• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Feels Like Home™ logo

  • Shop
    • Christianity Downloads
    • Family Downloads
    • Food & Cooking Downloads
    • Hobbies & Crafts Downloads
    • Learning Downloads
  • Blog
  • Family
    • Parenting
    • Holidays & Celebrations
    • Marriage
    • Kids activities
      • Kids Crafts
      • Christmas Crafts for Toddlers & Preschoolers
      • Christmas Crafts for Kids
      • Christmas Crafts for Tweens & Teens
    • Learning
      • Reading & Writing
      • STEM
  • Faith
    • Bible Study
    • Encouragement
  • Recipes
    • Comfort Food
    • Eating after Bariatric Surgery
    • Gluten-Free
    • Recipes for Foodie Kids
    • Quick & Easy Weeknight Meals
  • Health
    • Mental Health
      • Hobbies & Crafts
      • Self-Care
    • Physical Health
      • Bariatric Surgery
  • Subscribe
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • SHOP
  • RECIPES
  • FAMILY
  • FAITH
  • HEALTH
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×
    See More:   My Life

    Last Modified: Sep 24, 2018 by Tara Ziegmont 3 Comments

    A Disaster in the Dining Room

    1FacebookMessengerPinterestTwitterWhatsAppEmail
    1
    SHARE

    It started like any other day.

    A teen from our church came over to take care of my girls while I worked with a coaching client.

    Around noon, I returned upstairs and made lunch. The girls and I ate together, as we always do.

    Allie finished eating before Grace and I, also normal. I extricated Allie from her high chair and let her run around the dining room and kitchen while Grace and I finished eating. This is my every day.

    Allie grabbed the hoses running from our turtle's tank to the canister filter underneath and shook them and sang her own crazy song, also not out of the ordinary.

    And then something unexpected happened.A geyser eruptingPin

    The inch-wide hose that carries gallons of water and turtle poop back and forth from the 75-gallon tank had been attached to the filter by a large plastic nut. It had been attached, right up until it popped right off in Allie's hand, and a geyser of turtle poop and water erupted eight inches above the filter.

    I'm not even kidding. It was at least eight inches high.

    I gasped and froze. Grace squealed, Oh, no! MOMMEEEE! and Allie laughed and clapped her hands.

    Such is my second-born child.

    I remained completely unable to move for an hour, watching the water shoot skyward.

    Okay, maybe it wasn't an hour. It felt like a long time. 5 seconds? 10? 30? It was long enough for a whole lot of water to gushing onto the floor of my dining room.

    Finally, I stood up from the table and turned the turtle's power strip off, expecting the geyser to slow and stop.

    It didn't.

    Smaller now, but still gushing two or three inches above the filter, the geyser spewed water up and then down into the broken plastic tub that holds the filter. Time ticked by as the water siphoned itself out of the turtle's tank and down through the hose into the tub.

    I took a deep breath and looked at the mess that was now spilling over the crack in the tub and across the dining room floor.

    As I surveyed and strategized, Allie plunged her hands into the tub of turtle water and turtle poop, wear a Cheshire cat grin.

    "No Allie! No! Yucky! Yucky, Allie!" I pulled her hands out of the water; she laughed and tried to push them back down into the tub.

    Holding her away with my elbow, I tried to pull the two sections of the broken tub together so that the water would stop surging out of the tub and onto the floor.

    Once the water had slowed from a tsunami to a river, I tried to stop the geyser. Still holding Allie away, I took the hose from her hand and held it down against the filter nut.

    At this point, I was holding the broken tub together with my left hand and holding the hose down with my right hand and holding the baby with my right elbow.

    I was stuck. Even the smallest movement would mean that water would again be rushing out of somewhere - either out of the filter or onto the floor or both.

    "Gracie? Gracie honey? Can you help me? Go over there and get the step stool and bring it to me."

    Um, okay. Where is it? I don't see it! I DON'T SEE THE STOOL, MOMMY! I DON'T SEE IT! I CAN'T FIND THE STOOL! She is not good in an emergency.

    "Walk into the kitchen." The kitchen was less than six feet away. "Okay, turn toward the refrigerator. Do you see the stool now?"

    I found it! I'm coming, Momma. She carried the step stool over to me.

    "Now climb up and look for the great big roll of gray tape on top of the turtle tank." I had noticed a roll of duct tape there just the day before, and I hoped it was still in the same spot.

    I can't find it! There's no tape up here! Momma! She started squealing again.

    "Look over here, Gracie. No, on this side. Do you see a big roll of gray tape? It's as big as your head."

    She found the tape and handed it to me. I grabbed it between my knees and pried a piece off with my thumb, still holding the tub with my fingers. After peeling off a piece of tape long enough to hold the two sides of the tub together, I stuck it on and hoped for the best.

