Bleah! Spider!

Look at the amazingly big spider I found in the basement yesterday!


It was quite icky. I was kneeling down to check on the furnace, and almost put my knee on it. While I think I would have won, it wouldn't have been pleasant. The kids were proud of the fact I caught it, and even found a place in the backyard to put it. Bleah! Glad it's gone!

Pumpkin Patch 2010

Summer has gone on for what feels like forever around here, but the forecast is saying fall might really be here to stay this week. The leaves are turning and the hillsides are taking on a golden hue. In taking advantage of the warm weather, we decided to brave the Colorado pumpkin patches last weekend. It was a breeze! Unlike last year, the pumpkin crop was a good one. The evenings have been above freezing so far (just barely last night), we've had no snow yet, and almost no rain all summer. Really, there weren't any reasons that the pumpkin patch should be a muddy, yucky mess this time around!

We headed out right after soccer (which explains Caitlin's shirt). It was warm and dry, and not cold. Last year we looked at several hundred pumpkins (no exaggeration there) in order to find a few that weren't rotten. This year the good ones outnumbered the rotten ones by a wide margin. What a nice difference. We still got a little dirty. That one seems hard not do around these parts. But we came home with two nice pumpkins, and two happy children. I'm hoping that now Caitlin will stop asking to get a pumpkin every time she sees one at the store.

Last Day of Soccer (!!!)

Oh yes, it's the last day of soccer, and we are happy! The kids aren't thrilled, but mom and dad are looking forward to having our Saturday's back for a while. Mom is also looking forward to not hanging out at the park every Thursday night from 5:30-6:30, sweating while the sun's up and then freezing for 15-20 minutes because the sun has gone behind the Flatirons and, once again, she forgot a sweater.

Today was payback for last weekend, when we only had one game. At 11:00 am. It was a leisurely morning. Today was not the same story. Both kids had games at 9:00 am. It was cold, and the fields were very wet. Fall has arrived, and we could feel it today. On the bright side, we had the whole day available to us after 10:00! It was a very.long.day.

The kids have had a great soccer season. Both want to do it again in the spring. I'm all for signing them up again. But I'm reclaiming Saturdays for a while!

Above - Caitlin demonstrating the pack mentality of playing soccer that is so prevalent in the Little Kickers division.

Over Analysing the Doctor

I read The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Suess to Caitlin this afternoon. Her choice, not mine. It's not my favorite book. At least it's an easy read. But now, as a parent, I find it a little odder than I did as a kid. I know it's just a book, but I find it strange that in the book there are two little kids left at home all afternoon. Now I'm also worried that the fish is the voice of reason. Maybe I should just read, and not analyse.

Tired

I knew I was tired yesterday. MOPS mornings always wear me out. Maybe it's the early hours, or helping clear things up after the meeting, but I felt drained. Brian was in Seattle most of last week, meaning I was more tired than usual. Our neighbor was gone to California for 5 days, meaning I needed to take and pick up Brandon from school (which, although not exhausting, takes up some extra time in the morning). Caitlin's school was closed for three days last week due to a Lutheran teachers conference, taking away 8 hours that I usually have to myself to do things. I spend a good chunk of the weekend working on the MOPS newsletter because of that. Last night I went to a women's event at church. But it was early this morning, when I put on my glasses and realized the world had gone from clear to blurry, I really knew I was tired.

I don't even know the last time I didn't take my contacts out at night because I forgot. Maybe I never have. I use to have the kind you wore at night, but they bothered my eyes so much when I wore them overnight that I eventually started taking them out in the evenings. In Colorado it's so amazingly dry, especially in the winter, that there are days I can't wear them past 4:00 or 5:00 in the evening. I was so confused this morning when I put on my glasses and everything went blurry. I hadn't been awake long enough to register how clear I was seeing. I didn't want to wake up, so I hadn't turned a light on at all. So much for finally being use to my 6:00 am mornings.

It's funny how it's the little things that wear you down. There was no big event going on. Nothing major happened to me last week. Brian was gone most of the week, and single parenting is always tiring. I wonder if single parents ever get use to it? Our neighbor was gone for 5 days, so I took Brandon to school. Not only does that mean getting Caitlin up early, but then there's the exhaustion of pulling her away from the swings after the bell rings for class. With Caitlin's school closed for several days and no available play dates (trust me, I tried!), I spent more time than usual entertaining her when I needed to get other things done. The weekend included soccer, dinner at a friend's house, finishing the MOPS newsletter, our small group, and a newcomers lunch. You'd think I would have gotten enough sleep due to oversleeping by an hour on Sunday! Saturday morning wasn't so bad, either. But a bunch of little things combined are enough to wear a person down. I'm still feeling tired, and it's 9:00 am! Obviously I should get off the computer and get my rear in gear.

