Why Are You Cleaning?

Yet another area in which I must need to improve:

Aidyn: "Is someone coming over?"

Me: "No, not that I know of."

Aidyn: "Oh. Then why are you cleaning the house?"

A Plant

Aidyn's assessment of Charlie Brown's choice:

"That is NOT a Christmas tree. It's just...like...a plant!!"

Traffic

AJ has this super annoying fire truck toy (sorry Nana and Papa...he really loves it...but it is ridiculously annoying) that Aidyn unfortunately loves to play with. This evening I was just so tired of all the noise and a little irritated with the constant sounds of the horn and screeching tires as Aidyn repeatedly pushed buttons in rapid succession and I asked her to be done playing with the fire truck toy. She innocently looked at me while continuing to alternate pushing the buttons for the horn and tires very quickly and said, "But Mommy! It's just traffic!!"

Happy Cry

Aidyn has really been enjoying the movie Nanny McPhee about a magical nanny who helps tame several naughty children. I discovered today that Nanny McPhee Returns was available for rental OnDemand through our cable company and decided to share it with her tonight for movie night. At the end of the movie the Daddy returns from war after being missing in action and Aidyn looked at me with misty eyes and said, "Oh. I am about to happy cry."

Pretty Stinkin' Sweet

Aidyn, spoken to Mommy at the dinner table: "You are pretty stinkin' sweet."

Ruining My Life and Other Fantastic Fits

Aidyn has been quite emotional lately...or, well, always. But more lately. Or, I guess, emotional in more sophisticated ways and with fantastic fit-throwing skills.

A couple days ago I asked Aidyn to tidy up her play area. She threw a huge fit over it with the typical "I don't want to" and "You're not listening to me." I stopped her and sent her to her room to get her emotions under control (which is our usual mode of discipline in those circumstances) and as she stormed up the stairs she screamed at the top of her lungs, "YOU ARE RUINING MY LIFE!!"

Same day, same kid, different fit, again screamed loudly and with accompanying stomping of feet: "I AM NOT THROWING A FIT!! I AM JUST SAD!!! YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW THE DIFFERENCE!!!!"

Next day, same kid, different fit, same basic premise. I had asked Aidyn to help tidy toys in the living room and she said she didn't feel like it. I pointed out that I didn't really feel like tidying up toys either and I wasn't the one who got them out so I shouldn't have to tidy them up. She began pointing to the laundry in the living room and screaming, "WELL, DID I GET OUT THAT BASKET? NO! OR THAT BASKET? NO. SO WHY SHOULD I HAVE TO CLEAN UP?" Nothing like using my own logic against me, if ineffectively.

Next day, same kid, different fit, different event this time. Daddy asked her to change her attitude toward the beginning of a fit where she had told him "No" when he asked her to do something and then stomped away. He said she could go back and walk and speak nicely or go to her room to nap before being given lunch. Her choice was clear as she stormed up the stairs screaming, "YOU ARE STARVING ME!!!"

My Daddy Has Money

Right before Landon was born we had a family outing to see Veggie Tales Live at our church. Aidyn saw several kids with cheap, plastic, flashing light-up toys that were being sold in the gym and asked if she could have one. Trying to point out that they cost money that we didn't want to be spending I asked her if she had any money to go buy herself one. I realized that my lesson-teaching method had backfired when she put on her sweetest smile, stroked her daddy's knee and said, "My daddy has money." It was all I could do to hold him in the seat to prevent him from running straight to the cheap, plastic, flashing light-up toy display.

Pretend

Aidyn is quite bossy and likes to play pretend a lot. This has me constantly transformed into someone I probably don't feel like being. "Mommy, pretend you're a mom with ten very naughty kids and I'm Nanny McPhee." "Mommy, pretend you're a patient and I'm the doctor and you're in the waiting room." "Mommy, pretend you don't know me."

Recently there was this exchange:

Aidyn: "Mommy, pretend you don't like this guy."

Me: "Oh, I don't like that guy."

Aidyn: [very seriously] "You don't? For real?"

Jinger Bells

Aidyn singing tonight: "Jinger bells, Jinger bells, Jinger all the way. Oh what fun it is to ride in a ho-ror open sled."

Closlet

Aidyn has very few words that she has always said incorrectly. "Closet" is one of those words--her version has always been "closlet." I pointed out to her that the correct word is in fact "closet" and she considered that for a moment before responding, "Well. Closlet is a much better word for that."

No More Kids

With foster care and a new baby in the house I think Aidyn has been feeling a little neglected. It's a good thing we made sure that Landon will be the last baby here because a few nights ago Aidyn randomly declared, "I don't think I want any more kids at our house."

Two Marys

Aidyn's Christmastime conclusion: "Oh Mom!! There were two Marys!! There was Mary had a little lamb AND Mary that had Jesus!"

Blue Eye

We went a round with pink eye at our house this past week. Aidyn had it first and then generously shared it with Landon. I'm guessing that Aidyn doesn't quite understand the mechanics of pink eye because this morning she declared that Tylenol (her baby doll) has a bad case of "blue eye."

You Look Like Your Daddy

This afternoon I saw Aidyn sitting by her daddy and pointed out, "You look like your daddy." With a confused look she turned to him and said, "But you don't wear a nightie. And I don't have a beard!"

100 Juicy Punch

Aidyn is really able to read well now. She surprises me daily with new words that she can read and I'm impressed by her level of comprehension. This morning at breakfast she read her juice box (and yes, the word was "juice" not "juicy" but she is only four after all!): "100 juicy punch...I guess that's why it squeezes, it's so juicy!!"

At Church

So...if you ever want to know what it's like at our church, just give Aidyn a flashlight. She was playing with one last night and was making figure-eights of light on the ceiling of the living room. I asked her what she was doing and she said, "It's a circle of light! That's because you're at church!!"

Hiccups

Aidyn had hiccups and I unthinkingly asked her, "Should I scare you?"

She looked at me with wide eyes and replied, "Why would you do that!!??"

You Should Do That Again

I'm glad I'm not the only one who bears the brunt of Aidyn's innocent honesty. A few nights ago Aidyn was talking to Daddy and pointed out, "You know that exercise show you used to do where you needed to drink a glass of water? Well, you should do that again."

I Skipped a Few Songs

Aidyn does not like taking naps. For the last several months we've been allowing her to take "quiet time" instead of a nap. Sometimes she plays, sometimes she jumps on her bed, sometimes she actually does sleep--but at least she gets a bit of a rest, more or less, and so do I.

Last week she was supposed to be taking a quiet time but I heard her running around upstairs the entire time. When she called out to see if she could come down, I told her to lie down until the cd that was playing was finished. A few minutes later she came downstairs and I asked her if the cd was done. She looked at me sheepishly and said, "Well, I skipped a few songs to make it shorter." I guess I wasn't specific enough!

Power Marshmallows

A few nights ago Aidyn asked for a snack. She offered the suggestion that marshmallows might make a nice snack and I allowed her to have four mini-marshmallows. Her "I can have four!! Four!!?? Really, Mama!!??" made me feel bad. I should have given her five!

After the first marshmallow she was so excited she began running and jumping over things on the floor. I asked her what she was doing and she answered, "These are POWER marshmallows!! They give me power to jump over that!"

A Challenge

Me: "How was it holding Baby Landon?"

Aidyn: "Well, it was a challenge. Because he is a little heavy."

I Need to See His Body

Aidyn was very adorable when meeting her new baby brother, but she had a concern. We had sent a photo message to her after he was born and the picture was only of Landon's face. Apparently she was concerned that he was only a head because as soon as she came to the hospital and held him she declared, "I need to see his body!" Once we unwrapped him she examined his hands and feet and tummy and hair she was then satisfied.

Vacuum Up!

Aidyn, this morning, singing this song from Veggie Tales:

"We remember stand, stand up, stand up, for what you believe in , believe in, believe in God, he's the one to vacuum up, he'll stand with you, he'll stand by you."

Then, this: "Mom. How do we vacuum up God?"

Someone I Love So Much

Aidyn: "I miss Daddy."

Me: "He's just at work, Baby. He'll be home in a while."

Aidyn: "I don't like being alone without someone I love."

Me: "Well...I'm here."

Aidyn: "Yeah. [sighs] But, I mean someone I love soooooooooo much."

Three Simple Colors

Randomly. This morning: "Mom!! Did you know that the whole world is made of three simple colors? Red, yellow, and blue. All the other colors are made from those!! Pretty cool, huh?"

And then randomly just now at lunch: "The three simple colors, you know? Those are primary colors. So you can't mix ANYTHING with them to get them back to red, blue, or yellow. I just remembered that."

She's Married

I'm not sure where Aidyn has ever even heard about this, but she said something wonderfully cute this afternoon. She was drawing a picture of a person and informed me, "I'm going to color all her skin but I will leave a little spot for the dot on her forehead because she's going to be married."

Repeat

As we put Aidyn to bed last night I noticed a little symbol after Saturday on her ''When is Landon's birthday?'' calendar that we made. Donnie realized first that it was a musical repeat symbol and asked her about it. She said, ''Yeah! Because after Saturday you go back to the beginning with Sunday again! Repeat!!'' How awesome that her music lessons are translating to real life for her!

