Sometimes it's so, so sweet

Obviously I don't have a little girl, so I don't have the relationship with a daughter to compare this to... But there is something amazing about the bond between a Mom and her son.  Sometimes they say things that are so sweet, and so sincere...

Ethan at one point told me he doesn't want to be anything when he grows up, except for "Mama's little boy" (which I have on videotape... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysnYz-jz79o )

Last week, as I was sitting on the couch, he came up behind me, threw his arms around the back of my neck and whispered "do you know who you are?" in my ear.  He then said "Ethan's girl, 

Ethan's girl"

I was at work the other night and received this text from Will: "Ethan was really upset and looking at the photo of you in his room.  Asked him why and he said, "I'm not always gonna live in this house with Momma"

   When I asked him what prompted this (That's a big idea for a little guy!), he said that Ian wanted to sleep in Ethan's room and Ethan said "no", at which point Will told him that one day he and Ian will grow up and live with your own families and you'll realize how much you miss him.

Even Ian is so so cute when he says "I want Mommy," "I lava you," "I love you too," or he blows me kisses.  They know how to get me!

a very very cute video of Ian...  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5C1B5VRjV0

Random Sh*t

some random things....

(When Will was tucking Ethan in to bed at night)

E: "Tell me your name"

Will: "Ethan, you know my name"

E: "please tell me."

Will: "My name is Dad, Goodnight"

E: "hmmm.... Very interesting, Dad... But they call you Will....."

(while playing outside)

E: "Ian is Batman, and I am the flash!"

I:  (monkey noises)

E: "Monkey batman? (Ian begins sprinting around in circles, still making monkey noises)

     Uhhhhh Mom, I'm not sure what happened, but I'm sure that Ian is going crazy."

(Right when I get home in the morning)

E: "So Mom, Grandma tells me you were a little stinker when you were little!"

and Ian...

Potty training Ian is rough.  He is more stubborn then any child I've ever met in my life.  He refuses to poop in his potty or on the toilet, but he pulled down his pants and pooped in the bin that holds Lola's toys.  Aye yi yi.  At any rate, the other day I was changing him, and an old bottle of lotion fell off the dresser right into the diaper.  My child looked at me as I picked it up, said "Oh no, it has poop on it mama" and then looked at me as if he was amused and said "Clean the poop Mom.  Clean.  The.  Poop."  I  told him "it is an old bottle anyway" and I threw it away.

Meijering with an Ethanator

Some of the funny things that came up when Ethan and I went to the groccery store:

(while walking in) E: "You know Mom, one day I'll be an adult and I won't be little anymore.  But YOU can still call me your little boy."

(also while walking in) E: "I wish that I could be on Aunt Kristi's shoulders, and Ian could be on my shoulders, and we could be AS TALL AS THE IRON GIANT!"

This isn't really something he says... but he always has to go say hi to the lobsters... and he kisses the tank when we leave, despite numerous warnings from Mom NOT to do that because he doesn't know about all of the germs on that tank (**shudder**)

when he see's the shelf is almost empty in one area E: "what is this grocery store doing?  Aren't these shelves supposed to be full?!?!?"

(Meijer gives free cookies to kids - my kiddos know this, but they also know they only get one if they are well behaved)

Me: "Ethan you've been doing a really good job, keep being good and we'll go get your cookie in a minute"

E: "Yes!  That is the law of the grocery store!"

He amuses me :)

Boys will be boys...

...and I'm not sure about other Mom's of little boys, but they seem to be fascinated with their penis's at an early age.  Since about age two, Ethan has been asking me questions "Do you have a penis, Mom?" "No."  which turned into "Do you wish you had a penis, Mom?" and "Did you used to have a penis, Mom?"  

I've heard of "penis envy," but with Ethan it has always been more like "penis bragging."

We were standing in the bathroom while I was brushing my teeth and getting ready for bed (I work nights, so I get ready for bed in the morning) - Ethan looked at the picture that I have hanging on the wall of the bathroom and said, "Mom, what is that?" I replied, "It's a flower, babe."  He looks at it for a minute and says "Huh.  Looks like a penis." - and exits the bathroom.  The bathroom is of flower bulbs, so I guess it could look a little testicular - but the way he see's things never ceases to amaze me.