I'm grateful for the cold, rainy weather today. Fall is here. Playing outside after school is limited, which means homework and AWANA memorization is done earlier. The kids bedtimes come earlier. And from how this post sounds, I should make mine a little earlier, too.

Punk

Caitlin got her hair spray painted at Brandon's school's fundraiser event last week. Doesn't she look a little punk?

How to Not Be a Dragon

This is how it's suppose to be worn.
After all, it's a size 12 months.


This is how it was being worn the other day.


I just hope it isn't all stretched out.

Brandon Stats - Age 7

Brandon had his 7 year check-up today. All is well in Brandon-land. He is now up to a whopping almost 4 feet tall, and weighs in at just over 47 pounds. Brian was busy today, so only Brandon and I went to the pediatrician's office. I can't remember the last time that happened! It's so much calmer with just one child.

Height - 47 3/4 inches (50th percentile)
Weight - 47 1/4 pounds (25th percentile)

He's back in the 25th percentile in weight. It doesn't seem to matter how much he eats. Caitlin has a much more varied palate as far as food is concerned, but Brandon eats better. He eats more, and we don't usually have to get on him to eat a decent amount at each meal. This year he has discovered the joys of hot dogs (okay - it's a mystery meat. I get that. But at least it's something he can eat at a picnic or BBQ) and granola bars. He's still growing, and I'm still struggling with finding clothes that fit him, and least girth-wise. He is widening his circle of friends at school. He's always been on the shy side, so this is a good sign.

Other things Brandon is up to:

• Playing soccer again, for the fall season. We're much warmer this time around.
• Making new friends.
• Reading at the top of his class
• Wrapping his mind all around math and science. At this rate, we aren't going to be able to keep up with him in a few more years.
• Swims all by himself, thanks to a week in Florida.
• Waters his Daddy's tomato and rosemary plants.
• Exploring "Star Wars" (but not yet obsessed with it!)
• Can be very sensitive and caring with others. This is displayed especially well in his tenderness towards our neighbor's little baby (born in January), and his niceness to her older brother, who is 3.
• Acting in all other ways like a 7 year old. Compared with the other boys he hangs out with, he seems much more mature. Time will tell, I guess, but that's what I see.

Fall

Around 4:00 am, in the early morning hours, I got cold. My sheet and quilt, which have been far too many covers for most of this summer, were not enough. I tried to snuggle up to Brian, but he was already cocooned in the bedding, leaving little warmth for me to glean from him. I got up, finally, and shut the window.

Cold.

I haven't felt that for a while.

Summer came early this year. It was hot in May. Early May was cool. We even had snow on the 12th. But after that, it was hot, and it stayed hot. My May pictures show children running through sprinklers. Children in bathing suits. The town pools were not yet open, and we were hot! Summer was hot, too. Not as hot as parts of California can get, but hot. Air conditioners running. Cool showers. At least a third of the summer days were in the mid 90's, and didn't cool down in the evenings. 75 is not a nighttime cool down in my opinion. The issue you run into in Colorado is that the sun is intense. That's great in the winter, when you crave the warmth of the sun. In the summer, though, it makes your skin crawl. I seek shade so that my arms don't hurt. Summer isn't my favorite season. My allergies get worse the hotter it gets. I have headaches that last for days. I don't sleep well. I try to appreciate it here, as it's the only time Colorado is green and looks alive.

But now..... it's cool.

Brian noted that it was suddenly cold last night. I smiled. I am so looking forward to fall. I am looking forward to the busyness of the season. The busyness of routine. School, events, soccer, activities. Some is old and much is new. I'm looking forward to fall colors - even though they lead to the barrenness of winter in these parts. Fire reds, hot pinks, brilliant oranges, muted browns. So beautiful. I'm looking forward to sleeping with my windows closed. Silence. Snuggling under the down comforter. Fireplace. Cool days. Open windows during the day. Happy children. Being able to bake again. I am looking forward to the big, fluffy clouds that have been absent (along with the rain) this summer. I look forward to the possibilities that recent changes will bring. It's a new start. A new season. Cool, crisp air to breath in and breath out.

