It Must Be The Heat

This weekend my family broke from long-standing tradition and did not celebrate the 4th at my uncle's house, cooking out and setting off fireworks. We (and by "we" I mean Mom and Big Sis) waited until too late and just were not prepared so we couldn't go to VA. It was too late to get hotels and stuff. With the dogs we can no longer stay at my uncle's, there just isn't any room. So we stayed home and that's when the fun really started. The kids and the dogs ran completely wild all weekend. I swear the heat must have driven them insane. It was almost 100 degrees every day. It all started Friday night when we took the Malti-Poo out of the playpen while the Lab was out. Everything was copacetic at first. Lily was on Big Sis's lap playing with her. Austin was running around with the kids. Then I started playing with Lily (mistake #1). The was trying to get down so I put her on the floor so she could jump around my feet (mistake #2). Next thing I know, this simple dog has taken off running and is being chased by Austin. Everyone's running and screaming and trying to get the dogs. Big Sis and Little Brother are making a mad grab for Austin. Myself and Big M (10 y/o niece and owner of Lily) are trying to grab Lily, who's acting all squirrelly. We finally corral them and Big M makes a mad dash for the stairs with Lily, where she proceeds to read me the riot act for "almost getting Lily KILLED!" Oh, the drama. Where was Mom during all of this? She ran. The woman ran upstairs because she "didn't want to see the carnage."
Saturday was our little adventure at the mall. Long story short, Little M ran wild. I'm talking one of those nightmare kids you see in the mall and stuff and you're just like "where are the parents?" She knocked over displays, fell while chasing after Little Bro outside of Mrs. Fields, and had to be removed from Bath and Body Works before she destroyed it. But the highlight came in the Limited. She hates to be left behind and her favorite word (coming in second after mine) is wait, which is usually screamed out shrilly at the top of her lungs. After tearing through The Limited for almost an hour, Big M and Younger Sis left to go to another store. Little M goes tearing out of The Limited screaming WAAIIIIIIT!! She's running across the hall, Big Sis (her Mom) is chasing her, and everyone in The Limited and within hearing distance outside of it is staring. Big Sis catches her, picks her up, and brings her back into the store, doing the whole laughing/head shaking bit you see from people when their kids act crazy in public. At that point I told them I would catch up with them after I finished shopping.
Sunday was water mania. We have no pool (quelle horreur) so the kids play in the sprinklers and with the hose. The Ms, Little Bro, and Younger Sis engaged in a full blown water war. I'm talking the hose on full blast and Little Bro slammed against the French doors practically drowning in water, clawing at the doors trying to get to safety. It was madness. They were running and screaming and trying to out soak each other. At one point I locked them outside because they started getting water inside the house. And this, boys and girls, is why we only signed a short-term lease. We need a much bigger house. Also, a tranquilizer gun wouldn't hurt. Ahh, good times.