Barbarians

I left my earrings on the table last night and Spencer was fiddling with them while he sat there. He asked, "Mom, how do women grow holes in their ears?" I smiled sweetly and replied, "We don't grow them, we punch them." He didn't have much to say after that. I suppose I won't have to worry about him getting a lot of body piercings.

A Day's Worth of Funnies

I realize most five-year-olds are pretty funny; it's just the age. But I really think Spencer has more than his share of a sense of humor. He certainly keeps me laughing and makes life bright and cheerful for all who know him. Here are a few things he said to me today that made me laugh.

We all had to play a game of hide-and-seek to start off the day. It was Carson's idea. Spencer ran down the hall to get dressed and somehow Carson thought he was going to count to 10. So Carson ran to the front door and stood there, very still, with a big grin on his face. Unfortunately, that's as sneaky as he gets at hiding. He's always in the middle of a large space, grinning from ear to ear like he's really gonna trick 'em now! Spencer is at a slightly more advanced level of play, so he got bored "looking" for someone who doesn't really hide. He said, "Mom, Carson's not very hide-and-seek-y, is he?"

Earlier, Spencer was playing with some cars and had them all lined up in a particular order. Then it was breakfast time, so he had to leave them there. Carson finished first, so he immediately went over and began rearranging the configuration. Spencer asked me if we could please call 911 and report to the police that his baby brother was messing up his cars.

Spencer also played "Doctor" today, and of course, I was the patient. He performed a variety of tests and procedures on me, then stepped back as if he was finished. I asked, "Well Doctor, am I going to make it?" He replied nonchalantly, "Till Friday." I'm not sure I want to know what Friday will bring!

Last night Spencer almost missed story time because he and Daddy were watching their favorite show--"The Biggest Loser." Spencer described in great detail how the people were wearing t-shirts the same color as the hurdles they had to jump over, and a lot of them knocked over their hurdles! I don't know why he is so entranced with watching obese people exert themselves, but it seems totally captivating to him.

A couple of belated holiday things:
Santa brought me a lovely new jewelry armoire, including some nice new necklaces. I showed them to Spencer and he nodded knowingly and said, "I think Santa must have gotten those at Zales!" I think someone's seen too many Christmas commercials!

On Christmas night, we all got in the car and drove around the neighborhood to see the lights. It started to snow a lot, and Andy turned on the windshield wipers. Spencer watched them for a while, then asked, "What are those black things spanking the snow?"

About Carson

The following are miscellaneous pictures of Carson from the past couple of weeks. He is manifesting his little personality more all the time. He has very definite ideas about what he does/doesn't like, what he will/won't do, and what he prefers to eat at each meal. Once he tells me he is "nun" (done), if I'm not fast enough to clear his tray, he does it for me and I end up cleaning the floor instead! He has an ever-growing list of opinions, and he even walks with purpose. If we can just direct him right, he will never stray!

These are some slippers he got for Christmas. When I first put them on, he thought he couldn't walk in them. He just stood there, very still, and smiled at us. We tried to coax him to come out of the room, but he thought his feet were stuck to the floor in those slippers. Finally he learned it was okay to walk, and enjoyed the slippers that one night. I haven't convinced him to wear them since.

Carson loves his daddy. There is something soothing about him that I don't possess. If Carson cries in the night, it's Andy who has the "magical" power to get him right back to sleep without picking him up.

This was a special Family Night with Grandma and Grandpa S. while I was in New York. They had a blast!

Aunt Luanne sent a fish t-shirt for Carson so he could be just like Daddy. Here he is wearing it. Sorry you can't really see the fish, but he had to put his hand on it to show me where his shirt was.

As I've mentioned before, Carson is wild about monkeys. I have no idea why, but a couple of months ago when we went to Denver, I got out some of Spencer's board books for Carson to enjoy. He fell madly in love with "Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed." Now he can't get enough of monkeys. Every time he sees a monkey, he giggles. As you see here, he even eats breakfast with his monkeys sometimes.

And here he is holding both of his stuffed monkeys, as well as his old favorite, a giraffe blanket. This is what he sleeps with every night and every nap. He must have them ALL. He gets whiny and upset if one of them is missing. He must hold them all for a few minutes upon arising, too. But only for a few minutes, because it's quite a load for a tiny boy!

And now a couple of fun anecdotes:

Carson started going to the nursery at church a couple of months ago. The first couple of times were great! He was happy and didn't seem to mind being away from Mommy for a little while. Then he noticed a pattern: "I have to wear a sweater, we sit quietly for a long time in a big room, then Mommy takes me to a room with lots of kids and toys and LEAVES!!" So now he hates wearing sweaters and as soon as we get to the nursery room he bursts into tears. Last week was a turning point, though. He only cried a little at the beginning and the end. I think he decided to take to heart the day's lesson: "I Can Be Happy." He came home with a picture of a smiley face he had colored. Things have gone better since.

Carson loves to take baths, especially since Santa brought the boys some bubble bath. Sometimes it's only Spencer who needs a bath, but Carson hustles in there and starts pulling at his clothes and whining to get in. One night, it wasn't even bath time yet, but he took my finger and led me to his room. He opened the drawer, pulled out a washcloth, and then took me to the bathroom. Chuckling at his enthusiasm, I asked, "Do you want a bath?" He literally shrieked with joy! I hope he still has such a desire for cleanliness when he's 13.

About Spencer

Spencer is always saying and doing funny things. Here are a few I have tried to remember recently:

Andy was trying to take a nap one day while I was gone somewhere and Carson was sleeping. Spencer got bored after his show got over and thought it was time Daddy got up. After a few attempts at waking him, Spencer finally leaned over, pulled up an eyelid, and said, "I know you're in there!" Sure enough, he was!

Another time, I said something about my boys being cute and Spencer said, "You're not gonna think I'M cute!" I asked, "Why not?" He said, "Because I'm COOOOL!"

When we got married, I got some Corelle with a popular (and cute, I thought) ivy design on it. We seldom use the mugs since we don't drink tea or coffee. This Christmas, one of our neighbors brought over some hot cocoa mix. We decided to enjoy it right away. I got out our collection of various mugs and Spencer began assigning them to all of us. "Daddy has the big one, I'll have the kitty one, and Mommy, you have that one with the weeds on it!" I would have been insulted if I hadn't been laughing! Why do men (and boys) think everything green is a weed?

Spencer talking on a banana. Sesame Street would do well to hire him as a consultant.

We went to visit Grandma and Grandpa S. for New Year's Eve. Uncle Adam was there, and he made this magnificent tin foil hat. Here, you will see its progression....

Stage 2.... The final product! You can see it has a large "S" for Spencer! Uncles think of the most interesting activities! No little boy's life would be complete without at least one silly uncle!