Wormy Is the Lamb

Aidyn listens to Patch the Pirate cd's at bedtime every night. Her most recent favorite has been Camp Kookawacka Woods and I have really enjoyed the sounds of my childhood coming through the vent all night long. I still remember the words to most of the songs!! One of the songs is called "Worthy Is the Lamb" and Aidyn was singing it this morning after breakfast. However, I think she was a little mistaken as to the lyrics because I distinctly heard her belting out, "Wormy is the Lamb!! Wormy is the Lamb!! Wormy is the Lamb that was slain!! Wormy is the Lamb!!"

In Case of Cereal...

This morning I was greeted at my bedroom door by Aidyn, arms full of various items. I asked her what she was doing and she calmly explained, "I am going on a trip. I have packed a suitcase and I have my two children. And I have a bowl." Not really grasping the significance of the bowl at that moment I asked, "Why the bowl?" She sort of gave me a silly look and said, "In case someone wants to give me some cereal!"

Blind

Home school this week is about the human body. We are focusing on the five senses and Aidyn has been very interested in learning how we can see, hear, taste, touch, and smell. We also watched a video about Helen Keller and Aidyn was fascinated by the idea that some people can't see, hear, or speak. After the movie was long over and Aidyn was supposed to be lying down for quiet time I tried to quickly sneak in a shower. She came in needing to use the bathroom and noticed the mirror: "Oh no!! Mommy!! The mirror is blind!!" From the five senses to a discussion about condensation--gotta love homeschooling!!

Eyelashes

As we watched a ladybug crawl across the table last night Aidyn asked, "Is it a boy or a girl?" I explained that I wasn't sure how to tell with ladybugs so I didn't really know. She thought for a moment and said, "I think you can tell by the eyelashes. This one is a boy."

Trick or Treat

Trick or Treat was a wealth of blog opportunities tonight!

• [said as we passed a house without the porch light on] "But EVERYBODY is supposed to be home for Trick or Treat!!"
• [said when people would give out candy without the customary exchange] "Wow. These people are so nice that they don't even make me say, 'Trick or Treat!'"
• [whispered as she left the porch of a house] "That guy was totally watching soccer!!"
• [said while passing two boys dressed as skeletons] "Wow!! Look!! Bone mans!!"
• [said while passing a lady dressed as if she were showering] "Is she really taking a shower? Are you sure?"

I was very impressed with her as she went from house to house: letting other kids go first, sharing her candy with our babysitter without being asked, not being greedy or rude, and saying "thank you" at each house. What a great little pumpkin fairy I have!!!

Try to Win?

Spoken quite seriously during one of many games in a marathon round of Hi Ho Cherry-O in which she had won 4 of 4 games: "Mommy. Can you please try to win this time?"

Sarcastic

Aidyn HATES being teased or laughed at. It's actually becoming kind of a problem for her to burst into tears at church when someone innocently laughs at one of her cute remarks. Last week she was quite specific when she said, "I don't like you to be sarcastic because that's like making fun of me!!"

Angry Eyes

Aidyn is a softie for animals. I predict that one day she will go through a vegetarian phase and I'm waiting for her to figure out that chickens on the farm and chicken you eat are actually the same thing. Recently this has translated to bugs as well, although she still doesn't exactly get excited when she sees a bug. The dramatic scene from the bathroom the other night:

Aidyn: "Oh no!! There's a ladybug on the sink. I can't wash my hands."

Daddy: "Just kind of push it out of the way."

Aidyn: "I can't do that!!"

Daddy: "Why not? [sighs] Here, I'll do it [gently moves the ladybug off the faucet handle]."

Aidyn: [very concerned as she comes out of the bathroom] "Um, Daddy? I think that ladybug had angry eyes."

Helps You Burp

Evidence from lunch the other day that we have had a baby or two in this house: "Well, I need to burp but I can't. Oh! But I know what helps you burp! You have to bump your back like this [demonstrates on herself]!! When you bump your back it helps you burp."

Macaroni Also Cheese

Me: "Let's have macaroni and cheese for lunch."
Aidyn: "Mommy, I don't really like the word 'and' anymore."
Me: "Really? Why not?"
Aidyn: "I've just heard it way too much."
Me: "Ok, well, what could we use instead of 'and?'"
Aidyn: "There's always 'also,' 'as well as,' and 'too.' So how about 'macaroni also cheese?'"

I Forgot...

At bedtime tonight Aidyn realized that she had forgotten something so she said, "Wait, I need to talk with Jesus because I forgot to say thank you for my food tonight. Dear Jesus, thank you for my food. Amen. [brief pause] WAIT!! "And Jesus, I love you. Amen."

When I Come Back...

I forgot to blog this several months ago when it happened but when it happened AGAIN today I was reminded!!

As I was helping Aidyn clean her room she needed to make a run downstairs to put something away. As she went off toward the stairs she called back casually, "Mommy. I want to see this room tidy when I come back."

I Just Can't Stop

Aidyn's explanation for her ability to chatterbox: "Whenever I start talking I just can't stop!!"

Nebuchadnezzar, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego

This past weekend Aidyn's children's church lesson was about Nebuchadnezzar, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and the fiery furnace. On the way home from youth group over 8 hours later Aidyn repeated the entire story, with correct pronunciation of the names and a detailed explanation of how Nebuchadnezzar found four men walking around in the furnace. My favorite part of her recreation of events was right at the end, "Um, isn't there a Veggie Tales movie that does that? But...the Bible story doesn't have a chocolate factory."

Hue

The very same day we got a note from Aidyn's preschool that they would be learning their colors, Aidyn made the word "hue" with her refrigerator letters. Daddy pointed out that "hue" is actually a word and they had quite a discussion about the meaning. That night at dinner Aidyn saw the word on the refrigerator and explained the meaning to me, carefully pointing out different hues of green as she saw them around the kitchen. I think we need to get her out of that preschool!!

Sick

Aidyn has had a rough last couple of days with a stomach virus (that she has generously shared with me). At the worst of her illness she commented, "Even when I lay down I feel like I'm still moving," and "Everyone's voice is just so too loud!" Poor baby!

Sick of Our House

Last night Aidyn randomly decided, "Mama. I am kind of getting sick of this house. Will we ever get a new one?" I wasn't sure what she was trying to get at, so I waited to see if she would continue. And I was not disappointed: "I mean, it would take a lot of suitcases to pack up all of our stuff, though. And before you know it, all that would be left is a kitchen, a living room, a bathroom, and some bedrooms. And we need to make sure that my Dora spoon comes with us."

Glad she's got her priorities straight!!

Jesus Is Big

Tonight we were reviewing Aidyn's memory verses from school. Each week has a special theme--for example, "The sun reminds me that Jesus is the light of the world." We went through each week that we have done so far and when we came to "leaf" she remembered that it reminds us "I will live and grow in Jesus." She thought about it for a moment and then pointed out, "Yeah, we all live in Jesus because Jesus is bigger than our whole house!!" Ever tried to explain "living in Jesus" to a 4-year-old??!!

Football Clock

As we're watching the Vikings/Lions game right now Aidyn is asking a lot of good questions:

"Why did the purple guy kick the ball?"

"Why is there a lion on his helmet?"

"Oh!! He got points!!"

"I think the purple team is going to win."

Her last question was, "How much longer is this game?"

I explained that the clock says there are about 33 total minutes left in the game, but a football clock is different from the normal clock because it stops and starts all the time, making the time take longer.

Her response made me laugh out loud: "I wish our clock was like the football clock at night because then I could wait longer to go to bed."

If only bedtime were like the last two minutes of a football game!!

Aidyn: The Musical

I have posted before about how Aidyn sings a lot, even just normal sentences. This morning she woke up singing and somehow had in her mind to sing about tacos:

"They had a taco, but it wasn't crunchy because they used a soft shell..."

In Your Tummy

It never ceases to amaze me that Aidyn has such deep thoughts. Our conversation from breakfast this morning:

Aidyn: "I was the first baby in your tummy and Landon is the second one. Right?"

Me: "Yep, that's right."

Aidyn: "But AJ was never in your tummy. He was in his own mom's tummy. Right?"

Me: "Yep, he was."

Aidyn: "But then why does he live in our house? Are you his real mom?"

Me: [wondering how to answer that...especially the last part] "Well, remember, AJ's mom is sick and she can't take care of him. So we are taking care of him for right now. She will always be his mom, but I'm his mom, too."

Aidyn: "Oh. But. Um. Does he ever have to live with his mom? Because if he leaves I will really really REALLY miss him."

Me: "I don't know yet, honey. I would really really REALLY miss him, too, if he had to go home."

Aidyn: "But he's not adopted yet. Who should we adopt him to?"

Me: "Well, if he can be adopted I think WE should adopt him. Then he could be part of our Forever Family. What do you think?"

Aidyn: "Yeah!! That would be great. But maybe his mom would get better?"

Me: "Maybe. We will have to wait and see."

Aidyn: "Yeah. [brief pause] Can I have a taco shell for breakfast?"

Matthew 6:24

Aidyn's memory verse for school this week is Matthew 6:24. Her version this morning: "No man can serve two masterpieces."

Duper

"This coloring in the lines is super duper hard!! Mom? How much is 'duper?'"

Beret

Aidyn, randomly, at breakfast: "Mommy, do you have a beret?"

Me: "A beret?"

Aidyn: "Yeah, you know, the hat? Like the French hat?"

Me: "Yes, I know what a beret is. No, I don't have one. Why are you asking?"

Aidyn: "Just wondering."

