I'm trying to figure life out right now and am not having much success. On one hand, I am so happy to have my oldest home. On the other, he is not a guest. He is a family member. He really needs to remember this.

He has this guinea pig that he left here for us to take care of when he went off to school. He was begged to find another home for this rodent (her name is Bridget and she is cute). She's messy and dirty. However, another home was not found for said rodent. Thus his brother has been taking care of rodent.

I told him today to clean the guinea pig. He said he would. Later, I see his brother parading through the house with the gp pen to clean it with a HUGE smile on his face. I told him to stop right there. What was going on? I told oldest to do that. He told me that "oldest" offered him some dough to clean gp pen. I asked him how much. He told me "$9.00." That's it? Nine bucks? You've done this all year and only 9 bucks after I TOLD him to do it.

NO!! First skirmish: Paying off of the younger brother.
Mom- 1
Oldest child- 0

Second skirmish: Mouthing off to the mother

Mom- 1
Oldest child- 0

Silence now rules the house and he's wisely hiding out upstairs away from the uteran patrol. Okay, so I don't have a uterus anymore, but I do have the ovaries. I have hormones and I know how to use 'em!!

My payoff will come when he has teenagers himself. I will finally be vindicated!!