On Having a 7 Year Old

I have a 7 year old. It's wonderful. He gets up (most of the time) to his alarm clock. He can get dressed all by himself. He reads, he writes, he's independent and friendly. He walks to school. He plays soccer. He divides numbers in his head, and has a theory for how everything works.


He also waits patiently by his presents until it's time to open them.

Happy Birthday Brandon!!!

School Celebration

Since there's no school tomorrow, Brandon's class celebrated his birthday today. I didn't manage to catch all their birthday song, but what I got is cute. Brandon loved being celebrated!

Unanswered

We joined a small group at our new church. Last night was our first meeting, and everyone seemed pretty low-key and normal.  I'm resisting the urge to assign a value factor to this first meeting, but I did get a positive vibe from the experience.  We'll be heading back in the near future to meet up with them again and see if this is the right small group for us.

But that's not the point of this post. For a few months now, we've been in the process of "moving on" from our previous church to a new church. Joining the new small group was just one piece of trying to make this puzzle. Prior to joining FCC, we weren't thinking about leaving our LifeGroup. At least not yet. But the new small group met on the same day, same time as our previous LifeGroup, and we can't be two places at once. Deciding to be pro-active about the situation (since we'd never heard anything one way or another about our old LifeGroup starting back up again this fall), Brian sent an e-mail to the leader last week, on Sunday. He explained that we'd left CBC and joined another church over the summer, and that we were joining a small group there. Coincidentally, but for another reason, I had sent an e-mail to another member of the group explaining the same thing. Our e-mails were polite and nice. We read each other's messages. No edge at all. It's been over a week, and we have never heard anything back.

Nothing.

Not even the polite sort of "sorry to see you go" response. The kind you send even if you aren't sorry to see someone go. Just... nothing.

Crickets chirping can be so loud.

We're not really all that surprised to have heard nothing. Brian decided last night that we need to stop feeling sad or offended about it, and keep pushing forward. Maybe, he said, God is using their lack of response to our leaving the group as a means to reinforce the reasons we're leaving and moving on. Even though this complete lack of response is hard, I don't have any more energy to pour into this situation. I'm so tired. I'm exhausted.

I've tried not to take this lack of connecting in a meaningful way personally, which is very, very hard for me not to do. I read a quote today that said "It doesn't take long to realize that if you're just passing through, people will only give you passing interest." It resonated with me, but not quite in the way the author intended. We are not just passing through here. We are trying to be part of this big, rather unfriendly place. We are trying to enmesh ourselves in community, choosing to be with people and live as believers. It's not as if we were just passing through at our church, either. We were there for several years. When we came to the realization sometime around Christmas that we were still outside, we had to make some hard decisions. And the main decision was that we needed to move on. At that point I started to withdraw myself from the the communities I was part of. I stopped attending MOPS (which I was only sporadically attending anyway), and finished out the semester of my Bible study small group on Wednesday mornings. We attended church as long as our LifeGroup met, and stopped when it ended for the summer. Now we are somewhere else. Colorado is fine, but has so far proven to be a tough nut to crack. I have to believe that God has good things in store for our future, but I have no idea what they are or where they'll take place. Who knows how we'll feel in another year. The same? I hope not.

**On a side note, I need to stop writing about this. I've come to the conclusion that I'm a complainer at heart, which is something I need to change. And, at this point, I'm just complaining. It's taken over a week for me to push the "publish" button. Sorry for one more post on this subject, but I have to get it out.**

Soccer, Soccer and More Soccer

Two kids in soccer is just, well, crazy.

Caitlin and her buddy, Mia. They go to preschool together, carpool together, and love playing together.

Moving On.........

I've been part of a large women's Bible study at our old church in Boulder for 3 years now. You all know how much I loved it (not). You're all aware of how I was told by my two small group leaders that I had anger management issues, and that is (their reasoning) why I was catching so many colds over the winter. What you may not know is that one of those leaders now leads the entire women's group, which has been hard for me. I'm not into listening to all her "pearls of wisdom" each Wednesday morning. I've built up a wall, I guess. I'd like to just show up late to the larger group to avoid her "teaching", but feel guilty taking Caitlin to the child care rooms an hour after class has begun. I've also been having an aversion to people using the words "lovely ladies" and "precious" in every other sentence. Thanks to only a few people, my time with this group wasn't precious. It was hard.

