Kidlet Hilarity #16

I'm back! The kids have been so funny these last couple of months, I've just been so busy!! Sometimes I just don't even have a moment to write these things down before they go out of my head!  So here's what got recorded! :)  

Nat is convinced that she is going to turn into a boy, or used to be a boy.

Natalie: Ladies and gentlemens...here are some papers. That's the rule.

Z: Mom, what do they call a place where people's bodies lay after they die? Is it a secretary?

Nat: My watermelon has a lot of juice in it. That's why its called watermelon!

Z: If i grow up to be a person in a band, I would only sing songs that honor God. Is that what God wants? 

Z: Once I got some seeds, and they were volcano seeds, but they were non-house-lava-ing volcano seeds.  So I threw them back into the field behind our house, and a volcano grew and lava-d in our yard.  But the lava didn't burn out house, since they were non-house-lava-ing volcano seeds.

Nat, when done eating Froot Loops for breakfast: I'll save my loops for later.

When we were on vacation, Davey would NOT fall asleep in the car.  It was late, he was exhausted, and he was just crying and crying.  Finally, my husband put his hand back and held Davey's little hand.  David literally instantly laid his head down and fell asleep.  It was so sweet!!

A friend came and  fancied up my hair for my sister's wedding, and when Z saw me with my hair so done up, his response was, "What is up with your hair??" Always honest, I guess! :) 

In the middle of the best man's speech at my sister's reception, during a pause in quiet room, Z also blurted out, "Mom, what is he talking about?"  

When we were leaving our resort in Tennessee one day, where we stayed in a four-level log cabin with Joel's extended family, Z asked what the 'Welcome Center' was for.  We told him it was a place to go if you had questions about your cabin.  Z responded, "I have a question. Why does our cabin have so many stairs?"

When we were getting ready to pack up, I still needed to rearrange some things in our suitcases before Joel lugged them up the aforementioned stairs, so I asked Z to go wake up his Daddy, and tell him not to bring the suitcases up, because I was going to do something with them.  Z said, "Okay, I will tell him, 'Your wife is going to do something with the suitcases.'" Lol!

Natalie and Z both said several times during and since vacation, "Silas is the cutest baby in all the world." :)

Davey had such a fun time with his cousin Reed, who is only a month older than him! They loved to shout NO! together, and get into all kinds of little mischief. :)  

Z:  I just saw a Japanese restaurant.  Or at least I think so, because it was called Little Tokyo, and Tokyo is the capital of Japan.  Apparently he learned this on Disney Junior! :) 

Z, after reading a library book on the body: Your skin has five layers! They're all different colors. One is purple.

Nat was trying to say Hersheys one day, and said, "Yoshis" instead. :)

Z has started being embarrassed for the first time this month!  First, he said he was embarrassed to wear his jammies to the library (but it was a jammie picnic, so everyone was wearing jammies), and then when I gave him a pink cup because his was dirty, he said he was embarrassed to drink out of a girl cup!  

Zachary made up a song called Jesus, You're the Best.  The lyrics go, "God, you're in my heart.  God, you're in my soul.  I don't love anything more than I love you."  I got a video of him singing it, and I will have to try to upload it soon! :)  

Nat made up a song called Only if You Obey, about when you get a treat. :)

When my parents were visiting, Z heard my dad say he was going to eat a bowl of cereal for breakfast.  At the time, Z was swinging on the bull swing, so he asked, "You're eating a bull of cereal?"  My dad responded, "No, that would be silly.  You have to think about the context."  To which Z said, "Context?  Context is what you put in your eyes when you can't see!"  :)

David has LOTS of new words!! He says "butt" for button, which totally cracks me up, and wah for rock.  He says MOO for cow (LOUDLY, in the milk aisle and anywhere else he might happen to see a cow!).  He also counts 'two, two, two, two, two'.  Two is the only number that matters, right? :)  He has said, 'blah' for please a couple of times, but mostly he just flaps his  hands around insistently when he wants something.  Sometimes he even does a little 'wanting 'dance, which is so, so funny. :)  

While we were driving somewhere, Z announced that he had come up with a logo for a new company.  The company is a restaurant called Wing World, and the logo is a world, but the continents are chicken wings! :)  He is just so creative! :)

Another latest 'invention' of his is the Grass Chopper mower - it looks like a grasshopper, and has a mouth that opens and closes, chomping/mowing the grass.  Look for it in a store near you! :)

One day during Bible time, we were talking about how we can ask God for help, and Nat gave this example: "Yeah, like when I don't know how spell my letters, I can say, 'God, help! Help! I don't know how spell my letters!" :)

My grandma sent a handwritten note in the mail, and when Z took a look at it, he said to me, "Mom, will you read this to me?  I don't know how to read this font."

I hope to post Z's stories and book reports from the 2nd half of the school year soon, as well as our curriculum plans for the fall, and a wrap-up post of what we did for school this year, if anyone's interested! :)  Hope everyone is having a great summer! :)  

Kidlet Hilarity #15

I have really gotten behind on keeping track of the hilarious things the kids say on a daily basis - I hope I can remember some of them from the last month!!

Natalie says 'plastic' all the time instead of pretend - like, "I'm not really sleeping.  I'm sleeping plastic."  and  "A plastic robber came to our house."  I think she got the idea from me always telling her it was silly to eat the plastic food?

Natalie: "I want to go to God's house, and see if he has any toys."

During our first round of the stomach flu, Zachary threw up on his bed.  He was so upset by it, and the first thing he said to me was, in a pleading voice, "Can I pleeeeeease have a new sheet?"  Then he had to wait in the bathroom while I changed the sheets on the top bunk (which is NOT quick process), and as I was explaining the importance of the 'bowl' to him afterwards, he said, "Oh. I will use the bowl next time.  That way I don't have to wait so long in the bathroom."

Zachary: This book's copyright is 1988.
Me: Oh, that's not too long ago.  I was a little girl then.
Zachary: Whoa, this book is Really Old!!!

During a snowball fight one day, Daddy threw some snow at Zachary.  When Zachary asked why, Daddy said, "Because you threw snow at me first."  Zachary's response: "Daddy, we don't do revenge."  :)

Natalie was having problems putting on her jammies one day, and she started to talk to them: "I need my jammies to understand! Jammies, you just need to obey!!"

Zachary came up with a new business that he is going to start someday, called Edible Crafto.  They will carry all kinds of supplies for, you guessed it, edible crafts! :)  And the best part is the company slogan - Eat Fun! :)

As Zachary was trying to come up with the word for slogan, he said, "What's the name of that, like, 'Don't get mad, get Glad'"?

