We've had a rice box for around 9months and the kids LOVE it. Interestingly enough, I hit on a better solution this weekend. Bear decided to use the rice box as a litter box (of course, he has absolutely no interest in using the real litter box, except as a really nifty sandbox. Go figure.) The rice was, of course, contaminated, so I dumped the 5 pounds of rice into the trash and scrubbed the plastic bin. That was when I discovered I was out of rice. The boys were waiting expectantly and so helped me search the pantry for a proper substitute. After explaining that, No, I wouldn't fill it with Cheerios, and No, they couldn't have the brand new paper towel rolls to shread all over the kitchen, we hit upon popcorn. I had a couple of stashed Y2K bags of unpopped, non-microwavable popcorn. Wow! What an excellant hit that was. Not only do I not have to worry about them getting rice in their ears, noses and mouths, but the popcorn is easier to see on the white tile floor. No more bare feet on rice. (You do realize that anything that goes into a sandbox/ rice box ultimately ends up all over the floor, don't you?) The kids LOVE it. The corn makes more noise and is tons better to burrow through. Even Miesa, the princess, forgot herself and danced with wild abandon through the popcorn. So there you have it, inspiration by necessity. As for the box springs, I finally gave up and ripped the fabric off the underside of the box springs. Now they hold absolutely no appeal at all. The kids all ignore the open springs now that it's no longer a good place to hide toys and all the hammock-like characteristics have vanished. Now if only I could figure out a way to make socks unappealing... One quick question- Tazzy, my 7 1/2 year old female, has black spots all over her chin and cheeks. It looks just like the tail acne she gets periodically, except there is no hair loss. I've tried scrubbing her face gently (always a joy) to no avail. Looking at her, you'd just think her face is dirty, but I can't seem to get it off. Help! Any clues? Thanks, Wessi and the Wienie Rats [Posted in FML issue 3143]