My Kids Still Rock!

This was a fun week around our house, although I guess most weeks here are pretty fun, come to think of it.  My kids continue to amaze me.  They make me laugh, they make me cry, and sometimes, they just make me think.

Brandon remains one of the most naturally funny kids that I have ever met.  Sometimes, it's a little like having a young Bill Murray around the house.  In other words, he doesn't have to try very hard to make you crack up. 

We were riding our bikes the other day as part of our regimen, and Brandon delivered this gem:

"You know, Dad, I don't think skunks really understand this whole 'skunks vs. cars' thing.  I mean, they release that foul-smelling liquid, which the driver doesn't even smell until they open the door, and they still just get run over."

That is both profound and humorous to me.

Abby, our two-year old, is still ridiculously polite.  She thanks me for wiping her nose, or wiping her face, or changing her diaper, or just for kissing her: "Thank you, dad."  Simple, and nice.

We thought she needed a diaper change the other day.  Allow me to rephrase that - we KNEW that she needed a change.  The exchange went something like this:

PAM (my wife): Abby, I think you need a change, honey.

ABBY: Why?  I don't need a diapuh change. 

PAM: Because it smells like you have poop.

ABBY: Yes, I sell some poop.  No, I don't sell any poop.

I absolutely lost it at that point.

My mom was in town last week, and our older daughter, Aleah, asked her to play chess.  It would appear that, at age seven, she is a budding chess genius.  My mom said that she has the right type of mind for the game.  This comes as no surprise to me, because she is highly analytical in her thinking. 

Today, while we were at lunch for my wife's birthday, Aleah corrected the spelling of a word, then we realized that we had no idea how she even knew how to spell that one.  In case you are curious, I pointed out that they had olive oil for dipping the bread, and I included "sorta like Popeye's girlfriend".  Aleah said, "That is spelled O-Y-L on Popeye, not O-I-L!"

Of course, this is the same child who correctly used the word "tessellated" awhile back in casual conversation.  My wife wants to start working with her even more on the spelling thing.  Who knows?  Maybe she could win the national spelling bee in a few years.  My wife competed at the national level when she was about 13, whereas I came in third in our district (the top two went to the state level).  Needless to say, we have some strong spelling genes.

Child #4 (or "new kid" as we refer to him/her) continues his/her streak of silence, evidently content to merely gestate at this point.  I am anxious to meet this one, but I guess I still have to wait another six months or so.  I welcome your suggestions on names for both boys and girls.  We tend to lean toward traditional names for boys and more unique names for girls. 

That is not an actual picture of our baby to the right, but it is a picture at the exact same stage of development (14 weeks).  :)

Thanks for reading this brief update about my family!