I-Can-One-Up-You

Just when I thought I had heard every version of I-can-one-up-you, Nathan said to Andrew, “I’m just going to find the tallest white girl I can find so that my children will be taller than yours!”

When I'm a Father...

I have a piece of candy visible in my van.  It's mine, and it's been there for quite some time.  I just haven't eaten it yet.  It wasn't my intent to make it an exercise in self control for my boys whenever they see it, but that's the reality.  This morning, Nathan emphatically declared, "When I'm a father, my kids are never going to find my candy.  I'm going to hide it well."

Don't Obey Your Tummy

While cuddling with me this morning, Kyle's stomach was growling loudly.  Out of nowhere, he said, "My tummy wants me to chase down a turkey and kill it.  But, I'm not going to."  Where does this stuff come from?

Dinner Laughs

Nathan: If you do that, I’ll hit you in the sternum.

Andrew: I’ll hit you right back in the sternum.

Nathan: You don’t know where the sternum is.

Andrew: I will after you hit me.

Starting My Morning With a Laugh

Kyle came into our room this morning to wake us up and snuggle for a few minutes.  Wondering if his brothers were awake yet, I asked him, "Are you the only one awake?"  Without skipping a beat, he replied, "Well, Dad is...and you are."  Starting my morning with a laugh was the perfect way to begin this day.

Life is Boring Without a Sister?

Kyle told me this morning: "It’s kind of getting boring because I have no sisters.  I want peaceful time, not just playing with my mean brothers."

What do you appreciate about your Mom?

The question was “What do you appreciate about your Mom?”  The answers follow.

Nathan:  You drive us to and from school so that we don’t have to take the bus all the time.

Evan: You have a pretty smile.  You take time out of the day to clean so that we won’t have a messy house.

Kyle: You are a good Mommy, and you clean the house so that when guests come they can make it more dirty.

Andrew: You do what we want to do, not what you want to do.

Classroom Leader

I love lunch time conversations!

Kyle (with a twinkle in his eye): When I need to tell my class something, I just say "Guys!". They all get quiet and listen to me. They think I'm the teacher!

Me: When do you do this?

Kyle (very matter-of-fact): Oh, every day!

Birth Order

Kyle asked me on Tuesday, "Why was it me that was born last?  I wanted to be born first, not last!"

Letter to a Soldier

I had all 4 boys write thank you letters to a soldier for Memorial Day.  Kyle colored a picture and dictated the following to me:

Fight for freedom so that the people in your town don't die.  I have brown hair.  I'm 4 years old.  I like playing games with my neighbor named Alex.  My oldest brother is Nathan.  He is 11.  We fight with him, and he always wins.  My second oldest brother is Andrew.  He is 9.  He fights with Nathan, and Nathan always, always wins the battle.  Me and Andrew play Knights vs. Ninja.  One is a Ninja and one is a Knight, and they battle.  I do my super attack and grab him and take him down. Evan is my third oldest brother.  He is 7.  We play lots of games that I don't like but he likes.  Sometimes there's games I do like.  That's all my brothers.  From, Kyle

Best Mommy/Worst Mommy

Kyle just kissed me on the cheek and sweetly said, "You are the best Mommy."  Then, he reconsidered and said, "Actually, sometimes you are the best Mommy.  Sometimes you are the worst Mommy."

I asked him, "When am I the worst Mommy?"

He replied, "Like when you don't let us have Nutella.  When you don't let us have Wii.  When you don't let us have screen time."

In that case, I'll proudly wear my "Worst Mommy" label.

Shotgun

Getting ready to head out the door, Nathan announced, "I call shotgun!"  Without skipping a beat, Kyle responded, "I call machine gun!"  Proof positive that everything is a competition with my boys.

Peeling Onions

Kyle was helping me peel an onion this morning to put into the slow cooker for dinner.  He made this observation as his eyes were watering, "It's like they have invisible hands to punch your eyes."  I love 4 year old wisdom!

Counting Friends

Tonight at dinner, Kyle was naming off his preschool friends.  With each friend, he put up one of his fingers.  After naming ten friends, he announced dejectedly, "There's some more, but I can't count them with my hands."  He had our whole family laughing.

More beautiful than...

On the way home from church last night, Evan asked me, "Do you want to hear more about Minecraft.

Tired of Minecraft talk, I told him, "I'd rather hear more about how lovely I am."

Evan melted my heart by saying, "You are more more beautiful than the clouds."

Kyle told me, "You are more beautiful than the leaves."

Finishing with a bang, Evan enthusiastically declared, "You are more beautiful than a man!"

Whales Don't

Kyle came into bed with us for a few minutes this morning.  We were tickling him, and he wanted Elbert to tickle his stuffed dog.

Elbert told Kyle, "Most doggies like their tummies rubbed."

Kyle responded, "But whales don't!"

This kid cracks me up!

Stained Glass Windows

We spent last evening at St. Andrew's Cathedral enjoying Nathan's choir concert.  The church has gorgeous stained glass windows all around the sanctuary.  After the sun had set, Kyle pointed at one window and whispered to me, "It's almost out of power!  I can't see it anymore."

First Exposure to Figure Skating

As Kyle and I watched some figure skating this morning, it was obvious that he usually watches a different sport on ice.  One of his first comments was, "She doesn't have a helmet!"

A little later, the commentator exclaimed, "She's on fire!"  Kyle responded indignantly, "She's not on fire!"

Asparagus

After eating his obligatory bite of asparagus at dinner, I told Kyle, "Someday you will like asparagus."

He looked at me with a gleam in his eye that only he can do and said, "Yes, when I'm taller than you."

What a goof!  He keeps us laughing.

Laughing, Laughing, Laughing

On Thursday, I took Kyle with me to a brunch I had with some ladies at the boys' school.  Normally, it's a prayer group.  I bring toys for Kyle, and he plays somewhat quietly while we pray for our school, our teachers and our children.  This week, however, we were just talking and eating.  After we got home, Kyle said, "You were laughing, laughing, laughing.  I so love your laughing!"