GG says...

I'm reading a book to GG in which chickens are the main characters. After about page one, he turns to me and says in a slightly annoyed tone, "Chickens don't talk!"

GG says...

One thing that has been almost constant since GG came home...his love of eggs. Every morning, "Momma, want eggs. Eggs, toast, Momma. And ketchup."

Til this week when he firmly said, "Now I not like eggs. I like CEREAL."

The boy knows what he wants!

He also said, "When I grow bigger can I go church and talk?"

"Like Pastor Todd?"

"Yes."

The boy has things to say.

Wasn't sure what to make of the following... We talk about going back to China to visit when he's older; we plan to take both boys on a homeland trip. But I wonder what the thinking was behind this...

"When I get big I go NaiNai's (foster mom's) house. I stay NaiNai's."

I reply, "And then you come home with Mommy?" (thinking that he meant he'd stay at NaiNai's while we were visiting)

Shakes head no.

I say, "I will miss you."

He thinks. And says, "I will come with Mommy."

I often wonder what goes on in his head.

I Smell Like What ????

So GG, age 4, continues to enjoy smelling me. It's like he has a little vacuum cleaner nose.

I don't usually wear make-up. But on a Sunday morning a couple weeks ago, I put on foundation and blush as I was getting ready for church. GG comes up to me and does his usual vacuum-sniff up the side of my face. He backs away, looks me in the eyes, and says, "You smell like Playdough." (The next time I wore foundation, he said it again.)

I needed to know that.

GG Update

GG and I are home from church today. Friday night/Saturday morning he suddenly had temps up to 104.9. It's the sickest he's been since he came home, almost a year ago. So this morning we're sitting here, him watching Muzzy Chinese (he says he doesn't understand it, but is totally entranced, so go figure...) and me typing. Here are some quotes from the last couple weeks...

"When Mommy grow up you be little like GG?"

I have no idea what that means. He's been really into talking about "getting bigger" lately. He seems to think that as I get older, maybe I'll get small like him again? Not sure. I've explained that I used to be little like him, but maybe something is getting lost in the translation?

I asked him to get dressed...

"Can you help me, Mommy? I lazy."

That pretty much speaks for itself. :)

A couple weeks ago we moved GG into LilDude's bed. They were both excited about it and there's been no turning back. I often hear questions from adoptive parents about how to transition kids out of co-sleeping. All I can say is that in my experience, when they're ready, they're ready. I'm quite sure I miss it more than he does.

Well, DUH, Mom!

GG (age 3): "My hands hurt."

Mom: "Why do they hurt?"

GG: "Because I say so."

The Hogs Can Wait, Honey...

It's not unusual for LilDude (7) to walk in his sleep. Tonight after reading aloud from our latest chapter book, Strawberry Girl, I tucked him in, and told him good night.

A hour or so later, he comes running into the computer room calling, "What should I do about Mr. Slater's hogs????"

I took my sleeping boy by the hand and led him back to bed, saying, "We'll take care of the hogs in the morning."

Birthday Presents

GG has been excitedly talking about his birthday (in February) ever since he arrived home (last May.) We're finally getting close enough that today I asked, "What do you want for your birthday?"

"Hmmm," he thought. "I want Christmas tree. And my mom*."

*And just in case you're wondering, he definitely meant me...with a huge grin in my direction. ;)

GG Says...

Twice today GG says to me, "You're pretty nice!"

And, for the sake of contrast, last night he sang the "Mommy Loves You" song that I sing to both boys each night at bedtime. I always include each of their names. It usually goes like this:

"Mommy loves you. Mommy loves you.
Yes, she does. Yes, she does.
Mommy loves _____('LilDude's name.) Mommy loves ______ (GG's name.)
Yes, she does. Yes, she does."

GG's rendition:

 "Mommy loves you. Mommy loves you.
Not ______ ('LilDude's name.) Not _______ ('LilDude's name.)"
Hee-hee-hee-hee-hee. (laughing)

As Good as Grandma's? (NYNS #6)

After I cleaned off a counter, LilDude said this about our home:

"Pretty soon ours is going to be as good as Grandma's."

[pause]

"Although that's kind of hard to beat!"

Why Are You Hot?

GG sits near me in the kitchen. He says, "I'm hot."

I say, "I'm hot, too. Why are you hot?"

"Ummmm, because...(pauses, then in imitation of the Michael Jackson song)...I'm bad, I'm bad..."

That's what less than five months of English does to a three-year-old. :)

'Lil Dude's Mathematical Mind

At lunch, 'LilDude (6) pipes up and says, "7 1/2 and 7 1/2 are 15 cause 1/2 plus 1/2 equals one."

"How'd you know that?"

"I was layin' in bed and I was thinkin' about it."

Cooler Than GEESE!?!?!!!!!!

Today we welcomed several visitors, including 2-year-old TJ. 'LilDude was impressed. After TJ left, 'LilDude said, "TJ is COOL!" And a bit later, "TJ is way cooler than GEESE!"

A bit puzzled, I asked, "Why are geese cool?"

"Cause they can fly."

"Why is TJ cool?"

"He just IS!"

I'm thinking 'LilDude has the makings of an awesome big brother! He was fascinated to learn that TG, waiting in China, is about the same age as our little visitor.

Oh, the Joys of Public School...

