Kelsianne (1/12): While eyeing a bottle of pears in the fridge, she spotted some brown bits of skin that were left on the fruit. She decided those were "pear poops."
Caiden (8/10): During family prayer the night before a trip to the coast: "Please help Ceana to drive better tomorrow." Dad, at the end of the prayer: "AMEN !!"
Kaeli (5/10): "Hey dad, what was that song you were humming after lunch? I KNOW that song. I don't know the title, or the words, or how the music goes, but what was it? Oh I think it's one we're singing in Girls' Choir from 'Cats.'" "You mean 'Memory'?" "Oh, yeah."
A friend's daughter (12/09): (posted by Rory) I was doing a photo shoot for a friend of her children. Part of the shoot was using my nativity costumes. One of the little ladies got to be the angel of the Lord and I took her picts as she quoted the lines from the Christmas Story. Both her mom and I laughed right out loud when we heard her say "Lo, I bring you good TITHINGS of great joy!" She didnt know the word tidings, but she did know the word tithing. It is amazing how little kiddos adapt their language to find words that work before they learn something new to replace it. It really was so cute and very sweet to come out of that bubbly little girl!
Alaska Flight Attendant (remembered 10/28/09): After touching down, the attendant was making her end-of-flight announcements. "Make sure to look around for all your personal belongings. Anything left behind, which I don't want to keep, will be sold on eBay tomorrow."
United Flight Attendant, 10/27/09: After all 21 of us boarded an Airbus A319 (seating capacity = 124+) for a flight to Reno, the flight attendant had this request: "Please try not to clog the aisles during today's trip ..."
United Flight Attendant, 10/27/09: Announcement made at the end of a flight from Portland to San Francisco: "Please refrain from smoking until you are in a designated smoking area somewhere outside of the state of California."
Rory, 10/25/09: During dinner, Colton was trying to "decide" whether he was going to join us or make a pit-stop. While up dancing around in the library, Rory finally gave him the ultimatum: "If you're just going to play around, then you might as well come and finish your dinner." How's that again?
Colton, 10/23/09: Colton has been working on a loose tooth for several weeks. Today while at work I got the report. "Dad, Ky popped my tooth out of my mouth."
"How did he do that?"
"He stepped on my head."
*Background to this episode, by Rory: The boys were rough-housing in the TV room, which they know they are not supposed to do. I was just about to go check on them when Colton came running to the office with his mouth dripping blood, and blood on his thumb. By the time we got him cleaned up, I had gotten the full story that the boys had been playing on the couches and Ky had hit the top of colton's head, which crunched his jaws closed, popped the tooth out and sent it flying. We actually had to hunt for that tooth, and found it between the couch cushions! BOYS!
Kylan, 8/23/09: "Mom, my butt hurts." Rory asked, "Do we need to change your diaper?" "No, my butt just hurts. Can you kiss it better?"
Kaeli, 8/21/09: "Opera is just really loud music that you can't understand."
Kaeli and Caiden, 8/17/09: On the way to our first AT concert in Hermiston, we made a couple of stops along the way. After Multnomah Falls (see post below) we walked through the Bonneville Dam visitor's center. They have all kinds of cool displays, talks, videos and more about how they built the dam, power houses, and other structures. A volunteer talked about the science behind the low-speed generators they use. We went downstairs and got some great reactions out of the kids as some HUGE fish swam by the fish ladder observation windows. They had some great questions about how the locks work to let boats and barges pass by the dam. Next we stopped by the fish hatchery, and watched in amazement as the surface of the water in one of the troughs literally "exploded" with baby fish as the worker was tossing in fish feed. Herman the 10-foot white sturgeon was kind of spooky, and we learned quite a bit about them. The kids had fun hand-feeding some of the adult trout in other ponds. The views were gorgeous all morning, and Kaeli had taken more than 100 pictures in just a very short time. When we got back onto the road I thought the two of them might want to share some of our exploits with mom, so I suggested they call her. Kaeli went first: "Hi mom, guess what? We went to the Gift Shop." No mention of nature's wonders or the educational field trip. After talking about how much money she spent, Caiden was next: "Mom, guess what I got at the Gift Shop?"
Caiden, 8/17/09: We started AT by stopping at Multnomah Falls. After seeing the falls from the bottom and walking the 0.2 miles to the lower bridge, we decided to head to Bonneville Dam to see the generator, trout and sturgeon displays. I'm not kidding; all we had done was walk for 0.2 miles. Suddenly Caiden announces, "This has been one of the best days of my life!" As his dad I'd feel guilty about that pronouncement except I know he's had WAY better days in his life.
