Confidante

We went out to dinner tonight - without the kids.  It happens sometimes.  And almost every time it happens, we get to hear an amusing story about something they said or did while we were away.  Tonight was no different.  I hope I can get it right, here.. Apparently Ben was dead serious during this exchange :

Ben : Hey JoEllen?
JoEllen : Yes Ben?
Ben : Do you know how to pick your nose?
JoEllen : Well... yes.. but it is normally best to use a tissue.
Ben : Yeah.
...pause...
Ben : I know how to pick my nose.  I am pretty sure my parents don't know that I know how to do that.  Don't tell them though.. it's a secret!

Humor and intrigue all rolled into one happy little five year old.

Boys and Girls

I have a pet peeve (ok.. I have lots of them, but I'm only going to share one today). It bugs me when I see parents applying double standards to their kids, just based on their gender. I cringe a little whenever I hear the phrase "Boys will be boys"... because it usually follows some action that the boy in question did which really shouldn't be O.K. The boys get away with a lot of stuff that they shouldn't. Like peeing in the plants at Whole Foods. How does the fact that he's a boy make public urination acceptable, particularly when there's a bathroom 40 feet away?

Even so, at least observing my kids, there's some obvious, stereotypical differences in their tastes and their behaviors. Penelope loves anything remotely pink or purple, and anything with Tinkerbell or Strawberry Shortcake ("Strawberry Cort-cake" in her language) on it is an instant favorite. Ben on the other hand, wants to be a race car driver when he grows up, and he can turn any unsuspecting toy into a race car or an airplane or a robot. Most likely, they get this from what they get exposed to at school from their friends. Then there's the clothing thing. Both of them would probably run around nude all the time if we let them, but if they have to wear clothing, its a very different story. Penelope is very particular about what she wears, to the point of going back to her room and changing when we put her in something she disagrees with. Ben could care less. He'll put on whatever gets laid out for him. Is that genetic? I don't know.

Another good example this morning - I was wearing a new shirt, and Penelope had on a new dress. The instant Penelope saw me, she said "Daddy, you have a new shirt!" Mommy had commented that I was wearing the new shirt too, when she first saw me.

Ben, after playing with Penelope for about an hour, remarked "Hey Penelope.. I haven't seen that dress before. Is it new?" That made me look, and my thought was "Oh hey.. he's right.. that is her new dress!"

Multilingual

Driving through San Antonio, Ben interrupts his constant monologue from the back seat to ask a question, "Does everyone in San Antonio speak Spanish?"

Parental unit, from the front seat, "Oh.. I'm sure that not everyone in San Antonio speaks Spanish.. why?"

Back Seat : "Because I just saw a sign in Spanish."

Front Seat : "Well, there's Spanish signs in Austin, too."

Back Seat : "I never see them."

Front Seat : "Ok... well I bet that people speak lots of languages in San Antonio, just like they do in Austin."

Back Seat : "Like English?"

Front Seat : "Yes."

Back Seat : "And French?"

Front Seat : "French too."

Back Seat : "What about British?"

Front Seat : "British?  What words do you know in British, Ben?"

Back Seat : "Oh.. not that many.  I just know a little."

Front Seat : "Can you tell us what you know?"

Back Seat : "Ok.  'We've hopped across the pond to give you Yanks one for, eh!'"