Powers Go Poof

On our way to go strawberry picking, Caleb expressed a desire to go blueberry picking again, too. I pointed out that Daddy might take him when I am at my annual Ladies of the Lake getaway in July, "if he can use his persuasive powers to get Uncle Arthur and the girls to go along with you."

"Daddy doesn't have POWERS!"

Then, after a brief pause for thought, "what does persuasive mean?"

"It means convincing. Is Daddy able to convince people to do things?"

"Yeah. But that's NOT a POWER!"

"Send it to other people on facebook!"

Evolution of a Vocubulary

Caleb: "What does 'INQUISITIVE' mean?"
Elizabeth: "Asking a question with a desire for knowledge."
Joseph added another similar explanation, including a definition of the word 'inquire.'
Caleb: "I WAS JUST DOING WHAT THAT MEANT!"

A Different Kind of Humility

Joseph has the opportunity to trade guitar lessons for piano lessons. We also have access to a long term loan of an electric keyboard. As we were setting it up in our dining room and enjoying the sounds of music, Joseph mused, "Every house should have a piano." Caleb, genuinely baffled, "Why?" Joseph, clarified, "Well, that's just my humble opinion."

"HUMBLE?!?" was Caleb's perfectly timed comeback. Now, it's up to you to decide whether he was simply thoroughly perplexed by the word, or...

What's Your Sign?

He hopped on my bed this morning and in a happy voice declared, "Mommy is the the star of the show! Mommy's the BRIGHTEST star of the show." "Caleb is the brightest star in my world." "No, I'm not." "What are you?"

"A DARK CLOUD!"

Don't Try This With Your Wife

I was making what I thought was a vitally important point to Caleb when he talked right over me and asked me about something totally unrelated.

[warning: true confessions]

At the top of my lungs I screamed at him, "THAT IS NOT OKAY!!!"

He just kind of looked at me, and then his lips started moving and I lowered my voice a bit and went on, "When you do that what it communicates you are thinking is, 'Mom's not a person...'"

Not even blinking, he just looked right at me and said, "No, I was thinking, 'Mom has hormones.'"


In the retelling of this to Daddy, Caleb was informed that what is funny and can "get you off the hook" at six, may not work so well for you when you are a grown man/husband. ;)

[Oh, and yes, I dissolved into laughter, pulled him onto my lap, apologized for shouting and told him he was spot on. But I also told him it might not always have that effect.]

Already a Cynic

"They love people." Observed Caleb as he listened to a commercial on the radio for a financial service (or something like that, I was only half paying attention).

"Why do they love people?" "Huh, weeell..." I was trying to come up with an explanation for this because I know he "gets" these things, when he says, "oh, they want you to buy something. That's why they say they love people. They want you to buy THEIR STUFF."

Snacks of a Different Sort

In the car on the way home from church, Joseph notices Caleb digging in his nose and says, "Caleb is looking for a snack."

Caleb, not missing a beat, comes back with, "looks like meatballs are on the menu...no, wait, it's watermelon."

This Conversation Just Happened in Our Kitchen

Caleb: "I wish I had a comb...for special editions.."
Elizabeth: "Occasions?"
Caleb:"Yeah, occasions...so girls would like me."

Joseph: "What?!?"
Caleb: "Yeah, so they're not: 'ooh, ooh, you're so stupid.'"
Joseph: "Does that happen?"
Caleb: "No, but I don't want it to."

Are you six or sixteen, Boy? Oh. Dear.

On Home Remedies

My knee had given out on me and I was stuck, lying on the floor with it in a rather distorted position. We had spent some time debating how to get me to the ER (whether it would require and ambulance or not, but had settled on trying to carry me to the car).

Caleb, being a very decisive person had had enough of all the back and forth and offered some helpful input.

"If you can't find someone to do the surgery, we can just put you in the bathtub, give you something to put you to sleep and Pop, Gram and Dad can cut your knee open."

Grandma and I looked at each other in surprise and Grandma asked, "WHY the BATHTUB?"

"For all the guts and stuff, so they don't spill all over the floor."

RIIIGHT.

I informed him that I already have a good surgeon and he said, "well I'm just saying, 'IN CASE!'"

Keeping Mom Humble

In the restroom stall at Target, Caleb is belting out, "ALL OTHER GROUND IS SINKING SAND!" over and over. When he comes out and is washing his hands, a friendly woman next to us, says to him, "You have a great singing voice. Do you get that from your Mom?"

[matter of factly] "No."

The woman gives me an embarrassed sort of smile and I just smile back with an, "No worries, I'm used to it," expression.

Caleb continues, "I get it from my DAD! He plays the guitar. I learned all my tones from him."