Mom, 8/11/09: (posted by Rory) OK, I am convinced that I am having way too many "senior" moments this week. Again, my hearing played tricks on me, even when watching what I was hearing. Caiden checked out a DVD with OLD looney tunes cartoons on it. One was Daffy Duck singing and dancing for another character. One of the skits was him dressed in old Brazilian style clothes - the hat with fruit on his head, big loop earrings, puffy sleeves on a long, sleek dressed - he was doing the "chicka boom, chicka boom, chicka boom" - you get the idea. He kept singing and then I swear this is what I heard - even watching the dumb thing -"shake your butt, shake your butt, shake your butt" - which is impossible knowing the date (1940's) of the cartoons - no one even fathomed phrases like that, let alone said them....I may have to watch it a few more times so I can figure out what he really said.
Mom, 8/10/09: (posted by Rory) As I was working on fixing the boys a snack they were watching a children's program called "Dora The Explorer". In the show, the main character does a little chant about the places they will go - hearing it over the boys' noise, etc, I swear she said one of the places they needed to get to was called "gooey diaper" - I had to stop for a minute and be sure of what I was hearing, again that is what it sounded like. I knew better though, and confirmed the real location "gooey GEYSER" when they watched it a 2nd time. Must just be where my brain is today, as it seems dealing with diapers has been one of my main occupations....
Dad, 8/5/09: We watched the movie "Everybody's Hero" which had a baseball theme, and bobble-head dolls made several appearances. During the end credits some lively music was playing, and Kelsianne was doing her lateral hip dance - in pretty good time with the music, no less! I made the comment that she appeared to have a "bobble butt" which got a decent giggle out of Rory.
Mom, 7/20/09 (posted by Ceana): We were at the zoo, and we had stopped for lunch. Ky was asking for icecream, and we kept telling him he had to eat some "real food" before he had treats. He dept asking and mom finally said "you have to eat your hot dog before you can have icecream!" I thought it was funny, because hot dogs aren't really healthy food.
Colton, 7/18/09 (reported by Rory): While driving from one activity to the next while on vacation, an unmistakable "rumble" was heard from the back seat where Colton was sitting. "Mom!" he announced, "my butt burped!"
Ceana, 7/8/09: Ceana is spending the summer in Utah with grandparents, aunts & uncles, EFY, and more. While at work she and I got chatting on the computer and I thought I'd catch her up on some of happenings: {Dad typed }"Did you hear about mom's good news from her doctor's appointment today?" {Ceana typed} "That she's pregnant?" {Dad typed} "Um, NO."
Kaeli, 6/20/09: This week both the girls were at camp, and thanks to our over-full schedule they arrived home while Rory and I were out of town attending a wedding. Apparently the girls were only in the door long enough to drop all their stuff into the front room before zonking out. We were a bit worried about leaving them home to "babysit" the rest of the kids while we attended a local event, but decided to try it anyway. When we arrived home we found Colton on the TV room floor, facing 180 degrees away from the TV, asleep. Kylan was sprawled on one of the couches. Kelsianne was locked in her high chair where she had apparently been watching the endless loop of the Barbie DVD for who knows how long. The babysitters? Rory finally found Kaeli asleep in the library. When she told Kaeli the boys were asleep and Kelsianne was all alone, she replied (apparently still mostly asleep), "Well, THAT shouldn't have happened."
Ceana, 6/6/09: My father prefers a full-sized car when they visit, and this past weekend they rented a pale blue Lincoln Towncar. All the grandkids want to ride with grandma and grandpa at any opportunity. After one short ride, Ceana made a comment: "That's my 'dream car.'" I'm guessing that will change when she starts her driving career. :+)
Colton, 5/25/09: We took the rare opportunity for a family day at the movies. Part-way through the show, the two main characters finally decided they liked each other. The music dramatically quieted as they looked into each others' eyes. Almost magnetically they were drawn to each other, echoing the way the characters had finally come together to resist the evil-doers. The audience held our collective breath as the tender embrace was followed by a simple but passionate kiss. Immediately following that epic moment there came a very loud "Eeeeewwwww!!!!" from Colton - totally spontaneous and age appropriate - but it caught the whole theather off guard and everyone erupted in loud laughter for some time after that. Mom couldnt stop laughing at all. Kids are funny people.