The kids were playing a rhyming game in the car.  Zachary said, "I love you because you're so tiny."  Natalie responded, "I love you because you're so porcupiney!!" :)

The kids have a rude thing that they do to each other, where they make mad faces at each other when they're angry, and they put their mad face really close to the other person.  I don't even know what to call it, maybe grimacing?  Anyhow, Natalie came up with a word for it - 'neek'.  "Don't neek at me! Mommy, Zachary's neeking at me!"  Look for that one in a dictionary near you! :)

David has been so funny lately - he has started saying NO!, and making this little mad face, sometimes just whenever, and sometimes when he's actually mad.  It is hilarious.  When Z was this age, and he did that, we were convinced he was going to be a juvenile delinquent.  We just laugh at Davey's little attitude. :)

Davey has started saying lots of new words!  He has a word for Natalie now (NatNat), and he says Mo for Elmo! :)  He also said 'bapple' for apple once, and milk is mim-mim.  He often comes and tattles on his Bubba or Sissy - if they do something that bothers or upsets him, he runs to me, crying, "Bubba! Bubba!" and pointing at the offender. :)

We were playing I Spy at dinner, and Z said we could have teams.  "My team is Mommy, me, and Davey.  Nat's team is Daddy, Nat, and a pretend person." :)  It's a close call between Davey and a pretend person on your team... :)

One day after Natalie had been reprimanded for something, she stood in her room, head hung down, and said sadly, "It's hard to obey." So true!

I told Natalie to wash her hands.  She said, "I'm going to stay in the bathroom forever.  And you will call me at bedtime."  :)

My favorite thing that Davey does is he gives me hugs with his arms around my neck, and then he kisses me on the cheek - it is just so sweet!! :)

Today Z talked Natalie into wearing one of his shirts "so they could match".  She was running around in her brother's 5T shirt, with a dirty face, and messy hair when it was time to go to church for small groups.  I said, "Can I put a pretty bow in your hair?"  She responded, "NO. I don't want Anything Pretty."  Apparently I have two boys and a tomboy now...

Natalie told me a 'silly story' in the car tonight - "I had a little teeny dragon in my house.  I swat him with my ladybug swatter, and he went away."  Natalie has definitely become quite the talkative little thing lately!! She is always telling me some kind of story, I just love it. :)

Kidlet Hilarity #14

I think it is just so fun to overhear the kids playing, and all the things they come up with.  Zachary somehow came up with one name that they like to tease each other with, and that name was Tooty McNittle.  It just struck me as funny, and we giggle every time they bring it up. :)

One night as Z and Natalie were sword-fighting with (plastic!) golf clubs, they were shouting, "Fight for kindness!" :)

Z: "I know where your soul is.  It's by your heart.  It's shaped like a stick.  Not like a stick with a branch sticking out.  Kind of like an oval stick, this big."

Nat, after finishing a cookie: "I want some more.  I'm still hungry."  I said, "I can get you some more chicken."  She responded, "No, never mind.  I'm full."  

David has definitely joined the hilarity in the last couple of months, too - his personality is really starting to come out. :)  One Saturday morning as we were eating breakfast at camp, I gave David a piece of bacon.  He picked it up, looked quizzically at it, bit it, took it out of his mouth, and stared at it again like he wasn’t sure what to do with it.  He has such an expressive face, and it was just so hilarious to watch!!

Nat: “My back hurts.  I hurt it at McDonald’s.  I bumped into a window and the glass was all brokeden.”  She definitely comes up with some great stories lately!!

Nat loves to ask, “What do you did today?”  and she won’t just accept your first answer, she keeps asking, “What else?  What else?”  This is her favorite dinner time conversation. J

Daddy says he likes the Gators because ‘it makes our (Florida State fans) friends mad’.  Zachary is totally confused. “Do you want to make them mad???” 

Natalie puts on a hat.  “Will you laugh at this hat?”, she asks Zachary.  “Oh, no, that might make you sad.  I won’t laugh at you,” he responds.  Natalie: “Will you please laugh at me?”  Zachary laughs at her.  “Laugh louder!”, Natalie commands. J

Z: “Natalie, you don’t cry in basketball.”

Nat: “You want one of dese gummy bears?  They’re pretty tasty!”  We love when Natalie says ‘tasty’, it is just so cute. J

I asked Zachary if he enjoyed his first trip to the dentist.  He said he didn’t like getting his teeth cleaned, because “It tasted yucky.  It tasted like guacamole.”

Natalie was too full to finish her yogurt at snack time one day.  Getting down from her chair, she said, “I will save this for later.  I will go get a plastic paper.” J

When we were reading through Katy and the Big Snow, we were talking about how the snowdrifts were three feet like (like Zachary, we said!), and five feet deep (like Mommy!).  Natalie said, “I have two feet.” J

Z asked me for a calculator.  “Why?”, I asked.  His response: “To show you how much I love you.”  Awwwww… J

David has lots of new words – two of them are hat (pronounced ah), and shoe/sock (both pronounced eesh).

Natalie: “If God ate an ice cream sandwich, would He say ‘mmmmm’? We can give him one tomorrow.”  Um, okay…

Zachary’s leg was hurting one day.  As he climbed into Daddy’s lap, he lamented, “Ohhhh, I need a walking stick.”  Of course, we all laughed.  “This is no time for jokes!” he protested. J

As the kids were watching Looney Tunes, Zachary felt the need to ask, “Mom, what are smithereens?”

Davey has this super cute pouty look that he does when he doesn’t get what he wants – he walks away with his tummy poking out and pouty lips – I love it. J

Davey says “ye-yo” for cereal (or crackers). J  As soon as we walk into the Park (children’s area) at church, Davey runs to the nursery and begs for “Ye-yo!” till he gets some! J 

Natalie and Zachary got to spend some time baking with Sandy & Kelly at camp last week, and after we all ate lunch together, there was more baking to do.  Natalie seemed tired, so I asked her if she’d rather stay or come home and take a nap.  Her response?  “You leave.  I bake.”  Okay!

One day Zachary ran to find me in the bathroom, “Mom! Natalie is tempting me to ride on the kitchen gate!” J

Natalie got all the spoons out of the drawer to make shapes on the table with them, coating them all with whatever we were eating at the time.  I said, “Natalie, now all the spoons will be dirty at lunch.”  Her response – “Oh, we can use forks.”  Okay then.

Joel was talking with Zachary about something, and Z asked what they would do.  After Joel told him, he responded, "Oh. That's a good solution."  