Missed You

The other night when I came home from work Aidyn wanted to tell me that she had missed me while I was gone. "Mom. I really missed you when you were at work because I missed Landon."

Frosted Snowflakes

While camping a few weeks ago we had a great breakfast of cereal and Aidyn discovered a new brand of cereal that she really likes: Frosted Snowflakes.

Wa, Wa, Wa

Aidyn was reading the cereal box this morning at breakfast and came across a word she didn't know. She tried first to sound it out, "Wa, wa, wa. Mommy, what does that say?" I turned the box around and didn't see what word she was trying to sound out. Just then, distracted by AJ, I turned away and heard her finish sounding out her new word: "Wa, wa, wa, something, dot, com."

Do You Want to Go to Pictures?

Aidyn is very good at pretending and sometimes it can be SO hard not to laugh when she does. But, as I've blogged before, she does not like to be laughed at so we do work very hard at it. Today we were tested for sure when she pretended to scold her Daddy during their playtime. He was doing something she wasn't approving of and knowing that we were about to leave for our photo shoot she said in a scolding tone, "Do you want to go to pictures?"

Certainly Investigate

Aidyn has been using some really big new words lately. I really enjoy listening to her vocabulary grow and knowing that it's in correlation to all the reading we do together. This past week she has come out of nowhere with "Certainly there must be water in this cup" and then today it was "We need to investigate where this yummy smell is coming from!" I am continually amazed that she consistently uses her new words correctly!!

Situation

Aidyn was wrestling with Daddy on her bed this morning and at one point Aidyn wanted to command Daddy's every action. Her first instruction was to make an Aidyn sandwich with the pillows in which she would be the mayonnaise and her stuffed animals would be pink toast, panda from the zoo, cheese, and mustard--with her stuffed cat, Snowball, being "crunchy cat meat." So, Daddy wasn't doing it fast enough for Aidyn's liking and she expressed her frustration: "Daddy, are you going to listen to me or not?" He didn't say anything, trying to subtly help her understand that her attitude was unacceptable. So she sighed heavily, looked away, shook her head slowly and then said, "Huuuuhhhhhh....Daddy. I am having a big situation with you right now."

Sad Tree

Aidyn has still not quite caught on to the correct name for weeping willows, but she is fascinated with them and points them out all over town. Yesterday while driving she saw one and said, "Mom! Look! One of those sad trees. What are they called again?" I reminded her of the correct name and then said, "What makes you think they're sad trees?" She thought for a moment and then said, "Well, because they look sad and they have a sad name." Interesting...does she know what "weeping" knows enough to connect it with sadness? I don't know. But it's still cute!

Scared Marks

Today I was sending a text to my mother-in-law and Aidyn was watching over my shoulder. She has been increasingly interested in the printed word since she can read many simple words now, but these two words that I sent were too hard for her. The text said, "Awesome!!!!!!!!! Thanks!!!!!!!!" in appreciation for some help she had given me. I read it aloud to Aidyn at her request and she said, "But...then...why does it have so many scared marks?" I knew immediately what she meant and we had a great discussion about exclamation points and some other punctuation.

Out of Energy

It has been SO hot here this week and I think it's draining me big time. (Slightly off topic, but I thought it was funny when at my doctor's office today for my physical my doctor asked if I have a good energy level. I said, "Well, I have a 4-year-old who had surgery on Monday and needs extra attention plus medicine every four hours even at night, an 11-month-old who knows how to crawl, I'm 23 weeks pregnant and it's almost 100 degrees outside today..." She just smiled and said, "Yeah, I guess that was a dumb question.") Aidyn has noticed my decreased energy level and mentioned it to me yesterday morning around 10:30.

Me: "I am so tired."
Aidyn: "Not me! I have lots of energy! Are you out of energy already?"
Me: "I guess so."
Aidyn: "Well. That was fast."

What About Disneyland?

A random exchange with Aidyn from earlier this week:

Aidyn: "Mom, does everyone who's on tv live on Earth?"
Me: "Well, honey, most people on tv aren't real."
Aidyn: "But Mom! What about Disneyland? Disneyland is on Earth and we SAW those ones!!"
Me: [struggling for a good response] "Um, well, I guess Disneyland is different."
Aidyn: "Oh. Ok."

All These Strange Feelings

Very early this morning [read: just before 0130] as I cuddled my poor little girl with her sore throat and still at least 30 minutes until her pain medicine was due (gave it to her early anyway, poor baby) she gently patted MY back and said, "It's ok, all these strange feelings will go away soon."

I Almost Cried

Aidyn had her tonsillectomy today and was such an amazing little patient. Rather than the normal preschool patient who panics and freaks out either in pre-op or after coming out of anesthesia, our beautiful little girl "went to sleep smiling and woke up smiling" according to her surgeon. She was so well-behaved and calm that we got comments from every nurse who came in contact with her--just another view of her maturity level for us. She did just about break my heart when she saw me for the first time after waking up. She had eyes full of tears and said, "I almost cried when I was back there without you, but I didn't." She was a brave, brave, brave little rock star today!!

Too Much Party In My Tummy

There's this show that Aidyn loves to watch called Yo Gabba Gabba. One of her favorite songs is called, "Party In My Tummy." The other night she was complaining of an upset tummy--she is the only child I know who will actually get sick if she eats too many sweets--and she said sadly, "I think there's too much party in my tummy."

We Forgot to God

Last night at dinner Aidyn was trying to remind me that we forgot something: She said, "Mom! We forgot to God!!" then added, "that's a fancy way of saying 'we forgot to pray.'"

Twodey-Nine

Aidyn is learning how to count to 100 as part of her Kindergarten year. She is doing very well with only some minimal reminders as she goes through. She has learned about twenty, thirty, forty, and so on and demonstrated her knowledge as we were playing a game of Chutes and Ladders (which conveniently has 100 numbered squares). She did have a little trouble, though, when she had to slide down to number 29. I asked her to tell me what square she was on and she replied, "Two nine." I asked her to read the number and she paused for a moment and then said, "Oh! It's twodey-nine!!"

Frickle Leaves

This past week we have been studying leaves and trees for school. She has been quite the little sponge, soaking up information and then being adorable as she tells it back to us. She was especially interested in the fact that syrup gets made in trees and I love watching her face light up with happiness as she discovers new things about our world.

One of the parts of this week was a Leaf Walk in which she went all around the neighborhood with Daddy and found as many types of leaves as she could. She brought back an entire bucket of leaves, including one branch from an evergreen bush covered in "frickle leaves" as she called them.

Oh Yeah!

This is impossible to blog properly and do justice to the amazing cuteness that this is, but I hope that by recording it I might be able to always hear Aidyn's sweet little voice in my head. She has a new favorite phrase when she wants to really respond in the affirmative: "Oh yeah!" You just have to hear her say it to believe how adorable it is, but for now I'll have to be happy with it saved here for posterity.

How Did All That Fit in My Tummy!?

Slightly graphic for all those who don't regularly discuss bodily functions with their children....

This morning Aidyn had to come out of the bathroom to ask for some toilet paper. When Daddy went in there to help her put some new toilet paper on the roll, she pointed into the toilet at what was admittedly quite a large amount and exclaimed, "How did all that fit in my tummy!?"

Up Jacks

AJ was bouncing in his Jumperoo and Aidyn decided to jump with him. She was jumping wildly and I said, "Aidyn, what are you doing?" and she replied, "Up-jacks!!" then proceeded to show me what they were...jumping jacks!!

How Much?

Lately Aidyn has been trying to quantify her love for us or our love for her in terms of numbers. She does this with other things, too, but the love ones are the cutest, in my opinion. Today the discussion went like this:
Aidyn: "Mom, do you love me?"
Me: "Yes, baby, more than you will ever know?"
Aidyn: "How many? Like sixteen?"
Me: "No, like eighty-five kabillion, nine hundred million, three thousand nine hundred and ninety five zillion."
Aidyn: "Wow. That is a lot. Do you know how many I love you?"
Me: "How many?"
Aidyn [obviously searching for the biggest numbers she knows, I thought]: "Thirteen, eleven, sixteen."
Me: "Wow. That is a lot. How much do you love Daddy?"
Aidyn: "Thirteen, eleven, sixteen."
Me: "The same? Really?"
Aidyn: "Yes. But do you know how much I love God?"
Me: "How much?"
Aidyn: "Like billion million kazillion and thirteen. At least."

This Is How You Really Say a Prayer

A few nights ago Aidyn was up way past her bedtime and I wanted to help her get to sleep quickly. We sat down to say prayers and, as is our routine, I prayed first: "Dear Jesus, please help Aidyn sleep very nicely. Amen." Aidyn looked at me quite angrily, "Mama!! That was NOT a prayer. That was like a one-word prayer." Then she took her turn, "Dear Jesus. Thank you for today. Please help me to sleep well," then as an aside to me, "This is how you REALLY say a prayer!!" then continuing, "Please help me not to be nasty anymore. And help all the people who don't have a house or enough food to get them. And please help Daddy and AJ and Baby Landon sleep well. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Gruff Soup

Last week when Aidyn's throat was very sore, I made her some "soup without noodles" at her request. It was the first time she had ever asked for that and I tried to clarify, "Do you mean broth?" She said that yes, she was wanting broth so I made it for her. Two nights ago she was wondering if she could have "some more of that gruff soup." It took me a while to figure out what she meant, and she must have seen the look of confusion on my face because she added, "You know? Gruff soup? Soup without noodles!!"

