Sunday, December 30, 2012

A new TSA rule?

Going through security at the Richmond airport yesterday ...
Lucy: Daddy, why are you taking your shoes off?
Caleb: Because they have to put them through the x-ray machine to make sure there are not bombs in them.
Lucy: Don't worry guys! There are no bombs in my shoes because they're pink and sparkly!

Friday, December 28, 2012

Illinois Igloos

Packing up to leave for the midwest tomorrow. Lucy is looking forward to seeing igloos. She's under the impression that Illinois is laden with them.

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Jesus the Sneech

Overheard in our household ... when the story of Christmas meets Dr. Seuss' The Sneeches.
 
Lucy: Mary will get the marshmallows. Joseph, we're missing the hotdogs. Everyone, put on your soup! Thank you, Jesus, for our marshmallow toasts and frankfurter roasts! This is a great camping party, Jesus. Alright, now who gets to sit next to Mary and Jesus?

Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Parenting fail? Or parenting win?

Me: Lucy, there is one present left here.  Do you want to open it?  Or should I send it to a kid in another country?
Lucy:  Send it to a kid in another country!  And let me go on an airplane with it!  Can I meet the kid?

Monday, December 24, 2012

We come in Peace

I think we have a little conspiracy theorist on our hands.  See if you can tell the part of this manger scene Lucy surreptitiously added.

Friday, December 21, 2012

Sunless Christmas

I should add a disclaimer to my last post about Ducky Face.  I AM NOT PREGNANT.

Today Lucy said, "I think Jesus was born at night."
Me: "Oh yeah?  Why do you think that?"
Lucy: "Because there is no sun on my advent calendar."

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Introducing ... Ducky Face

Me: "Lucy, if you had a brother or sister, what would their name be?"
Lucy: "Ducky face."
Me: "Ducky face?  Really?"
Lucy:  "Yeah, I love it."
Me: "Okay, then let's name this baby doll Ducky Face."
Lucy:  "No, that's a silly name for baby dolls."

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Eloquent little girl

Lucy knows exactly what to say when she doesn't want to go to bed.  She stands in her doorway and says, "But I just miss you already, because I love you so much."

Monday, December 3, 2012

No words

Lucy and I are hunting through the lingerie aisle of Kohl's, trying to find my size bra, when Lucy picks up a bra, tries it on over her clothes and says, "Oh!  This will look so good on my nipples!"

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Chicago Land

Lucy informed me today that she wants to live in another country when she grows up.
Me: "Oh yeah?  What country?"
Lucy: "Probably Chicago."

Monday, November 26, 2012

Do bee do bee do

We stopped for an emergency potty break at the Whole Foods because Lucy announced she had to go "dodo".  Of course, when we get inside the women's is closed for cleaning.  A very nice man said he would let us use the men's bathroom and he would guard the door to make sure no one came in.  Lucy didn't seem to appreciate this man's kind gesture, because she spent the next 10 minutes sitting on the toilet singing, "I like dodo dodo!  You like dodo!  Every day's a dodo day!"

Meanwhile, the guy keeps poking his head in to make sure we're okay. I was kind of embarrassed that he kept hearing Lucy's dodo song, so I said "Lucy, do we talk about dodo in public?"  Lucy thought about it.  "Kinda. Well, I do.  Dodo."

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Old, boring dinosaurs

Through a string of unfortunate scheduling events, Lucy had to attend a Board of Supervisors meeting I had to cover for work tonight.  Here's how the conversation went on the way to the courthouse.

Me: "Lucy, I'm sorry, but you're going to have to come with me to a very long and boring meeting"
Lucy: "Are there going to be dinosaurs there?"

I like how "dinosaurs" is the most boring thing she can think of.

She also announced (loudly) in the middle of the meeting, "I'd rather eat an ant!"

Friday, November 16, 2012

A family recipe

Me: "Lucy, what are you doing?"
Lucy: "I'm making a recipe."
Me: "Oh yeah? What recipe?"
Lucy: "A recipe for DISASTER!"

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Mall House

Lucy: "I want to go to the indoor mall."
Me: "Why do you want to go to the mall? Do you want to buy something?"
Lucy: "Yes. I want to buy a mannequin."
Me: "Why do you want to buy a mannequin?"
Lucy: "So I can make my house into a mall."

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Halloween

 Thanks to the generosity of aunts and grandmas, Lucy had six costumes to chose from this Halloween.  She wore the Cinderella dress on Halloween day and the Ladybug Girl outfit to Halloween events over the weekend.  Gram Sancken bought her an adorable parrot costume that I could not convince her to put on, even for a picture.  I ended up wearing the parrot hat trick or treating.  It was nice and warm.