Davey has a word/noise for car (“vvvvvv”).  He jumped down from my lap and I said, “where are you going?”  He responded, “vvvvv”, and went to get a little car.  He also makes the same noise while he plays with his cars, tractors, or trains. J  He also has a word for snow – “brrr”! J  He loves to nod his head to everything, whether it’s true or not, and he says, “Uh-uh” while he nods. J  He is definitely daily living up to his name, “Beloved laughter”!! J  This stage (18-24 months) is just my favorite stage – new words every day, you can almost see the wheels turn as they learn and process SO much!!  He is starting to really enjoy things like coloring and playdough along with the other two!  Such a joy!!

Stories By Zachary

Part of Zachary's Five in a Row education this year has been writing (well, dictating to me) stories and book reports.  I have them written in a journal, but want to record them online as well as share them with family and friends, so I thought I would type them out here.  These are all of the stories and book reports he has written this school year. :)

September 12, 2012
Daddy Was Ice Skating - A Fiction Story

Once upon a time, the pond was not strong enough for ice skating.  A long time ago, it was strong enough for ice skating, but now it's not.  Daddy ice skated on the pond when it was not strong enough.  The ice broke and he drowned into the water below.  Then the lifeguard, Jon, was there, and he saved him.  It was swim time.  Then he tried ice skating on the basketball court while it was ice, too, and then for the last thing, he tried ice skating on the lake.  Well, it was strong enough on the lake.  He stayed up, the ice was strong enough.  When he was done ice skating, he went to dinner.  The End.

September 13, 2012
Elmo Rollerblades and Daddy Rollerskates - A Fiction Story

Elmo is six and he is rollerblading on a basketball court near a hill.  It's okay because he's six.  Daddy was there to rollerskate, and then he saw Elmo rollerblading and said, "Who's that?"  Then Daddy went rollerskating and he was just fine while he was rollerskating, but then he went down a hill and fell down.  But he was okay.  The End.

September 15, 2012
The Story About Ping by Marjorie Flack, retold by Zachary

Once upon a time, Ping swam underwater.  He came up with little rice cake crumbs.  He got stolen by a boy.  He had a basket and he was trapped by it.  The boy took it off and dropped him in the water.  He went up the bridge the next time, and he got spanked because he was the last.

September 15, 2012
Cookie Monster Rollerskates and Daddy Rollerblades

Cookie Monster went to the basketball court to rollerskate.  And then Daddy went to the basketball court to rollerblade.  And he said, "Who's that?"  Daddy went home, and he went on the porch, and the porch fell down and broke his Cub.

September 26, 2012
A Humorous Story

Elmo was in America, and nobody could find him on Sesame Street.  They have looked everywhere on Sesame Street, but they did not find Elmo, because Elmo was in America.  He was swimming at the camp pond, and he went down the waterslide, and he had fun.  He was riding Daddy's Cub and he went off the road, but he did not crash.  He was in our house.  He said, "Where am I?"  I said to him, "You're at the Hart's house!"  The End.

September 26, 2012
How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World by Marjorie Priceman Book Report

I like the apple pie that we made.  And I like the Apple Pie and See the World book.  I liked everything - the words, the pictures, the people, the names, the houses, and the dogs.  I liked it when we drew and acted out the book.  My favorite ingredient was sugar cane.  My favorite place that she went was Vermont.  I liked the post office picture.  I don't like when we write stories, because it's boring because you have to sit.

October 12, 2012
Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans Action Book Report

Crying - Madeline had the appendix and everyone cried.
Frowning - When they were solemn, and at the bad.
Sitting - on their beds.
Walking - at half past nine, to visit Madeline.
Eating - broke their bread.

October 27, 2012
Papa Piccolo by Carol Talley Book Report

He walks in the shoe store.  To have a talk to Sophia.  He wants her to take the kittens.  I don't know where their moms are.  They were in a cardboard box near Canal Tolentini.  Then the kittens were going to adopt him.  He thought the kittens adopted him.  Sophie did not take the kittens.  He took the kittens.  They went everywhere he went.  They went on Luigi's gondola to China.  One of them was called Marco, and the other was called Polo.  They came back.  A regatta is a party in Venice.  The kittens (Marco and Polo) and Piccolo rode on a gondola.  I liked the book.  My favorite part was when they went to the shoe store.

November 13, 2012
Short Story Settings

Daddy lived at Bethany Camp, a place where you eat food, right here next to us.

Zachary lived at a bouncy house, which had a basketball net and ball.  You didn't have to bring your own.  You could play with bikes there, too.

Natalie lived in a different bouncy house, where you can just bounce in it and it has little cars to ride in and you don't have to pedal your feet, they go automatically.

November 15, 2012
Similes

Mommy took me out of the water (at the waterpark pool) like a superhero.

Beary slept with me at bedtime like he was my best friend.  He is actually my best friend.  He is four like me. And he's almost five.  He has the same birthday as me.

Natalie just stood still like a statue.

December 7, 2012
Sparky Saves the Day!

Sparky is a white and black dog with a fire hat.  He has a black nose and a little teeny tail.  Jack is Sparky's assistant - he is a fireman.  There is a fire in Popperville.  They were in Sinclairville.  First they ran all the way there.  Then they used their hose to squirt out out the fire.  The fire was all out.  So they ran home.  The End.

December 8, 2012
Zachary Hart - Last Performed in Russia - Another Celebrated Dancing Bear (By Gladys Scheffrin-Falk) - Now here in the United States, in New York.

Dancing, Bowing at the End, Hussar's Dance, Feeling Glum when he was the poster, Crying, Drinking Tea, Eating Preserves.

Boris felt jealous because he wished he could dance.  Everybody's jealous sometimes.  I think I've never felt jealous.

January 12, 2012
The Rag Coat by Lauren A. Mills, retold by Zachary Hart

In one part, a character feels bad.  The book is starring Minna.  Because her classmates were making fun about her coat.  She went far away into the woods.  She took her lesson at school.  She learned her lesson.  She said that the coat was full of stories.  The quilting mothers made the coat.  It had warm colors.  The warm colors were stories.  She almost heard her Papa when she was wearing the coat.  The feed sack and piece of her Papa's work jacket.  I liked this book.  The End.

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I love the part about 'writing stories is boring because you have to sit still'. :) :)  He was really excited at first to come up with stories and see me write them down, but he does hate to sit still!!  And I try to mix up the book reports (hence the action ones) so he won't get bored but he still dreads them. But he did a great job with our last one!!

