K & O Choice Quotes from Recent Days

Overheard the other day, both boys outside on the deck, me inside the kitchen-- Owen, to Kyle: "Kyle, we're on something right now you know! We're really on something!!! Right now!!! We're actually on a real planet!!!!!"

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A couple days ago Kyle said to me, matter of factly, "Space is pretty far. But outer space is farther."

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The other night during dinner Braydon and I were talking about one of my students. This student comes from a very disadvantaged background. In the course of the conversation I said something along the lines of, "He's just had such a tough life." Later during dinner, out of the blue, Kyle, deep in thought, says out loud, "I don't have a tough life." And then he turned to me and Braydon, "Because I'm with you!"

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A few days ago Owen was playing with Meera. She's not 100% stable standing and sometimes still falls over for no real apparent reason. She toppled over and Owen lifted her back up to a standing position. He then turned and said to me, truly relieved, "That was a close call!-- but look!-- she's still alive!!!"
A few days ago, in the car, alone with the three kids, listening to Dixie Chicks (by special request from Owen)... Kyle, Owen, and I were all singing along to the song (Meera bobbing her head in her carseat)... Kyle: "Come on Mommy!!! Show me what you've got!!!!!!!"

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K & O were riding bikes outside while I was cleaning up in the kitchen. They came in for what was, from all outside appearances, a potty break. They were both in the bathroom for a while. I heard them talking, but didn't pay attention to what they were saying. I heard a flush. But instead of heading right back out to play as they usually do, instead they both came to me in the kitchen (which was my first indicator that something was up). Holding hands (which was my second indicator that something was up), they both looked straight up at me~~
Kyle: Mom, we need to tell you something.
Heather: Ok?
Owen: I just flushed a worm down the toilet.
H: Really?
(both nodding)
H: Kyle, is it true? Did your brother flush a worm down the toilet?
K: Yes, he did that.
H: Ok, thank you for telling me. But, do not do that again.
O: Ok. But that was my second time.
H: Really? When was the first time?
O: Well, it is a long story.
H: Ok, tell me.
O: Well, it was when it was raining. And there were lots of worms. And I had one. And I lied to my Papi.
H: Ok?
O: I was holding the worm in my hand. And I told my Papi I wouldn't bring it inside. But I did bring it inside.
H: Ok?
O: And I kept him inside. And then he almost died. And then I flushed him down the toilet so my Papi wouldn't find out about it.
H: Ok, thank you for telling me. But, do not do that again.
O: Ok, I won't.

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Kyle has recently been semi-obsessed with the sequence of schooling and the years of educational trajectories. He knows that kids move from one grade to the next each year, that after 12th grade is "college," that both Braydon and I went to "graduate school" after college, etc. The other day he announced, "I am definitely going to go to graduate school after college. It is going to be graduate school for baseball playing. It is going to be a graduate school with a really good baseball field."
Owen, in a moment of deep thought: "Mommy, I think I know why I act up at bedtime." "Oh," I said, "why?" "O.k.," says Owen, "this is the first part. There are many chapters. Chapter one is that I don't want the day to end. Chapter two is that I don't like going to bed. The third chapter is that I just want to stay down here watching Mommy and Papi clean up. The fourth chapter is that I want to play outside in the dark. The fifth chapter is that I really don't like going to bed. And the last chapter is that I don't like it when the day ends because I only like it when it starts all again in the morning."

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Another day I went to check on the boys during their 'Rest Hour.' When I went into Owen's room I found him sitting calmly in his rocking chair in deep, pensive thought. When he saw me he looked up and said, "Mommy, I've been thinking! I thought of something nice to do for you! It is to just behave!"

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One night at bedtime-- Kyle: "Mommy, did you know that before I was born, when I was in heaven, I was thinking about you?" "No," I said, "I didn't know that. What were you thinking about?" "I was wishing that you would be my mommy. I was wishing my mommy would have your color skin and your color eyes and be named Heather."

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I've noticed that the boys have just recently begun using "white" and "black" to name the racial groups. Previously they never did this (they always used "your color" as their words for the skin color of Braydon and I, and "brown" for people with skin like them). But that is now changing. They will now sometimes announce, for example, "She's black, like us!" (Owen said this in Carrabbas restaurant a few weeks ago, very loudly, right in front of our server who happened to be black.) The other day when we were out in the yard Kyle said, "Mom I just saw a butterfly! It was your color and Meera's color! It was white!"

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A week or so ago we were talking about 'favorites' and the boys were listing their favorites in various categories (clothes, books, etc.). I said, "What's your favorite fruit?" Owen said, "Carrabbas pasta." I said, "That's not a fruit!" He said, "Yeah, I know, but I couldn't decide between pomegranates and peaches so I said Carrabbas pasta."
The other night I called the boys to the table for dinner. When Owen approached the table he saw that we were having fish, rice, carrots, and broccoli (many 5 year old boys worst nightmare). With complete and utter genuine sincerity and enthusiasm, he jumped into his chair and exclaimed, "THIS IS THE BEST SUPPER I EVER SAW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

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The boys are, and have always been, very aware of all sorts of different kinds of families. They have friends with two moms, they have friends with two dads, etc., etc., etc. They have been known to fight with kids at school defending gay marriage rights, etc., etc., etc. Owen has often expressed his wish that he had "two dads." (Interestingly, we don't even call Braydon 'dad' we call him 'papi.') Anyway, the other night at bedtime-- Owen: "Mommy, I really wish I had two dads. I wish you could be a dad with my dad. That would mean you wouldn't have breasts, but that's o.k., because I really want two dads. I do like you though. You're beautiful. I just wish you were a dad."

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Owen, the other day, after one of his frequent comedic getting-dressed episodes, delightfully appears downstairs and proclaims with enthusiasm, "Look! I have on five shirts!! And no underpants!!!"

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Owen, one morning while he was watching me getting dressed: "Mommy, why do you always wear underpants on your breasts?"