Not long ago, August emptied a gallon of olive oil on the kitchen floor. It was kind of awful and kind of wonderful, one of those once-in-a-lifetime kind of child-prompted catastrophes that is not such a big deal and easy to laugh about not long after. We learned a lot from the experience, namely, that he had reached an age at which he needed closer watching. Clearly, his common sense lagged his burgeoning curiosity. Surely, nothing like this would ever happen again.

Just now, I was watching TV and noticed that the room was smelling different than usual. Not bad, just different. Somewhat…spicy? I thought nothing of it, of course. And why I thought nothing of it is a question that plagues me now. It was only much later, when I chanced to head to the kitchen for a drink of water, that I stumbled on this gruesome scene.

And, really, how can we blame August for being attracted to the large tub of loose chai? It smells delicious. It is easy to throw around. And it feels great smeared all over one’s face.

And, friendly little fellow that he is, August was entirely willing to share.

The good news is, the house smells great.

The bad news? I think I lost a merit badge or two.

Fortunately, loose chai can be easily vacuumed (not so with olive oil). I may be plummeting in the daddy ranks, but August is growing ever more considerate when choosing what foodstuffs to dump on the floor.