Writing these out, I was reminded of each book we studied together, how much I loved each book, and how much fun we have had studying them together!! I LOVE Five in a Row!!! :)  As of now, the plan is to do FIAR again next year for Kindergarten (along with A Beka Phonics, Math & Handwriting supplements - and possibly All About Spelling? I think he's ready...he's always asking how to spell things so he can write them!)

Oh, and an update on his future plans - he told Joel tonight that he wants to be a comedian, a football player, an artist, a fireman, a policeman, AND a dentist.  Joel said usually people just choose one of those things, so he said he would like most to be a professional football player. :)

Kidlet Hilarity #13

The kids have been hilarious lately!! And I've been so busy, I haven't even had a chance to write them down! So buckle up, here we go! :)

One day as I was feeling a little discouraged about how few 'fun' things I'd been doing with the kids in school lately, we were getting ready to start a project, and Z piped up happily, "We have a lot of activities here at the Hart's house!". That was a great encouragement to me - we're making memories at least!! :)

Davey says a few new words now - haaaaa for hot, boooo for book, MINE is a favorite, he still says UT for up, usually in the context of  "Ut. Ut. UT. UUUUUUUUT!!!", and Da-do for doggy, and I think a few others. :)  It's so cute!!  He also loves to climb up on EVERYTHING, and he is for sure my 'class clown' - he's always walking around with something on his head trying to make everyone laugh. :)

Davey and Natalie are great friends, it is so fun to watch them play together. :)  He growls at her, and then she calls him "scary baby" and they giggle. :)

One day, as we were driving somewhere, Z asked Joel a question.  After he heard the answer he asked, "Is there a specific reason why?"  The next day, walking up the driveway, James had dug a trench to keep our driveway intact over the winter.  Z got to looking at it and saw that it stopped about halfway up the driveway.  He said, "Look, the trench stops in a specific place. Why?" Love those big words!

Zachary saw a poster at the library about a parade.  "OH!", he said, "We have a parade on Mememoral Day!" Everyone in the library was cracking up. :)

Speaking of cracking up, we were chatting at McDonald's over ice cream yesterday, and I told him what I had overheard from his bedroom before he and Natalie got up (they're not allowed to leave their room till 7 am).  I had heard Natalie sneeze and then Zachary responded, "Ex-sneeze you!" I thought this was hilarious, and told him so, then every few minutes one of us would say, "Ex-sneeze you!" and he was laughing so hard at one point, he almost dropped his ice cream cone.  "You're cracking me UP!", he giggled. :)

Davey likes to climb, as I mentioned.  So when we go to the park with the BIG metal slide, this can get interesting - while I push the other two on the swings (they don't have any baby swings at this park), I have to periodically run to grab him off the 4th or 5th step.  One day during this production, Natalie yelled at David, "Davey! Get down off the labber!!"

One morning Zachary was pretending to be Daddy.  I was wondering what he would say, as he was talking to Natalie.  He said, "I'm Daddy, and I'm home! Natalie, I'm so excited to see you!!"  :)  I'm thankful that's what they hear from their Daddy. :)

Natalie loves to call her brothers her friends!! One day she came up and said, "My friend wants to go outside."  I said, "Oh, who's your friend?"  She responded, "David." :)  I hope they'll be friends for life!!  Another day she was talking about her MOPS class - she and Z are in the same class this year, which has been really fun for them.  She said, "My brother is my friend at MOPS." :)

Z made up this song about Davey:  "David is so cute, as cute as can be. David is so cute, as you can see. (and repeat)"

Z has been talking about dying a few times lately, too.  One day as we were sitting on the couch, he randomly said, "I'm afraid to die because it will be so surprising.  Like maybe I will be playing on the floor or working in the garden.  It will be very surprising."  Another day he came out with, "I hope I die before I turn eleven."  I said, "What? Why?"  His response: "Because then I won't have to get my shots."  (He is very excited that he doesn't have to have any more immunizations until he turns 11. Apparently he is already dreading them, though.)

While playing Mario Kart, Z came up with this gem of wisdom: "Diddy King is Donkey Kong's son or nephew or something." :)

Nat was singing loudly in her bed one morning (before 7:00).  When she came out, I asked her to sing more quietly next time, and she responded, "I was worshipping!!"  I couldn't think of what to say to that!! :)

As Joel was teasing Zachary one day, he responded with, (totally joking, not disrespectfully) "Stop this nonsense!"

Natalie sat down at the piano, grabbed If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, put it where the music goes, and began to sing, "A mouse gets a cookie, he wants some milk milk, and two plus two, two plus two."

One day Joel and I were talking in another room and Natalie needed help with something.  She started to call, "Help! Anybody? I need some help! Anybody?" :)

Natalie says 'choke' for joke - she loves to tell 'chokes'. :)  She said, "Dis was my choke - I said, "Put my clothes in the diaper pail, and my diaper down the laundry chute."  Dat was just a choke."  :)

Natalie and Z were racing in the hall one day, and apparently Natalie won one of the races, because I heard Zachary telling her, "Well, Natalie, the first shall be last." :)

Natalie asked to sit on my lap one day, but then got down, grabbed a purse and came to sit next to me on the couch.  "Don't you want to sit on my lap?", I asked.  "No, I'm a mommy. I'm a different mommy. Mommies don't sit on laps.", she said.  She loves to pretend she's a mommy - one of my friends - she always says she's not me, she's a 'different mommy'. :)  She is such a sweet little mama to her dolls & bears and Davey and any other baby-like thing or person she can possibly mother. :)  I can't believe she will be THREE on Saturday!! Three always seems like such a big number! :) But she is definitely allowing her personality to emerge lately - OH, the personality. :)  She loves to be silly and funny and make everyone laugh, too. :)

Zachary is just such a big boy.  He is finally in a very independent (in a GOOD way) stage, and wanting to do a lot for himself!  This week at MOPS, I made up name tags and labeled bags and sippy cups and dropped David off, and got Natalie's name tag on and sent her to her class.  I made up a name tag for Z, went down to his classroom, and found him there, coat and umbrella hung up on hooks, with a name tag already on his shirt - he had even written his own name!! Color me impressed! :)  So nice to have such a BIG boy to help me out! :)  He loved sharing his new umbrella with Natalie, too, and he has been so excited to have rain the last couple of days so he could use it outside. :)

Also - Zachary's newest development - at only five years and two weeks old, he lost his first tooth!! Now, Zachary is the kind of person for which anything medical is a BIG DEAL - remember, he wants to die before he has to get shots??  And he had not mentioned a tooth wiggling or anything, and when it came out, he didn't even cry! He just calmly said to Daddy (I was downstairs), "I think I'm missing a tooth", and then they found it on the rug.  They were in the midst of playing football/wrestling, which prompted me to ask, "What happened??" but Joel said he wasn't near him when it happened, and Z didn't cry at all, so I can't imagine that it got knocked out, I think it just fell out!!  I really wanted to cry when I found out because it seems like OLD kids lose teeth - not my BABY ZACHARY!!!!

