You Look Cool

As I was leaving the house today, Harry said "I want to hang out with you today because you look cool." I didn't look particularly cool and for a brief moment I considered changing. But a few minutes later, I overheard him telling Ike that he looked "cute." Ike did look cute, so I guess I'm going to trust Harry's taste from now on.

I picked up Harry from school yesterday and for the two-block, ten-minute walk home he didn't stop talking. Not for one second. In the middle of his diatribe about everything from his new Wolverine game to a movie he couldn't remember the name of but that's called Monsters vs. Aliens, he said, "Mommy said when you talk someone's ears off their ears fall off." But then kept on going at full clip. I guess he doesn't understand the ramifications of my ears falling off.

I was also reminded of an old Harry-ism the other day I want to put down for posterity. Pork-cork. Which I won't explain, but don't want to forget. Hey, Rach, where'd the pork cork go?

Ike's ABCs are coming along. He used to just sing the last verse to the tune: "now I now I now I now..." Recently though, it's progressed to, "now I now I now I now..." (long pause while Daddy sings the boring bit about "next time"), then: "come sing with me!" With a heavy emphasis on the "me." I think he likes singing about himself.

He also likes using Harry's plastic golf club. I finally taught him to hold it with both hands, but he wields it backwards, like a hockey stick. One of these days I know he's going to pull Harry's jersey over his head and start knocking his teeth out.

Hi. Good. Yep.

As I was putting my socks on today, Harry said it smelled like feet. I said maybe I should change my socks and he told me to change my feet.

At our Hanukkah lunch yesterday, two of his cousins had a dispute. Oscar said Ruben hit him. Ruben denied it. It went back and forth, parents tried to get to the bottom of it, until out of nowhere Harry interjected and said, "Ruben, you're just saying you didn't hit Oscar but you did." And that was the end of the truth commission. It was very strange. I was tempted to explain the whole "tattling" thing to Harry. But then again, it was such an elegant if accidental way to get to the bottom of it all. Maybe he'll be an umpire when he grows up. Or Santa Claus.

He also told me a girl in his class used him as a pillow the other day. I know I have some time on that one but it made me nervous. I mean, do you want your son to be the pillow or the head?

Ike's big on the phone these days. He always wants to "call gramma." He's always got the same thing to say, too: "Hi." "Good." "Yep." Then he hands the phone over. Seeing as how he's just imitating us, I have to say, we sound pretty boring on playback.



Ike also really likes the shower now. This was discovered after he pooped in the tub while bathing with Harry. Amazing how unfazed they were sitting in a tub of poop. I can't imagine anything worse. Is becoming disgusted by poop the true loss of innocence?

shooted

Well, it's Hanukkah. And on the second night, Harry wondered if the Hanukkah guy was coming so we could open presents. Jews of the world, take note. We need a Hanukkah guy.

The other day I told him to look in his room for his shoe and he said he already did and it's not there. I said yes it is. He said, no it's not, "I looked and my eyes were big and I could see the whole room and I didn't see it." The shoe was there, but at least I now know he's a forest not a tree guy.

We watched Iron Giant and he asked me why the hunters "shooted" the deer. Trying to avoid the subject of hunting for at least a few more months, I said some people shoot the animals and eat them for food. He asked me if I shooted the chicken we had last night.

Out of nowhere Ike can count to 14 now. He also knows lots of letters. Now that everything is about sibling rivalry, if Ike knows something Harry doesn't... it gets ugly fast. I've been trying to slow his learning down but I can't.

Ike also smiles mischievously and asks, "whahsay?" He'll keep doing it over and over and I have to admit it's very cute for the first thirty times.