Two and a half

Eliah says

• "Shishy papo" not "fishy papo" [papo = pacifier]
• "DungeBob" not "SpongeBob"
• "Dushbrish" not "toothbrush"
• "Bana chips" not "Banana chips"
• "Sell this?" instead of "Can we buy this?"
• Adds "butt hole" into all teases and jokes
• Asks for me to sing "Hump-Dumpy-Dumpy"

Funny quotes
:: "You a lady, Mama" (fingering my ponytail)

:: "Me buy this one ship! Twenty Dollars." (Diego's Lego X-wing Fighter)

:: "No way hoo-zay" and "No fanks hoo-zay"

:: "Get outta here, butt - head." (to get a laugh) (always)

:: "Pumperdoll is, Pumperdoll is, Pumperdoll is" (his song) (inspired by Blaine's nickname for him) ("Pumperdoll" and often just "Pump" or "Doll")

:: "One . . . two . . . butt hole . . . three . . . butt hole . . . butt hole . . . butt hole" (counting to ten with me) (goodness) (there's obviously a lot of potty talk in a houseful of boys)

:: "So many yucky things" (surveying Gramma S.'s beautifully set Christmas spread)

These days

I am....

....playing the "Dragon Game" with Jamie and Eliah every day before lunch in the upstairs bedroom.  Jamie gets dressed up in his dragon costume and  I am Mama Emerald, Jamie is Baby Ruby, and Eliah is Baby Opal.  I cozy up in bed and they run around and squeak. We also do a lot of fake eating, pretend sleeping, and flying practice (AKA jumping off the bed and tearing around the room).

....playing Hearts with the Big Boys in the afternoons.

....starting the evening meal at 4:00 PM, which makes the entire night easier.  I also shifted around my other regular routines, like making stock or broth-making, yogurt-making, boiling eggs for snacks, making Blaine's weekly breakfast frittata, etc. to the morning, so I am not in the kitchen until bedtime every night.

....reading Johnny Tremain aloud and really enjoying it.  And Robinson Caruso.  And 26 Fairmount Avenue.  And Poor Richard.  And the Jesse Bear books.  And always, always Mother Goose . . . I adore nursery rhymes.

....reading Big House in the Little Woods aloud on the nights that Eliah falls asleep quickly.  Blaine is reading Indian in the Cupboard at bedtime every few nights.  This is a relatively new tradition that I am so pleased about.  (Though I did read through all of Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy when Jamie fell asleep quickly in years' past.) (But it felt much, much more intermittent than this.)

....so pleased about Skype Story Night with my Dad.  He's reading us The Hobbit.  Every Wednesday (or Tuesday) at 8:00 PM CST.  Blaine snuggles and reads with the younger boys while the big boys and I laze and listen.  I look forward to it every week.

....surprised this post turned into raving about books.

....glad to be able to out-process this afternoon.  It is so settling and inspiring, getting a good look and a dose of perspective.  I really should post more often.

2015 Book List: Completed

• The Art of Losing: Poems of Grief & Healing - Ed. Kevin Young
• The Taste of Country Cooking - Edna Lewis
• Raising Real Men - Hal and Melanie Young
• Twelve Recipes - Cal Peternell
• For the Children's Sake - Susan Schaeffer Macaulay
• Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte (audio)
• Brown Eggs and Jam Jars - Aimee Wimbush-Bourque
• Uncle Tom's Cabin - Harriet Beecher Stowe (audio)
• One Good Dish - David Tanis
• Life Skills for Kids: Equipping Your Child for the Real World - Christine Field
• Mansfield Park - Jane Austen (audio)
• Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
• Help for the Harried Homeschooler: A Practical Guide to Balancing Your Child's Education with the Rest of Your Life - Christine Field
• The Explosive Child: A New Approach for Understanding and Parenting Easily Frustrated, Chronically Inflexible Children - Ross Greene
• Notes from a Blue Bike: The Art of Living Intentionally in a Chaotic World - Tsh Oxenreider
• Cure Tooth Decay: Heal and Prevent Cavities with Nutrition - Ramiel Nagel
• Boys Should Be Boys: 7 Secrets to Raising Healthy Sons - Meg Meeke