We're doing some fun stuff for school this month - a relaxed Christmas unit - by relaxed I mean, we've had SO MUCH else going on that I think we've had school three days (and not even full days) in the last two weeks??  But we have been learning together and our activities have been fun. :)  Natalie is through the letter L in her letter of the week preschool curriculum, and Zachary has finished seven two-week units of Five In A Row, which we are still loving!! I'm learning how to plan better, and what kinds of activities we enjoy and learn from the most.  The one adjustment I'm in the middle of making right now is that Davey (who will be 17 months next week!) has transitioned to only taking one nap a day - it's in the afternoon, at the same time as Nat's nap and Z's quiet time.  Which is great - I get about an hour to work around the house, relax, or prepare dinner!  But it also means that Davey joins us for school now in the mornings (insert scream of terror here).  He is into everrrrything, coloring on the table, climbing on things, screaming "Ut UUUUUUT!" at me while I'm trying to work through math problems with Z.....plus we can't do activities like marbles and certain other small motor things any more (which Nat enjoys, and she naps longer than he does, at the same time) since Davey puts everything in his mouth.  If anyone has any tips on keeping one-year-olds busy during homeschool times, I would reeeeally appreciate it!! :)

Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!! I can't wait to relax at home with our family all day Monday & Tuesday!!! :)

Kidlet Hilarity #12

When the kids were playing one day, Zachary kept saying that they were going to "Jimmy Dean's Pizza".  And then he decided to order "superb - you know, the kind with everything on it." Lol!!  I just love to listen to them play together, the things they come up with and their interactions are just so hilarious. :)

One morning I told the kids they could have a 'jammie day', which we rarely have, and Z used to beg me for jammie days every day!! But this time he said, "I used to love jammie days, but now I'm not a fan of them."  Okayyyy... :)

One morning while I was loading the dishwasher or something, Zachary asked me, "Mom, can you stop that silly working and just play with us?"  :)

David is joining the ranks of the talkers now...he yells UT UT UT when he wants you to pick him up (or sometimes just UH UH UH, whatever he's in the mood for. :)  And when I ask him if he wants a spanking, he shakes his head and says, "Uh-uh" very emphatically.  Sometimes I do it just for fun, because it's cute....such a mean mom. :)  And sometimes he says uh-uh no matter what I ask him. :)

Zachary went through a week or so phase where anytime something didn't go his way, he would say, "Aw, shucks."  It was so adorable!  He also was looking around one day and said, "I spy a book we have, and I want to read it."

When Natalie does my hair, she leans over to my face and says, "Shhh. Don't talk."  Maybe I move my head when I talk?

Natalie loves to tell you all about herself now.  Her favorite color is purple usually, but sometimes yellow. :)  One day at dinner she told me, "I like monkeys.  And pigs.  I like pigs.  Did you know that?"  I did not.

One day when Davey was supposed to be taking his nap, he was instead calling for, "Bubba, bubba, bubba!"

When we were out somewhere I asked Zachary if he wanted to go home and have lunch (to get him moving), and he responded, "I guess so."

One day I went to grab something for school and when I came back down to the schoolroom, Z was reading a book about Jonah to Natalie in the tent.  After reading a little, he commented to Natalie, "God always finds us wherever we are, right, Natalie?"  And she answered, "Yeah! I might find you, scare you like dis- boo!"  Lol!!

One night I asked Natalie to sit still and focus on eating, and a minute later she was sitting backwards in her chair singing, "Focus! Fooooocus!  Focuuuus!"  Fundamental misunderstanding of the word focus.... :)

Natalie can be really picky about her food (though we are making headway on getting her to eat two bites of most things now), but there are so many times when she isn't eating her dinner and turns to Davey and says things like, "Just eat dat." or "Eat your food."  She also tells him to "Obey God." when she wants him to stop doing something that annoys her, as in, "No, Davey, don't touch my toy. Obey God."  She may have herself confused with God.... :)

As Natalie went out the door one day, she turned to my dad (when my parents were visiting), and said, "Don't forget to text me!"  Wonder where she heard that...  She also told him, "Exactly!  That's exactly right!"  when he was trying to play a game with her and did it the way she expected. :)

One morning when my dad was talking with Natalie on the couch, she was showing him a purse she was playing with.  She was saying, "I have dis purse.  Dis was Mommy's purse but she got a new one so she gave me dis one to play with.  Mommy is my friend. I have a good Mommy."  So sweet!!

I made a chore chart for the kids recently and when I sat the kids down and started sharing the idea with them, I told Natalie that her first chore would be throwing the laundry down the chute for me (I thought she'd be excited!), but she looked at me and laughingly said, "Mama, I'm not the mommy!"

I made the kids a button board to practice buttoning and was trying to explain to Z that it would build strong small muscles in his hands.  Later that day I handed him a bag to carry inside for me, and he said, "I can carry this. I'm strong because of my buttoning." :)

Natalie brought me her bear and asked me to babysit for her.  "I have go to a meeting and talk with my friends.  I have take shower before I go," she said. :)

Nat told Z, "Don't talk with your mouth fooding."

I made sweet potatoes (which I LOVE) for the kids recently, with brown sugar, mmmmm.  I was astounded that they HATED them.  Zachary said, "Well, Mom, everybody likes different things."  I said, "But sweet potatoes are delicious!"  His response?  "That's to YOU, Mom." :)  LOL!!

Natalie says 'nut' instead of knot - I think it is so hilarious - one day she was going on and on about a lacing string having a 'nut' in it, and I was laughing every time!! :)

Zachary was talking about foods that he likes, and he said proudly, "I'm just like Daddy."  They definitely all look up to Daddy and love him so much!! :)

Joel was trying to explain to the kids why he had to be gone for work for a week, and he sat down and talked with Zachary about it.  Zachary's first response was, "Who will I play Wii with?" and then he decided that I would do.  Then he said, "Oh, Dad, save the job for Greg."  Where that came from, I don't know, but I thought it was hilarious. :)

Zachary came waddling into Davey's room tonight as I was getting Davey ready for bath, with his pants around his knees and shoes still on, and said, "Mom, what should I take off first, my pants or my shoes? I need a clue."  I think the fact that your pants won't fit over your shoes will be a clue.... :)

We met my friend and her 20-month-old son at a PlayPlace today and he was a little upset when she left to order their food.  Natalie stayed right with him, and patted him on the shoulder, saying, "Your Mommy will be right back. She's getting some food. She be back. Let's play."  It was so sweet!!!

