More Pets?

So this is an interchange Cody and I had via e-mail the other night when he was at work. I thought his reply was funny and that you all might get a laugh. I edited out a few things, but otherwise changed nothing.

Dear Cody
OK, so we have some fish and we can't afford anything that might have large vet bills, but what about a couple of small parakeets or finches? I have been considering this for several weeks (since Caleb said he wanted one) and just haven't mentioned it. I had a Cockatiel when I was in high school and I really enjoyed it. (Alicia let my bird out and it flew away!)Anyway, I thought a couple of small, inexpensive birds would be fun for the kids. Give it some thought and let me know.
Love,
Your little wifey,
Carrina

Sweetness,
I think that getting a bird requires a lot of responsibility because they poop so much and the bottom of the cage will have to be cleaned at least every other day. We also have got to consider the impact of getting many pets. It will be harder to leave and watch your grandpa, for instance. If you are ok with that then I say we should do it. I support getting a bird. However, in the future, I want you to be understanding when I show up with a minature pot-bellied pig.
xoxo,
Cody

Tricked By His Own Cunning

This evening for dinner Cody made omelets for us and the kiddos were absolutely NOT interested in them! No matter how much Cody and I were enjoying the superb omelets they just continued to turn up their noses. In an effort to get Joya Claire to eat at least a few bites I told Caleb "Just p-r-e-t-e-n-d to eat it" (I spelled it out because Joya Claire is getting a little too sophisticated for me to just say it outright) he caught on instantly and started eating imaginary bites with relish. All of the sudden Joya Claire was fascinated with her omelet, she began eating little bites and saying "umm, yummy egg" and "egg is good", she was enjoying it so much that Caleb was becoming interested in trying some also! He started eating little bites and commenting on how wonderful it tasted and this is the child who hasn't eaten egg in two years! It was absolutely hysterical to watch them both succumb to such mild peer pressure, especially Caleb because he knew that Joya Claire only started eating her egg because he had pretended to enjoy his! What funny little ones we share our meals with.

Little Steps Forward

Just as I was beginning to feel frustrated that my beautiful little daughter thought her name was "baby" I heard her playing in her bedroom softly saying, in her sweet little baby voice, "me Joya Care, me Joya Care". I was so excited and relieved that she had finally realized her given name was Joya Claire that I ran in, caught her up in my arms and gave her hugs and kisses and lots of praise for knowing her name. She was delighted, of course, and continued to say her name in a happy, little, sing-song voice.

And in case learning her name wasn't enough Joya Claire found the potty chair in the garage and said "toilet, toilet" and tried to drag it out all by herself. Cody and I figured it we could get it out for her, so we set it up in our bathroom a few days ago and didn't do anything else since I didn't think she was ready to start potty training. Well, this morning Joya Claire came up to me, pulling at her clothes, saying "take it off, take it off", thinking she needed a diaper change I undressed her, but her diaper was dry. When I tried to put her diaper back on she said "no, no, no, potty", then I aked if she wanted to go potty in the little potty chair and she said "YES"! So she toddled over to the potty chair and peed in it! She was so pleased with herself that I think potty-training might be, dare I hope, a breeze. I am tempted not to intervene, except to offer praise, and see if she will potty-train herself.

My beautiful, sweet, little Joya Claire is on her way to independence.

The Infinite Truth and Well Not the Truth

Yesterday Caleb told me that his friend Finnegan said things that weren't true. I was a little concerned and told Caleb that it wasn't nice to say that about his friend and asked if Finnegan had ever had ever told Caleb something that wasn't true (I don't use the word lie because little children still have some difficulty comprehending the implication/magnitude of the concept lie, so we say things like "are you making up a story" or "is that what really happened"). So this is exactly the conversation that followed

Caleb - Finnegan said infinity was the last number, he said his dad could count to infinity.

Carrina - Caleb, do you know what infinity is?

Caleb - It means that the numbers never end they just keep going.

