When spiders attack

A couple of weeks ago, when WCK had the day off of school for Martin Luther King Day, I thought it would be fun to take her to Chuck E. Cheese with some friends from our stay-at-home moms' group. Apparently, every parent in the Kansas City metro area had this same idea, because CEC was about five times more insane than the most insane I've ever seen it. Shortly before noon, they ran out of ice and Diet Coke, which is the magic elixir my brain requires to stay alive. This non-alive brain is probably why I remained at Chuck E. Cheese throughout the afternoon instead of running into the parking lot screaming, like a person with a working brain would do. Somehow, though, we managed to survive, and WCK earned 90 tickets, which was enough to cash in for the greatest prize ever -- a giant plastic spider:



After we got home, WCK thought it would be hilarious -- and I agreed -- if we tried to scare Daddy with the giant plastic spider. We decided to set the spider on top of the peanut butter jar, and then we lay in wait until Jay came home from work.

WCK met him at the door with an evil grin.

"Daddy, don't you want some ... peanut butter?"

Jay was confused and said that he did not want some peanut butter, but I finally convinced him to at least go look at the peanut butter, because it was important.

Jay saw the spider and let out a really good fake blood-curdling scream, which was everything WCK had dreamed of when she'd set the spider upon the peanut butter. Later that night, when WCK wasn't looking, Jay put the spider on her pillow.

"AAAAAAAAAAA!" fake-shrieked WCK, and she ran to put the spider on his pillow.

And so began the Spider Game, which is still going on to this day. The only rules are that you have to fake scream when you see the spider, and then you have to go revenge-hide it for the family member you believe hid it for you. It's been on my hair dryer and Jay's contact case. It's been inside one of my running shoes and in WCK's pajama drawer. One day, WCK came home from school, and her favorite stuffed frog was sitting calmly at the kitchen table, holding the spider.

Where will the spider end up next? I have no ide .... AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!