We are enjoying a little slower fall schedule, though we're still busy!!  Actually it feels like the last month has been crazy but I couldn't say exactly what we've been doing!  We're looking forward to a couple of slower months at camp and more time with Daddy at home over the holidays, though. :)  Preschool is going well - we'll be finishing letter J tomorrow (for Natalie), and Zachary will be finishing his fifth unit in Five in a Row - we're finishing up Mike Mulligan by Virginia Lee Burton tomorrow. :)  I'd love to post more about school, but I had to let go of that in order to actually do a good job raising my kids and teaching them school. :)  So I take a few pictures of school activities when I can and share ideas and resources whenever anybody asks me. :)

Kidlet Hilarity #11

Natalie is talking a TON lately!!  We can usually understand what she's saying, but not always.  One day after she had tried repeatedly to tell us something, Zachary said, "I think Natalie's speaking another language."

One day after church, Zachary was asking if he would get a treat since he obeyed in Sunday School.  Joel said he would have to think about it.  Zachary responded, "I think having a treat would be the yummier choice." Then he laughed this little silly laugh, like he was laughing at his own joke. :)

One day Natalie was eating a sucker and a fly was bothering her.  She said, "Little bee, you can't get on my sucker, babe!"  She has called a few other people 'babe' since then, too, I think it's so funny. :) 

David is walking well now, but he still falls down ALL the time (I know, it's a stage, hope for his sake it doesn't last too long!).  One day when he had fallen down several times, Zachary commented, "David is getting a lot of injuries today."

One day when Natalie was the one who got hurt, Zachary said, "I'm glad it wasn't me!"  Nothing like sibling love and compassion...

Natalie was standing in the pantry and I said, "Natalie, come here!"  She came out and responded, "What's up?" :)

Nat also says all kinds of hilarious sentences now. :)  She likes to tell stories, mostly about the time she went underwater in the camp pond, or the time she fell down in the driveway and hurt her knee.  The phrase, "really hard" is another one she uses all the time.  One day she told me, "I have a eedea (idea) in my pocket. I have a bouncy ball in my other pocket."

We all had colds last week, and one morning I woke up without a voice! :(  Natalie was confused about why I was whispering, and I told her that I didn't have my voice.  She looked at me like I had two heads and said, "You forgot put yours voice on?"

Natalie and Davey were having so much fun peeking at each other through a hole in a paintball course obstacle. Natalie shook her head and said, "My baby brother is funny." :)

Natalie sets up tea parties for her and Zachary occasionally, it is so fun.  One day after they had 'eaten', I heard Natalie saying to Zachary, "Are you all done yet? Okay, go play." 

She is quite the little mother - especially to Davey - one day he got the remote, and she said, "Davey, don't play with the remote, that's a disobeyin!"

In the bath one night, Natalie was talking about school. "Zachary is in Pre-K, and I am in preschool, and I learn bout apple pie, and I like Davey..." :)

I sat down for lunch with a salad - one of the mixes that has all different greens in it - and Natalie stared at me and said, "Are you eating grass??" :)

Z and Nat were playing on the porch, some kind of 'house' game, and Natalie wanted to drive.  Zachary informed her, "No, I'm the Daddy and the Daddy drives.  If Daddy's coming, Daddy drives."  I guess he knows how it is in our family! :)

Zachary has been saying plenty of funny things lately, too, I guess I just haven't written them down...he uses all kinds of big words in his sentences now, which is always fun. :)  I'll have to keep my ears open and make sure to write them down! :)  

Davey is such a joy at 14 months - a BUSY joy! :)  He is into everything, and if he gets into the pantry, his favorite thing to do is grab some empty pop cans from the recycling bin and scatter them around the house. :)  His job right now is to pretty much grab whatever he can and scatter it. :)  I have started closing the kitchen/pantry gate a LOT more lately... :)  He loves to make us laugh, and to laugh at us - you can make him laugh by just looking at him a lot of the time.  If he discovers something he does or a sound he makes that we will laugh at, he will keep doing it till he gets tired of it.  He's definitely living up to his name, David Isaac, which means beloved laughter. :)  

Kidlet Hilarity #10

Zachary was looking in the mirror one night, as he was brushing his teeth, with no shirt on, and he commented, "My belly looks like a face, and my belly button is sticking its tongue out!" :)

Davey loves to point at everything, it is so funny.  He will point at something and say, "Dat. Dat." or "Nut-nut" if he wants something.  Sometimes we call him Nut-nut since he says that so much. :)  One day he came and found me, led me all the way over to the sliding door, and pointed to it, because he wanted to go outside. :)  So cute!!  I love that he can communicate now! :)

David sings the Jesus is My Superhero chapel song sometimes - the "yeah...yeah..." part - he shakes his fist and says "Yeah...Yeah..." It is so adorable! :)

Zachary was singing part of the song "Let my life be the proof, the proof of Your love - Let my love look like Yours, and what You're made of..."  Then he paused and I knew what was coming... "Mommy, what is God made of?" :)

A few weeks ago, as the leaves were just beginning to change, Natalie ran up to me excitedly, grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the sliding glass door, saying, "Mommy! I show you sumptin!  Sumptin orange! In da trees!"

Natalie always carries her favorite stuffed bear around, and she carries her on her hip just the same way I carry Davey.  One day when I picked up Davey, she picked up her bear, put her on her hip, and said, "I have my bear, you have yours baby." :)  She is so sweet, always cooing and baby talking to the bear as she carries her around.  And she always puts her down for a nap in David's room and closes the door.  Then she won't let anyone else go in, "No! My bear is sleeping!" :)

One day when the kids were playing out on the porch, I heard some kind of scuffle going on.  When I went out to find out what was happening between Natalie and Zachary, Natalie said, "I fussin. He fightin."  :)

We had so much fun on our trip to Cincinnati!  Zachary said some pretty funny things while we were there. :)  We spent a night at a hotel north of Columbus with a little kids waterpark in the pool area, and Z loved going down the little waterslide over and over, with Daddy or Uncle Jason catching him at the bottom. After a while, Daddy & Uncle Jason took a shift with the babies in the wading pool, and Mommy and Aunt Emily came to play with Zachary.  He wasn't sure whether he wanted Emily to catch him at the bottom of the slide, though - he had all kinds of questions, like, "Are you sure you're strong enough to catch me?" and "Emily, are you taller than this pool?" :)