Colton, 5/24/09: Over and over, Colton keeps talking about how much fun he had yesterday (at the ward activity) and asking when we can go to another "Barbie Cube." (BBQ)
3/13/09: (by Rory) Last night I was at a friend's baby shower. She was opening gifts and showing all of the cute clothes she had been given for the baby. One of the guests had brought her daughter with her and she was enjoying being part of all the fun. After my friend had opened an extra cute outfit the little girl commented "that outfit is as cute as a bug's bum!" I was hysterical and couldnt stop laughing. I still start laughing every time I think about it. Kids are SO cute!
Colton, 3/1/09: We've been working to break Colton of his nose-picking habit. Caught green-handed, he was told to get a tissue. He came back to the table with tissue in hand, held it under one nostril, then poked his finger THROUGH the tissue and back up into his nose. Yeah, that helped.
Colton, 2/8/09: (by Rory) We arrived home after church today to find that the dogs had escaped from their pen while we were gone. (they are little Houdini's) This usually results in lots of "oh no's!" and then an all out search begins to see where they pottied or what they chewed up. (thankfully the damage was minor this time) This afternoon Caiden broke off the bolt of the toilet seat by standing on it to reach baby things on the shelf above the toilet. This evening Colton went in to use the bathroom and discovered the broken seat. Knowing that the dogs had been loose and can sometimes wreak major havoc, he came running through the kitchen and dining room in a panic. "Mom, mom, come see! Look what the dogs did - they CHEWED THE TOILET!"
Colton, 2/7/09: Today we attended the baptism for an 8-year-old family friend. The little kids then spent the afternoon and evening at a neighbor's home while the girls, Rory and I attended their Saturday evening play performance. I picked up the kids that night to take them home, and was talking to them about the plan for the next day (Sunday). Colton was quite upset, telling me that the next day would NOT be going to church, but to school. He was convinced that since we had already been to church that day, the following would be a Monday. "Dad, we already went to church today to see the BAPTISTS!"
Kylan, 2 years old: He's trying to mimic sounds, but sometimes the words just don't quite come out right. For example, "Daddy's Truck" comes out clearly as "Poppycock." (My nickname is "Poppy") "Colton" is referred to as "Acorn." At least we know what he's TRYING to say.
Rory, 1/24/09: For Ceana's birthday party we had a HUGE spread of Hors D'oeuvres, including among MANY other things: hand-made pinwheels (Bisquick rolled like cinnamon rolls, but sprinkled with pizza sauce, cheese and meat), Little Smokies and cupcakes. We were still eating leftovers the following evening for dinner, when the following instructions were given to Colton by Rory: "No, you can't have another cupcake right now. You have to make a HEALTHY choice first, like PIZZA. Or HOT DOGS."
Rory, 12/08: OK so this isn't something one of the kids said, but is about one of them. While at work I called Rory at home. During the conversation I heard someone coughing in the background. After awhile the coughing started to get worse - whoever it was, was REALLY hocking. A bit worried I asked her, "Do you need to help whoever that is?" The reply was as calm as can be: "Oh, Colton's choking but he's been playing around while eating those apples." Then she continued on with the previous conversation without missing a beat ... Colton was fine, as he apparently (I didnt hear it) followed up this gagging spell with a huge belch and an "Excuse me."
Kaeli, 10/08 (by Rory): My kids love getting the cheese sticks that have the "did you know....." trivia or riddles on them. One day when Kaeli was eating one, and after she had read me several wrappers she said, "See you learn lots of things from eating dairy products!"
Caiden, 10/08 (by Rory): These things arent silly, but they were so sweet that I just had to post them:
While we were in SLC my girls were at Harrisons for sleepover. I told the boys they could sleep on the girls' bed and Ky would be on the floor. Caiden said "no mom I will sleep on the floor, Ky is little and he needs to sleep on the bed."
Caiden collected a special leaf during a recent photoshoot I did for the kids. He came into my room after we got home and said he wanted me to have the leaf. As he was going out the door he said "I want you to have it because you are the best mom Ive ever had!"
One night after family prayer I was heading upstairs with Ky to tuck him in. Caiden came right behind me and said "Mom, I can do it, I can tuck him in so you dont have to. I want to be a big helper." He did a great job too - he took Ky upstairs, read him a book and tucked Ky and himself into bed!
Colton, 10/27/08: (by Rory) Blowing my nose has never been a dainty affair, in fact I usually sound more like a fog horn. This point became bluntly apparent this morning when I was in my bathroom, at the back of my bedroom, with the door closed (and the boys were in the library) and I blew my nose and then heard Colton yell "Mom's awake!"
Caiden & Colton, 10/26/08: Today we had a Stake Conference broadcast from Church Headquarters meaning we wouldn't have regular Sunday School or Primary lessons. Before the meeting started I overheard this conversation. Caiden: "Colton, we got no class today." Colton: "Yes! We got no class!"
