Thanks Grammy and Papa!

Look at this amazing book my parents made for the kids. It has the cool eyeball pocket on the outside that holds a magnifying glass, and then inside are pages and pages of pictures with Papa Duck hiding in them, Where's Waldo? style. (Some of them are really super hard, and I'm not actually completely convinced that Papa Duck is really in them...)

Anyway, the boys love these books! And Monkey loves his magnifying glass, as you can see!

conversations with the Jabberwock

Here's Jabber checking his compass on a recent hike through the woods. It's very important to him that we do not get lost, so he checks the compass quite frequently. He also very much dresses himself, right down to the dapper little hat and scarf.

The Jabberwock and I have been having quite a few deep conversations lately. Let's see, there was the moment just before sleep when he demanded to know about how the little daddy cells get into the place where the mama cells are to make a baby. "But how do the cells get OUT of Daddy and INTO you???"

Um. Yeah.

Or this morning he got mad at me--really passionately furious, actually--when I explained to him why he couldn't have a step-dad. And then there was the one in which he informed me that he is actually part feline.

Jabber: Mom, did you know that I'm half human and half puma?

Me: Um, wow. No you did not tell me that.

Jabber: Well, I am. You know every morning I just feel myself, and...there's fur growing all over my chest.

Me: Wow! That's amazing!

Jabber: Yeah, and there are like, black spots on my sides and stuff.

Me: So are you a puma during the day or during the night?

Jabber: *snarls like a crazy wild cat and slashes at me with his sharp claws*

---

Edit:

Moments ago we had this exchange, which just really seemed to fit my theme of the day:

Me: Boys, you're being awfully loud. Those are not really inside voices.

El: Well, they would be if we lived in outer space!

night in review

Photo-of-the-day is from Easter...our hike at the nearby nature area.

So I'm nursing the monkey child and then it's time for bed. We just went for a walk, shot at airplanes (pew! pew!) and trucks, snuggled on the porch swing, ogled street sweepers, chased squirrels, and drew with sidewalk chalk.

That was after we struggled and argued and had meltdowns because brother and Daddy went grocery shopping (certain financial ruin in 3....2....) (not really--I'm sure he'll do just fine...)

Yeah. my night in review, haha. Now I'm off to read Where the Wild Things Are and hope for a speedy dispatch to dreamland for the wee one.

Will I be able to edit tonight?

two tiny updates...

...on my two huge boys.

1. Monkey has apparently perfected what David has referred to as my signature look. "What? What look are you talking about?" I asked him.

"You know. When you lift up one eyebrow and accompany it with that look. The one that says wtf-ever!"

So. A mother feels a special sort of pride and terror when told that her two-year-old has mastered her own unique brand of smart-assery. Yay?

2. Jabber is obsessed with shooting things. "MOM!" he yelled just moments ago. "I JUST SHOT BOTH YOUR LEGS OFF, YOU KNOW!" A pause, and then, "NOW I SHOT YOUR GLASSES OFF, TOO, SO YOU CAN'T SEE WHO'S DOING IT!"

Also, yesterday at daycare he apparently got into quite a scuffle with one of the other children over whether guns have a trigger (demonstrated with a finger motion) or a "Ka-chocka!" (demonstrated by operating something like a pump action shotgun, maybe?)

*is ridiculously ignorant about guns, relative to the rest of this family*

3. In other wild thing news, in the last two days I have seen a coyote and a moose crossing the road in front of lovely daycare provider's home. They were both headed in the same direction--toward her backyard. Wooo, spring!

baby steps

I thought maybe I could handle a photo post.

I really am doing a lot of writing lately, just not here...

Eventually I'll tell you all how I'm doing on my third novel (finishing third draft this week, btw)...when I'm sure it doesn't suck completely.

But for now. Here is my picture of the day, taken on Easter, in our dining room, as the boys were watching for signs of spring in the backyard and eating their candy corn by the double handful.

oh hai!

So I was all set to write this story about how difficult it is to start up something that you stop doing...it was an embarrassing story about me and the gym I once belonged to.

But now I've decided to break the blog silence with a goofy photo instead.

This photograph is titled: "Ooh, Baby is Maaad! GRRROwllll!"


It's even funnier when you can see Monkey staring at this photo on my laptop screen, shouting, "Oh, no! Baby is mad!" and then making his little baby mad faces and noises quite convincingly.

Okay, so I'll maybe post a little more often. 'Cause next time I'll probably be forced to tell the embarrassing story.