The kids loved playing with their then-6-week-old cousin, Silas, when we were on our trip!  Davey even started saying the word baby! He pronounces it "beh-beh", and says it regularly now. :)

Zachary and Natalie were really sweet playing with Silas, too - Zachary was saying, "Hey, little cutie, Silas!" And Natalie was giving him kisses :)

Zachary went with Grandma to get some ice and groceries, and when they took the bag from the cooler, there was a sign with a man yelling, "Get the Big Bag so you don't run out!"  Well, we only needed a small bag, since we were only there two days, but Zachary was convinced that we were going to run out, and trying desperately to convince Grandma to get the big bag! "But Grandma, look, the man is yelling! We don't want to run out!" :)

I was standing in the dining room holding Davey and talking to him, and apparently Natalie was hungry, because she came over and said, "Go in kitchen and make supper."  Well, okay, then, bossy!!

We got some of those little rollerskates that fit over the kids' shoes at a garage sale last week, and they have been so delighted - well, Natalie fell down once and that was enough for her, but Zachary loves them!  He has been talking about them constantly and asking all kinds of questions about them.  As we were heading to the basketball court (the only paved place to rollerskate around here) one night, Zachary pushed the skates down the stairs ahead of him.  Of course, they crashed down the stairs. "Oh, so that's what would happen if you rollerskated down the stairs!", Zachary commented. LOL!

Zachary asked if Davey could rollerskate and I said, "No, he can't walk well enough."  "Yeah, and if he was going to crawl on rollerskates, he would need four of them!" was Z's answer. :)

Davey is walking now- it is so funny - he walks like Frankenstein, with his arms straight out in front of him. :) He is totally hilarious - I love watching new walkers - he is delighted with it!  He walks all over now!  And he is thrilled that he can carry something in his hands while walking (since you really can't carry anything while crawling). :)  He especially loves to get into the empty pop cans in the pantry, and he often walks around with an empty can in each hand. :)

My kids really need some help with their fashion sense - one day, Zachary came out of his room, and triumphantly announced, "Mom, look, my outfit matches!"  He was wearing a brown and green camo tank top with a brown and black pair of camo pants.  A couple days later, Natalie came down the hall, excitedly proclaiming that she matched - she was wearing a black pair of leggings with a black t-shirt.  Sigh. :)

Z has been writing stories in school this week, and that has been so fun! I want to post some of them soon!  He has been very excited about writing Fiction stories. :)  We just finished our first Five In A Row unit, and I think it was a success!  We studied The Story About Ping, and we studied China, and did a couple of experiments - the "does it float or sink?" experiment was a favorite activity, and Z loved our Jonah song too. :)  I like spending 2 weeks on the same verse, song, and Bible story, as well as the same FIAR unit - our next unit is How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World, and we'll be starting that tomorrow. :)  Natalie is liking her preschool work as well, and Zachary has been having fun learning alongside her, too!  Davey loves joining us for Circle Time, Bible Time, and Story Time, and then we save our crafts and most lessons for when Davey has his morning nap. :)  We've also been doing a half hour or so of DEAR - Drop Everything And Read - after lunch and before nap, and the kids REALLY look forward to that.  (I do too.) :)  Now I just have to do a better job of making sure Z is fitting in his seatwork/handwriting pages every day...I have forgotten to have him do them at least one day a week so far!!

Kidlet Hilarity #9

Lots of hilarious goings on with the kids this month!! They are so much fun, and starting to enjoy each other even more as they each get older- I think they will really enjoy being so close in age - and I'm sure someday I will enjoy it too.... :)

One day Natalie was watching me change and play with David in his room, and then all of a sudden, she said, "Where Dackwy? (Zachary) I miss him. I go look for him. I can't find him! Oh, dere he is! Dackwy, I lookin' for you. Want talk a minute?" :)  

One day Natalie gave Davey a hug, and he fussed because he had just woken up, and she cooed in a sweet, motherly voice, "You don' like dat?"

Another day, Natalie and Davey had both just woken up from naps, and neither of them was in a very emotionally stable mood.  Natalie tried to give Davey a hug, but he just kept crying.  She stepped back, and her lip trembled as she said, "Baby no like me?"  Poor little thing!! I assured her that Davey was just grouchy and that he did actually love her. :)

Natalie was trying to say 'ice pop' and 'popsicle' at the same time, and she came out with 'ice pickle'! LOL!!

One morning as the kids were playing, Zachary said to Natalie, "Natalie, it's jumping concert time!"  Her response - "I tired, Dackwy."

I told Natalie to hurry on the playground ladder and she replies in a very serious voice, "I can't. I prolly fall.  Wike dis."  Then she proceeded to demonstrate falling down in a very realistic way. :)

Zachary occasionally says to me, "I love you even when you're mean." or "I love you even when you're grouchy."  So heartwarming... :)

Zachary talked me into buying radishes for a vegetable a couple of weeks ago - YUCK!!!  But I bought them, and he tried them, and liked them (or at least ate a few bites and said he liked them).  Later that night, he said "Thanks for letting me try radishes myself, Mom."  So it was all worth it, then. :)

One day we were discussing that meat came from animals, and this interesting quote came from Zachary - "Sausage is made from dead animals? I like that kind of dead animal. It comes in my McGriddle."  Yes, true...

Natalie has learned the word 'petrified' from the Bethany Boys - who said they weren't educational?  She and Zachary occasionally use it in the correct context, such as "I petwified of the zipline." or "I petwified of the waterslide."  

When my friends, Anna and Nate and their son Elias were here for family camp, the kids had such a good time with them!  Zachary and Natalie were so cute with Elias, and they had fun playing together!  Natalie called Nate 'Meat', so we thought that was pretty hilarious. :)  On Saturday morning, as they were getting ready to leave, Anna said to grouchy Natalie, "I'm going to give you a kiss on your cheek whether you like it or not."  Natalie laid there and let her, then said, "I don't like it."  :)

Natalie also occasionally says "No problem" which is really funny coming from her. :)

Zachary has been loving to make up games for us to play together - one night he made up this elaborate Superhero game where we wore capes (except when it was night we had to take them off to lay down), and walked around finding and collecting bad guys, then putting them in the dark bathroom (which was the jail).  Natalie accidentally opened the bathroom door and let them out once, so we had to recapture them all. :)  Another day, David played with us and he was supposed to be Batman, but at one point he was crying, so I picked him up, and Zachary said, "Batman, why are you in Mommy's arms?" :)

The kids were watching the movie Robots for movie night, and Natalie kept talking to the robots - at one point while eating her supper she said, "Hey, robot, want to see my tall straw? It's really big!" :)

Zachary accidentally sniffed some hot chocolate powder into his nose one afternoon, and he was coughing and feeling kind of awful, so he was grabbing his throat and saying, "I think I'm going to die!"  I have no idea where he gets his overdramatic tendencies.

