The Clean-Up Crew

I have two children who are terrified of lizards.  One of them tends to walk around on furniture instead of the floor, for fear of stepping on a lizard.  I'll bet you can guess who uses that excuse for jumping from table to sofa to chair!

Yesterday when we came home from Grandma Pickle's house all the kids ran out to the cement to ride their scooters.  Seconds later they came running back into the house screaming like a bunch o' crazies. "A LIZARD ON THE CEMENT!  IS IT DEAD OR ALIVE?!!! IT HAS NO TAIL!  AAAAGGHHHH! WHAT WILL WE DO?"

Fortunately, we have some heroes in the house whose initials are neither M nor D.  Because, of course, M & D are both too busy rolling their eyes at the wimps who are screaming about a lizard.  Puppy (NOT James, ask him) ran to the kitchen where he found not one, but TWO dustpans, marched into the family room, said "I CLEAD UP ISSSS" (translation: I'll clean up the lizard) whereupon Caroline, remembering that she is NOT one of the aforementioned wimps, seized one of the dustpans and they both tromped off to the cement slab with heroic zeal.  Within moments they returned triumphant, Caroline announcing "We threw the lizard into the bush!"  with Puppy echoing "Eesh!" behind her.  "Ip, Ip, Hooway!"  Scooter-riding has been saved!

Denouement:
Drama never quite being over, a few minutes later Liffy was on the couch weeping because she had lost a VERY important heart button  (intended to be a gift for Lauren, so it really was important).  Puppy, assuming she was still upset over the lizard, took her face in his hands, leaned in close and said, "I clead up, kay?  Isss don.  I clead up.  Eesh."  (translation: I cleaned up, okay?  The lizard's gone. I cleaned it up.  It's in the bush.)

It' good to have some heroes in the house.