Unusual Treasures

Why is it that girls collect things like dolls and hair accessories, and guys collect things like rocks? My boys always have unusual things sitting around our house. Right now in our master bathroom there are several fist-sized or bigger rocks sitting on our countertop. In the downstairs bathroom is a "sea biscuit" in a styrofoam bowl. I guess I shouldn't complain. The sea biscuit was on my kitchen countertop for a week. I asked why it was there and my son told me he was cleaning it. The thing is round, a little larger than my fist, and has a hole in the middle. It looks--a little weird. I finally told him to clean it somewhere else or I was throwing it out. The next day I found it in the bathroom. I told him I meant for him to keep it in his room, but it hasn't moved there yet. It has, however, moved from the styrofoam bowl. There is now a little pile of sand and dirt in the bowl, and the sea biscuit is on the other side of the sink. I'm going to assume the thing can't move on its own and that my son turned it over. My big question is: what's he going to do with it when he finally finishes cleaning it?
On the counter by the kitchen downstairs I can find an assortment of keys and keyrings (of course!), but I can also find tips from my husband's paint sprayer, a cool-looking potato chip, and a G.I. Joe. One day as I was straightening the kitchen, I found a small round plastic piece with a hole in it. It finally dawned on me that it was a helmet to one of the boys' G.I.Joe's.
Every once in a while I will find a stash of seeds in the kitchen. These are seeds from peaches or watermelons even that someone has decided they're going to save so they can plant them outside. Somehow the seeds never make it that far, probably because I toss them when I find them. We don't have room for a garden, and if I want any more trees in our yard, I want them to match the landscaping.
My boys will occasionally catch a lizard or a frog, but they know better than to bring them inside the house. Although, Luke is not above waving one around to scare any ladies that happen to be nearby.
Sometimes I will find a few fishing poles in the corner of the living room or a pair of swim fins in the family room. The other day we had a hand towel in the freezer. (One of the boys wanted to see what would happen when it froze.)
My boys can save a broken piece from a game controller for months, hoping to be able to repair it or use it elsewhere one day, but a button came of my iron and no one seems to know how it happened or what happened to the button.
I put up with most of these weird things that show up in my house, but there's one area where I absolutely draw the line. I positively hate finding nightcrawlers in my refrigerator. I don't care of they're in a sealed container and they're for the fishing trip the next day. My boys know to store those in the refrigerator in the garage. In this area, my husband is the worst offender. Once or twice it's been even worse because the fishing trip got cancelled and the nightcrawlers forgotten. They all know that if I happen to find them in the fridge, they'll go in the garbage no matter how fresh they are. (Ugh!)
It is funny how they can find the oddest things and decide they want to hang onto it for some project. The projects don't always get completed (or even started), but hey, I'm not going to squish their imaginations. If it's not gross and it's not in the way, I'm willing to put up with odd treasures once in a while. Especially if it pleases my own little treasures to hang on to them. Love you, guys!