Say what?

A few funny little conversations:

Me: Liam, would you like milk with dinner?
L: Well, Mommy, actually, I would like juice.

After a conversation about friends and how friends act:
Me: Liam, what do you do when you're being a friend?
L: Well, I'm awful mean and awful happy.
Me (perplexed): Umm...

Most nights, we say a little prayer that goes something like, "God bless (insert family member's name)." Last night he added, "God bless Elizabeth, her mommy and daddy and Scout." Elizabeth is our 5-year-old neighbor down the street and Scout is her dog. He may have his first crush!

Cracks me up...

Liam is still on the fence about moving into his Big Kid Bed full time (we really just need to take the crib down!). Every nap/night we have to convince him. This past weekend, before his nap, here's what followed:
Me: Liam, I want you to sleep in your big boy bed for your nap.
Liam: NO, I don't want to. I want to sleep in my crib.
Me: OK, we'll make a deal. You can sleep in your crib for your nap but you have to sleep in your bed tonight.
Liam: Ok, its a deal.
Me: Let's shake on it.
As I turn to him I see him shaking (wiggling) his whole body!!

Liam loves to race me to the top of the stairs but he does not like me to win. On our 478th "race" this weekend:
Liam: Did I win Mommy?
Me: Yes, Liam, you won that time. I guess I need to go faster next time.
Liam: You didn't win?
Me: No, not this time.
Liam then reaches up and strokes my cheek and says,"Mommy, you can win on Thursday."

Liam does not like when my hair is in a ponytail. Whenever he can he tries to pull the rubber band out. Here's our latest conversation about it:
Liam: Mommy, can I take that out?
Me: No, Liam
Liam: It won't hurt, I be gentle
Me: No, Liam, I want it in right now.
Liam: No, Mommy, I want it out. I don't love it.

Conversations...

On the way home last night...
Me: "Liam what should we have for dinner tonight"
L: "I don't want to eat dinner."
Me: "You don't? You'll be hungry"
L: "I want to be hungry. Its Mommy and Daddy Time."
Me: "What's Mommy and Daddy Time Liam?"
L: "Mommy and Daddy play with me!"

Before bath last night...
G: "Liam, time for a bath."
L: "I don't want a bath, I was a shower."
G: "No Liam, you're having a bath tonight."
L: "No Daddy, a shower...(turning to face him) and I mean it!" (I hate when my own words come back to me!)
G: "Liam, you're taking a bath tonight, Daddy's rules."
L: (whining) "Not Daddy's rules, Mommy's rules!"

As we struggle with potty training...
Me: "Liam do you need to use the bathroom?"
L: "No, I have a diaper, I don't care."

As we transition to the Big Boy Bed...
Me: "Time to get up in your big boy bed!"
L: "No I don't want to."
Me: "You don't want to sleep in your big boy bed?"
L: "No, the beetle will pinch me." (????)

Sweet boy

As we were putting on jammies last night, Liam wrapped his arms around my neck and said, "You're my best mommy!"

When I grow up...

This is the conversation Liam and I had tonight before bed (today's my birthday):

Me: Liam, thank you for such a nice birthday!
Liam: Welcome
Me: I really liked my cake and you singing Happy Birthday to me.
L: You like my gift? (a train he pick out "for me")
Me: Yes, I liked the train. But we had a hard time sharing it tonight, didn't we.
L: Yes, I cried and said "I want it" (he then fake cries and reenacts the earlier struggle over whose turn it was to play with "my" train)
Me: You did cry but we worked hard to share and take turns
L: (after a pause) I want to be a Mommy when I grow up
me: You do?? What do you think a mommy does?
L: Share
me: Anything else?
L: No, just share
Me: Do mommies give hugs and kisses?
L: Yes and mommies don't hit
Me: No mommies don't hit, they are gentle
L: And Liam doesn't hit
Me: No, you try really hard not to hit. We try to be gentle.
L: I give hugs and kisses (he then gives me a sweet kiss and lays his head in my lap - these are the moments when motherhood is a true blessing)
Me: Liam, do you know I love you very much? (He nods) You and Daddy are some of my favorite people.
L: (Sitting up) And you my favorite people!

(sigh)

Loopholes

As an almost-3-year-old, Liam is doing his darndest to test the limits. We're finding that he's great at finding the loopholes in our rules. A few examples....

One of our rules is that drinks need to stay in the kitchen. Of course, Liam will walk right up to the edge of the tile with his toes just barely hanging over the threshold. He then looks over his shoulder at us with a sly grin and says, "I'm still in the kitchen!"

The other night at dinner, Liam's table manners were particularly atrocious. At one point I looked over at him and he had plopped a roasted potato in his milk. We reminded him that food stays on the plate or in his mouth, not in his milk. To remedy the situation, he proceeded to stick his whole hand in his cup, slopping the milk on the table, to fish out the potato. We then asked him to not put food in his milk. A few minutes later, I saw him put another potato in his cup. Here's the conversation that followed...

me: "Liam, did you just put another potato in your milk?!"
L: "no"
me: "I just saw you Liam!"
L: Peering into his cup and then turning it toward me. "No, no milk, I drank it all!"

So, technically, he's right, we told him not to put the potato in his milk, we did not specify the cup. As one of my coworkers said, we may have a lawyer in the making.