Kaeli, 10/10/08: While driving through West Valley (Utah) we spotted one of those sign-holders outside a Little Ceasar's Pizza proclaiming their $5 pizzas. The question "Are they really only $5?" was followed by a brief discussion about adding sales tax to the final price, above the advertised price. Kaeli followed up with the very interesting observation, "So, basically they are cheating people?"
Kylan, 10/07/08: My parents have a full-grown golden retriever at home. Kylan was spotted trying to climb on top of the dog and using one of his newer words: "Horse!"
Colton, 10/06/08: Driving home at night, Colton broke the silence with "Look, mom! It's a slice of the moon!"
Kylan, 10/06/08: While traveling to visit family the road split and two lanes diverged. Suddenly Kylan started to waive energetically and kept saying something that sounded like "Bye, mac!" It didn't dawn on anyone what he was doing until Rory saw the red semi on the other fork of the road. (If you don't get this one, ask a child who likes the movie "Cars.")
Iain Stutz (5), 10/05/08: "Uncle Broc" was making pancakes for everyone and his son, Iain, was sitting at the bar and watching. When Broc walked out of the room for a few minutes, Kaeli grabbed the spatula and turned the pancakes when they were ready. When Broc got back, Iain was very happy to have a surprise for him. "Look Daddy, the pancakes are flipped!"
Kaeli, 10/04/08: After attending the Saturday morning session of General Conference, Kaeli, Ceana and I were waiting outside while Rory was retrieving her backpack and camera bag from the checked package office. Being brazen Oregonians we were happy to stand out in the rain while everyone else huddled under the second level or under umbrellas. (We might not have been so brave if we had realized it would take 45 minutes for the lost camera bag to be located.) On the TRAX ride afterward, Ceana admitted to doing a "Rain Dance" while waiting outside, and Rory mumbled that she was a "pagan heathen child" for doing that to everyone. Not knowing what "pagan" meant and probably not hearing clearly over the traffic noise, Kaeli looked shocked by what she had heard. She didn't want to repeat it at first, but finally asked why Rory had said Ceana was a "NAKED heathen child."
Caiden, 9/20/08: I took Caiden with me to run some errands. We stopped at two stores, not successful in finding the switch I wanted. But then after getting a corn dog and fries at Dairy Queen for lunch, Caiden announced, "This is the best day I've EVER had!"
Colton, 9/3/08: They must have done the "BINGO" song at school today, because Colton was singing as we started dinner: "E, I, N-G-O and FINGER was his name-O!"
Caiden, 9/2/08: The marathon organizers gave away lots of Idaho potatoes to the event participants. Tonight we tried home-made hashed browns, but didn't look up the secrets to keeping them from going mushy and turning a dark color until after the cooking was already done. Trying to help his mom feel better, Caiden mumbled through a mouthful of potatoes something that we all heard as, "They look like crap, but they sure taste good!" (He later tried to convince us he said CRAB, but how would he know what crab looks like? It sure doesn't look like those hashed browns ... )
Colton, 8/31/08: During the evening of our drive home from Pocatello Colton noticed some blinking red lights on top of some radio towers. He asked what they were, and Rory answered, "So the planes don't bump into it." We already worry about his hearing loss, and his response didn't help. "What? So they don't throw a fit?"
Colton, 8/24/08: Colton came up to me with three "Chimps" trading cards in his hand (they were all "Comet" by the way). He splayed the cards, screwed up his mouth and in a great nasal magician-like voice said, "Pick a card ... every card ..."
Chase Burton, 8/11/08: Chase asked his Uncle Tyler, "Are there monkeys in the surf?" An odd question, but the family was headed to the beach so he just thought Chase was being a goofball. "No, there aren't monkeys in the surf." Chase proceeded to ask about a couple more animals, such as chipmunks, etc. Finally Tyler realized the youngster was asking if there were ____ IN THIS EARTH. Must have been related to a primary lesson on Sunday ...
Colton, 8/10/08: As I was leaving for early church meetings I noticed that Colton had spread out his blanket on top of his chair where he had just finished eating breakfast. "It was too cold," I was informed. Not sure if he thought it was so cold inside that the chair needed a blanket to stay warm, or perhaps the wood was too cold on his bare legs.
Colton, 8/9/08: Apparently "everyone" agreed that family pictures would be taken barefoot. When I finally relented and took off my shoes, Colton asked, "Dad, why do you have berry (or beary) feet?"