Monday, October 29, 2012

Gaseous Planet

Lucy: "I'm the sun. Dad you're mars."
Me: "What planet can I be?"
Lucy: "Jupiter."
Me: "I don't want to be Jupiter. Jupiter's a fat planet."
Lucy: "Okay, you can be Venus."
Me: "Oh good! Venus is a pretty planet."
Caleb: "... full of gas."

Thursday, October 25, 2012

It's as big as you.

Lucy: "I want a bassoon."
Me: "You're a little too small for a bassoon."
Lucy: "But I want one.  And I grew a lot this year."

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Potty talk

Lucy: "Doody booty!"
Me: "What?"
Lucy: "Doody booty! That means poopy butt." (laughs)
I see we've begun potty humor. But I'd like to think she's a little more high brow than the average 3-year-old. At least it rhymes.

Saturday, October 20, 2012

Light of the world

Caleb was singing "You are the light of the world, oh people!" around the house.  Lucy stopped him and said, "No you're not!  You're my father!"

Friday, October 19, 2012

Messy House? See: toddler.

Lucy dumped an entire bucket of randomly collected toys all over the floor.
Me: "Noooooo! Now I'm sad. Our whole house is so messy."
Lucy: "No it's not. Look, this piece right here is clean." (Pointing to a small 3' x 3' space in the kitchen).
Indeed. Always look on the bright side of life.

Vomit drama

For those who have been following Lucy's vomit drama: the pediatric gastroenterologist's diagnosis of a blocked intestine treatable by Miralax is wrong. She's vomiting again.  On to plan J (because we've already surpassed plans A, B and C).

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Food School

Today we went to the apple orchard on a field trip with Lucy's preschool today.  There is a segment of the field trip called "apple school" where they teach the kids how apples are grown.  On the way home Lucy wanted to know, "Next time can we go to ice cream school?"

Friday, October 12, 2012

It was a ceramic pumpkin soap dispenser

Today, for the first time, I had to pay for something Lucy broke in a store.  I have a feeling it won't be the last.

Sunday, October 7, 2012

Robot Birthday

This photos are copyright of Meredith Woolfolk at Freckled Cat Photography.

Happy 3rd birthday to the sweetest little girl I know!  
It's a joy being your momma.
And you should know something.  Your father is a robot. 
 

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Lucy knows funny

Lucy shrieks at the top of her lungs and then laughs hysterically.
Me: "Lucy, don't do that in the car.  That's not funny."
Lucy: "It is funny.  I'm laughing.  I know funny."

Friday, September 28, 2012

Yucky

After being evangelized to by multiple friends about the wonders of kale chips, I finally made them today after getting 2 lbs of kale in our CSA.  They weren't too bad.  I was even optimistic enough to think Lucy would like them.  Lucy's response, "Those aren't chips.  Those are yucky."

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Try, try, try again

Me: "Lucy, you woke up pretty late today! 8:30 a.m.! Were you sleepy?"
Lucy: "I think I just need more practice sleeping."

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Daddy's wife

After Disney on Ice today, and Gaston's song about making Belle his wife, Lucy was curious.
Lucy: "What's a wife?"
Me: "When you love someone very much and you want to spend the rest of your life with them, you get married and become their wife."
Lucy: "Can I be daddy's wife?"
Me: "No, hunny, I'm daddy's wife. Your his daughter."
Lucy: "NO!  You're not!  I AM!  I am daddy's wife."

Friday, September 21, 2012

Fall Fashionista


We went apple picking this week at one of our favorite Fluvanna haunts - Fruit Hill Orchard.  Lucy takes apple picking very seriously.  She carries her own bag and dutifully picks apples without stopping until the bag is full.  That must be Caleb's 'get it done' engineering gene showing through.


Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Can I claim that as part of Celiac?

After this weekend's bout with gluten-intolerance issues, Lucy is learning that mommy can't eat certain things because she's allergic. But she still has some questions.
Me: "Lucy please stop whining. Mommy can't listen to whining."
Lucy: "Why not? Are you allergic?"

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Handy Art Installation

Lucy declared this a piece of art today and insisted I not remove it from her hand.  She calls it, "String around the Rosey."

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

¿La Vomitaría?

On the way from our house into town there is one convenience store (yes, one in a 30 minute drive).  It happens to be a place we had to stop a few weeks ago when Lucy was throwing up in the car.  Meanwhile, Lucy is in a Spanish immersion preschool, and has recently been asking how to say things in Spanish.  This is how the drive home from preschool today went.
Lucy: "How do you say tree?"
Me: "Arbol."
Lucy: "How do you say flower?"
Me: "Flor."
Lucy: "How to you say throw-up place?"
Me: "I have no idea."