So, last year I spent many hours searching for other women's groups, or mom's groups, anywhere in a 10 mile radius of my house. The population gets bigger as you head south towards Denver, so I thought that a group wouldn't be hard to find. I was wrong. Days were wrong, hours were off, studies were extremely involved (I'm not there yet). I found a lot that met in the evenings, but with no childcare, I was out. Brian travels too much for that. I felt stuck. Not wanting to stay home alone all the time, I went back to my regular women's group, but wasn't a big fan of the larger group aspect - or the group leaders, for that matter. One is the former group leader mentioned above, the other is someone who acts so friendly in public, but no where else. It's so fake with her that even Brian's noticed (and he thinks it's rude). I was so undecided that I didn't make the decision to return until the day before the group began. But return I did. My desire to not be alone all the time once again won out. My small group was wonderful, but the larger group didn't thrill me as much. I was torn again this summer - do I return, do I not bother - until another option came up. Our new church! Last week I signed up for a women's Bible study. Gasp! You're all shocked, I know. She made a decision! Same day of the week, same time, new church. I don't know anyone, and that's fine right now.

I had pondered returning to CBC for the women's group all summer. We were attending RCC for three months. It had a Bible study coming up in fall, but when I was told how many hours per day it involved at home each week, I wasn't thrilled. Even with my few hours per week to myself, I'm still a stay-at-home mom with young kids. Also, it was on a day that I have preschool carpool duty, so that would always be a factor on how long I could stay. I decided, reluctantly, with some pain, that I would probably go back to CBC on Wednesday mornings. *sigh* But now I have another option. Once I signed up at FCC, I had a sad little thought of all the people that I knew that I'd be leaving behind. I sighed internally, and felt a little forlorn, even though I'm the one doing the leaving. But then I realized this - I'm not leaving behind any great friendships. Not even any budding friendships (if they haven't budded in the last few years, they're probably not going to). I'm only leaving behind acquaintances and familiarity. It's not like I saw any of these people over the summer. Of course, I never called, either.

In all reality, much of this is my fault. After opening myself up, being vulnerable, and then being harshly criticized, I shut down. I stopped letting people in. I complained a lot (mostly to myself, God and Brian, but still...). I regret staying with my first small group and not trying out something different. By doing this I think I just simmered in my mad juices for too long. And while I don't consider myself a quitter, I have come to a point in my life in which I will quit something I view as futile. If it has an end date, I will usually continue until that end, and then stop. But either way, I quit. In this case, I guess I should consider it "moving on" instead of quiting. In as much as I'm a fan of familiarity, there's nothing to be sad about here. I have no idea what this new group is like, and I'm not out to make fast friends this time(although I wouldn't push them away), and I'm okay with all of that. The study, at least, seems promising. It's fresh. It's new. If nothing else, it's something that's moving me in the right direction. "Moving on....."

Howler

My child is weird. In case you were unaware of that fact, here's the video to prove it:


She didn't know we were watching her until the end. It appears that she is a feral child. What does that say about us?

First Day of School

Today was the first day of school for both kids. Talk about a crazy morning! Brian woke up early and just couldn't go back to sleep. He left for work at 6:00 am, leaving me to get myself and two children up and ready for school in the morning. Now, I've done this before more times than I can remember, but it's been a few months. It was a little stressful. It wasn't until after I got home from Caitlin's school that I discovered my coffee cup - still 3/4 full. It's a rare occasion that I forget about my coffee. Anyway, although Brandon has been so excited about school starting up again, he was not happy about getting up early. Nor was he happy about the slightly cold temperature of the house (it was 69 inside), which lead to many a shed tear. Caitlin was completely conked out, and didn't wake up even when her door was left wide open. This girl usually wakes up when someone breathes anywhere near her room! Luckily for me, she's the easy one in the morning. She wakes up happy, which is good because I had to scramble this morning to get everyone up and ready on time! Brandon, on the other hand, wakes up moody, and is also my cuddly, snugly boy. I get him up earlier in the morning than most of his friends get up so that so he gets all the snuggle time he needs before getting ready for school. Caitlin likes her snuggle time and all, but she can deal with it if it has to end a little earlier than normal. Brandon can't.

