Christmas Sounds

The house is now filled with the sounds of a three-year-old playing cars and occasionally voicing a truncated Christmas carol: "Frosty da snowMen! Happy soul! Core-cob pipe but-don nodse eyes made outta toal!"

This morning he helped me put ornaments on the second floor Christmas tree.

It's going to be a lovely Christmas

Two Hot Dudes Off Diamond Head

Me and the kid off Waikiki -- Diamond Head in background. He's more interested in the sticker he's holding than the hot fellow passenger I asked to take our picture.

Children Will Listen (and open the wrong drawers)

My son, waking me up back in August using his best "scary face" in our remodeled bedroom. One of the things we did was expose the brick walls, as you can see.

The other was to get new furniture, including matching rustic nightstands, one of which can be seen in upper left.

With our remodel, later the morning that this picture was taken, the LTR and I were discussing how to best use all the new storage space we had.

LTR: What do we put in the nightstands?

Me: Our "toys" (if you know what I mean and I think you do)

Our son: What's in here (pointing to the nightstand drawer and opening it).

Me (looking at LTR): Then again...

So right now in my nightstand (I don't know what the LTR has in his) I have misc. bike items. The other stuff I was referring to is safely hidden away where three-year-olds can't find it (I hope).

Love You -- Talk to You Later

Except he pronounces it "late-ur"

That's what my nearly three year old son says when he's done talking to you -- which could be 10 seconds after saying hello or after several minutes of "conversation." We call him every Sunday. He's becoming more conversant. I can also get him to sing to me - the alphabet song is a favorite and yesterday he added the Barney theme song to his repertoire.

Years ago when my niece and nephew watched Barney it annoyed my socks off and when I heard the "I love you, you love me" lyrics it was puke-inducing. But when sung to you by your own child, well, totally charming.

The LTR get to spend the next month with him, starting this Thursday.