Wailing Weeper

Aidyn was asking Daddy, "What is that creepy tree?" while driving near the church last week. He explained that it was a Weeping Willow tree and she didn't mention it again until Sunday. As we were driving to the church picnic she saw the tree again and pointed out, "There's that wailing weeper!!"

God Questions

This week has been full of incredible opportunities to talk with Aidyn about God. She, of course, has heard lots about God at Sunday School, but I love when she asks questions. A few nights ago she had a meltdown at bedtime and then told me, "I feel really bad for the way I acted. I don't want to keep being nasty every day?" I gave her a simple explanation that she should ask God to help her not to be nasty and she prayed her own prayer, "Dear God, I'm sorry I was nasty and please help me not to be nasty anymore." Confession must really be good for the soul because she then went immediately to sleep.

This morning she must have been thinking about that talk because she started this conversation in the car:
Aidyn: "Mommy, why did God make us?"
Me: "Well, because He wanted to love us."
Aidyn: "How did God make us?"
Me: "The Bible says that God made the first man, what was his name?"
Aidyn: "ADAM!!"
Me: "Yes, that's right. God made Adam from the dust of the ground and then blew His own breath into Adam and made him come alive."
Aidyn: "Wow. That's a lot of breath." [quiet for a moment, then...] "When did God make Adam?"
Me: "A very very long time ago. And what day was it that God made Adam?"
Aidyn: "The seventh day? No, that was when God rested. The sixth day!"
Me: "Right."
Aidyn: "Well, why did God make us be nasty?"
Me: "Oh, sweetie, God did not make us to be nasty. He made us wonderfully and He said we were good!! But, let me tell you a story. Do you know what a serpent is?"
Aidyn: "A snake!"
Me: "Right, well there was a serpent who came into the garden where Adam and Eve lived..." I relayed the story of the first "nastiness" that there ever was, and Aidyn listened very carefully. Then...
Aidyn: "Oh. Well, how does God help us not be nasty anymore?"
Me: "Let me tell you another story. Do you remember what we celebrate at Christmas?"
Aidyn: "Jesus' birthday!"
Me: "Yes, that's right. And so when Jesus was born..." Then I relayed the story of Jesus and how He helps us not to be nasty anymore. Afterward she asked me to tell her another story about God so I told her about Noah and then Jonah.

It's so interesting and wonderful to watch God work in Aidyn's life. I look forward to more of her questions--but I hope I can figure out how to help her understand all that she wants and needs to know.

Car Seat Moon

I have been learning so much with Aidyn over the past two weeks as we've tackled the start of our homeschool year. I am trying to get a little ahead so we can take a nice break when Baby Landon is born. This week we are studying the moon (Did you know that the same side of the moon always faces the earth although both are rotating and orbiting? Interesting, no??) and we were reading a book that described the phases of the moon. It is very fun to see Aidyn say, "Gibbous!!" with excitement when she knows what phase the picture is showing. My favorite moment of the lesson was when she pointed to the crescent moon and explained, "That's the car seat moon." I guess "gibbous" is easier to say than "crescent."

I Need to Go Somewhere to Be Alone

At our ultrasound today we found out that our new baby is a BOY!! We were very excited and shared with Aidyn that it was a Baby Landon in there...the name she picked. She immediately crumpled to the ground, began to sob, and wailed, "But I wanted a sister! I didn't want your guess to be right!" And then more plaintively, "I need to go somewhere to be alone." Poor girl :-(

Later she did come up to my tummy and lay her head on it and whispered, "It's okay Baby Landon. I still love you."

Waffles

On July 4th we went to see the fireworks in our town and Aidyn was walking back with us to our parking place from the Expo center along with hundreds of other people. We kept being jostled by other people walking not as carefully in the same direction and Aidyn suddenly piped up, "The whole world smells like waffles!!" Daddy replied, "Really, kiddo? I thought it smelled like fireworks and alcohol, but sure, waffles it is!!"

Grade Assessment

Recently Aidyn has been balking at going to preschool. She says that "It takes tooooooo long." As if dropping her off isn't hard enough already. I had a conference with her K3 teacher recently where she gave me the lesson plans that Aidyn's class has been going through and I was actually shocked. They are still working on individual letters. The next lesson plan down is three-letter words (which Aidyn has almost mastered on her own at home) and I asked why they weren't working on that yet. The teacher explained that only Aidyn and one or two other kids were ready to try those lessons so she was trying to keep the whole class together. I got a glimpse into what school must be like for a little someone who knew her letters over two years ago and what it might be like for her if she continues to be above average in her abilites.

I wanted to include some of Aidyn's abilities but if you are a sensitive parent who thinks I'm trying to compare my kid to yours you may want to skip this post. Call it a brag session, I guess :-)

Math:
Aidyn can count to 100, add and subtract simple sums, find patterns, build a picture with shapes (elementary geometry), match numerals to the correct number of objects, estimate, understand more and less/empty and full, and is beginning to understand ordinal numbers, the calendar, and the clock. She is also very good at dominoes, which I consider a math game. This puts her solidly in the Kindergarten range for mathematics according to the World Book grade standards.

This morning we were putting her hair into "fairy hair" as she calls it and she was adding and subtracting rubber bands in her head. It was cute to hear her little calculations: "Two rubber bands on this side plus two rubber bands on this side equals four rubber bands [done in her head]. If I had four rubber bands on this side and four rubber bands on that side [uses her fingers to count], I would have eight rubber bands! And if I had eight rubber bands on this side and eight rubber bands on that side....well, Mommy, I need help because I don't have enough fingers to count that many."

Reading:
Aidyn knows all her letters and the phonetic sounds attached to them, has an extensive vocabulary (as you know), can finish the sentence in a rhyming book without ever having read it before (Me: "Inside the creaky house lived a small and furry __________" Aidyn: "Mouse!"), listens carefully to stories (including those without pictures now) and can answer comprehension questions correctly, can summarize a story and understands beginning, middle, and end, can read almost any two or three-letter word that follows correct phonics and also many other sight words (look, the, and, he, she, go, I, end, me, see, etc.), is beginning to read informally (signs, etc.), can identify words that start with a certain letter or identify the letter beginning a given word, creates her own stories, is learning spelling and will picture the word in her head to spell it. This puts her somewhere in the first grade for reading.

Recently Aidyn dictated a story to me for which she had drawn the pictures. The story was titled "Look at This" and went: "Once upon a time a little girl turtle, two turtles loved each other. They were having a party because they loved each other. We should have a Christmas party! I love you each other. This is my present. No, I want that present. They were having a nasty. Once upon a time an Indian was nice but he captured her and her name was A Pile of Crayons. It scared the poop out of them. The end." I especially liked the use of the word "captured." :-)

She also has been surprising me with her grasp of vocabulary. We all know she uses a lot of words, but I have found that she understands even more than she uses. We have started reading the Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle series of books (and I just discovered that there is a season of the show on Hulu!! Might have to check that out with her!!) and in one of the chapters we came across the word "immaculate." I stopped reading and asked Aidyn, "Do you know what 'immaculate' means?" She said, "Oh, yeah, it means amazingly clean."

Science:
Science is one of those things that I haven't laid out a lesson plan for or anything, but we have some great conversations about so many things that she has learned so much about science. She knows, for example, that the moon reflects the sun; that plants need sunlight, air, soil, and water to grow and that they have roots/leaves/etc.; that the stars are very far away; how different parts of her body work (senses, heartbeat, etc.); simple classification of animals (plant-eaters and meat-eaters, egg-layers, jungle-dwellers, etc.); weather and seasons; the different forms of water (ice/water/steam); temperature; and a beginning understanding of magnets. This has her somewhere in first grade science without ever cracking a science textbook. She does have a really cute set of Winnie the Pooh science books that I should probably bust out for her to learn a little deeper.

Just a few days ago she and I were having a conversation about water, ice, and steam and I watched it click in her head that other things can also freeze and melt. She couldn't quite get out what she had just learned though and when I asked her to tell me about water and ice she just said, "Yeah! Because ice melts into water!!" So cute :-)

I figure that based on just those three areas she is probably operating at about a first grade level. She would be going into K4 this fall, but we have decided to keep her home at least this year. I have an excellent science-based curriculum (My Father's World) and a children's book-based curriculum (Peak With Books) that I intend to use simultaneously over the next year. If she's picked most of this up just by "unschooling," I wonder how she'll do with some more formal experimentation and application?

I looked into Montessori and Waldorf schools, which I feel would be more beneficial to her, but I cannot spend $6000-$7000/year on private school. That is more than a year of my college education cost. So, now...my question is, how do I know when she's ready for mainstream education if she continues to be above her age abilities? At what point do I decide that her social education is as important as her academic one? If she is gifted, how can I give her the best opportunities? Pretty soon I'll be asking as many questions as she does!!!

Gunned

Aidyn's favorite animal has been the hippopotamus for the longest time. I'm not sure what prompted this choice, but it's pretty firmly ingrained in our little one's head. No puppies or kitties here, I guess. While visiting my family in Pennsylvania a few weeks ago she noticed my brother's gun safe. "What are those for?" she asked. My mom explained that Uncle Joe likes to hunt and Aidyn replied, "What does he hunt?" My mom gave the list--deer, squirrel, and others--and Aidyn began to get teary-eyed. She solemnly looked up at Mamie and said, "Hippos are not my only favorite animal. I don't want the deers to get gunned." Maybe we'll have a vegetarian on our hands in a few years?