Kaeli, sometime in 2003 I think: As a family we were playing the game Catch Phrase where you try to get your team to say a specific word by DESCRIBING the word, acting it out, whatever, but not saying it. In an attempt to get my team to say "cupboard" I said "It's where we keep the dishes." Without hesitation (and unfortunately this was quite truthful) Kaeli blurted out "THE SINK!" The game was promptly terminated until after the dishwasher was loaded ...
A friend's daughter (12/09): (posted by Rory) I was doing a photo shoot for a friend of her children. Part of the shoot was using my nativity costumes. One of the little ladies got to be the angel of the Lord and I took her picts as she quoted the lines from the Christmas Story. Both her mom and I laughed right out loud when we heard her say "Lo, I bring you good TITHINGS of great joy!" She didnt know the word tidings, but she did know the word tithing. It is amazing how little kiddos adapt their language to find words that work before they learn something new to replace it. It really was so cute and very sweet to come out of that bubbly little girl!
Alaska Flight Attendant (remembered 10/28/09): After touching down, the attendant was making her end-of-flight announcements. "Make sure to look around for all your personal belongings. Anything left behind, which I don't want to keep, will be sold on eBay tomorrow."
United Flight Attendant, 10/27/09: After all 21 of us boarded an Airbus A319 (seating capacity = 124+) for a flight to Reno, the flight attendant had this request: "Please try not to clog the aisles during today's trip ..."
United Flight Attendant, 10/27/09: Announcement made at the end of a flight from Portland to San Francisco: "Please refrain from smoking until you are in a designated smoking area somewhere outside of the state of California."
Rory, 10/25/09: During dinner, Colton was trying to "decide" whether he was going to join us or make a pit-stop. While up dancing around in the library, Rory finally gave him the ultimatum: "If you're just going to play around, then you might as well come and finish your dinner." How's that again?
Colton, 10/23/09: Colton has been working on a loose tooth for several weeks. Today while at work I got the report. "Dad, Ky popped my tooth out of my mouth."
"How did he do that?"
"He stepped on my head."
*Background to this episode, by Rory: The boys were rough-housing in the TV room, which they know they are not supposed to do. I was just about to go check on them when Colton came running to the office with his mouth dripping blood, and blood on his thumb. By the time we got him cleaned up, I had gotten the full story that the boys had been playing on the couches and Ky had hit the top of colton's head, which crunched his jaws closed, popped the tooth out and sent it flying. We actually had to hunt for that tooth, and found it between the couch cushions! BOYS!
Kylan, 8/23/09: "Mom, my butt hurts." Rory asked, "Do we need to change your diaper?" "No, my butt just hurts. Can you kiss it better?"
Kaeli, 8/21/09: "Opera is just really loud music that you can't understand."
Kaeli and Caiden, 8/17/09: On the way to our first AT concert in Hermiston, we made a couple of stops along the way. After Multnomah Falls (see post below) we walked through the Bonneville Dam visitor's center. They have all kinds of cool displays, talks, videos and more about how they built the dam, power houses, and other structures. A volunteer talked about the science behind the low-speed generators they use. We went downstairs and got some great reactions out of the kids as some HUGE fish swam by the fish ladder observation windows. They had some great questions about how the locks work to let boats and barges pass by the dam. Next we stopped by the fish hatchery, and watched in amazement as the surface of the water in one of the troughs literally "exploded" with baby fish as the worker was tossing in fish feed. Herman the 10-foot white sturgeon was kind of spooky, and we learned quite a bit about them. The kids had fun hand-feeding some of the adult trout in other ponds. The views were gorgeous all morning, and Kaeli had taken more than 100 pictures in just a very short time. When we got back onto the road I thought the two of them might want to share some of our exploits with mom, so I suggested they call her. Kaeli went first: "Hi mom, guess what? We went to the Gift Shop." No mention of nature's wonders or the educational field trip. After talking about how much money she spent, Caiden was next: "Mom, guess what I got at the Gift Shop?"
Caiden, 8/17/09: We started AT by stopping at Multnomah Falls. After seeing the falls from the bottom and walking the 0.2 miles to the lower bridge, we decided to head to Bonneville Dam to see the generator, trout and sturgeon displays. I'm not kidding; all we had done was walk for 0.2 miles. Suddenly Caiden announces, "This has been one of the best days of my life!" As his dad I'd feel guilty about that pronouncement except I know he's had WAY better days in his life.
