A Wee Bit O' Fun

In general, I like to rely heavily upon the genius of others. Through reading all of your amazing blogs I have been able to glean a lot of fabulous suggestions of fun ways to celebrate St. Patrick's Day.

So, this St. Patrick's Day mischievous leprechauns visited the Marshman home.

You will never guess some of the things they did...

Like coloring our toilet water green...

And leaving gold (chocolate, foil covered) coins where they had created mischief.

Adam was home with bronchitis on Monday and because he had taken a long nap Monday afternoon he was restless and unable to fall asleep.

I decided to enlist Adam's help in creating some leprechaun madness. (The jig is already up...Adam has figured out that Mom and Dad help all of the "magic" of the holidays to happen. *sniff*)

When I told him of my plot he said with wide eyes, "You are really smart, Mom!" Thank you, dear blog friends...that seal of approval made me giddy.

First we created leprechaun footprints using Adam's hand.

Adam proved himself to be the perfect partner in crime, partially because, anyone who knows him knows how he loves to celebrate any holiday, major or minor...and partially because his heavy breathing from the bronchitis made our plans seem all the more mischievous and sinister. *chortle*

The kitchen table was transformed into a leprechaun crime scene complete with gold at the end of the rainbow. CVS pharmacy had the perfect gold foil covered chocolate coins.

I decided to leave the, "Pot o' Gold" at the end of the rainbow individually wrapped to stave off early morning fights, er...I mean confusion.

Adam's favorite part was creating mischief and leaving a gold coin at the scene of each leprechaun mess. He turned over kitchen chairs and left gold coins, pulled the couch cushions off of the couch and scattered gold coins there, too. His favorite activity was using food coloring to color the toilet water. After he did this he said, again (I am totally smiling as I type this) "Mom, you are so smart...food coloring was a great idea!" Don't worry, I confessed that I didn't' think of the toilet water on my own.



And then...we were stricken with the most ingenious, most dastardly idea ever...

Make it look like the leprechauns had stepped on members of the family on the way to leave their Pot o' Gold! Brian let out a huge snort when the cold paint touched his skin. Adam and I jumped backward and then froze until we felt it was safe to move again. We had to suppress giggles to ensure that we would not be discovered. (Notice Brian slept in a green T-shirt. He did this to make sure no one pinched him in the early morning. Smart boy. I was *ahem* using the throne, when the bathroom door flew open and Adam pinched me on the arm on St. Patty's Day Morn'. I should have worn green pajamas to bed last night.)

Adam gleefully tore off his shirt and told me to put several footprints on him to show Brian in the morning.

Adam was so wound up it was hard for him to fall asleep once we had finished our preparations. He kept coming into my room after I had sent him to bed to tell me how excited he was. He said with a smile, "Hey Mom, we are the leprechauns of this house." The excitement in his eyes was charming. I smiled back and said in my best Irish accent, "Go to sleep wee leprechaun of this house."

When Evan woke up in the morning we painted him, too to make our case even more believable.

It was magical fun when Brian woke up. He ran into my room to tell us all of the things he had discovered throughout the house. When Mike went out to the kitchen I heard him scold Brian jokingly and loudly, "Look at this mess!! Did you make this mess, Brian?!"

Brian answered him defensively, "No!! It wasn't me...it was the elves!!" Adam and Evan commented to Brian in unison, "Leprechauns, not elves, Brian." On his way to join us for family prayer Brian yelled as he ran down the hall, "I've got my gold!!" It is a wise man that brings his gold to family prayer.

Brian asked me after prayer if leprechauns, "are really real?" I gave him my catch all answer of, "I don't know...what to you think?" Luckily, my answering his question with a question caused him to prattle on about all of the evidence he had just seen as to leprechauns really existing. *Phew*.

I regret to inform the readers of this blog that I was unable to get a picture of Evan with leprechaun tracks on his leg and arm. I asked him if I could take a picture and he said with a smirk, "Oh, I already washed them off...I didn't want my man friends at school to see them."

Man friends? Be still my weary heart.

Happy St. Patrick's Day to all!!