Carrina - Can anyone count to infinity?

Caleb - No, Mama, there is no last number.

Carrina - Caleb, do you know what the word infinite means?

Caleb - That things don't end, they keep going round and round, forever.

Carrina - (sitting in stunned silence for a moment) Caleb, you're a smart boy. Finnegan wasn't trying to tell you something that wasn't true he just misunderstood the word infinity.

How does a little 4 1/2 year old boy, who can barely sit still for a moment, have a basic comprehension of infinity? I so frequently underestimate the capabilities of young children, they absorb so much that we don't even realize. There are even times I think that young children simply have an inherent knowledge of some concepts.

Of Fairs and Pants

Last night Cody and I took the kids to the Thurston County Fair. It is the quintessential country fair. Perfect for the kids and we all had a lot of fun even though it was raining the whole time. The kids absolutely loved the animals. They pet goats, sheep, pigs and cows. There were baby dwarf goats that were the size of rabbits! After lots of time with the animals we headed off to the rides. Cody and Caleb got wristbands so they could go on unlimited rides and Cody was able to take Joya Claire on several rides without any tickets for her. She loved the merry-go-round and was terrified of the ferris wheel she was crying tears and clinging to Cody by the time it was done. Caleb was so brave, he went on every kid ride all by himself and went on several big, scary, adult rides with Cody and was thrilled with all of them! Since I don't ever go on anything faster than the ferris wheel I was in complete awe of my fearless little son.

Caleb wanted to play the game where you try to throw balls into tiny fish bowls filled with colored water to win a goldfish. He paid his two dollars, got ten colored ping-pong balls and started throwing. After throwing seven of the balls and missing it seemed pretty hopeless, but the sweet lady running the game was already bagging up a fish for him and then the eighth ball he threw landed in a bowl of water. He was so excited he almost forgot to throw his last two balls. Even though he only got one ball into a bowl the lady gave him two fish. He was so delighted with the goldfish and eager to get home to "take care of them" we could hardly talk him into a couple more rides before we left.

On the ride home in the car I asked Caleb if he got two balls in the fish bowls and he asked "Did I" in a surprised tone. Cody chuckled and told him that he got one ball in, but the lady gave him two goldfish because he is so handsome and Caleb laughed and said in a disbelieving voice "because I had pants on"? Cody and I laughed so hard at how Caleb had misheard the word handsome, then I explained to him what Cody had actually said and we all had a good laugh.

What is in a Name?

Cody, Caleb and I have all been working with Joya Claire on her name, but when she is asked what her name is she still says "Baby" in her sweet little toddler voice. When she is told that her name is Joya Claire she says "no, no, no, Baby". I think it has become a bit of a game for her and it is causing quite a lot of laughter for all of us!

My name?

Joya Claire has been talking up a storm lately and I have been so proud of her language acquisition. In the past couple of weeks she has started using three word sentences. Today, though, she was priceless. I said "what is your name, little girl"? and without hesitating a beat she said "Baby"! I was so shocked, the poor little thing doesn't even know her given name. So after lots of laughter we worked on "my name is Joya Claire", she says "Joy Care". So then we practiced again "What is your name, little girl"? and she said "Baby", so I tried one last time "What is your name, little girl"? and she said "no, no, no"! We will try again tomorrow.

Later in the evening I had to wake Cody up for work and I was asking him for some money and the car keys. He was groggy so I had to ask him a couple times. Soon after that Joya Claire was saying "Daddy, money, keys" over and over. Cody and I laughed and we figure he is in big trouble if she is already asking for those!

Caleb's vocabulary is coming along beautifully also. Today when Joya Claire was talking about an elephant saying it "ephant" , this is what Caleb said "Mama, Joya Claire talks but sometimes she doesn't use words, 'ephant' is just a word approximation". It was so funny he said it as though he were an expert on toddler speech. The great thing about it is, if you ask him what a word approximation is he will tell you!

I am always astonished at the way children acquire knowledge so quickly.