Fun With Words

I'm telling you, kids = karma.

If you were a bully as a child, you will rear a bully. If you were sweetness and light to your parents as a child, lucky you because you will no doubt have an angel on your hands. If you were a chatterbox, like me, who never let her poor mother have a moments' peace...

Actually, I love how much they talk (most of the time) and I love how Owen and William are learning new words and when to use them. My favorite word of Owen's right now is one I use all the time, so I know he got it from me. Actually, I've started two sentences in this paragraph with his new word. Actually, make that three. Except that Owen pronounces it "ack-chee" and he uses it to correct me. For example, Owen has recently shown a strong need to know who bought what for him or where it has come from:

"Where dis bib from? Who bought dis me?"
"Auntie Gillian bought you those bibs, Owen, now please eat your breakfast. No, thank you Owen, no, DO NOT POUR YOUR CEREAL ONTO YOUR TRAY AGAI-aaaaargh!"

"Who bought dis? Who gave dis me?"
'Pops gave you that rugby ball at Christmas, bud. Don't throw it at Will, please."
'Ack-chee, mummy, um, ack-chee Gaga bought dis me." (Sorry, Pops, I know you really brought it for him, but sometimes he likes to think he's in the right).

Both boys love anything to do with the emergency services and can hear a fire engine 20kms away. They often pretend that they're paramedics and are taking someone to the "hossible" (sounds like possible). This afternoon there was an elaborate game going on in the backyard involving them lying on the slide and constant questioning back and forth between the two brothers, who sometimes like to call each other "baby":

"Okay, baby?"
"Yeah, okay, baby."
"Go hossible, baby?"
"hee hee, yeah, okay!"
"Okay, come baby, go hossible."
"Okay"
"Okay, come, come, baby!"

Then fits of giggles ensued as they made their way to the sandbox/hospital.

We're also very much into counting things, which is fabulous, although we seem to have some issues getting the order of one through ten, so its often, 'two, one adacados, mummy!" when the boys see I've bought two avocados and placed them on the kitchen counter, or long, drawn out counting, like 'ooooonnnnnne, twooooooo, freeeeeeee, niiiiiine, siiiiiix, niiiiiiine, eiiiiight, freeeeeee, ooooooneeeee, TEN!" followed invariably by "ah! ah! ah!" like The Count on Sesame Street and lots of excited clapping.

And best of all, William has just started with that perennial favorite - "why?" Oh. My. Goodness. I was waiting for this one, but I can't believe we're already at "why?". Ack-chee, its "why?" and its "where?" which can be equally exhausting:

"Where Sathya, mummy?"
"Sathya is at home with her mummy, Will."
"Where?"
"At her house, bud."
"Where?"
"Where? She's at home. In her house."
"Where?"
"Where in her house? Um, I don't know. In her bedroom, maybe."
"Where, mummy?"
"In her bedroom, in her house, on the top floor."
"Where?"
"Her house is back that way, William. Near Costco."
"Where Costco?"
"Sigh. Near Sathya's house, love."
"Where Sathya, mummy?"
"mutter, mutter, mutter."

All the chatter can definitely drive me nuts on a bad day, but on a good day, when the talking is heartly peppered with "dank-you for nice day, mummy" and "I yuv you, peas come hug" and "come, come sit wid me, mummy", I find its music to my ears.