Overheard

The boys celebrated their father's birthday by joining him at a waterpark last night.  That left Reagan and I to hold down the fort here.  I spent the time cleaning their bedroom and the guest room upstairs.  It took FOREVER.  Ridiculously long.  I got this response, though, when the men folk returned....

Colby: "OH WOW!  Quinn, come up here!  It's IMMACULATE!  It's all clean and shiny up here!" 

I didn't even know that he KNEW the word immaculate.  It's nice that my efforts were appreciated.  Let's hope they were appreciated enough that things stay clean for more than 30 minutes or so.  I have my serious doubts about that. 

Little Girls Love Their Brothers

IMG_4560
Originally uploaded by mamaaho

Reagan ADORES her big brothers.

One Of the Most Beautiful Things to come Out of My Son's Mouth

I was standing just a few feet away, when I heard Quinn ask his father this...

Quinn: "Dad, what's for breakfast?"

OHHHH, blessed boy!!!   I asked him to say it again.  And again.  And again.  No "Mom Mom Mom Mom I'm HUUUUNNNNGGGGRRRRYYY." 

It's a good day.

To Be Four Feet Tall

Rob is taking the boys to a water park next week.  The "big slide" has a height requirement of 48", and after measuring the boys today, it was determined that they are half an inch short.  Colby decided that this wasn't a problem - he would find a way to grow half an inch in 7 days.  Here's his solution.

Colby:  "Dad, I'm going to cover my mouth and blow really hard, and it will puff my head up".

Ah.  Like a balloon.  Good plan, Colby Man.  Good plan. 

Secret Letters

Found Quinn typing this message to his friend at school...

"You have a missdree to figr hoo am I . FINE THE NEXT CLUE . IT WILL BE SUMWAIR BY THE SLIDE. YOU WILL NEVR NO HOO AM I. AND FOLOE THE LINE ON THE GROWN.


THE NEXT CLUE WILL TACK ONE STEP. TO FIGRING HOO AM I. "


:)

Nighttime Prayers

Both boys, for some reason, are truly afraid of their bedroom.  They both have claimed adamantly that a "dark man" comes into the room sometimes at night to read their books on the bookshelf.  When I suggested that this might be Daddy coming in to give them a kiss goodnight, they said "Does Daddy walk through WALLS, Mom?!?!?!"  Ok.  Maybe not.  But this fear has been going on since they were able to talk.  Literally since they were about two or so.  It used to be that their stuffed kangaroo and Raggedy Ann and Andy came to life in the playroom.  Now it's a "dark man" reading their books.   No matter how hard I assure them that those sounds they hear at night are most likely the creaks and squeaks associated with a hundred year old house swaying in the wind, or squirrels and mice in the walls, they are not convinced.

The GOOD part of all this paranoia, though, is that both boys are ADAMANT about saying their night-time prayers.  If I forget, they are quick to remind me.  Quinn asks me... every night.... to say the Guardian Angel prayer and make the sign of the cross on his forehead, to protect him through the night.  Tonight, he told me a little secret.

"Mom, when you're at work and not here to put me to bed, I say the prayer myself, and make that Jesus thing on my head all by myself."

I don't know why this touched me so much, but it really did.  It may border on the superstitious, but it warms my heart to know that my boys rely on prayer to comfort them when they are scared.  That they "get it" at so young an age.  God bless you, little men.

Thoughts that Make Me Go "YIKES!"

