The Things They Say...

The flip-side to the sadness of having your babies grow up is the fun of watching them develop. Specifically, it's both thrilling and hysterical to watch them process their world, and then use their developing language to share what they are thinking. I think Marty and I have laughed more with (okay...AT) the kids in the last month than ever. Part of the reason I blog is to keep running documentation of our experiences as the kids get older, so it makes sense to share some of the hilarity--these are the things I want to remember someday.

So, I give you...the things they say:

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(driving home from preschool)
Anderson: "Who is that?"
Me: "Who do you think that is?"
Anderson: "That's the mail carrier..."
Me: "What does a mail carrier do?"
Anderson: "He puts mail in the mailboxes."
Me: "What does a firefighter do?"
Amelia: "He rides on a fire truck!"
Me: "What does a police officer do?"
Anderson: "He brushes his teeth."
(pause...)
Me: "I think maybe you're confused."

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(kids are taking a bath)
Me (to Amelia): "We have to wash your body so you aren't stinky."
Amelia: "I'm not stinky! I smell good!"
Me: "Yep! You washed with soap!"
Amelia: "Teachers aren't stinky."
Me: "Yep, like Mommy. Mommy isn't stinky...I wash my body with soap."
Amelia (quietly): "You are stinky..."
Me: "WHAT? Do I stink?!"
Amelia: "Yes.."
Me (laughing loudly): "I don't stink!!"
Amelia (indignantly): "You stink just a little bit!!"
Marty (laughing): "Do I stink?"
Amelia: "You have a BIIIIG stink!"

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(Marty is sleeping on the couch. He wakes up; Anderson is standing there, looking at him, smiling)

Anderson: "Are you looking at you??"

We like this one because Anderson has serious pronoun confusion--a common problem with kids who have language issues due to autism. He often interchanges me, you, I, he, she, we...he meant to say, "Am I looking at you?" because he was staring at Marty. Love that funny boy. :-)

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Marty (singing loudly): "She only wants me for my Peach Juice.."
(yes, that's a play on the song "Pimp Juice" by Nelly. We drink peach juice in our house...the song comes naturally)
Anderson: "Stop! That's not very good!!"
Marty: "What's not good? My singing?"
Anderson: "You're singing isn't right! It's not very good!"

He just calls it like he sees it.

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(Watching the news this morning)
Marty: "They're saying the suspects are from Russia or Chechnya."
Anderson: "Chex Mix...I want some Chex Mix!"

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For each of these, there are probably 10 more that I can't remember in my Friday-exhaustion haze. They are full of funny quips and comments these days. On one hand, I love how funny they are, how much they make me laugh. On the other, I absolutely marvel at how smart they are becoming. It amazes me to watch them make connections and make observations, share opinions. I take none of it for granted.

We are watching some of the Boston coverage on the news...having young children, these kinds of tragic events affect me even more. I want to have faith in the world that will one day belong to my kids, and tragedies like this make it difficult. I am trying to focus on the goodness in humanity, the heroes that have emerged in the midst of the horror. Hug your families a little tighter this weekend, friends. Spread love into the world.