After many tears, getting dressed, and breakfast, we headed out. It's chaotic at the school on the first day. In many cases, entire families come the school. Moms, dads, grandparents........ Maybe this is normal everywhere, but my kids haven't done school in other places, so I don't know. Although we'd talked with his teacher for a whole 20 seconds on Monday, I still couldn't find the art door or the chair with her name on it (signaling where the kids should line up). Other parents seemed to know where to go, so I followed them. Brandon couldn't see it, and was close to tears. "What if I can't find my teacher?" Using my super-mommy powers, I managed to quell the tears and get him calmed down. The scene at the school was noisy and crowded. Mommy can deal. Brandon can't.

Finally all the second graders walked into the school building at 7:55. We were free! Caitlin and I had half an hour, so we headed back home to grab her lunch and her "All About Me" poster before heading off to her school in Boulder. It was all calm and serene this time around. The preschoolers were all so happy to be in school. With only two classrooms, there was not the mob of children we had previously experienced. Caitlin was thrilled to see all her friends in the same place again. I managed to say my goodbyes and leave her without so much as a sniffle. Such a difference! First days of school are hard, but I have a feeling Caitlin won't be as worked up as Brandon is when she isn't completely in control.

Meet The Teacher

Let me first say this - whoever thought it would be a good idea for all 600 students at Brandon's school to meet their new teacher and bring in school supplies on Monday, from 2:00-2:30, should be shot. Half an hour? All the students? Maybe I'm just crazy for assuming that I should go, but go we did.

We decided not to drive. Although we only live half a mile from the school, all the road construction in our area this summer has made walking difficult. Sidewalks and walking paths have been closed for months, and there has been no bike lane, and there are cones and pillons all over the place - so this was a big decision. Caitlin assured me that she could ride her bike up the hills. She does at home and I've witnessed it, so I believed her. She lied. Other families also not driving managed to take up the entire sidewalk, making it hard to go past. Caitlin almost took out a couple of families! One entire side of the street was closed, crowding us all on to one sidewalk. Caitlin couldn't get on her bike fast enough to be with us when it was time to cross the street, so she'd end up not crossing when we crossed........ It was so much more of a nightmare than I could have imagined. I think riding bikes to school is not in my future. At least not my immediate future.

Even with all the chaos, I'm still glad we decided not to drive, as the school and all surrounding streets were inundated with cars. The school really only has enough parking for the teachers. Maybe they assume everyone will walk. It is Colorado, after all. There are only about 50 spaces available, which makes the days we need to drive to school (like, when it's snowing, or 10 degrees below zero) very difficult. We managed to crowd into the school and find Brandon's classroom. I had labeled almost everything (just like we had to in first grade), and yet most of it was put into big bins. I guess everyone will know what I bought. Brandon's classroom had a cozy, warm ambiance to it, which was nice. One other classroom felt this way, but the other two were stark. His teacher seemed very nice, and we got to see which classmates we already knew.

I am very much looking forward to school starting. The kids are starting to go stir-crazy, and are driving me crazy in the process. Brandon starts tomorrow at 7:55, and Caitlin starts at 8:30. I'm sure I'll be busy getting everything ready tonight. Tomorrow, at 8:45 am, it will all be worth it!

Yay! School!

School starts tomorrow! I'm not sure who is more excited - me or the kids. I'm so excited to have breathing room during the week, and the ability to work on some stuff for my new MOPS group. Brandon's happy to meet his new teacher today, and excited to start the school year learning and studying cycle again. But Caitlin woke up this morning just hoping desperately that it was the first day of school. She might be the most excited. Tomorrow, honey, tomorrow.

New Church?

Our search for a new church home and community is no secret here. It's been well documented in this blog. We left our church in Boulder after almost 3 years and set out this summer to find a new one. Although we like the pastor, worship, and in general think the people of CBC are friendly enough (at least with each other), we weren't connecting. I've done a small group, playgroups, get togethers, MOPS, Bible study, Sunday classes, and church, and still leave there without chatting about anything more substantial than the weather. After 3 years of striving to connect and feel like we are part of something, it's frankly just gotten old. We're suppose to want to be with God's people, aren't we? Seriously- we're not not looking for people to share our deep, dark secrets with. We just want to connect and have community. I feel like a piece of me is missing by not having this. We've tried a few churches, and didn't get excited about them. We settled on RCC, a small, local church in the hopes that the location of not only the church, but also the attendees, would be a good thing. We like the pastor. But we're now 3 months in, and nothing. No one even bothers to talk to us. It feels like we've crashed someone else's party. If I hadn't been tried to be part of 6-week women's Bible study this summer, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't know anyone's name. Honestly, for church of its size (100 to 150 people maybe?), that's unacceptable.