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Lucy's 9/11

I had a really interesting conversation with Lucy today about 9/11.  We passed a memorial ceremony happening at the local fire station and she asked what was going on.  In trying to explain it to her, I was stuck by the enormity of fear.  Not just the fear we all felt that day but of fear itself.

Lucy: "What's happening?"
Me: "It's September 11.  They're remembering this day because a long time ago, before you were born, something very scary happened."
Lucy: "What happened?"
Me: "Airplanes flew into buildings and killed lots of people."
Lucy: "Will they kill me?"

Fear.  For the first time, I felt 9/11 in a new way - as a mother.  "Will they kill me?" Tears welled up in my eyes.

Me: "No.  No.  I will keep you safe.  I will keep you safe."

It was enough to ease Lucy's mind and stop her questions, but it's keep me wondering about it all day.  Could I?  Could I keep her safe?  An entire nation was paralyzed by confusion and fear on that day.  I realized that if we were one of the families on Flight 175, and our plane had been hijacked, destined for tower 2, I couldn't.  I couldn't keep her safe.  My one deepest desire as a parent - for my child to survive - would devolve into fear.  Fight or flight.

As someone who has done extensive traveling and grown up as an American abroad, I didn't have the same level of shock on the day of 9/11 as many of my other American friends had.  I was 17-years-old.  I had seen anti-Americanism first hand in South America and knew that while we were unarguably the most developed and enviable county on earth, we also had a habit of acting like it.  Of being the playground bully.  So on an international level, I got it.  I understood why this was happening.  I understood why American foreign policy had left other countries mad at us.

But today, on a personal level, I understood something anew.  I understood the plight of every parent, of every "boot in your ass" American.  I understood fear.  Author and artist Elizabeth Stone once said, "Making the decision to have a child in momentous.  It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body."  The thought of my own daughter being unsafe ignited a primal feeling in me.  And in an instant I understood why so many people reacted the way they did on that day - fight or flight.  Because they believed they were unsafe.  That the attack on those towers was an attack on them and their families.  It was an "aha!" moment for me.  I had never seen it that way before.

Monday, September 10, 2012

The baby warrior game

Me: What did you do at preschool today?
Lucy: We pretended we were babies, and trees, and warriors.
Me: That sounds like a fun game.
Lucy: No! It's not a GAME! It's YOGA!

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Compound Words

Lucy has made a habit of combining words.  Some sound so good I might even adapt them into my own vocabulary.  Some of my favorites:
vanilla + granola = granilla
one-eye + cyclops = eyeclops
gallop + giddy-up = gally-up!

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

First day

It was Lucy's first day of preschool today!  The teacher told me she spent the whole morning on the couch saying, "I just need more time."

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

The farmer in the dell told me so ...

Me: Please eat your macaroni and cheese.
Lucy: No!
Me: Why not?
Lucy: Because the cheese stands alone!
(P.S. "Why not?" is always a horrible question to ask a child)

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Nemo Sprocket

The robot Lucy and I made out of duct tape and recycled materials. She's become the house mascot.  Lucy named her Nemo Sprocket.  This is going to be the pinata for Lucy's birthday party in October. I think a certain little girl is going to be terrified when we start beating it with sticks.

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Rocket Rides in Richmond

Spent the day in Richmond at the Children's Museum and the Science Museum of Virginia. Lucy had her first IMAX experience for a show about Polar Bears. Coming out of the theater she said, "That was a great rocket ride!"

Friday, August 17, 2012

Hippos and Houses

We read this book at bedtime.
Lucy's comment: don't worry Hippo, someday you'll meet a nice boy like Diego (as in Go Diego Go).
(I swear she said "nice Jewish boy" but Caleb insists I heard it wrong).
 
We also had another conversation about cleaning the house.  Here's how it went.
Me: We need to clean our house today.
Lucy: Why?
Me: Because we need to show our nicest, cleanest house to our friend Jeannie when she comes over for dinner tonight.
Lucy: But we only have our house to show.

Thursday, August 16, 2012

She's no fool

At the beginning of the summer, Lucy's babysitter had family visiting from Germany who brought Lucy lots and lots of German chocolate. A few weeks ago I finally gave in and started rewarding Lucy with M&Ms for "going pee pee on the potty." Today she peed on the potty and I said, "Yay! Good job! Now you get an M&M!" She looked at me and said, "No M&Ms mommy. GERMAN chocolate."