This past weekend, Jacob (17yr old step son) tells Will & I, "Ethan came up to me and said something really weird..."  We finally got him to tell us what was said, "Ethan came up to me and said "My penis is growing.  Getting bigger." - and then he just walked away!"  We told Jacob he was little and it wasn't that serious, but this stuff still boggles my mind!

Sometimes it isn't what they say...

...But what they do.  This post is about things that they have done.

Graduation Party

This summer Will, me, & all of the kids attended a graduation party. It was a nice party with tons of food and a bounce house to keep the kids busy.  Since the bouncer was there, the kids were jumping & taking periodic breaks to run back to our table for a bite of food or to take a drink, then back to jumping.  I saw Ethan climb out of the bounce house & when he didn't appear at our table soon after, I started looking around. 

And I saw him.  

He was standing in front of a tree, back turned to us, pants down, getting ready to pee on the tree.

But I wasn't the only one who noticed this, naturally.  We heard laughter from some other tables as they noticed his bare butt and I, embarrassed, was briskly walking around the tent & tables to stop him.  Well, he heard people laughing too, and turned around to see what everyone was laughing about, flashing the entire tent.  

I got to him soon after that, and led him into the house to use the bathroom, having the you-only-pee-outside-when-we're-at-home conversation for the thousandth time.

Birthday Party

Later on in the summer, at their Birthday party, he also peed outside on a tree in front of everyone at his party.  He did this about SEVEN TIMES, not caring that I asked him to go in the house when people are over because he "really had to go."   (Damn you, capri sun juice pouches!!!!). Except then, just standing on the tree & peeing wasn't good enough I guess, because as he was going he started circling the tree.   The fact that the last time he did this, towards the end of the party, our dog Lola ran up & started trying to DRINK THE PEE only encouraged him that this was funny.  It was gross. 

And of course, they both seem to think that "let's go in the house," "it's time for bed," or we need to GO, we're running late" mean scream-like-a-maniac-and-run-like-hell-while-giggling-like-you-are-hilarious-when-Mom-and-Dad-chase-you.  Never a dull moment. 

Creepy...

Personally, I think if anyone can see spirits, it's animals and children, and sometimes kids say creepy things...

About a year ago, Ethan came into my room in the middle of the night and asked to sleep with Will & I.  When I told him he needed to sleep in his bed, he said "But that girl keeps walking into my room."  Since I am the only "girl" in the house, I said "Ethan, Mommy is the only girl here, and I did not walk into your room."  Ethan looked at me in complete seriousness and said "NOT YOU, Mom.  The other girl..."

He did eventually go back to his room, after we checked it together.

The most recent creepy thing, was just a few weeks ago.  Ethan, Ian, Will, & I had been out at my parents house for awhile that evening.  On our way home, it was dark.  We drive through the country on the way home and Ethan said "I just saw the Shaddow-Puppet Man walking."  

Will looked at me, freaked out, and said "Did he just say he saw Satan walking?"  I said no, and repeated what Ethan had said, 

"Ethan, who is the Shadow Puppet man?"

He ignores this and says that the Shadow-Puppet man was walking in the direction of Grandma's house.  He then says "what if he finds me?"  and I remind him that he said he was walking towards Grandma & Grandpa's house, not our house.  

Ethan drops this and in 5 minutes we are home.

In getting Ethan out of his car seat, Ethan said "I think he's looking for me." when I said "who?" I remembered, and he said it: "The shaddow puppet man."  

I told him, "You said he was going towards Grandma's house.  You're safe."
Ethan said "A long time ago, back when I was a grown up, we were friends."

I asked "back when you were a grown up?"  

He said, "yes Mom, a long time ago."

and, of course, later said, 

"We can't be friends now because of Ian."

Must be hard to be the little brother.  Can't wait till he starts talking more and he tells me stories too!

Ethanism One-Liners

Some funny, sometimes random things, that Ethan says...

"Mom, can we take Ian back to the brother store?"

Really?!?  Poor Ian

After returning home from a visit at Grandma's...

"Mom, Grandma used to be bigger then she is, she is getting littler.  Shrinking."

my Mom is short, so this made me laugh and call her to tell her about it.

After Aunt Kristi said, "you're my parrot" to him...

"I can't be your parrot, I'm too busy being a person!!!!!!"

...and busy you are