Mom, 8/11/09: (posted by Rory) OK, I am convinced that I am having way too many "senior" moments this week. Again, my hearing played tricks on me, even when watching what I was hearing. Caiden checked out a DVD with OLD looney tunes cartoons on it. One was Daffy Duck singing and dancing for another character. One of the skits was him dressed in old Brazilian style clothes - the hat with fruit on his head, big loop earrings, puffy sleeves on a long, sleek dressed - he was doing the "chicka boom, chicka boom, chicka boom" - you get the idea. He kept singing and then I swear this is what I heard - even watching the dumb thing -"shake your butt, shake your butt, shake your butt" - which is impossible knowing the date (1940's) of the cartoons - no one even fathomed phrases like that, let alone said them....I may have to watch it a few more times so I can figure out what he really said.
Mom, 8/10/09: (posted by Rory) As I was working on fixing the boys a snack they were watching a children's program called "Dora The Explorer". In the show, the main character does a little chant about the places they will go - hearing it over the boys' noise, etc, I swear she said one of the places they needed to get to was called "gooey diaper" - I had to stop for a minute and be sure of what I was hearing, again that is what it sounded like. I knew better though, and confirmed the real location "gooey GEYSER" when they watched it a 2nd time. Must just be where my brain is today, as it seems dealing with diapers has been one of my main occupations....
Dad, 8/5/09: We watched the movie "Everybody's Hero" which had a baseball theme, and bobble-head dolls made several appearances. During the end credits some lively music was playing, and Kelsianne was doing her lateral hip dance - in pretty good time with the music, no less! I made the comment that she appeared to have a "bobble butt" which got a decent giggle out of Rory.
Mom, 7/20/09 (posted by Ceana): We were at the zoo, and we had stopped for lunch. Ky was asking for icecream, and we kept telling him he had to eat some "real food" before he had treats. He dept asking and mom finally said "you have to eat your hot dog before you can have icecream!" I thought it was funny, because hot dogs aren't really healthy food.
Colton, 7/18/09 (reported by Rory): While driving from one activity to the next while on vacation, an unmistakable "rumble" was heard from the back seat where Colton was sitting. "Mom!" he announced, "my butt burped!"
Ceana, 7/8/09: Ceana is spending the summer in Utah with grandparents, aunts & uncles, EFY, and more. While at work she and I got chatting on the computer and I thought I'd catch her up on some of happenings: {Dad typed }"Did you hear about mom's good news from her doctor's appointment today?" {Ceana typed} "That she's pregnant?" {Dad typed} "Um, NO."
Kaeli, 6/20/09: This week both the girls were at camp, and thanks to our over-full schedule they arrived home while Rory and I were out of town attending a wedding. Apparently the girls were only in the door long enough to drop all their stuff into the front room before zonking out. We were a bit worried about leaving them home to "babysit" the rest of the kids while we attended a local event, but decided to try it anyway. When we arrived home we found Colton on the TV room floor, facing 180 degrees away from the TV, asleep. Kylan was sprawled on one of the couches. Kelsianne was locked in her high chair where she had apparently been watching the endless loop of the Barbie DVD for who knows how long. The babysitters? Rory finally found Kaeli asleep in the library. When she told Kaeli the boys were asleep and Kelsianne was all alone, she replied (apparently still mostly asleep), "Well, THAT shouldn't have happened."
Ceana, 6/6/09: My father prefers a full-sized car when they visit, and this past weekend they rented a pale blue Lincoln Towncar. All the grandkids want to ride with grandma and grandpa at any opportunity. After one short ride, Ceana made a comment: "That's my 'dream car.'" I'm guessing that will change when she starts her driving career. :+)
Colton, 5/25/09: We took the rare opportunity for a family day at the movies. Part-way through the show, the two main characters finally decided they liked each other. The music dramatically quieted as they looked into each others' eyes. Almost magnetically they were drawn to each other, echoing the way the characters had finally come together to resist the evil-doers. The audience held our collective breath as the tender embrace was followed by a simple but passionate kiss. Immediately following that epic moment there came a very loud "Eeeeewwwww!!!!" from Colton - totally spontaneous and age appropriate - but it caught the whole theather off guard and everyone erupted in loud laughter for some time after that. Mom couldnt stop laughing at all. Kids are funny people.
Colton, 5/24/09: Over and over, Colton keeps talking about how much fun he had yesterday (at the ward activity) and asking when we can go to another "Barbie Cube." (BBQ)
3/13/09: (by Rory) Last night I was at a friend's baby shower. She was opening gifts and showing all of the cute clothes she had been given for the baby. One of the guests had brought her daughter with her and she was enjoying being part of all the fun. After my friend had opened an extra cute outfit the little girl commented "that outfit is as cute as a bug's bum!" I was hysterical and couldnt stop laughing. I still start laughing every time I think about it. Kids are SO cute!