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

On a first name basis

Today I broke the news to Lucy that we're going to Disney World with my family for Thanksgiving.  Here's how the conversation went.
Me: "You see this castle?  This is the Disney castle.  We're going to go there after your birthday.  We're going to eat dinner with Winnie and Pooh and his friends, and maybe Mickey Mouse too."
Lucy:  "Oh good!  Winnie and Mickey will be so happy to see me."

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Duh, mom.

Me: "Lucy, what do you want to be when you grow up?"
Lucy: "An adult."

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Not tired, just listening

Me: "Lucy if you're not tired, then why are you laying on the couch? I think it's time to take a nap."
Lucy: "I'm not laying down! I'm listening to the furniture!"

Monday, August 6, 2012

Mohawk of Liberty

Today Lucy saw someone with a Mohawk.  Her response, "He looks like the Statue of Liberty!" Me: "Oh really, why?"  Lucy: "They both have spikes!"

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Pre-blog Lucyisms

I found these Lucyisms from before I started the blog.  I am posting them here so I don't lose them.

Feb. 1, 2012
Me: "Lucy, there's a sandwich here just waiting for you to eat it."
Lucy: "Good job waiting sandwich."

Dec. 24, 2011
Lucy: "I want to wear boots."
Caleb: "No. I hate your boots, they don't fit right and they always fall off. You're going to wear your tennis shoes."
Lucy: "SAY SORRY! Say sorry, you no hate my boots!"

November 22, 2011
Lucy figured out today that high-five-ing herself is really just the same thing as clapping.

November 20, 2011
This morning I woke up to Lucy talking with her stuffed "Clifford" dog in her crib. She sounded like she was on a blind date. "Clifford, do you have any hobbies? I like to play baseball."

November 4, 2011
We got free samples at the Lindt's chocolate store. On the way out the door ...
Clerk: "Have a nice day!"
Me: "Goodbye, thank you!"
Lucy: "Good job having chocolate!"

November 3, 2011
Me: "Lucy, say good bye to daddy, he's going to work to plant garlic."
Lucy: "Bye daddy. I plant garlic everyday."

October 27, 2011
Lucy made Halloween cookies at school today. When I picked her up she ran to me and said, "I EAT GHOSTS!"

October 23, 2011
Lucy found a daddy long legs on our front porch. She picked it up and played with it until it died from her mangling. Then she proceeded to hold a funeral for the spider, burying it under leaves and singing it a sad rendition of "The Itsy Bitsy Spider." I'm not sure whether I should be touched or disturbed.

October 19, 2011
Lucy is pulling out all the stops to get out of a nap today. In a stream of excuses as I was laying her down she said, "Poopy diaper, change it! Teeth hurt! Throw up! I scared! Not tired! I LOVE YOU MOMMA!"

October 17, 2011
This evening Lucy had an entire conversation with her fingers in which she told them the door was locked and they wouldn't be able to get through. Her fingers responded, "Get out of here!" She is beginning to be weird.

September 15, 2011
Today Lucy announced loudly in public (on at least 3 different occasions), "Mama is NOT naked!" In a surprised tone, as if I spend most of my time around her in the buff.

September 13, 2011
After reading Dora's World Adventure (which features a trip to China and teaches kids how to say "Ni Hao") Lucy is seriously confused about the difference between "Meow" and "Ni Hao". I'm pretty sure she thinks the cat speaks Chinese. She now greets it everyday saying, "Ni Hao."

August 30, 2011
How you can tell your family listens to too much NPR ... Lucy chewed up some food and spit it out. I said, "Lucy, don't do that, it's gross." Lucy looks at me and says, "Terry Gross!"

July 30, 2011
Lucy is laying on the ground, wriggly and quacking.
Me: "Lucy, what are you doing?"
Lucy: "I duck snake."

July 12, 2011
Me: "Lucy, don't eat cheese off the floor, yucky."
Lucy: "No, it's yummy."

July 5, 2011
Me: "What kind of ice cream would you like?"
Lucy: "Blue."
Me: "No, like what would you like your ice cream to taste like? Strawberries? Chocolate? Vanilla?"
Lucy: "Light."
Me: "Can you point to the kind of ice cream you want?"
Lucy: "No, honey."
I give up.

June 29, 2011
On the way to the library this afternoon:
Lucy: "Momma drives."
Me: "Yep, momma drives."
Lucy: "Lucy drives too?"
Me: "Nope."

June 28, 2011
At 20-months-old Lucy has already learned that the proper noise to emit when you're pretending to be asleep is "honk-shu, honk-shu."