This morning the news was on (my first mistake) while 'LilDude was eating breakfast. As usual, it was all about the election. 'LilDude pipes up, "I'm voting for McCain."

Since he recently declared his vote for Obama, I asked, "So why are you voting for him?"

"Cause Cole said if Obama wins, he'll kill babies."

Eyebrows raised, I ask, "Who is Cole?"

"A first grader."

"So why does he think that?"

"His sister told him."

The joys of public school...

Day 25, Chix/Turkey Vegetable Soup (93...Free!)

You know the criteria by now...if 'LilDude asks for 3rds, the recipe gets blogged. :) Tonight the kids all enjoyed "Chicken Vegetable Soup" from Simply in Season. 'LilDude had three helpings despite one concern...

"Mom, there's a bug in my soup."

I didn't doubt it since I'd just brought the broccoli and kale in from the garden, but I asked anyway, hoping it was pepper. "How do you know?"

"It has LEGS."

Lizzi consoled him. "That's okay. Bugs are just protein. People in other countries eat bugs all the time."

That satisfied 'LilDude.

I hope you enjoy it, legs or not... ;)



Chicken (Turkey) Vegetable Soup
-modified from Simply in Season

The recipe calls for a 3 lb chicken, cooked, with reserve broth. I just cooked a turkey, so I used that meat & broth.

3 c. carrots, diced
2 c. celery, diced
1-2 medium onions, diced
1 medium parsnip, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced

In large soup pot saute the above in 2 T. olive oil. Add a little water for steam.

1/2 t. ground red pepper
salt/pepper to taste

Add the 2 above ingredients and cook over medium heat until vegetables are tender but not mushy, 15 minutes. Add water to chicken/turkey broth to make 12 cups. Add to soup mixture along with cooked chicken or turkey (cut into bite-sized pieces.)

2 c. broccoli florets
2 c. kale, chopped
1/2 t. dried dill (or 1 1/2 t. fresh)

Add, bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer to blend flavors.

Note: We had leftover rice in the fridge. 'LilDude LOVES rice and added some to his soup. The cold rice helped to cool the hot soup. The kids also added Parmesan cheese or grated cheddar if they wished.

BTW, I don't think I'd ever eaten a parsnip until last year. I really like them. And in a recipe like this, they provide a little sweetness that's not-to-be-missed. Now if I could only figure out how to grow them.

Kindergarten is Hard Work

'LilDude talks about math...

"I can count to ten hundred. I mean one thousand. I just have to take lots of breaths."

A Duh Moment for Mom

So it seems there was spitting yesterday at recess. In this particular incident, 'LilDude was the recipient of the spit; he didn't spit on anyone. But since there have recently been some moist morsels flying around our house, I took the opportunity to have a conversation with him. Preventative measure, ya know?

Me: Even if the other kids are spitting it is not okay for you to do it too.

He looks at me incredulously and says, "MOM! I am a GOOD KID. I wouldn't DO THAT."

So Where Exactly Did She Think She Was???

Today I recorded kids' answers to the question, "What was your favorite thing about kindergarten this week?" as they dictated.

I approached one cute little girl and asked her the question that I'd already asked more than ten times.... "So what was your favorite part of kindergarten this week?" I'm thinking I'm going to get the same standard answers I'd heard so far...recess, friends, dot art...

She looked up at me, widened her huge blue eyes and solemnly said, "I haven't been to kindergarten."

I looked at her. Figured she'd misunderstood the question. "But what was the best part of kindergarten this week?"

Her eyes got wider. "I haven't been THERE."

"But this IS kindergarten. That's what you've been doing here this week."

"OOOOOOOOHHHHHHH." She smiled. "Painting."

Quote of the Day...

A young boy slowly trudges into the house holding a bow with a busted string.

I say, "You can fix it."

He perks up. "I read in one book that women's hair makes very good bow strings."

‘LilDude, Love & Logic

Today, ‘LilDude (age 5) went to visit his best friend, “T.” T’s mom happens to be one of the most awesome moms I know…and the queen of Love and Logic. If you are a Love and Logic parent, you’ll appreciate the events that transpired…

‘LilDude and T are playing with T’s two older siblings, B & K. First, B has a little rock throwing incident. Not too long after, B & K have an argument. Mom comes over to deal with the situation. ‘LilDude looks at her, grimaces, puts his hands over his ears and says, “They are DRAINING MY ENERGY!”

Edited to add...

The teacher in me was thinking... Some kids come to school swearing and the teacher figures they learned it at home. 'LilDude goes to kindergarten in the fall. Wonder what his teacher is going to think????

Out of the Mouths of Babes…

Today at lunch, ‘LilDude (5) pipes up and says, “Sometimes it’s better to be alone than to be scared.” I couldn’t figure out what he was talking about. I probed a bit and discovered he was referring to a situation in one of our favorite books, The Island of the Skog, in which a character decides he'd rather be alone on an island than be in the company of creatures that he imagines might be scary.

We talked about how things we anticipate as frightening might not turn out to be so scary after all. I mentioned how preschool friends or teachers might have seemed scary at first. He agreed that things aren’t that way now. “Sometimes I sit by GIRLS!” Apparently the ultimate in scary for 5-year-old boys.

I replied, “But I’m a girl.”

His reply? “Actually, you’re an old woman.”

Now that's scary! :)