Colton, 3/1/09: We've been working to break Colton of his nose-picking habit. Caught green-handed, he was told to get a tissue. He came back to the table with tissue in hand, held it under one nostril, then poked his finger THROUGH the tissue and back up into his nose. Yeah, that helped.
Colton, 2/8/09: (by Rory) We arrived home after church today to find that the dogs had escaped from their pen while we were gone. (they are little Houdini's) This usually results in lots of "oh no's!" and then an all out search begins to see where they pottied or what they chewed up. (thankfully the damage was minor this time) This afternoon Caiden broke off the bolt of the toilet seat by standing on it to reach baby things on the shelf above the toilet. This evening Colton went in to use the bathroom and discovered the broken seat. Knowing that the dogs had been loose and can sometimes wreak major havoc, he came running through the kitchen and dining room in a panic. "Mom, mom, come see! Look what the dogs did - they CHEWED THE TOILET!"
Colton, 2/7/09: Today we attended the baptism for an 8-year-old family friend. The little kids then spent the afternoon and evening at a neighbor's home while the girls, Rory and I attended their Saturday evening play performance. I picked up the kids that night to take them home, and was talking to them about the plan for the next day (Sunday). Colton was quite upset, telling me that the next day would NOT be going to church, but to school. He was convinced that since we had already been to church that day, the following would be a Monday. "Dad, we already went to church today to see the BAPTISTS!"
Kylan, 2 years old: He's trying to mimic sounds, but sometimes the words just don't quite come out right. For example, "Daddy's Truck" comes out clearly as "Poppycock." (My nickname is "Poppy") "Colton" is referred to as "Acorn." At least we know what he's TRYING to say.
Rory, 1/24/09: For Ceana's birthday party we had a HUGE spread of Hors D'oeuvres, including among MANY other things: hand-made pinwheels (Bisquick rolled like cinnamon rolls, but sprinkled with pizza sauce, cheese and meat), Little Smokies and cupcakes. We were still eating leftovers the following evening for dinner, when the following instructions were given to Colton by Rory: "No, you can't have another cupcake right now. You have to make a HEALTHY choice first, like PIZZA. Or HOT DOGS."
Rory, 12/08: OK so this isn't something one of the kids said, but is about one of them. While at work I called Rory at home. During the conversation I heard someone coughing in the background. After awhile the coughing started to get worse - whoever it was, was REALLY hocking. A bit worried I asked her, "Do you need to help whoever that is?" The reply was as calm as can be: "Oh, Colton's choking but he's been playing around while eating those apples." Then she continued on with the previous conversation without missing a beat ... Colton was fine, as he apparently (I didnt hear it) followed up this gagging spell with a huge belch and an "Excuse me."
Kaeli, 10/08 (by Rory): My kids love getting the cheese sticks that have the "did you know....." trivia or riddles on them. One day when Kaeli was eating one, and after she had read me several wrappers she said, "See you learn lots of things from eating dairy products!"
Caiden, 10/08 (by Rory): These things arent silly, but they were so sweet that I just had to post them:
While we were in SLC my girls were at Harrisons for sleepover. I told the boys they could sleep on the girls' bed and Ky would be on the floor. Caiden said "no mom I will sleep on the floor, Ky is little and he needs to sleep on the bed."
Caiden collected a special leaf during a recent photoshoot I did for the kids. He came into my room after we got home and said he wanted me to have the leaf. As he was going out the door he said "I want you to have it because you are the best mom Ive ever had!"
One night after family prayer I was heading upstairs with Ky to tuck him in. Caiden came right behind me and said "Mom, I can do it, I can tuck him in so you dont have to. I want to be a big helper." He did a great job too - he took Ky upstairs, read him a book and tucked Ky and himself into bed!
Colton, 10/27/08: (by Rory) Blowing my nose has never been a dainty affair, in fact I usually sound more like a fog horn. This point became bluntly apparent this morning when I was in my bathroom, at the back of my bedroom, with the door closed (and the boys were in the library) and I blew my nose and then heard Colton yell "Mom's awake!"
Caiden & Colton, 10/26/08: Today we had a Stake Conference broadcast from Church Headquarters meaning we wouldn't have regular Sunday School or Primary lessons. Before the meeting started I overheard this conversation. Caiden: "Colton, we got no class today." Colton: "Yes! We got no class!"
Kaeli, 10/10/08: While driving through West Valley (Utah) we spotted one of those sign-holders outside a Little Ceasar's Pizza proclaiming their $5 pizzas. The question "Are they really only $5?" was followed by a brief discussion about adding sales tax to the final price, above the advertised price. Kaeli followed up with the very interesting observation, "So, basically they are cheating people?"