June 27, 2011
This morning I farted. Lucy looked up in shock and said, "train?"

Monday, July 30, 2012

Arguing with the radio

Lucy is apparently getting ready for law school.
Song on radio: "Take me to your best friend's house ..."
Lucy: "I already went to my best friend's house today!"
Subsequent song on the radio: "Clap your hands! ... Stomp your feet! ... Now, dance!"
Lucy: "I AM clapping my hands ... I AM stomping my feet ... I can't dance because I'm in my car seat!"
Today I instituted a draconian "no-arguing-with-the-radio-or-else-we-turn-it-off" rule in the car.

Friday, July 27, 2012

Piggy Shoes

Lucy looks at the back of her shoes, "what does this say?"
Me: "It says C-R-O-C-S, Crocs. That's that name of your shoes."
Lucy: "I want to call them shoey. Then I can say 'Shoey! Shoey! Shoey!'" (imitating a pig call)

Monday, July 23, 2012

Said Lucy

Lucy has begun narrating her daily life.  She's been punctuating everything she says with, "said Lucy."  As in,
Me:  "What would you like for breakfast?"
Lucy:  "I would like buttery toast for breakfast, said Lucy."

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Yellow Mac

Waitress: "How's your macaroni and cheese?"
Lucy: "It's yellow."

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Mooses in your hair

Lucy: "What is that?"
Me: "It's mouse for my hair."
Lucy: "Mooses comb your hair?"

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Treadmill Mommy

Me: "Lucy, please stop kicking me."
Lucy: "I'm not kicking you, I'm pretending you're a treadmill."

Car Mommy

Yesterday we spent 3 hours at the car dealership getting our car fixed. Lucy was beginning to get bored around 2 hours, so we decided to go look at the cars in the showroom. Lucy saw the new Toyota Scion "smart car" and sighed. "That little car misses its mommy."

Saturday, June 30, 2012

Not cute

Old Lady at the mall:  Well, hello.  Aren't you cute!
Lucy: No, I not cute.  I just fine!

Friday, June 29, 2012

Naked Book

Lucy: What's this?
Me: A book jacket.
Lucy: I took it off. Now the book is naked.

Monday, June 25, 2012

Robot Maid

Lucy: "I want to be a robot when I grow up."
Me: "Oh really?  What kind of robot?"
Lucy: "One that makes beds."

In the middle of the children's sermon on Sunday, Shawn Gerber elaborated on the parable of the speck and the plank in the eye.  Lucy concluded it by standing up and screaming, "Squirrels!"

Sunday, June 24, 2012

Nothing says "Happy Birthday!" like a Band-Aid

Anyone who follows me on Pinterest knows I'm semi-obsessed with planning themed birthday parties. It seems Lucy has inherited this. In the last month she has requested a flamingo themed birthday, a robot themed birthday, and – my personal favorite - a bandage themed birthday.

Monday, June 11, 2012

Little Red Hen Girl

This morning we made cookies. Lucy began licking the beaters while they were resting in between mixing the flour into the butter and sugar.
Me: "Don't lick the beaters yet, we still need them."
Lucy: "But I'm only trying to help, like the Little Red Hen."
Me: "Oh I see. And who will help me lick the beaters?"
Lucy: "I WILL!"

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Will-ful

Lucy: "I need to go roller skating."
Me: "You don't need to go roller skating, you want to go roller skating."
Lucy: "No, I need to go roller skating."
Me: "No, needs are things you need to stay healthy and alive like sleep and food and shelter and protection. You don't need to roller skate."
Lucy thinks about it for a while.
Lucy: "I WILL go roller skating."

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Kindly wait to kill babies

Lucy: "What does that sign say?"
Me: "What do you think it says?"
Lucy: "Don't kill babies."
Me: "Close. It says, 'kindly wait to be seated.'"

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Bothering my toast

Lucy: "Daddy, stop hurting my toast!"
Caleb: "Lucy, I need to use a knife to cut it. See, now I'm buttering it."
Lucy: "No! Stop it! Stop bothering it!"

Sunday, June 3, 2012

Dick's the Pick

I have an update on Lucy's "DICK!" comment from yesterday.  I really couldn't figure out where she had learned that word, until this morning I realized that yesterday we were driving through our neighborhood and saw a political sign for a guy running for our local neighborhood HOA that said, "Dick's the Pick!" Lucy asked me what the sign said and I read it out loud to her and laughed. She must have caught from our brief conversation that the word "Dick" is funny.

Worst political campaign slogan ever. 