So, yesterday we tried a new church. Although we were going to re-evaluate our situation in the fall, something spurred us on this soon. Possibly the fact that it really looked interesting from the website, or not feeling at all connected at RCC after 3 months, or the false friendliness we encountered by someone from CBC that we see quite regularly? Is it because I'm at the three year mark in this area, and I tend to re-evaluate at three years? I tend to want to move, also, which is another post altogether. Whatever it was, it was enough to turn our hearts toward trying something new. And..........

We liked it.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We found a church online last week that looked promising. We headed 10 miles south this time, instead of the same distance north, and found the whole experience to be positive. The drive isn't bad (and you have to drive, drive, drive around here). The church is housed in a set of theatres - an older movie theatre complex in a strip mall. The sanctuary is a large theatre, with the kids stuff being housed in other, smaller theatres or some of the neighboring strip mall units. It's quite amazing what they've done with it all. Our old church in California met in the theatre of a high school, with the classes being scattered amongst the classrooms and other buildings. I felt oddly at home yesterday in the middle of the chaos, theatre-style seating and distance between the classes. I liked that fact that the church was large, with at least 300 people in the service - and we went to the second service. I liked the worship - it was wonderful! So much more to our liking and not painful or hard to sing along. Brian really liked the worship leader, which is always good, and we both liked the sermon. It left me thinking, not lacking. The kids seemed to enjoy their respective classes as well. Brandon's class had a "game room", which opens 20 minutes before class starts. I hope he doesn't like his class just because it had Mario Kart for the Wii and an enormous blow-up slide! (Both are in the game room, which is only open between services)

It's hard to gauge from one attendance how the future will look. The people seemed nice, casual, and had a wide age range. Although we're just looking for a place to attend right now, I also want to find a place where we fit in and a place to serve. I think it's important for me and important to model service for my children. I suffered from some serious service burn-out before after moving here, but feel like I'm recovering well and starting to put it all behind me.

We'll try it again next week and see what we think. We've tried a boat load of places, and haven't been this interested in returning to a place for a while. Well, really since we went to CBC three years ago. So, we'll see how it goes this time around. Brandon and Caitlin both showed more interest in their classes than they have in a long time, although Caitlin really missed her teacher at CBC (I had to convince her that she would be moving to a different class anyway this year). It could be the place we've been looking for.

On Scammers

I got my first "relay call" for a Craiglist item today. The relay service is when someone who has a hearing problem types their questions/responses to a relay operator, and that operator talks to the hearing person on the other end. I thought it was strange that he called, since anyone who is interested in my Craigslist items can just e-mail the advertisement. It was also a San Diego number - I'm in Colorado (could have been a cell phone. One never knows). The third red flag was the fact that he'd seen my "advert" on Craigslist. Advert? So I'm getting calls from a deaf British person who hasn't changed his cell phone to a local number? I mean, it is possible. I live near a university which educates students from all over the world. But, then again, no.

He was interested in my tricycle. It's a nice tricycle. Caitlin's had a great time with it for the last few years. But this guy was really interested in it. Very excited! After I gave him one of my e-mail addresses through the relay service, he send me a note. His hold on the English language was loose, at best. His e-mail was full of typos and didn't pluralize most words that needed it. For example, he lived "many state away". Hmmm..... On top of it all, he wanted to send me a cashier's check or money order and have me ship it to Massachusetts. To sweeted the deal, he'd add an extra $10, along with the shipping costs. Wow! $10. I don't sell things on Craigslist because I'm desperate for cash. I sell them because we no longer need them. The cash is nice, too.

I sold two other items on Craigslist today. Both were local moms looking for a good deal on a used toy. One had a local number, the other did not. Both set up times to stop by and pick up what I was selling. The one who e-mailed me didn't have typos in her e-mail, and seemed to have a good handle on the English language. No red flags there. This is my typical type of sale - to local who stops by to pick up the item, or I meet them in a public place. I know scammers are everywhere. You hear about them on the news or talk shows, and read about it online. I just can't figure out who would fall for one like this. Did he do a relay call so I wouldn't hear his voice? Why didn't he just e-mail me? Is he dumb? Obviously, I didn't ship the trike. I was polite in my refusal e-mail, and didn't respond further. He send me a couple more, begging me to send the trike again, but stopped after that. I'm still curious as to why he wanted to scam me using a tricycle ad? I guess scammers want my money. No from this girl. Sorry.