Quinn has been very intrigued of late about ages, dying, and getting old.  He's been wondering how long he will live.  Don't know WHY this particular thing is rattling around his six year old brain, but... it is what it is.  I told him to assume 100 years, if he took care of himself, ate healthy, exercised regularly, and didn't smoke. Oh, that's right.  This all started because he was worried that the steak we were eating for dinner would cause heart disease.  I think he's safe, and told him so.  Anyways... he wanted to know how old the oldest person was, so I looked it up.  Jeanne Calment of France (1875–1997), who died at age 122 years, 164 days.  Just so y'all know.  Then he wanted to know the YEAR he would turn 100.  Cogwheels turning, and we came up with the number.  2104.  HOLY COW.  REALLY??!?!  Then he wanted to know if I was alive way back in 1997, when Jeanne Calment died.  YUP.  I was 25.  He was astounded that I wasn't even a KID way way back then.  So then he asked what year I was born, and I told him.  And what year would I turn 100?  Answer, 2072.  Wow.  (As a side note, I am listening to Pandora as I type this, and you would never guess what song just came on.  Five for Fighting's "100 years".  No way.  That's weird.  Anways, I digress. )  So then he wanted to know how old HE would be in 2072, and we calculated again... 68.  That's younger that Grandma and Grandpa Aho, but older than Grandma and Grandpa Patterson.  Then he wanted to know HOW a person dies... like what physically stops working.  And if the heart stops beating, how long it takes before you die.  And if the heart beats really really fast, can that make you die, too?  And how does a pacemaker get in a person's heart?  And does Grandma LaVerne 's pacemaker go right into her heart?  How does it attach INSIDE her heart without hurting her heart?  And what happens when the batteries die?  This again morphed into a conversation about the location of heaven, which I have yet to give a good answer on.  I deferred to Dad, who threw the question right back at me.  Thanks. 

At the end of this whole dialogue, he said simply "I wish Aunt Dorothy would've lived to 100.  I miss her".

HMMM.

I do, too, Quinn.... I do, too.

2010 Blog Book

Life With Boys by Monica | Make Your Own Book

Visual Spatial Thinker

Quinn's well on his way to being an engineer, I swear.  Yesterday he was playing with Reagan's blocks, and he said this....

Quinn: "Mom, I know how to tell easily whether there are an even or odd number of blocks in my tower."
Mom: "How?"
Quinn: "Well, if I split them in two, and there's one in the middle left over, then it's odd!  If there's not, it's even!"
Mom: "That's really clever.  Did you learn that at school?"
Quinn: "No.  I just figured it out right now."

Well, he certainly impressed his mom ;).

Uh, THANKS.

Getting ready for work this morning, Colby comes into my bathroom while I'm just putting on my shirt.  He eyes my "lovehandles" and says

Colby:  "Mom, maybe you need to get bigger pants so that THESE (here he pats my side) can fit in them". 

Or maybe I should get dressed without little boys in the room.  I did inform him that HE was the cause of those lovehandles.  Having three human beings inside me at one time or another (two at once even!) tended to stretch things out.  He takes no responsibility whatsoever, since he claims he doesn't remember the incident. 

On my way to a diet again.  (sigh)

Resembelances

This morning at breakfast:

Colby: "Quinn, you're ugly and funny lookin' "
Quinn: "MOM!  Colby just called me ugly and funny lookin' "
Mom: "Colby, who do you look like in this family?"
Colby: "My cousin Landon when he was younger."
Quinn: "I look like cousin Parker when he was younger."
Mom: "Don't you think you look a little like your brother?"
Colby: "OOOOOOOOHHHHH.  I get it."
Quinn: "heee heee hee.  He just called himself ugly and funny lookin' ".
Mom: "Yup".
Quinn: "Mom, who do you look like?"
Mom: "Some people have told me I look like my uncle Chuck."
Colby: "But he's a BOY!  You're a GIRL!  Oh, I know, it's because your arms are hairy like his."
Mom: "Uhhhhh.  Thanks."
Quinn: "Don't you look like any GIRLS?"
Mom: "People used to think I looked like Aunt Elle."
Quinn: "Don't you have any sisters that you look like?"
Mom:  "Aunt Elle is my sister."
Quinn and Colby: "OH."

But maybe I do look more like a hairy-armed boy.  Nothing like being put in your place first thing on a Tuesday morning.

Time

Quinn got a watch for Christmas, and has been wearing it alot lately.  He came into my room this morning and said ....
Quinn: "Mom, my watch isn't working!  It says it's 19:15 instead of 7:15!"
Mom:  "Oh, that's actually military time.  Since there's 24 hours a day, and only 12 hours on a clock, instead of saying 'a.m.' and 'p.m.' they just add twelve to whatever o'clock it is.  Get it?"
Quinn: "AAAAHHHHHH.  I get it.  It's a MATH WATCH."
Mom: "Uh, yeah.  Kinda."

Snippet

Mom: "Colby, why are there Bakugan cards all over the floor?"
Colby: "Mom, it's a LOOOONG story."

If I were a betting woman, I'd put money that the story went like this....."I was playing with them.  Then I was too lazy to pick them up".  End of story.  Not long at all.