Saturday, June 2, 2012

Restaurant Proclamations Part II

Without any forewarning or context, Lucy screamed "DICK!" today when we were eating out at a local restaurant. It happens to be the same restaurant that just a few months ago she announced, "My daddy threw up in the woods!" We've only been to the restaurant twice. I have a feeling we won't be welcomed back.

In other news, Lucy has yet to learn that announcing "I'm asleep!" into the baby monitor isn't fooling anyone.

Thursday, May 31, 2012

Chocolate Meat & Butt Paste Raisins

Caleb: "Wow, this meat is really tender."
Lucy: "Pretender meat? Can it be chocolate?"

In other news, Lucy squeezed an entire tube of Boudreaux's butt paste and poured a box of raisins into my school bag yesterday. Worst part? I didn't realize it until I had to turn in my assignment. I told my professor to hold on a moment while I wiped off the raisins adhered to my term paper by diaper rash cream.

Monday, May 28, 2012

Sleepless

About an hour after putting Lucy to sleep I hear her screaming, "Mommy!  MOMMY! MOOOMMMYYY!!!"  I rush upstairs, thinking she was maimed, only to open her bedroom door and see the entire contents of her bookshelf in her bed.  She looks at me while trying to lay down atop a mountain of books and calmly says, "I can't sleep."

Friday, May 18, 2012

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Appalachia E.R.

Remember that SNL skit a few years ago about Appalachian Emergency Room?  Yeah, we were those people today.

This morning the whole family woke up sick, so we called Lucy in sick to school and spent the day on the couch watching a marathon of Dora the Explorer on Netflix.  After our second nap, we went outside for a little while to play, where Lucy got filthy.  But none of this is what brought us to the E.R.

Later on in the evening, I decided to do something productive and cook dinner.  Lucy usually helps me cook dinner (it's one of her favorite things to do) so I pulled up a chair and she helped mix the pasta in the pot.  We have a ceramic cook top that is smooth on top, and even though still very hot, it doesn't light up or give any signal of its heat.  When I went to pour out the pasta and mix it in with the sauce, Lucy leaned with her forearm onto the burner.

As soon as I heard her scream and looked to see her coming off of the burner, I went into emergency mode.  We both started crying, and as the burn turned white I knew it was bad.  I got a bag of frozen corn out and used scotch tape to affix it to Lucy's arm.  With tears streaming down both of our faces, I tried to explain to her that her arms hurts a lot, and it's very scary, so we would have to go to see a special doctor.  Thank God we had our Dora marathon this morning, because the episode titled "Doctor Dora" did a load of good in putting terms to what was going on.

I drove us as fast as I could to the University of Virginia Pediatric Emergency room.  I called Caleb, who was at work, and he agreed to meet us there.  I also left tearful messages for my parents, and our church small group.

As I pulled up to the emergency room, at 6:30 p.m., I realized how white trash we looked.  I was unshowered, teeth and hair unbrushed, still in my pajamas.  Lucy was covered in dirt from our playground outing, with a bag of corn tapped to her arm.  And of course, by the time we got to the E.R. Lucy was her normal chirpy self, chatting up the E.R. nurses.

Because of her bounciness, you could almost see the eye roll of the medical professionals, "another kid in the E.R. with over-reactive parents, who's not really sick", until they saw the burn and were in disbelief she was even lucid.  They did a thorough check of the rest of her body to make sure we weren't secret child abusers.

It turns out it's a deep 2nd degree burn, possibly a 3rd degree burn but they wont know until the skin starts peeling off. We have to set up an appointment with a plastic surgeon to look at her arm on Thursday morning to make sure it doesn't scar too much.  For the time being, Lucy is on codeine and has a fancy bandage (complete with Handy Manny stickers).  She was so excited that "they fixed it! They fixed my arm!"

On the way home (post-codeine) I talked to Lucy about why it's important to listen to mommy when we're cooking.  "There's lots of dangerous things in the kitchen, hot things, sharp things ..."  Lucy added, "and Ferris wheels."  Yes, sweet girl, yes.  And Ferris wheels.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to the moms in our lives!   
• Kristin & Lucy, circa January 2011.
• Caleb and his mother, Lynne Sancken, circa June 1983. 
• Kristin and her mother, Marilu Thomas, circa 1985.
• 3 generations of mothers - Lucy with Kristin, Marilu and Rose James (Marilu's mother) in November of 2009.

Friday, May 11, 2012

Run

Today we went to a Superhero themed birthday party. At one point a kid cried out, "run for your lives!" Lucy looked at me and said, "excuse me momma, I need to go run for my life."

