beyond measure

On foster, adoptive, and biological parenting

[fosterthoughts]

Bedtime convo with ladybug, several minutes after I thought she was asleep:

Ladybug: Mommy you know what?

Me: Nope. Tell me.

Ladybug: My friend Lisa*? Her cats died.

Me: Oh, that’s sad. I’m sorry to hear that.

Ladybug: Yeah. A dinosaur got in their house. And that’s how they died.

Me: …

Ladybug: A real one. She told me.

Me: Wow. Well that’s too bad. I’m glad we don’t have dinosaurs in our neighborhood**.

Ladybug: Yeah.

*not her real name

**I decided this was not the moment to mention that we do sometimes have bears. But you know, not usually inside.

[fosterthoughts]

Surprisingly coveted job at our house: shaking open the new trash bag liner before putting it in the trash can.

[fosterthoughts]

Conversation with Ladybug on the deck today, after the girls had lined up the chairs to make a train.

Ladybug: All aboard! Where do you want to go?

Me: How about across the country to California?

Ladybug: [raises eyebrows skeptically]

Me: Around the world?

Ladybug: [Continues to give me a withering stare]

Me: To the moon?

Ladybug [back in character]: The moon? Yes! Let me just turn on “space.” [turns several pretend dials, and away we go]

Clearly I was on the wrong train.

[fosterthoughts]

So Piglet was sitting on the couch with a toy laptop tonight typing vigorously, when suddenly she yells “f%#*!” D and I perked up to see what was happening, and she did it again. We said “hey [piglet] what’s going on?” She looked at us and said with emphasis “f%#*! Daddy, f%#*!”

Now, our house is not always curse-free, but we do make an effort to censor around the kids. That said, watching Piglet cuss out the computer made us both pause and wonder if we had been slipping. It has been a pretty stressful time these past few months. Then we went over to see what she had on the screen:

It was a frog. She had just pronounced it with no “r” but otherwise very aggressive diction. We said, “yes! Ribbit ribbit!” And she went back to typing.

[fosterthoughts]

One of Pip’s favorite things to listen to the car these days is Kidz Bop’s version of “Uptown Funk It Up.”

Similarly, Ladybug is really into Kidz Bop’s “Up Down Fun Get Up.”

[fosterthoughts]

Ladybug can’t ever remember the name of D’s gym (Crunch) and she usually calls it “chunk.” As in, “Daddy are you going to Chunk Fitness today?”

*So close*

It’s literally my favorite thing right now.

[fosterthoughts]

Ladybug just finished pretending to give me a makeover with a wet wipe.

Ladybug: There. All finished!

Me: Do I look beautiful?

Ladybug (looks apologetically at me): Oh, Mama. It was just pretend makeup.

… so I’m guessing that’s a no. 😑

[fosterthoughts]

I’m watching Ladybug and D echoing tonal patterns back and forth into an empty toothpaste box while Piglet nurses. It’s a variation on our regular bedtime ritual but okay, sure.

[fosterthoughts]

Passing the college baseball field in the middle of a random afternoon:

Ladybug: Where’s the baseball players? Where did they go?

Me: I don’t know.

Ladybug: Maybe they are somewhere else.

<pause>

Ladybug: Maybe they are having quiet time.

Me: That’s probably it.

[fosterthoughts]

Piglet’s words so far (at 15ish months)

Hi

Mama

Dada

Bye bye

Uh oh

Yes

Hello (hey-o)

And most recently,

Yes, please! (Sounds like yes-eee)

[fosterthoughts]

Ladybug: Daddy can I have the rest of the finger strawberries?

D: Go to town.

Ladybug: Daddy! (laughing hysterically)

D: ….what?…

L: Daddy, I can’t drive myself!

[fosterthoughts]

Ladybug raced inside the house earlier while I was doing the dishes, crying, hiccuping, in total distress. Obviously I stopped to give her my attention…

Ladybug: Mommy mommy mommy, daddy said a bad word at me!!

Me: What did he say?

Ladybug: He said (sniffle) he said I can’t (sniffle) play the bouncy ball in the driveway when he drives in.

[fosterthoughts]

Something that was inexplicably hilarious to me today:

We are driving, and D blows his nose in a completely nonontrusive way.

Ladybug: bursts into wild giggles

Pip: there goes the horn!

D: blows his nose again, even more quietly

<pause>

Ladybug: BEEP BEEP!!

[fosterthoughts]

Things I didn’t expect to say today:

No, I can’t trim your toenails while we are driving.

[fosterthoughts]

Wonder if we attracted any attention when we walked into the doctor’s office this morning with one child in full taekwondo uniform, complete with newly earned black belt, and another wearing rainbow hearts, sparkly crown headband, and giant Frozen sunglasses. We were fabulous.

[fosterthoughts]

No reason

[fosterthoughts]

Ladybug worked very hard on David’s Father’s Day card. She was super proud, and read it aloud to us all when she gave it to him:

It says happy Mother’s Day.

I hope you feel better.*

And I hope you love me.

And I hope we all love each other.

And you can come to my birthday party.

The end.

*No one was sick.