Cupcake Candor

I often wish I had the candor of a three year old.  Speaking my opinion with total honesty.  It probably feels pretty damn good to get it all out, letting 'em know just how you see it...that is until you're on the receiving end of a three year old's compete candor.

We had prepared the cute little cupcakes for her 3rd birthday cake and ice cream session with the neighbors.  She picked lovely yellow cupcakes with yummy chocolate frosting.  The finishing touch would be pink and white frosted animal crackers.  How lovely.

Willa was very interested in putting the animal crackers on the cupcakes by herself.  I thought she needed instruction, so I did one for her and explained, "just put the crackers on like this, stick the bottom in and then they'll stand up a little."  She just looked at me and replied, "I do it how I want."    

Willa proceeded with putting the crackers on how she wanted, with them lying flat in the frosting on their little animal backs.  It was fine.  She's three and it's her party and this is not going to matter.  We finished the cupcakes, lined them up all nice on the cakestand, and then set them on the table to wait for the party.  I thought they looked great!  Wonder what Willa thought? 

"So, Willa, what do you think?"
"I think your guy looks like a moron.  Mine are all nice." 

Candor.  If you don't want the truth, then don't ask! 

yes your highness

One morning, just days before her 3rd birthday,

Willa and I had the following exchange...What would you like for breakfast?


I wanna root beer float.


That's not breakfast food, choose something else.


I wanna cookie and chocolate.


No.  You need to put something good for you in your belly.

A silent pause coupled with this look.

I now know that this was not a look.

It was a warning.

Can I have oatmeal?

Yes.  Oatmeal is a great choice.

Yes it is, your high-ny ass.

My turn to take a silent pause.  I'm a seasoned mom and very careful

not to show my certain surprise or possible concern

over her choice of words.

There's no way she said that intentionally.

I will let it go and I will not laugh.

OK.  Will you please get the oatmeal?

Yes, your high-ny ass.

Completely intentional.

I laughed and she had her oatmeal.



Just Another Day

I often think that as a stay at home mom, my days need to be filled with extraordinary things, amazing experiences, and grand accomplishments....ultimate art projects, great outfits, coffee with friends, creating a clever craft, playdates for the kids, playground visits, laundry done, well-balanced meals served, errands run, home clean and sparkly.....as if!! 

Try as I might, most of my days are not filled with these things.  Most of my days are just the normal stuff that make up a life.  Housework, homework, preparing meals, cleaning up, playing Barbies, reading to the kids, checking email, volunteer work, phone calls, delivering kisses, receiving hugs, taking out the garbage, ending arguments, calming nerves, dropping kids off, picking kids up, healing boo-boos, crying over hurts, laughing at jokes, impromptu art projects, crappy craft ideas, long walks, short walks, to do lists that are never quite done...these are the realities of my days.

And why are these days often not ended with a feeling of satisfaction?  Because I don't take the time to be satisfied by the simple accomplishments I make every single day.  My self-imposed definition of accomplishment doesn't allow for normal day activities.  In my mind, I am supposed to use all this time off...ha!!...to accomplish something.   So, today I sat back and observed my day with an open and appreciative mind. 

I observed that today was just another day.

Nothing extraordinary, nothing amazing, and nothing grand...only the realization that having just another day is my great accomplishment.

Tri-lingual

My youngest lady is a month away from being three.  She's very verbal and most everyone can understand what she's saying, but it sometimes takes a great deal of effort to understand what she means.  She mis-labels things or makes up her own words for them.  Trying to guess what she is speaking of is great fun and a bit like playing charades with words.

She will typically give objects their own names, but today it was a song title.  Some background information is necessary here...my two older ladies have a great knack for memorizing what CD is in which slot in the six disc changer in our car as well as the playlist number of their favorite songs on each disc.  They select their song of choice by giving me the numbers.  And I have a great knack for picking up languages.  We have it down to a science, but it would sound fairly foreign to untrained ears.  The conversation typically goes as such...
Momma:  It's your turn, Ava.  What do you want to listen to?
Ava:  Umm...2, number 11 and then 3, 14.
Simple, concise, and completely functional.  Well, unless you're two and you simply do not posess the skill set yet to memorize numbers.  However, you are able to memorize which songs are on which discs by your own system of word labeling.

So today's song choice conversation went like this...
Momma:  It's your turn, Willa.  What do you want to listen to?
Willa:  Good Night Road Trippin'
I'm thinking...What?! We have no song called Good Night on any of our CD's.  We have no CD called Road Trippin'.  We do, however, have a song called Road Trippin' on one of our CD's. 
Momma:  Big ladies, which one is Road Trippin' on?
Big Ladies:  It's 2!
Willa:  I need Good Night! 
Momma:  I don't know which one it is.  Can you sing it?
Willa:  Tonight's gonna be good night.
Big Ladies:  It's 11!  It's 11!
Momma:  Thank you!!
I select disc 2, forward to song 11 and help the ladies belt out "I Gotta Feeling" by the Black Eyed Peas.

I speak English, CDease, and toddler.  Tri-lingual.  Yet another skill I've acquired staying home with those 3 little ladies.