Thursday, May 10, 2012

A bushel and a peck

Yesterday Lucy made a mother's day card with her babysitter. After writing "I love you" Lucy insisted that they add "a bushel and a peck." I am pleased that Lucy has come to appreciate Caleb and I's mutual affection for musical theater.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Oh Susanna

Lucy thinks the lyrics to "Oh Susanna" are "I throw from Louisiana this banjo onto your knee!"

Saturday, May 5, 2012

Minnesotan in training

Lucy's first ice skating lesson!  She spent 1 of the 30 minutes standing on her own!

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Broken Crayons

On the way out of TGIFriday's for dinner Lucy sees some cigarette butts on the ground in the parking lot.  Her first comment, "Oh no! Someone broke all of their crayons!"

Monday, April 30, 2012

I'm an emergency!

At the airport on the way here Lucy went barreling toward an emergency exit door that lead straight onto the tarmac.  When I scolded her and told her that we can't go out that door because it's for emergencies only, she thought about it and then looked at me and said, "I'm an emergency!"

Toddler Dance Party

Nothing brings me more joy than seeing this girl smile and dance.  This photo was taken at a wedding we went to in Minnesota this weekend.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Minnesota Habitats

We're in Minnesota! Lucy was a trooper on the flight, which didn't land until a good 4 hours past her bedtime. As we were landing she said, "Oh! Look at the city! I wonder how many french fries are down there?"

Mom bought a little tricycle for Lucy to ride while we're visiting. Today, while walking back from the park, she said, "We need to take the tricycle back to it's habitat where it can live."
Me: "Oh really? What's the tricycle's habitat?"
Lucy: "The garage!"

Monday, April 23, 2012

Two-year-old honesty

Lucy: "Mommy, what's this?"
Me: "That's my tummy." (She pokes at it for a while)
Lucy: "Why is it squishy?"
 
Later in the day ...

Lucy: "Mommy is so gorgeous!"
Me: "Oh thank you sweetie!  That makes me smile!"
Lucy: "No, I mommy.  Look at my earrings." (She is wearing my jewelry and pretending to be me.)

Nothing like a two-year-old to boost your self esteem.

Friday, April 20, 2012

Veggie Lover

       
Statements announced while we were preparing dinner last night.
"Look mommy, I'm tomato girl!"  "This pepper is a hat!"

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Cat Eggs

Lucy took her blanket today and swirled it in a circle on the ground. Lena (our cat) found this to be a perfect place to curl up. I later came back into the room to find Lucy sitting on Lena.
Me: "What are you doing? Don't sit on Lena!"
Lucy: "But this is my nest, and she is my cat egg!"

Monday, April 16, 2012

Batman!

Me: "Lucy, you have two choices, eat your dinner or take a bath. What's your choice?"
Lucy: "BATMAN!"
Me: "That's not a choice."

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Easter Photos

Clifford

My parents drove down from Minnesota this weekend with my dad's brand-new, red, Ford F-150 truck. This thing is huge. It's got a double cab and can probably haul a small village. When they arrived my dad said to Lucy, "want to go out side and see grandpa's new truck?" "Yeah! Yes!" she said, her standard response.

When she got outside she gasped and said, "Look! It's Clifford the big red truck!"

Friday, April 6, 2012

Jesus is a ghost

As a family we went to a Stations of the Cross mass tonight in honor of Good Friday. It was run by the Catholic Worker house and each "station" was along the downtown mall and linked Christ's via dolorosa to various symbols of oppression in Charlottesville. It was a very cool experience.

The first few stations went well. Lucy was engaged and liked the songs. (Although, at one point she danced from station to station, apparently under the assumption that this was a parade.) She prayed with us and said Amen.

At the seventh station, Lucy saw the cross that a girl was carrying and asked all sorts of question about it - What is the cross made out of? What color is it? Can I hold it? This of course was during a very serious reflection on the sins and oppression of violence and war.

At the next station, Lucy saw the cross and said, "Jesus died on the cross!" I smiled at her and looked around, secretly hoping other people heard that. "That's right!" I said. Feeling smug and self-righteous, I thought about what a great job we're doing parenting. What a precocious two-year-old, that my kid knows about Jesus, grace, and redemption. She's most certainly on her way to sainthood.

But then, she pulled a Lucy.

Smiling, she looked back at me and said, "Boo! He's a ghost!" and cracked up laughing. She then proceeded to run in crazy circles screaming, "Boo! Jesus is a ghost!"

I totally didn't see that one coming.

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Pigs don't fly

Lucy is currently making a list of all the things she's never seen a pig do - "I've never seen a pig with a backpack. I've never seen a pig on a bike. I've never seen a pig wearing socks ... "

It's particularly remarkable because I don't think Lucy's ever actually seen a pig. Period.

