A Ship Wreck in the Park

We recently had a picnic (on one of the warmer days of Fall) at a nearby park. This park doesn't have a playground, but we found one anyway. A huge (and I mean HUGE) tree had fallen, exposing all the roots. Needless to say, Jude went on a climbing adventure, and the tree became his pirate ship. (The hole later became his bat cave).

Ruby couldn't quite climb this giant yet, but was content to play under the massive trunk. We had a blast. I would have killed to discover something like this when I was a kid! It was the best playground ever. No slide or swings necessary.

Signs that your children may be addicted to Scooby Doo...

They refer to your van as the "mystery machine."

Every time they pick up a rock or stick outside, they hold it up and say, "It must be a clue!"

Their vocabulary now includes "zoinks," "jeenkies," and "jeepers."

They have begun to address you as "dude" and "man" instead of Momma or Dadda.

They are disappointed that your dog doesn't speak.

They run around the house, crouched low and starting with an in-place warm-up.

They often find monsters, ghosts, and zombies hiding around the house.

They refer to your dog's treats as "Scooby snacks."

Any time you are driving down a road at night or a road that has trees nearby, they say it's "creepy."

Needless to say, my two show all the signs...

A Son's Love

Okay, so I know this is a little Oedipus Rex-like, but Jude is only four! He doesn't think that way...so, it was just sweet and melted this mother's heart....

The other day, he hugged me and said,

"I love you, Momma. I wish we were married. And Dadda could find another Momma."

Who's the Boss?

This line from Jude this morning just about sums it up...

He was upset with Ruby and I for some reason and said,

"This is my house! You're just visitors!"

That sounds about right....

Conversations with the Dog

I am currently transribing what I hear from the next room. Jude is talking with Maggie, our dog.

Maggie, stop looking like that at me!

No drooling in the house, Maggie! That's the last time that I'm telling you! No drooling in the house!!

(After picking up a dog toy that was in Maggie's mouth) Yuck! I'm not taking any of this!!

The Magic of Sand

Here are three reasons I am thrilled with my recent purchase of this adorable used sandbox:

Can you hear that? Can you? No! Niether can I. Because it's silence. No yelling, no whining, no crying....Pure and beautiful silence.

You see those little hands? Those adorable hands are so much more adorable in this photo because not one of them is hitting, grabbing, throwing, or tugging. Just plain and delightful digging. 

And would you look at that! An unsolicited smile. What more could you ask for?

Why did I wait so long to get a sandbox?? And please God, let it last!!

A Family Portrait

We were painting the other day and Jude was doing his usual painting of faces that he does lately. When he was finished, he proudly presented his work and pointed to each face, naming our family members one by one.

"That's me...and that's Dadda." (Interesting that Jude is so much bigger than Dadda and bigger than anyone in the painting, for that matter...)  "Great job, Jude."

"There's you, Momma."  "I see. Very nice, Jude."

"And that's Ruby there."  "Oh, that was great that you didn't forget Ruby."

"And there's the turkey." (Without a moment of hesitation, as if it was perfectly normal for him to include the turkey, not our dog, Maggie, in our family portrait. A turkey that has never before been mentioned.)

"Turkey? Why is there a turkey in the picture, Jude?"

"Because I want a turkey for a pet."   (In a tone like, "of course I want a turkey, didn't you know?")

Great. I'm not even going there right now.

So, there you have it. Our family tree apparently includes a turkey.