Kylan, 10/07/08: My parents have a full-grown golden retriever at home. Kylan was spotted trying to climb on top of the dog and using one of his newer words: "Horse!"
Colton, 10/06/08: Driving home at night, Colton broke the silence with "Look, mom! It's a slice of the moon!"
Kylan, 10/06/08: While traveling to visit family the road split and two lanes diverged. Suddenly Kylan started to waive energetically and kept saying something that sounded like "Bye, mac!" It didn't dawn on anyone what he was doing until Rory saw the red semi on the other fork of the road. (If you don't get this one, ask a child who likes the movie "Cars.")
Iain Stutz (5), 10/05/08: "Uncle Broc" was making pancakes for everyone and his son, Iain, was sitting at the bar and watching. When Broc walked out of the room for a few minutes, Kaeli grabbed the spatula and turned the pancakes when they were ready. When Broc got back, Iain was very happy to have a surprise for him. "Look Daddy, the pancakes are flipped!"
Kaeli, 10/04/08: After attending the Saturday morning session of General Conference, Kaeli, Ceana and I were waiting outside while Rory was retrieving her backpack and camera bag from the checked package office. Being brazen Oregonians we were happy to stand out in the rain while everyone else huddled under the second level or under umbrellas. (We might not have been so brave if we had realized it would take 45 minutes for the lost camera bag to be located.) On the TRAX ride afterward, Ceana admitted to doing a "Rain Dance" while waiting outside, and Rory mumbled that she was a "pagan heathen child" for doing that to everyone. Not knowing what "pagan" meant and probably not hearing clearly over the traffic noise, Kaeli looked shocked by what she had heard. She didn't want to repeat it at first, but finally asked why Rory had said Ceana was a "NAKED heathen child."
Caiden, 9/20/08: I took Caiden with me to run some errands. We stopped at two stores, not successful in finding the switch I wanted. But then after getting a corn dog and fries at Dairy Queen for lunch, Caiden announced, "This is the best day I've EVER had!"
Colton, 9/3/08: They must have done the "BINGO" song at school today, because Colton was singing as we started dinner: "E, I, N-G-O and FINGER was his name-O!"
Caiden, 9/2/08: The marathon organizers gave away lots of Idaho potatoes to the event participants. Tonight we tried home-made hashed browns, but didn't look up the secrets to keeping them from going mushy and turning a dark color until after the cooking was already done. Trying to help his mom feel better, Caiden mumbled through a mouthful of potatoes something that we all heard as, "They look like crap, but they sure taste good!" (He later tried to convince us he said CRAB, but how would he know what crab looks like? It sure doesn't look like those hashed browns ... )
Colton, 8/31/08: During the evening of our drive home from Pocatello Colton noticed some blinking red lights on top of some radio towers. He asked what they were, and Rory answered, "So the planes don't bump into it." We already worry about his hearing loss, and his response didn't help. "What? So they don't throw a fit?"
Colton, 8/24/08: Colton came up to me with three "Chimps" trading cards in his hand (they were all "Comet" by the way). He splayed the cards, screwed up his mouth and in a great nasal magician-like voice said, "Pick a card ... every card ..."
Chase Burton, 8/11/08: Chase asked his Uncle Tyler, "Are there monkeys in the surf?" An odd question, but the family was headed to the beach so he just thought Chase was being a goofball. "No, there aren't monkeys in the surf." Chase proceeded to ask about a couple more animals, such as chipmunks, etc. Finally Tyler realized the youngster was asking if there were ____ IN THIS EARTH. Must have been related to a primary lesson on Sunday ...
Colton, 8/10/08: As I was leaving for early church meetings I noticed that Colton had spread out his blanket on top of his chair where he had just finished eating breakfast. "It was too cold," I was informed. Not sure if he thought it was so cold inside that the chair needed a blanket to stay warm, or perhaps the wood was too cold on his bare legs.
Colton, 8/9/08: Apparently "everyone" agreed that family pictures would be taken barefoot. When I finally relented and took off my shoes, Colton asked, "Dad, why do you have berry (or beary) feet?"
Kaeli, sometime in 2003 I think: As a family we were playing the game Catch Phrase where you try to get your team to say a specific word by DESCRIBING the word, acting it out, whatever, but not saying it. In an attempt to get my team to say "cupboard" I said "It's where we keep the dishes." Without hesitation (and unfortunately this was quite truthful) Kaeli blurted out "THE SINK!" The game was promptly terminated until after the dishwasher was loaded ...
