Kids, kids, KIDS!

Can I just say how much I LOVE my kiddos!  I love the ages they are.  Every time they hit a new age, I find a different thing I love.  Right now, I love that I can have a conversation with the older two.  I feel like I am not just teaching them and talking to them, but with them.  I love it.  I also love that Jacob is starting to figure things out.  He asks a LOT of questions (which can be difficult), but I love watching his personality unfold.  He is such an observant child.  He notices things that the older two don't.  Sometimes we'll be driving somewhere and he'll tell me that he knows where we are and then he'll name someone that lives close by that area.  He is usually right.  The older two are oblivious to that sort of thing.  Or else they just don't vocalize it.

Here are some of Jacob's questions/statements recently:

"Mom, why did Heavenly Father make cigarettes?"

"If you have a parachute and you jump out of a plane, can you die?"

"Can little kids die?"     I wish I could say NO!!!  :(

"How will the baby get out of your tummy?"

"Mom, when I get older I wont talk so much."     I doubt that!

"Mom, what would you choose to be?  A human or a cat?" ME:  "A human."  Jacob: "I would choose to be 2 things.  A human and a superhero."

"If my hair grows longer it will block my eyes and I will bump into everything.  Then if dad's hair grows longer, we will bump into each other!"

Me:  "Jacob, who loves you?"  Jacob: "Mom, Dad, Jayden, Ashlyn, Grandma, Grandpa, (he then proceeds to name several other relatives like cousins & aunts), and everyone who sees me.  I haven't seen EVERYONE though.  There's a lot of people."

"Mom, I know how to make Oreo's.  You take a cracker and add a marshmallow.  Then another cracker on top.  It's kinda like a smore.  (small pause...)  I'm SO smart!"

I have gotten behind on paying the kids their allowances, thanks to being so sick and everything getting neglected, but the kids have been super patient.  I just told them I need to pay them, but I can't do it all at once or I'd be broke.  So, I told them I would pay them half their allowance now, and the other half in a couple weeks OR if they wanted to do a second summer activity (I will pay for swimming lessons), they could give me back their second half of their allowance and I would use that and I would make up the other half to go towards dance or soccer or whatever they wanted to do.  Jayden didn't even have to think about it, he wanted to do another activity.  He understood that it was a much better deal.  He would only pay half of the activity, so he was getting more out of it.  Ashlyn could not understand what I was telling her.  I cut out some pretend money and acted it out for her, and then she got it.  She didn't have to think much either and went with keeping the money.  This totally shows their personalities!  One of them can think about the future and getting a good deal and one is stuck in the present.  Hopefully she will learn it with time.  It's so interesting to see each of their different personalities.

Jayden bought a new watch with his birthday money.  He really wanted to get one that has a timer (because he uses the stove timer ALL THE TIME).  He figured out how to set the time and the timer all by himself in the van after buying it.  Ever since, he has been timing EVERYTHING.  Seriously.  When he's home I hear the timer beeping several times a day.  He times himself brushing his teeth, how long he reads a book for, how long it takes him to run upstairs, how long it takes to do chores, etc etc etc.  It's kind of funny to me.  It fits his personality so much.  Another thing about him and his watch.  He knows how many seconds off his watch is from all the other clocks in the house.  If you ask him what time it is, he'll tell you the time and then exactly when it switches to a new minute, he'll inform you of the new time.  He is sure you wanted an EXACT time.

Ashlyn also bought a new watch with her allowance money.  She also wanted a timer watch so she got one that's just like Jayden's so he could show her how to use it.  She used it for 2 days and hasn't put it on since.  This fits her personality so much too.

I LOVE MY KIDDOS!!