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Angel Nipples

Lucy is too young to be in the preschool Sunday School, but occasionally they include her in their activities. Today they made angels out of paper and tissues that said "He is risen."

Lucy handed her angel to Caleb and said, "I want my angel to have nipples."

Not sure if he heard her right he said, "What?"

But sure enough, she wanted Caleb to draw nipples on the angel. Caleb obliged.


P.S. Caleb and I spent Lucy's naptime making this cool graphic to go with today's post.

Saturday, March 31, 2012

Barrel of Laughs

Lucy was a barrel of laughs today.

She made up her own words to "The Wheels on the Bus" which included a verse where, "The Mommies and Daddies on the bus say 'chairs are for sitting!'" and "The Lucys on the bus eat at a restaurant." Clearly this is Lucy's dream world.

We also had a conversation about when Gram and Gramps Sancken might come for a visit. She wants them to come tomorrow and take her to the Children's Museum on the Downtown Mall. When I told her that they won't be coming until August, she was confused.

Lucy: "I want to see them tomorrow!"
Me: "Honey, we can't see them."
Lucy: "They're DEAD?!?"

Yet again, struggling with distinguishing "we can't see them" with "death". Not sure how we're going to resolve that one.

Today for nap time Lucy chose to read "I Love You Forever." Afterwards, her synopsis of the book was this, "When you get old, you're going to turn into a baby and be in MY belly."

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Swimsuit Sunday


This is what happens when Lucy insists on wearing her swim suit on a 50 degree March day.

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Restaurant Proclamations

Eating out with Lucy is always interesting to say the least. Today, when we got home from church, Caleb bolted out of the car and threw up in the woods behind our house. For the rest of the day he suffered from stomach trouble.

For dinner, I decided that Lucy and I would eat out in order to give Caleb some alone time and not expose ourselves to his icky stomach germs. The following were all said (loudly, because Lucy knows no other volume) during our dinner out tonight.

"My daddy threw up in the woods today!"
"I'm going pee pee in my diaper!"
"Goodbye lady!" (said as an old lady was leaving the restaurant)

This is why we don't eat out with her more often.

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Death continued ...

After yesterday's talk about death, I can see quite a few things still aren't cleared up for Lucy.

Lucy: "I want to go see Connor and Owen today."
Me: "Hunny, we can't see them today."
Lucy: "Are they dead?"

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Where is God?

One of our good friends recently lost their dog after a long battle with cancer.  Lucy loved this dog, named Chance.  Today I had to break the news to Lucy that Chance died.  Here's how the conversation went.

Me: "Sweetie, Chance died.  He went to go live with God."
Lucy: "Where is God?  I want to see God!"
Me:  "You can't see God, He is everywhere.  He is so big, that He's invisible.  God lives in the sky."
Lucy: "Lucy is in the sky too!"
Me: "Really?"
Lucy: "Yes!  With diamonds!"

Monday, March 19, 2012

Oh toddler!

For the past several months, we have been emphasizing that she's no longer a baby any more, and going through everything that means.  "Babies drink from bottles, but toddlers and big girls drink from cups", "Babies use diapers, but toddlers and big girls use underwear", etc.

Today I was goofing around with her after dinner.  I threw her up in the air and exclaimed, "Oh baby!"  She looked and me and said, "No mommy, oh toddler!"

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Banana Cookies

Today this is how I found Lucy's snack of banana shaped cookies.  She won't eat the faces.

Saturday, March 17, 2012

St. Patrick's Day

Before I got in the shower this morning I told Lucy, "make sure you wear green today!  It's St. Patrick's day!"

While I was in the shower she poked her head in and looked at me.  Looking puzzled she said, "But mama.  You're white."

Friday, March 16, 2012

First post

After several friends and family members asking that I start a blog amount stuff my two-year-old daughter says, I decided to just do it.  I think it'll be more likely that my mom will actually read it since she hates facebook.

So here are the discussions Lucy and I had today.

Me: "You see those flowers?  Those are called cherry blossoms.  Aren't they pretty?"
Lucy: "Do they go on top of ice cream?"
Me: "No, they're just flowers for now.  You see those white flowers?  Those are dogwood flowers."
Lucy: "Do doggies eat them?"

I've also found it remarkably difficult to explain why our car cannot be a mommy.

Lucy: "Is Prius a mommy?"
Me: "No.  Prius can't really be a mommy."
Lucy: "Can Prius be a baby?"
Me: "No. Not really.  The Prius was made not birthed."