Earlier this week, Ladybug was being a bit disagreeable about her schoolwork (yes, that happens here occasionally!). I was getting kind of annoyed, and finally said, “What’s your deal today?”
Without even looking up from his work, Turkey replied, “She doesn’t have a deal, she has the whole package, and it’s 50% off!”
I know I shouldn’t have laughed…but it was a much-needed moment of humor in our day. And Ladybug finally laughed, too, so it was clear even she needed a moment of levity!
Today we went to the funeral of a much-loved member of our congregation. Turkey, in particular, was saddened by Joe’s passing. You see, while catechesis at our church is open to all members of the congregation, regardless of age, Joe was the only adult, other than parents, who faithfully attended every week. And, during his two years of catechesis, Turkey noted this. He told me on more than one occasion that he wanted to follow Joe’s example when he is an adult, and keep learning about the Bible with his own children someday.
On our way home from the service, we were talking about what a faithful example Joe was, and how, while we’re happy for him, we’re sad that we’ve lost him from our midst. It was at this point that Turkey told us that he was going to name his first son after Joe. I told him that I thought Joe was a fine name, and that would be a very nice tribute, but he didn’t stop there. He said that his first son would also have Joe’s last name as his middle name. It was quite possibly the sweetest thing he could have said.
I don’t know if Turkey will remember this conversation when he’s an adult, but I will. It proved what a huge impact an 85 year-old saint can have on a nine-year-old boy, and I am thankful for the years we knew Joe and had the chance to learn from his example!
Today in school, we learned a bit about the state of Wisconsin, which was particularly interesting to Turkey and Bunny, since they have lived there. After we learned about dairy production in the state, I asked them to guess what the state beverage is (milk).
Without blinking, without even thinking, Turkey immediately responded, “Beer!”
He may have only been a toddler when we lived there, but he certainly knows the state of his ancestors well!
This may become a regular feature…I have the most amusing conversations with my oldest son!
(This is a cautionary tale that demonstrates that what you hear from your children may not actually be what they’re saying.)
Tonight, he was talking to me as I was cleaning up after dinner. Out of nowhere, he said, “Mommy, you know booze, right? Are they a kind of spirit?”
Now, what I heard, was “Boos.” You know, the ghost head characters in the Mario universe? So, I answered in the affirmative…a ghost is a kind of a spirit, (even if they’re not real).
But then I realized that we may be talking about two different things, so I asked him to clarify. And he said that he was asking about the kind of booze that people drink. Well, my answer remained the same…booze is a spirit.
Funny how those two (very) different conversations still resulted in the same answer. What I can’t figure out is why he pondering booze in the first place, and how he knew that alcohol is referred to as spirits!
A funny story from this week:
We’ve been learning about Columbus, (and other early American settlers from Spain), in American history. So, one day while I was making lunch, Ryan was asking Turkey and Bunny questions about what they’d learned. This continued on for a bit, the way school questions tend to, but finally, Turkey wandered over to me, and under his breath muttered, “Daddy sure doesn’t know very much about Columbus, does he?” My favorite part was the way he said it to me quietly, like he didn’t want to hurt Daddy’s feelings–he may be blunt, but he’s also compassionate!
I can’t believe that after all this time, they still think that when we ask them questions, we don’t actually already know the answers!
Turkey has always loved to, um, argue. He’s getting more sophisticated with his arguments, however, and it’s starting to concern me.
Last week, he and Bunny were disagreeing about something. She ended up smacking him, and he promptly smacked her back. Because I don’t want him to think it’s OK to hit girls, I decided to deal with his disobedience first, and it was an interesting experience.
We’ve been talking a lot lately about treating others the way you want to be treated, and I thought it was working, at least I did until that day. When I reminded him that’s the way we should behave, he came back with, “But she must *want* me to hit her, because she hit me first, and we’re supposed to treat others the way we want to be treated.”
OK, he may have had a point regarding her actions. I *know* he knows what the concept *really* means though, so he’s just sharpening his debate (and critical thinking) skills on me.
I’m not sure I’m up for the challenge!