"I help you"

Last week I picked Liam up from school and noticed a new art project on the wall. The kids had made butterflies by painting coffee filters. I asked Liam which one was his. I walked over the bulletin board and start looking at the names on the butterflies, telling Liam which friend had made that one. He interrupted me and said, "Mommy, let me help you, it starts with L." Duh.

Circus

Last month we took Liam to his first circus. He really enjoyed all the animals, especially the tigers. He even tolerated the clowns well. On the way home I asked Liam what his favorite part of the circus was. "My favorite is the tigers and the elephants, oh yea, and the doggies and horses." He then asked, "What you favorite, Mommy?" So sweet!

Inquiring Minds

We're getting lots and lots of questions these days. Liam has to know about everything! The other day we were driving behind a car with sporty dual exhaust pipes. Liam said, "That car is loud, Mommy. What are those things?" "They're exhaust pipes Liam." "Oh, yeah, exhaust pipes. What do they do, Mommy?" Uh.

Dinner Conversations

Liam has inherited a sweet tooth and loves to have "special treats" after dinner. Recently, he asked Daddy for a special treat. Daddy offered him a choice, "Liam you may have cookies or cookies." Liam looked at him for a minute and said, "No, not 2 cookies, just 1 cookie." Smarty-pants, Daddy won't be able to outwit him for much longer!

A few weeks ago I made a beef stew for dinner. Liam is suspicious of new foods although he's good at trying at least a bite. That evening, he put a bit in his mouth, made a terrible face and said, "Disgusting!"

!!!

Liam is a keen observer of behavior and language. I realized this recently when we were playing with cars on a table and one flew off and hit the floor with an impressive crash. Liam turned to me and exclaimed, "Oh my goodness!!" We also recently put a bowl of ice cream in front of him - his response, "Holy Smokes!"

Language

I always find it amusing when Liam interprets a phrase or saying that we usually take for granted. Very much like his understanding of buttons.

When we arrived at a family party recently, Aunt Lisa asked Liam if she could take his coat. He turned a looked at her incredulously and said, "No, you can't take my coat, it won't fit you."

Big Boy

Liam loves to tell me every day that he's "getting bigger." This is his usual monologue:

"Mommy, I'm not a baby, I'm a big boy. I'm getting bigger. I'm growing up. I'm getting taller. I'm going to be a man. You don't carry me any more (yea, right)."

He also told me the other day that when he gets bigger he's going to be a man and when I get little I'm going to be a boy.

Songwriting

Santa brought Liam a little piano for Christmas and ever since, we have been "blessed" with the gift of music in our house. Liam's taken to making up little songs to share, a la Elmo-style. If you're not familiar, Elmo-style singing invovles repeating the same word over and over again to a little tune. Liam's most recent debut songs include:

Firetruck
Mimi's Slippers
Truck
Jammies
Blanket

He's also recently started "performing" a few covers: Old McDonald and Itsy Bitsy Spider.

Each rendition is concluded with a flourish and the expectation of wild applause. I'll have to post a video one of these days.

Prayers

Every night before we turn off the lights, we say our prayers. One evening, around the holidays, we said prayers and then I said, "God bless Liam."

He then replied, "and God bless Mommy and Daddy and Mimi and Papa and Uncle Dan and Grandma and Grandpa and Aunt Lisa and Rob and Chris and Angie and Katie and Kyle and Mark and Ryan."

Christmas

Just before Christmas I asked Liam what he thought Daddy would like for Christmas - he replied, a train, of course. I thought it would be fun to actually follow through on this idea and let Liam pick out a train for Geoff. I know - not my brightest idea but Liam actually did a great job at the store picking out one train (the biggest he could find) and identifying that it was for Daddy. When we got home he, of course, wanted to get it out of the box and play with it. After much discussion I was able to put the train away and out of reach.

A couple days past and Liam asked me where Daddy's train was. I explained we had wrapped it so Daddy could open it for Christmas. That night, at dinner....

L: "Daddy, I got you something!"
G: "You did?"
L: "A train!"
me: "Doh!"
L (undaunted): "Daddy, you share with me??"

Hypothesis

Liam loves the PBS show Dinosaur Train. (Don't you wish you were the genius that thought to combine trains and dinosaurs into one show for preschoolers?!?) The show is designed - as best a cartoon can - to help kids learn about...well, dinosaurs and science. One of the characters on the show has a favorite saying, "I have a hypothesis!"

Recently, Liam and I were playing and he looked up at me and said, "Mommy, I have a hypothesis!" I was laughing so hard I didn't even have a chance to ask him what his actually hypothesis was!

"Good night Bubs"

Liam and Geoff's bedtime wishes to each other.

Liam's take on the world

As I've mentioned before, I'm always surprised by how Liam thinks the world works. Like - clothes get clean when they go down the laundry chute.

His innocence helps me see the world differently. On our drive to school, through downtown, we usually pass the same homeless man panhandling on the same corner. This morning, as we passed him, Liam said, "There's that man, Mommy. He's having picnic."

I wish I could save him from knowing how tough the world can be but on the other hand, I'd like him to be grateful for all our blessings and opportunities. I hope I can find the right words to explain the world to him when the time comes.

And so it begins...

Liam was running through the house tonight, pushing his firetruck when he crashed into the door, on purpose. We asked him to please not do that. His response, "why not?"