Vanilla Wipers

Watching Aidyn spend time with my parents and my grandparents has been a fun part of this vacation. She has gotten some great quality time with them and today was no exception. She really enjoyed helping Great Grammy make a yummy lunchtime dessert of vanilla pudding. At dinner tonight she was telling Mamie and Pappy about the dessert she helped to make and gave the entire recipe: "First I put a vanilla wiper in the bottom of the cup, then I spooned in some pudding in the middle, then I put another vanilla wiper on the top!" Yummy vanilla wipers!! :-)

Mary, Mary Quite Contrary

Yesterday we went to Idlewild, an amusement park near my parents' house. One of the coolest parts is Storybook Forest where you take a walking tour through a giant Mother Goose book and into the forest. All of the favorite characters are in there: the Three Bears, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, Peter Pumpkin Eater, Little Boy Blue, and many more. It's really cute and she had a lot of fun remembering all of the stories and nursery rhymes. One of them she must not have known, because she definitely couldn't finish the rhyme:

Me: "Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow?"
Aidyn: (without hesitation) "Water!!"

Wish

Yesterday Aidyn watched me shave my legs. I usually shave during the 10 minutes I'm alone in the shower, but this time it couldn't be avoided and I needed a quick shave. I'm pretty sure she hasn't ever seen me shave before, but she's seen Daddy shave a lot. So there were a lot of questions: "Why do you have to shave? (because I want to wear shorts) Do you shave your face? (nope...only boys) Daddy doesn't shave his legs. (no, just his face) Can I help you shave your legs? (no thanks) Can I shave my legs? (no way) WHEN can I shave my legs? (well, a razor is sharp like a knife, so when you're bigger) Can I shave my face then? (no...you're not a boy) How about I just hold the part that's not sharp for you? (no thanks)"

Fast forward about 6 hours. We were shopping in the mall with my mom and Aidyn saw a wishing fountain. She asked Mamie for a penny and threw it in. She turned to Mamie and said, "Wanna know what I wished for? To shave." I'm pretty sure that wishing fountain is broken because that wish isn't coming true anytime soon!!

You Can Blog That

Aidyn has discovered that we blog her cute little sayings. I'm not sure exactly how she came across this information, but we do talk about it sometimes so I guess she overheard. She obviously doesn't mind because lately she's been saying, "Oh, that was funny what I just said. You can blog that."

Princess

We are visiting my parents in Pennsylvania while Donnie is in Nicaragua and Aidyn has really been missing her Daddy. Last night she cried and cried at bedtime but eventually calmed down enough to say, "But I am a princess. And my prince is in Nicaragua!!"

Baby Names

Although Aidyn is completely convinced that our new baby is a girl, we have narrowed down our boy names to three choices: Lukas, Landon, and Logan. The family is slightly split over the decision, so I decided to let Aidyn choose. On the way home from preschool today I asked her which one she liked best and she said, "Well, Lukas is too big so off check. Ummmm....so I pick Landon." Now just to wait for the big ultrasound!

Sad

Aidyn has been learning how to better express her emotions. She has been a little sad lately because of Kassie leaving, but she is working through it in her own little mind. My two favorites from the past few days:

• "When I get really sad I forget how to kiss."

• "Sometimes when I am sad I go in my room and lay on my bed and just look up at Jesus. And I tell him I am sad. He is in Heaven and His voice is too quiet so I can't hear Him, but He makes me feel better."
  

Do You Have a Pen in There, Too?

Aidyn has been really loving to go shopping with us lately. She is so cute checking the items off the list and she's learning about spelling and reading, too. So, when we went to the grocery store today to pick up some things for Kassie's Forever Family Party, she asked if I could give her the list so she could check things off. I told her that the list was in my head this time. She looked puzzled for a moment and then seriously asked, "Do you have a pen in there, too?"

Off Check

Shopping at Pick 'N Save today:

Me: Ok, let's go over our list. Hamburger?
Aidyn: Check!
Me: Chips?
Aidyn: Check!
Me: Formula?
Aidyn: Check!
Me: Fruit for fruit salad?
Aidyn: Check!
Me: Ten thousand kisses for Aidyn?
Aidyn: OFF check!!!!!

She'll Always Be in Our Hearts

Kassie is officially with her Forever Family and we are so excited for her. Although we will miss her, she will do well living with her family. Probably no one will miss her more than Aidyn. They have become wonderful little friends and sisters so I was afraid what kind of loss Aidyn might feel. We have been talking about this day from the moment Kassie came to live with us, but I just wasn't sure if I had prepared her well enough. I gave Aidyn the news about Kassie's leaving on Thursday and here's how it went:

Me: "Aidyn, I just wanted to tell you that it's almost time for Kassie to go live with her Forever Family. She is going to move on Saturday. Isn't that great news?"
Aidyn: [puts her head down sadly] "I will really miss her though." [thinks a moment and then looks up brightly] "BUT, she will always be in our hearts!"

I guess all of the preparing did sink in at least some. Now we'll have to see how the next few weeks go without her playmate. I already read her six books at bedtime tonight, so I'm enjoying the extra snuggle time with my big girl!!

That Jesus Song

On the way home from church tonight we were listening to K-LOVE on the radio and Untitled Hymn (Come to Jesus) by Chris Rice came on. Aidyn was sad because we had to leave Daddy at church to finish up a few things and she had been crying but stopped when the song came to, "Cry to Jesus." We got home a few minutes later and I noticed she was still looking pretty sad. I asked her if she was still missing Daddy and she nodded, then asked, "Why does that song tell us to cry for Jesus?" I explained that it said cry to Jesus, which I think means that when you're sad you can tell Him everything and He will listen. Then she put her little lower lip out and said, "I think I might cry again." I assured her that it is always okay to cry and knelt down to hug her and she just sobbed, "That Jesus song made me tear up!."

Baby's Food

Warning: This might be a little graphic. I debated whether or not to post it, but I decided that it was too funny to keep to myself.

Aidyn has been very interested in the pictures of babies breastfeeding in her book about babies. She has been asking a lot of questions about how our baby will eat and whether it will breastfeed or have a bottle like AJ. I told her that I will probably breastfeed our new baby and ever since she has referred to my breasts as "the baby's food." As in:

[giving me a hug with her head on my chest] "Oh, Mommy, I'm sorry I squished the baby's food."
or
[seeing me putting on a bra] "Does that protect the baby's food?"

Remembering

We have been doing a lot of talking about the baby in Mommy's belly the past several weeks and Aidyn has asked some very good questions, including whether the foster care case worker would come to see the new baby too. Recently she was asking what it looks like inside my tummy and I showed her a picture of the ultrasound and one in her book about babies. She studied both pictures carefully and then said, "I forget what it looks like in your tummy. But, it would be really cool if I could remember!!"

High Style Shoes

Aidyn decided last night that her favorite kind of shoes are "high-style shoes." I had no idea, but her Daddy (who was painting her nails at the time) knew immediately what she meant and translated for me: high-heeled shoes!

Out of the Mouth of Moms

My side of the conversations with Aidyn this morning:

"No, please, this is my breakfast. You already ate your breakfast. Because this is my oatmeal. Ok, fine, here is the rest of the bowl."

"Please quit screaming, your baby brother is sleeping. Yes, I know you are just pretending to be scared. Ok, well then you can just scream quietly."

"No we can not jump over the back of the couch. Because it isn't safe. Yes, I know I don't let you have any fun. I'm sorry, honey, the answer is still no."

"No, the fixer man cannot live here. Because he has a house somewhere else. But then where would you sleep? No, I don't think that would work. No, you may not go in the kitchen and ask him if he would like to move in."

"Why didn't you finish this oatmeal? I knew you weren't hungry. Because you already ate before I did. Can I finish my own oatmeal now that it is cold? Ok, thanks."

"STOP JUMPING OVER THE BACK OF THE COUCH!"

"That is not true. No it isn't, I let you have fun all the time. I just would rather not watch you break your neck today. No, not tomorrow either."

"No, thank you. Because this is my lunch and you already ate yours. Well, you still have noodles of your own if you are still hungry. No, your noodles are not more yuckier than mine. Remember the oatmeal from this morning? I am going to eat my own lunch now please."

"Time for a nap!!!"

I Never Get to...

Aidyn is not a fan of being told what to do. Her newest tactic when given instruction is to complain that she "NEVER gets to do ANYTHING!!" My favorites from the last couple of weeks:

• When told that beds are for sleeping on, "I never get to jump on the bed!"
• When told that 8:45pm is too late to go to the park, "I never get to go outside!"
• When told that marshmallows are not a breakfast food, "I never get to eat anything!"
• When told that she would not be allowed to watch a third movie today, "I never get to watch tv!"
• When told that she could not have a sleepover on a school night, "I never get to play with my friends."

It's really a shame that you guys don't stop me from being such a bad mom! Which reminds me of this writing I saw one time called "The Meanest Mother in the World" and I think I'll copy it here so I can show it to Miss Aidyn someday:

The Meanest Mother in the World

I had the meanest mother in the whole world. While other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have cereal, eggs or toast. When others had cokes and candy for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich. As you can guess, my supper was different than the other kids' also. But at least, I wasn't alone in my sufferings. My sister and two brothers had the same mean mother as I did.

