It takes ONE boy

It takes ONE boy who refuses to stay on the main floor of the house.

It takes ONE boy to make a 15 minute job take ONE hour to accomplish.

Take: one boy
Take: three wrapping paper containers
Take: all the wrapping paper and bags stored throughout the house
Place in one area.
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off.

Sort neatly into piles.
Add one boy.
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off.

See piles go astray.
Re-sort piles and make a new one....these will be sold in garage sale.
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off.

See boy empty one wrapping paper container, carelessly tossing paper hither and yon.
See boy grins.
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off.

ADD : Three favourite stuffies (who, like the boy, want to explore EVERYTHING).
Three stuffies into piles, containers, laps, paper.
See them nose dive into gift bags and travel.
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off (while hiding in a bag none-the-less).

See tissue paper fly through air.
Decide tissue paper is best placed behind you away from boy.
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off.

See Container lid used as launching pad INTO said container.
Listen to boys' chortles of joy.
Add three favourite stuffies who just have to bounce off the lid as well (sometimes missing and hitting mommy in the head)
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off.

Finally manage to tear all Christmas bags OUT of boys' hands and into it's own container.
Swiftly (over boys tears) place under bed.
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off.

Watch boy tear off "little dog" off one of the bags meant for selling as he scatters the rest throughout the room.
listen to his chortles of glee! Success, he has a prize! :)
Look carefully at prize little boy shows his mommy. smile at him.
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off. (resist urge to throw pat-a-cake out the window)

Re-sort all gift bags into their respective piles (to keep and to sell)
Watch as boy discovers another item he can rip off another gift bag.
Watch boy get VERY upset that it is stuck on tight!
Rescue boy who is in distress over this, realize it's only a silly gift bag, who cares if it is ruined. :)
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off.

Over boys' tears and grasping hands manage to gather all To be sold bags into one large bag
Place said bag out of reach of boy child.
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off.

Fight with strong toddler hands over delicate tissue paper and where it really AUGHT to go.
Lose battle more than once.
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off.

Finally manage to get all bags and tissue paper into proper container.
Rapidly place under bed.
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off. (once again, resist urge to toss pat-a-cake)

Realize that the boy has scattered the real wrapping paper throughout bathroom, bedroom and hallway. (suppress sigh)
Gather it up.
Replace container UNDER the bed.
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off.

Manage to convince boy that it is a FUN game to put wrapping paper into remaining box.
Listen to Pat-a-cake bear go off.

Welcome Hubby home for lunch and show him the bag full of Garage sale bags to sell! Celebrate by asking the boy what he wants for lunch.

YEAH!!!! He'll eat pasta again (after a two week refusal). Make lunch.

Be very glad that this task won't need to be again for a good long time! :)
Be hopeful that the extra gift bags will bring in decent cash at spring garage sale (which will make this hour well worth the effort).
Be glad my boy is healthy enough to want to "help" mommy so very thoroughly.
Be glad that I can do a blog post on this too... and maybe make someone laugh over his antics. :)