Natalie was watching Z play an iPad game, and she asked if she could play, too.  Zachary responded, "No. It is not a multiplayer game."  "Because why not?", Natalie asked.  "It is not a multiplayer game!" Zachary responded again.  Then he did pick 'multiplayer' the next time, and they played together and Natalie won!  So he didn't feel too great about that!!

Sometimes when the kids are fighting over something, I will take it away and put it in a time out.  One day, they were on the porch fighting, and I ran out to see what was going on.  Zachary said to me, "We were fighting over the playhouse door.  Are you going to rip it off and put it in time out?"  I did not.

One day Zachary told me, "I wish we had three of everything.  Then we could share better."  Not sure that is the definition of sharing...

Natalie was walking up the driveway the other day with a pretty big rock in her arms.  Zachary said, "Whoa, Natalie has a giant rock!"  "Yes, she does", I said.  As she caught up to us, Natalie said, "This a giant rock. It really big. God made it."  Yes!! She is starting to absorb some of what I'm trying to teach her!! :)

Natalie and I were reading a book with a cat named Tiger in it.  She said, "Dat sound scary." :)

I love that Natalie is so girly and nurturing when she plays with her 'babies'.  But today I heard her throwing something away in the diaper pail, so I thought I'd investigate.  I found a few clean diapers, with clean wipes inside, rolled up, and thrown away - she had been changing her babies, and throwing away their 'dirty' diapers!!  It totally cracked me up!

Davey is definitely learning and growing every day, too - he learned to say 'uh-oh' this week, and he uses it often - since he loves to throw his food and everything else on the floor!  He also claps now, and stands up by himself in the middle of a room - but no walking yet, unless he's holding onto something - he's really close, though!!  He has gotten quite a bit more social over the summer, and he will go to more people now - his favorite game is to reach out to someone and then immediately reach back for me. :)  He blows kisses sometimes - he puts his hand by his mouth and then blows as he pulls it away - it's so cute!!! :)  

I can't believe the camp season is over - it really did go by so quickly - I say that every year, though!! :)  We all had a great time, and grew a lot through the craziness of the season.  I will definitely miss seeing our staff friends every day, and I know Zachary will be going through attention withdrawal next week, but I'm also looking forward to the normalcy of getting back to a routine with the kids and (eventually) starting school and all. :)  

Kidlet Hilarity #8

We've been having a lot of fun at home and at camp this summer!  As usual, the kids have had a lot to say! :)

Zachary and I were playing a matching game with a fruit theme, and he said to me, "This isn't the fruit of the Spirit, Mom - it's not love, joy, and peace.  It's real fruit." :)

One day Joel took Zachary to Sam's Club for lunch when he had to pick some things up, and as a special treat, he let him get a glass of pop - and when they were finished shopping, he let him get a refill! So he came home after drinking two glasses of pop (caffeine-free, just full of sugar), and he was SO hyper!!  At one point, he was literally bouncing up and down on our bed, saying in a chipmunk voice, "Do they have small drinks at Sam's Club? 'Cause the ones I drank were LARGE!!"  I was laughing SO hard at wild him!! :)

I hear Z & Nat playing in their room with one of the dancing dogs they got for Christmas - they kept pushing the button and dancing to the song over and over.  Then Z tells Natalie, "I know it's all rocky and fun, but don't use up all the batteries."

One day when we were talking about being brave, Z said, "Yeah, you have to be brave to do that. You can't be a weenie!" :)

Natalie is talking a TON too - one night we were getting ready to go to camp, and Zachary had spent the afternoon swimming with a friend of ours.  I told her we would go to camp and see Bubba, and she jumped up and down and shouted, "I so 'cited! I see Bubba!" :)

Davey took Nat's toy out of her hand and she said, "No! Have sumpin else." and handed him a different toy. :)

One night when Zachary's leg was apparently hurting him, he said, "My knee has issues." (don't know where he got that one!) :)

When we were talking about chapel, Natalie said, "Chapel team. Anne! Chapel team LOUD."  But she loooooves chapel - she begs to go and sing in chapel! And sometimes breaks out in her own two-year-old version of the chapel songs (with motions of course) - "cweep, cweep...", "Lay me down..." etc. :)  I just know Jesus' heart smiles when He hears her sing!!

Natalie and I were playing together, and she handed me an imaginary something.  I assume it's some kind of food, thank her for it, and pretend to eat it.  "NO! Don't bite it! Put it on your shirt. It's a sticker."  Whoops! :)  Then she said, "I give you 'nother one." :)

As we were heading inside one day, Natalie was following me but Zachary was not following quickly - Nat shouts out to him, "Zachary, come inside! You not listening!" Don't know where she's heard that...

As we were taking a bath one night, Zachary shocked me by saying, "I think David's head is cracked!"  Thankfully it was just a bright blue vein showing up on his forehead!! But I was rather worried for a second there!

When asked why he wet his pants, Z's response was, "I don't have any answer that would be good. I don't know what to say. I have no idea."

As they were eating yogurt one day, Nat was being rather messy, and Z brought it up by saying, "Natalie, use your spoon. My hands are all neat and tidy."

When it's time to get ready in the morning, Zachary likes to go to his room and 'surprise' me by coming back a few minutes later all dressed.  So this morning when I asked him to surprise me by getting dressed, he ran to his room, and came back a minute later, stark naked, giggling. I was surprised, alright! :)

David is talking, too - today he said "Oo-dy" for Judy!! I couldn't talk him into saying cracker, but he says "Na-na" for most any kind of food that he wants. :)  He also says Mama all the time, whenever he wants anything, and Dada, too.  He took a little bit of a step tonight, from me to Daddy, mostly with help, but hey, it's a start - it's the first time I've seen him interested in walking at all! And he stands next to everything, and by himself for a few seconds, and is starting to walk down the couch while holding onto it. :)  He is totally weaned now (waaah, but also YESSSS!), and he loves his whole milk!! :)  He had a great birthday, enjoyed opening all his presents, and really loved eating his cake - especially the frosting!! :)