Conversations with the Peanut Gallery

The girls have really been on a roll lately. These are some of their latest funnyisms from recent weeks!

The other day while eating a plate of pasta, Lauren held her hands up and said, “Mommy, I have Olive Garden on my hands.”

Anna is already busy thinking about future professions. If you remember it wasn’t too long ago that she was considering an occupation as a snake charmer. Recently, however, she told me, “I wish you would have voted for me for president.” A few minutes later she said, “ I wanted to be an artist but that was before I knew about firefighters. They’re cool.”

One of the moms from Anna’s school told me the other day that her son had a crush on Anna. They’re only 5 but I guess it starts early these days. As a matter of fact, Anna already has her eye on a fellow classmate as well. On our way to church on Sundays, we pass by an area where dirt bike races are held. Anna noticed the bikes and said, “Evan (a little boy from her class) is a dirt bike man. He’s so handsome and silly. I want to marry him.”

When we were preparing the girls for our family to light one of the candles on the advent wreath, we mentioned they would need to be careful of the flame. Lauren asked Doug if he could bring an ice cube along for her...just in case she burned her finger.

The girls cycle in and out of loving/hating each other. They bicker and then tattle to us. I told them again the other day (for the millionth time) to please try and use their words to talk to each other and try and sort things out on their own. Anna responded, “Fine. Lauren, I don’t like you!!” Not exactly what we had in mind but at least they’re communicating.

The girls are becoming more independent each day. They’re testing the boundaries and trying to decide where Mommy and Daddy draw their lines. The other day Lauren told me “No!”. I told her “Don’t say no to me!” She responded, “No to you!”

In the car, Anna piped up and said, “Mommy, I think I have a flea on me. What’s a flea?” Lauren thought about it for a few seconds and said, “Anna, a flea is when you’re really sick and you have to stay in bed for a long time until you feel better.” We laughed and said, “Honey, we think you mean the flu!”

Doug has become the DVR king this month. He’s caught a ton of Christmas shows for the family to watch. The other night we were watching “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” with Jim Carrey. Doug wanted to know what was up with all of the Whos and their teeth. I told him I didn’t know but they all had buck teeth. Both girls immediately began to ask, “Why, Mommy? Why do they all have Butt-Teeth?”

Lauren held a ribbon up below her nose and said, “Look, Mommy, I have a mustang!” In case you’re wondering...she meant moustache.

I’ve often written about the difference in the girls’ personalities. Another recent example took place at our church’s activity time a few weeks ago. Doug and I were responsible for activity time that day and brought snacks and drinks. The idea is you play with the little ones (second grade and under) while their parents are listening to the sermon. For some reason, that particular day there were several older children there, including one little boy age 9. He was loud, a bit aggressive and appeared to need a little extra attention. While outside in the play yard, he tried to take a ball away from Lauren. Big mistake. He apparently doesn’t know Lauren. She wasn’t about to take it and clocked him right in the eye. He started to cry and ran away. Doug told me the story on the way home and although I, of course, don’t want her hitting anyone, I still couldn’t believe that our 3 year old fended off a 9 year old and sent him away in tears. Crazy.