    "Gracie? Can you help me with one more thing, honey?"

    She groaned, over her panic. Now what?

    "Can you keep your sister back, away from the poopy water?"

    She was happy to oblige, grabbing Allie by the back of her t-shirt and holding on tight as Allie pulled and tugged like a puppy on a leash.

    Now that I had one hand and arm free, I pushed the hose down onto the filter and tightened the nut to hold it in place.

    Turning my attention back to the broken tub, I tore five or six pieces of duct tape. Starting at the bottom of the crack, I taped and taped and taped in a feeble attempt to hold back the flood from my dining room floor and the two small people sitting on it.

    I succeeded in slowing the flood to a steady drip.

    Looking around for something - anything - to catch the water still almost flowing out of the tub, I spied the cats' water fountain.

    Feeling guilty for allowing turtle poop to drip into the cats' water but not knowing what else to do, I pulled the filter out of the tub, hoping that the water level in the tub would be fall below the crack. Holding the big filter and at least fifteen pounds of water, I looked for a place to put it.

    The only spot I could reach was next to the turtle tank - where the cats' place mat was sitting. (The cats' food stains the floor, so we put a place mat under their bowl.)

    "Grace, can you please move the cats' place mat?"

    Their what?

    "This, this place mat with the cats on it."

    She moved it, and I sat the filter down. The hard part was finally over. The only thing left to do was pour the water leaking out of the broken tub back into the turtle's tank, clean the cat's fountain and the baby's hands, soak up the water all over the dining room, and sit down.

    Oh, and laugh.

    When it was finally over, I laughed.

    A lot.

    Does this stuff happen to anyone else?

    1FacebookMessengerPinterestTwitterWhatsAppEmail
    1
    SHARE

    More My Life

    • Mama, You Are Doing a Great Job With Those Children
    • 35 Almost Daily Habits That Make Life Great
    • 19 Days Post Bariatric Gastric Sleeve Surgery
    • Bariatric Gastric Sleeve Surgery - 10 Days Post-Op

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Leave a Reply Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




    1. Jendi says

      January 19, 2012 at 12:19 pm

      I laughed too. Couldn't help myself.
      It was the "she's not good in an emergency" because I have so-o been there done that with my kids. And the "MOMMY! I CAN"T FIND IT" even though it's as big as their head.
      Breathe. Laugh. And know that it does get easier as they get older...or so I've heard.
      And be glad that turtles are vegetarians so their poop can't be too bad. LOL

      Reply
    2. Robyn Wright of RobynsOnlineWorld.com says

      January 19, 2012 at 2:58 pm

      OMG - T cannot find anything ever either! He could be in the middle of an all white empty room sans maybe a giant red elephant and if you asked him to find the elephant he wouldn't be able to!

      I think what you really need to do is teach G how to find the Flip cam, or at least the digital camera or your iPhone, and start taking video/pics when these things happen at your house - just sayin'

      Thank you for the afternoon laugh 🙂

      Reply
    3. Kathleen says

      January 19, 2012 at 7:01 pm

      Wow, what a day! Your story reminds me of an event that happened when I was deployed overseas. The first floor of the barracks flooded---the sewer had backed up. The entire floor was covered a foot deep with feces and foul water...made me glad to be a country girl as I always asked for a second floor room--first floor has spiders/floods and top floor has leaks...

      Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Hi, I'm Tara.

    Harrisburg PA mom blogger Tara Ziegmont
    I am passionate about helping women to care for themselves and their families physically, emotionally, and spiritually by making time for what matters most through a combination of delectable recipes, Christian inspiration, and family fun. If you're tired of feeling so weary and uninspired, you're in the right place. I'm so glad you're here!
    Read more about me...

    Facebook Twitter Pinterest Instagram LinkedIn email me subscribe

    Popular Recipes

    • Cheeseburger Soup from Taste of Home
    • Cracker Barrel Copycat Fried Apples
    • Sweet Balsamic Pork Roast in the Instant Pot
    • Couldn't Be Easier Cherry Pie

    Food with an Instant Pot in the background

    AS SEEN ON

    a list of the websites where Tara Ziegmont has been featured

    Popular Bible Studies

    • A Grateful Heart - 2 week printable study
    • 10 Bible Verses on Anger
    • 13 Bible Verses on Disappointment
    • 50 Bible Verses Every Christian Should Know
    • 10 Bible Verses to Overcome Worry

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Disclaimer
    • Terms & Conditions

    As seen on

    a list of the websites where Tara Ziegmont has been featured

    Contact Tara


    As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Read my full disclosure policy.

    Copyright © 2022 Feels Like Home Blog

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
    Do not sell my personal information.
    SettingsAccept
    Privacy & Cookies Policy

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
    Non-necessary
    Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
    SAVE & ACCEPT