My mother insisted upon knowing where we were at all times. You'd think we were on a chain gang. She had to know who our friends were and where we were going. She insisted if we said we'd be gone an hour, that we be gone one hour or less--not one hour and one minute. I am nearly ashamed to admit it, but she actually struck us. Not once, but each time we had a mind of our own and did as we pleased. That poor belt was used more on our seats than it was to hold up Daddy's pants. Can you imagine someone actualy hitting a child just because he disobeyed? Now you can begin to see how mean she really was.

We had to wear clean clothes and take a bath. The other kids always wore their clothes for days. We reached the height of insults because she made our clothes herself, just to save money. Why, oh why, did we have to have a mother who made us feel different from our friends? The worst is yet to come. We had to be in bed by nine each night and up at eight the next morning. We couldn't sleep till noon like our friends. So while they slept-my mother actually had the nerve to break the child-labor law. She made us work. We had to wash dishes, make beds, learn to cook and all sorts of cruel things. I believe she laid awake at night thinking up mean things to do to us.

She always insisted upon us telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, even if it killed us- and it nearly did. By the time we were teen-agers, she was much wiser, and our life became even more unbearable. None of this tooting the horn of a car for us to come running. She embarrassed us to no end by making our dates and friends come to the door to get us. If I spent the night with a girlfriend, can you imagine she checked on me to see if I were really there. I never had the chance to elope to Mexico. That is if I'd had a boyfriend to elope with. I forgot to mention, while my friends were dating at the mature age of 12 and 13, my old fashioned mother refused to let me date until the age of 15 and 16. Fifteen, that is, if you dated only to go to a school function. And that was maybe twice a year.

Through the years, things didn't improve a bit. We could not lie in bed, "sick" like our friends did, and miss school. If our friends had a toe ache, a hang nail or some other serious ailment, they could stay home from school. Our marks in school had to be up to par. Our friends' report cards had beautiful colors on them, black for passing, red for failing. My mother being as different as she was, would settle for nothing less than ugly black marks.

As the years rolled by, first one and then the other of us was put to shame. We were graduated from high school. With our mother behind us, talking, hitting and demanding respect, none of us was allowed the pleasure of being a drop-out.

My mother was a complete failure as a mother. Out of four children, a couple of us attained some higher education. None of us have ever been arrested, divorced or beaten his mate. Each of my brothers served his time in the service of this country. And whom do we have to blame for the terrible way we turned out? You're right, our mean mother. Look at the things we missed. We never got to march in a protest parade, nor to take part in a riot, burn draft cards, and a million and one other things that our friends did. She forced us to grow up into God-fearing, educated, honest adults.

Using this as a background, I am trying to raise my three children. I stand a little taller and I am filled with pride when my children call me mean. Because, you see, I thank God, He gave me the meanest mother in the whole world.

written by Bobbie Pingaro (1967)

I Thought You Would Say "No"

I don't think I say "no" to Aidyn too much, but I could be wrong. Lately she has been asking for things in this really cute, almost shy way. She will put her little head to the side and look up at me with her big eyes and say something like, "Um...well...I was just wondering...maybe if I could have something like a juice box." When I say, "Sure, honey, let's go get one," she gets the cutest look on her face and just beams with excitement. The other day she answered back, "Oh, I thought you would say 'no.'"

Jessie

Aidyn has such a sweet, tender heart. I should know better than to let her watch sad movies, but who knew it would be Toy Story 2 that sent her over the edge??
Last night Aidyn came sobbing down from her room after bedtime. The crying was a truly heartbreaking sound and I was sure there must be some problem. I asked her to tell me what was wrong and she answered through the tears, "Jessie had someone who loved her and then she didn't." As soon as she said it she began to cry harder and buried her face in my shirt. She cried for a few more minutes while I reassurred her that Daddy and I would ALWAYS love her...I didn't know what else to say!! That seemed to work though and she went peacefully back to bed. But I have been thinking about that moment ever since.

Energy

Last week I was lying on the couch feeling rather exhausted when Aidyn came into the living room. She snuggled up to me on the couch and asked if I was ok. I said that I just had no energy and she asked if it was because of the baby. I said yes and she replied with concern: "If you have no energy you won't die. BUT...what if the baby takes ALL your energy?!?"

Crack Out

Aidyn has a little bit to learn about how babies are born. A few weeks ago we told her about the new baby growing inside Mommy's tummy and her very first question was, "When is the baby going to crack out?"

Soil Bucket

Once again I am fascinated by how Aidyn explains what she is trying to say using only her semi-limited vocabulary. Recently she planted some flower seeds outside with Daddy and Aidyn informed me that she had "even planted some seeds in the soil bucket". I wasn't sure what she meant until I looked outside and saw the flower pot near the porch.

It Is Red Though

This one won't be as cute to you unless you've heard it in person, but I needed to record it anyway so I'll remember the cuteness of my little girl. When we play I Spy, Aidyn likes to point out that there are many options for a certain color. For example:
Aidyn: I spy something red.
Me: The fire hydrant?
Aidyn: No. But it is red.
Me: The stoplight?
Aidyn: No. But that is also red.
Me: AJ's shirt?
Aidyn: YEAH!!

My Face Is in the Front

Last week I was putting Aidyn's hair in a ponytail. She really wanted to be able to see the ponytail, so I held her up to the bathroom mirror. She looked into my eyes through the mirror and solemnly proclaimed, "But...I can't see the back because my face is in the front."

That's Why We Don't Fight

Aidyn happened to wake up from a nap when I was watching Forrest Gump on television. Before I could change the channel, Aidyn saw Captain Dan on his hospital bed. She immediately noticed his missing legs and asked, "Why is he like that?" I answered that he had been fighting in a war and he got hurt. She shook her little blond head and said sadly, "THAT is why we don't fight."

Pillow Spider

Aidyn came into our room at around 3am the other night and said, "Daddy, there's a spider on my pillow." Daddy went in her room and took all the stuff off her bed and shook it, looking earnestly for the offensive spider. Finally Aidyn stopped him and said, "Oh, well, I imagined the spider on my pillow. It appeared all by itself right here on my pillow and then it disappeared all by itself." Maybe a dream? Or maybe just a fast spider!!

Realized

Aidyn has learned a new word and how to use it properly and for some reason it just really cracked me up. "Mom. Do you know what I just realized?"

Do They Think This Is a Potty?

I am not sure why, but Aidyn has been very fascinated with the bird droppings on our cars this week. She asked a lot of questions about it including, "What IS that?!" and "Why did they poop there?" and "Will it come off the car?" But my favorite by far was her incredulous, "Do they think this is a potty!?!?"

God and Jesus Visits Our Bones

Aidyn and Kassie were talking about Jesus being in our hearts and Daddy asked, "What does it mean when Jesus is in your heart?" I think he was hoping for some deeply spiritual response, but Aidyn just replied, "It means that God and Jesus visits our bones."

Superhero

Aidyn: "Mommy. I am a superhero."
Me: "Really? What is your super power?"
Aidyn: "I can turn things lots of colors with decorating. I have to spin to do that."

No Dancing Around

Aidyn saw this warning sign on the rides at Disneyland and instructed me that "This means NO dancing around!"

That Toast Was Amazing

Today I gave Aidyn her first ever cinnamon and sugar toast. After she ate every last bite she announced with great emphasis, "That toast was AMAZING!!"

Smaulding Together

Aidyn accidentally ground her teeth together last week and announced, "My teeth were smaulding together!"

Did You Buy This?

As we were leaving Disneyland I wanted to get Aidyn a little souvenir. I chose a Minnie Mouse doll and gave it to her as we were getting on the tram to return to the parking garage. A few minutes later Aidyn suddenly turned to me in concern and asked, "Did you buy this!!??" I'm not sure if she thought I had stolen it or something, but it got some strange looks and questions from my family wondering if I had a problem they didn't know about.

You Have to Watch Your Children

At Disneyland Aidyn heard an announcement near one of the rides to "watch your children." She turned to me and instructed, "You have to watch your children. Like me. You have to watch me. Don't forget to watch me, ok?"

Sassy

Oh the sassiness. Anyone have good cures for that? Because it's running rampant at my house right now and Aidyn is the biggest culprit. She is very smart and has a sharp, quick tongue...not a very good combination for the sassies! We are working hard to curb her nasty little sayings and this past week in LA I reprimanded her for something and she decided, "Well then I will just go to my room and be nasty." How to tell her that I want her to be sweet EVERYWHERE!?

Sminch

Sminch is a new word of Aidyn's that describes everything from a little tickling pinch to a small amount of something. It's actually a fun word that we're using a lot lately!

Drawing Gas

My mom and Aidyn were playing a game where they would draw on each other's back and then try to guess what was being drawn. At one point Aidyn was drawing and my mom was guessing. "A car?" she guessed, and Aidyn said, "Nope, but it does have gas." Finally after many other incorrect guesses Aidyn declared that she was indeed drawing gas. Come on, mom...how could you not figure that out?!

Rub Your Feet

While we were visiting LA last week we went on a long walk to Hollywood from my sister's apartment. We stopped at a little Philly Cheesesteak place for lunch and I complained that my feet were hurting from walking so far. Aidyn offered, "Maybe when I'm done with my soda I will rub your feet." I declined, touched by her sweet offer, and she answered, "Ok. Maybe when we get home then."

