we do on a daily basis, or even on other major holidays count?

Because of the dead zone.

I love our neighbors. They are great, all of them. I love their kids. So when the wife invited them over for an after Christmas “play date”, I had no complaints. And then she left me alone with them to go out shopping.

Luckily, I did not have to work today.

Things were mostly good, but as the day progressed, the younger ones kept “bugging” the older ones, and the older ones kept complaining. It was like a day long, never-ending game of “She’s touching me!” “I’m not touching you” “She’s touching me!”. And then there’s the two year old, who wants to be a part of everything.

So I separated them. I told the older ones, “If you don’t want them bugging you, go up in your room”.
After awhile, the little ones were knocking on the older one’s door. Bugging them.

So I separated them… again.

A little later, the older one came to me and said, “Dad, they won’t stop texting us”. Really? Really!?!
The technological age is great, and I love it, but now I have to stop electronic versions of “She’s touching me!” “I’m not touching you” “She’s touching me!”??? REALLY?!?

The little one just got in trouble. She got into the cabinets in our “library” (living room) where we keep some of the kid’s games and craft activities. One of those activities is a “spa day”, complete with nail polish.

Yep, nail polish.

Not only did she get it on the carpet (thank goodness it’s WHITE), but she also got it on her lips… Two days before Christmas!

I was like, “you’re not supposed to eat it!”