Daddy's Hair

Auntie was teasing Aidyn while she was coloring a picture. "Daddy's hair is purple," Auntie teased. "No," Aidyn emphatically replied. "Daddy doesn't have hair!"

Puma

"My new favorite animal is a puma. But it has to be a nice puma."

Alice the Camel

Aidyn has learned a new song at preschool. "Alice the Camel" (we called it "Sally the Camel" but whatever...) is a counting down song that Aidyn has slightly modified, "Alice the camel has five house. Alice the camel has five house. Alice the camel has five house, so ride, Alice, ride." No matter how many times I try to tell her it's "five HUMPS" she simply shakes her head as if I know nothing and continues to sing all the way down to "Alice the camel has one home. Alice the camel has one home."

Mani-Crisis

After our mani/pedi with Mamie and Auntie this week Aidyn was eating an English muffin and got some jam on her hands. She became quite concerned and franticly said, "I need a napkin for my nail!!"

Flashback

Several months ago we stopped at McDonald's and somehow we managed to buckle everyone into their car seats except for Aidyn. As we pulled out of the parking lot and onto the main road Aidyn began to cry and then panic from the backseat. All I could hear between the sobs was, "I'm not safe!" Of course I pulled over immediately and buckled her safely but I still felt bad that she was so scared.

That Red Book

When we first got on the airplane Aidyn asked to see "that red book." I really wasn't sure what she was talking about until she explained, "that instruction book in the seat back pocket." I was surprised that she remembered 1. the book, 2. that it was red, 3. that it contained instructions, and 4. that it is in the "seat back pocket." I reached the book for her and she began studying the pictures contained inside. She asked a few questions about the no smoking sign ("what is that stick?") and about the differing views of the airplane ("is this the same plane from the top and side") and about the oxygen mask pictures ("do you have to close your eyes when you use that?"), but mostly she sat quietly for almost 20 minutes just simply studying the instructions. I didn't think much of it until we got on our next flight where our seats were in the very last row. I instructed Aidyn to walk all the way to the back of the plane and she asked, "Where the slide is?"

Boarding Pass

At the airport Aidyn asked to see those "important papers" in my hand which happened to be our boarding passes. I explained that they were the papers that told the airline workers that we were safe to get on the plane and I showed her her name on her very own boarding pass. Then she asked to see mine and became very upset: "That is NOT how you spell your name! It is M-O-M."

Stirring My Juice

In the airport restaurant while on our way to LA to visit Auntie Aidyn decided to stir her glass of apple juice with the straw. I asked her to stop stirring (fearing for the spillage that I could foresee) and she replied with a sassy: "I am STIRRING my juice because it is TOO juicy and I like it JUST a little juicier so I NEED to stir it."

Chicken Shack

The other night Aidyn was coloring at her little table and started pretending that her crayons were chickens and then that she was advertising her own new business. "Aidyn's Chicken Stand, come get your chickens! Chickens to eat and chickens for pets!!" Daddy pretended to buy both some chickens to eat and some chickens for pets despite being slightly disturbed.

Competition

This morning while playing, "Daddy we're playing competition. The doggie won!!"

Deals

Last night after dinner Aidyn approached her Daddy with a proposition. "Ok, Daddy I have some deals. I have TEN deals. After dinner we could...um...and um...number one wrestle fish*, then number two just wrestle, three get something kind of like a dessert and four play pollies** in the guy castle***. But there's only FOUR deals, not TEN. I have to go get some jambones**** on and when I go up there you can choose a deal. So if I forget one what you said downstairs you will have to remind me."



Translations:
* wrestle fish: this is a game that Aidyn plays with Daddy where he sits on the coffee table and casts an imaginary fishing line. Aidyn is a fish and Daddy reels her in until she gets near the boat then he pulls her out of the water and throws her into the boat (onto the couch). Daddy gets good exercise, Aidyn has a blast, and Mommy is terrified imagining neck fractures.

**pollies: Polly Pockets

***guy castle: All of the Little People toys that Aidyn owns are collectively called "guys." This is the Little People princess castle.

****jambones: Aidyn's word for pajamas, thanks to Mamie

D-A-D

Aidyn was trying to get Daddy's attention this morning while we were still in bed (and practicing her spelling skills). She was outside the door yelling, "Dad, Dad, Daddy, Daddy, Dad, D-A-D, Daddy!"

[side note: as I'm typing this we're talking about it and Aidyn said, "I just wanted to see if it was the same."]

Marshmallows

Aidyn's description of what we should do with some marshmallows: "Fire them. Blow them. EAT THEM!!"

Like, Fifty Times

"Mom, Kassie's shirt is on backward and I've told her like, fifty times to spin it around and she is not listening."

Sound in My Room

And again, still stalling, same night as the last post, called down from upstairs:
"Daddy. I have a very important question."
"What is it Aidyn?"
"There's a noise in my room."
"Okay. I'll check it when I come up to bed."
"But it says 'Hi' like in the mommy, mommy, mommy video."
"Okay Aidyn. Go back to bed."
"But Daaaadddddddddddyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!!........"

Scared

Yet again, a bedtime stall attempt. Screamed from upstairs: "I am scared because there's no parent!"

Fairy Wings With Glitter

At breakfast this morning, quite randomly I might add (although this isn't the first time she's voiced this particular fear, this is the first solution she's offered):
"Mom. You won't ever leave me, right? Because if you ever left me at Monkey Joe's I would have to find a new pair of fairy wings with glitter and put them on so that I could fly and follow your car home."
I'm glad she'll at least be sparkly and girly while finding her own way home after being forgotten somewhere!

It Smells Hot

Yet another example of the way Aidyn uses what vocabulary she has to make herself completely clear. And in this one I knew EXACTLY what she was trying to say!

In the van last night, with the heat on full blast, Aidyn complained, "It smells hot in here."

You Shouldn't Drink a Lot

Aidyn's advice to a very thirsty Daddy (who was, incidentally, drinking root beer):
"You shouldn't drink a lot. It's not good for you."

Twenty Ears

I was discussing something with Donnie the other night at dinner and Aidyn overheard me saying that I had had twenty years to get that right. Her reply: "Mommy....no one has twenty ears."

Turn the Music Up

Ah my musical little one. Who isn't so little anymore....
Today we were dancing to the radio while procrastinating on the cleaning of the living room. Rihanna's "Pon de Replay" came on and I began to sing along. "Turn the music up," I sang with Rihanna. Aidyn stopped dancing, looked up at me, walked to the radio, turned the volume dial to the right, then turned very seriously to me and said, "Is that better Mama?"

Chopped Liver

Overheard while making dinner and the girls were playing on the steps:
"Kassie! That is MINE. It is NOT chopped liver!!"

Not even sure where she learned that term!

Khaki

As Aidyn was helping me put away the mountain of laundry that my mom washed/dried/folded while she was visiting last week we came across a pair of pants. "Oh, khaki!" I said, remembering that we owned these pants after quite the long absence on the basement floor waiting to be washed. Aidyn put her lower lip way out and began to cry softly. I was completely bewildered and took her onto my lap to try to figure out this sudden sadness. Through tears she explained, "It hurts my feelings when you say mean things about Kassie." I had no idea what she was talking about until she went on: "Don't call her khaki. It's KASSIE!"

Brick House

On Aidyn's birthday she began complaining about a very sore throat and left ear pain. I took her to urgent care and sure enough it was strep throat and an ear infection. When we pulled up to the building she exclaimed, "Bricks??!!!!" I realized that she probably had never seen a traditional red brick building. She excitedly went on to say, "Like the third little pig's house??!!"

Broken Heart

The other night there was a change in plans regarding going to "Miss Jessie's House" which is Aidyn code for going to our Journey Group. Aidyn was devastated by this change in plans since going to Miss Jessie's House is the highlight of her week. She went to Daddy and asked for his phone so she could send a tearful text message to Nana and tell her all about her disappointment. Daddy opened the text message to Nana and Aidyn looked for the faces to send by text. Suddenly she pointed to one of the faces and said, "This is what my Mommy did to my heart." We looked and she was pointing to the broken heart icon, the saddest look ever on her little face. As if that weren't enough, she began texting Nana and dictating out loud what she was typing: "I hope my Mommy will give me a fixed heart. She broke my heart. That wasn't nice of her to do. I hope she doesn't do that again." I'm not sure where Aidyn learned about broken hearts, but she sure knows how to break mine!

Walgreens

Conversation with Mamie:

Mamie: "I'd like to give you a gift certificate to go out for dinner for your birthday. Where would you like to go?"
Aidyn: "I like Chili's. Or Walgreens for snacks."

Green Enough to Be a Frog

Aidyn's announcement after noticing that her Fun Dip had turned her teeth, tongue, chin, lips, and index finger all green: "I'm green enough to be a frog!"

I John 4:19

We love him, because he first loved us.
I John 4:19

I have never showed this verse to Aidyn. Whether she learned it at AWANA or kid's church I'm not sure, but maybe she just knows this inherently. Our discussion tonight:

Aidyn: "I love God."
Me: "Me too, kiddo."
Aidyn: "Know what I do? I do this to God [makes "I love you" sign up to the sky]."
Me: "That's cool. Do you think it's hard to love God?"
Aidyn: "No. 'Cause I know that He loves me!!"

Interview With Aidyn, Age 4 (almost)

I did this last year, too and I present with pleasure:
Aidyn, Age 4 (well...in 9 days!!)

1. What is something mommy always says to you?
Good night, I love you

2. What makes mommy happy?
hugs, kisses, not being nasty, being nice, cleaning without you asking

3. What makes mommy sad?
when I be nasty, when I hit, spitting, like...or...like snatching and probably snatching some books or snatching the pretties, breaking the lamp

4. How does your mommy make you laugh?
when you tickle me, wrestling, we come to couch and play silly

5. What was your mommy like when she was a little girl?
I don't know...little? You liked my bear when you were a little girl. You got presents from Santa and candy.

6. How old is your mommy?
I don't know...maybe 13 or 10 or 16

7. How tall is your mommy?
really big...like this big [motions with her hands]

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
clean clean clean clean and be nice and happy

9. What does your mommy do when you're not around?
I don't know...cry? Tears.

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
I don't know...tv. I don't remember.

11. What is your mommy really good at?
cleaning, um....checking people, turning on the tv, um...I don't know.

12. What is your mommy not very good at?
not cleaning up, not turning on the tv, pestering, uh...being nasty, not cleaning up the monies.

13. What does your mommy do for her job?
check people, give shots, be nice to people

14. What is your mommy's favorite food?
strawberries, berries, what about raspberries? green eggs and ham? pickle?

15. What makes you proud of your mommy?
when you're famous!

16. If your mommy were a cartoon character, who would she be?
Pinky Dinky Doo because you tell stories and and you're a good famous girl [sings the Pinky Dinky Doo theme song excitedly]

17. What do you and your mommy do together?
clean, read books, play with a ball

18. How are you and your mommy the same?
[points to me] green....[points to self]....green! Because we play with lipstick and play with something nopsept doing. (mommy note: no idea what nopsept means...)

19. How are you and your mommy different?
[points to self] pink...[points to me]...green! Red and green. Green and pink.

20. How do you know your mommy loves you?
[holds up 'I love you' sign with hand]

21. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
Monkey Joes and shop

2 and 7

The other night at dinner Aidyn was asking about the time. She was noticing the clock and saying that the 9 and the 6 on the clock sometimes sort of look the same because the 6 upside-down is a 9. Then Daddy said that when he was younger he thought that a 2 and a 7 looked alike and he sometimes got confused.
Then she placed her silverware on her plate and gestured with her hands toward Daddy and then the clock. "Let me explain this to you. So...you see..the 7 goes across and then sideways down and the 2 has a curly part and then it goes down and then over." I wish you could have seen her little earnest face trying so hard to help Daddy understand the difference!

What the Hack!

We are discovering that Aidyn is picking up on everything we say. I know she has always done this, but we had previously been very careful about our words since we knew her little ears were listening. Lately we have been a bit more lax but are realizing that we cannot continue to be. Here are two examples from the past couple of months.

Aidyn: "Daddy, what is 'hack'?"
Donnie: "Hack? Like how?"
Aidyn: "Like this [with emphasis]: 'WHAT THE HACK!?!?!?'"

And another one that occurred while I was helping Kassie with her coat and the zipper was giving me problems:
Aidyn [with a voice inflection of pure contempt]: "Stupid cheap jacket."

Who Dat?

Aidyn is apparently a New Orleans Saints fan. As we were getting into the car she randomly yelled out, "Who dat!?" Not even sure what she was talking about!!

Diarrhea Color

Aidyn was coloring with Kassie the other night and Aidyn held up a greenish-creamy-brown crayon and proclaimed, "This color is...[looking perplexed]...what's that name when you don't feel good and your tummy is sick and your poopie is sick?"
"Oh, you mean diarrhea?" replied Daddy.
"Yeah!" she answered. "This crayon is diarrhea color!"

I Love You Too

Me: "I love you Aidyn."
Aidyn: "I love you too! I haven't heard that in my WHOLE LIFE!!!!!"

Lizard Fish

Aidyn saw the fish in the doctor's office aquarium at her checkup this week and noticed that it looked very much like something else she had seen. She called across the waiting room, "Kassie! Do you want to see the lizard fish?"

Imagine a Prayer

Tonight at bedtime prayers Aidyn tried yet another bedtime stall tactic. I said it was time to say prayers and she said, "Wait! I gotta get my head ready to imagine a prayer."

Purple Randomness

Totally out of the blue tonight Aidyn said, "Dark purple and light purple are my favorite colors. What's your favorite color?"

I Served You All the Yesses

Aidyn: "I served you all the yesses."
Me: "What does that mean?"
Aidyn: "That means I telled you yes whenever you asked me a question."
Me: "Oh, ok. Thanks for serving me all the yesses."

Not Fantastic

Aidyn declared tonight after getting sent to her room for being sassy:
"This place is NOT fun. This place is NOT beautiful. And this place is NOT FANTASTIC!!"

Shall We?

Aidyn, asking for a drink before bed tonight: "Mom, can I please have some milk?"
Me: "Sure, let's go to the kitchen and get some."
Aidyn: "Shall we? We shall."

She Knows I Want To Do 10, Right?

Aidyn loves to play online games from Fisher Price. One of her favorites is the Count the Score game where she counts with the character of her choice as he scores goals in various games. There is an option to choose to count to 5, 10, or 20 and even though Aidyn mastered this level of counting about 6 months ago she still likes to count with the game. Tonight she decided to count with the game up to 10 using the numbers on the keyboard. So with her little mouse she chose the counting to 10 option and then began the game. Partway through the game she turned nervously toward me and asked, "She knows that I only want to do 10, right?" I think she was worried she'd have to count to 20!

Sassy

So yes, I am aware that you reap during your parenting what you sow with your own childhood. I am discovering that my sassiness has transferred to my child. I can assure you that I haven't taught her this...she must be learning it at preschool!

A sampling of tonight's sassy show:
"This is not what I'm expecting of you!"

"I just want someone to give me everything I want RIGHT NOW."

And my personal favorite (if you can call it that):
Aidyn: "Mom, what does your sticker say?"
Me: "Oh, that's my nametag. It says, 'Tracy Mingo.'"
Aidyn [bursting into tears]: "YOU'RE COPYING MY LAST NAME!!!"

Salt Shaker

Tonight at dinner while eating a cracker and with the crumbs covering her face to prove it Aidyn exclaimed: "Take me upside-down and shake me because I have so much salt!!"

Swagga

Yet another song-related post for Aidyn. She is so musical! I will not be surprised if she ends up being incredibly talented like her Daddy.

The other day she asked me, "Mama. What's a swagga?"
I had absolutely no idea what she was talking about and when she saw the confused look on my face she starts singing: "Them chickens jackin' my style they try to copy my swagga."

So I had to explain that swagga is actually swagger and it's a silly word that means the way you walk. I find it very interesting that she actually listens intently to lyrics and I'm going to have to be very careful to make sure she only ever hears the clean version of that song.

I Wanna Talk to God

Last night at bedtime prayers:

Aidyn: "Dear Jesus, [opens her eyes and looks solemnly into mine] wait. I wanna talk to God instead. [closes eyes and folds hands fervently] Dear God, please help us obey Mommy and go right to sleep and not play or jump on our beds* and please help us have only good dreams. Amen."

Kassie: "Dear Jesus, thanks for going to AWANA and thanks for Miss Beth and Miss Sam. Amen."


* Can you tell that I pray that often? :-)

Life Is a Hallway

Recently I've been trying to introduce different music to Aidyn (besides Family Force 5 and the Breaking Doors song, of course!) and this past week it's been Rascal Flatts. We were really enjoying the theme song from Disney's Cars as evidenced by Aidyn's rousing rendition at dinner: "Life is a hallway, I wanna ride it all night long."

Teerexysaurus

After seeing a book about dinosaurs recently Aidyn declared that her favorite dinosaur is "Teerexysaurus."

Beard

At lunch today...
Aidyn: "Mom, why does Daddy shave all the time?"
Me: "Because if he didn't he would grow a beard."
Aidyn [mildly panicked]: "Like Santa!?! He doesn't want to grow a beard like Santa!!!"

blackaseennonit

On the way to church tonight we were listening to the regular radio which we usually don't do. We usually listen to Christian radio but it was on a long string of talking so we switched to a station playing Beyonce. The girls danced in their carseats and enjoyed the song until we got to church and I really thought nothing of it. After church, over 5 hours later, Aidyn asked to hear "blackaseennonit." I had NO idea what she was talking about until she began singing "oh oh oh oh oh oh" in a very recognizable tune: Beyonce's Single Ladies. Apparently "blackaseennonit" is Aidyn code for "put a ring on it."

Randomness

Aidyn: "I like fruit snacks because they are very smishy."

Ridiculous Cold

As I was putting on her coat before church Aidyn declared, "I need my hood up because it's ridiculous cold outside!" And at -5, she was right.

Bad Dreams

Aidyn has been remembering her dreams lately and has been talking about them in the morning. Her most recent bad dream was about some boys at school who told her to go away and then she cried and it was sad, according to her.

Last night at bedtime she wanted me to know that she was putting a stop to these bad dreams. "I'm not going to have bad dreams because God and Jesus will help me. But not baby Jesus, big Jesus. And He's not in the world, They're inside our bodies and they have fun with our hearts. And our heart doesn't move around on legs, it just sits there like this [makes a heart shape with her hands and places it against her chest]. Right Mama?"

And what could I say but, "Right, Baby. Good night."