The punch line

We hear a lot of jokes around here. Sean is the master joke teller and always appreciates a good joke. Last night after family night, we found some jokes in the Friend magazine (July 2008). Warren decided he would give joke telling a try, so after Darin had told him a few jokes, Warren tried them out on me. He had a couple of successful attempts: (Darin had already shared all these jokes with me, so I did my best to pretend I didn't know)

Warren: What kind of flower roars?
Me: Um, a roaring flower?
Warren: A Dandelion!

Warren: What does the sun drink from?
Me: I don't know, what?
Warren: Sunglasses!

He was feeling pretty good about his perfectly delivered jokes, so he tried his hand at another one. This one proved to be a little more tricky. Here's how the joke is supposed to go. What did the pig put on his sunburn? OINKMENT! Here's Warren's attempt.

Warren: What did the pig put on his sunburn?
Me: Aloe Vera?
Warren: Pig Oink!

We were all laughing pretty hard, including Warren. He asked, "What was it again?" Then we replied "Oinkment", and explained why it was funny.

This morning, Warren found the magazine on the couch and decided to try again:

Warren: What did the pig put on his sunburn?
Me: I don't know, what?
Warren: Pigment! DANG! What is it again?
Me: Oinkment

Attempt #3
Warren: What did the pig put on his sunburn?
Me: Um...I don't know
Warren: OINKment! Finally!

Because it made me laugh...

A kink in my neck

Last night Darin and I had a visitor in our bed in the form of a very sad two year old. The cry that brought him to our bed was an intense scared cry, and he was anxious to be consoled. As I snuggled him next to me, I realized that his sadness required the "every inch of my body must be touching yours" kind of reassurance. David was invited to snuggle up next to Dad, but only Mom would do. After he had calmed down, I looked over to see the mile and a half in between Darin and I and tried to move David to the middle so we all (meaning I) could sleep comfortably. His tears started again, and he once again molded to my body. I was hanging off the edge of the bed, my neck was twisted in an inhuman position, and I was tempted to be annoyed about it. Then my mind went where it has been often lately, to Stephanie and Christian Nielson. I don't know them. In fact, I hadn't even discovered NieNie's blog until after the plane crash. But, like many in the blogging world I was instantly smitten, and I spent much of my computer time reading past entries, then reading about their recovery. So in the very early hours of the morning with a sleeping child next to me, my tears started. I thought about how grateful the Nielson children would be to be able to snuggle up to their parents, and how anxious Christian and Stephanie would be to allow it if it were possible. I thought of how fragile life is, and how important it is to live every day with purpose. My heart broke for the whole family, and at the same time I was touched by their faith, their strength, and their commitment to each other. My tears turned into a prayer. I prayed for the recovery of Christian and Stephanie, the children, the extended family, the doctors, the family of the flight instructor who died, peace for all involved, and then I was filled with an immense sense of gratitude. Gratitude for the opportunity to be a wife and a mother to an amazing husband and beautiful children. Gratitude for the gospel. Gratitude for the peace that can only come through the whisperings of the Spirit. I fell asleep with this sense of peace and with a strong and heartfelt desire to to better. To be the kind of wife and mother I know I am capable of. To be a little more kind. To "enjoy the journey" instead of endure it. To smile more and frown less. To praise more and criticize less. The thing about tragedy is that it forces us to take a step back and look at the big picture; to help us re-prioritize and see again what really matters. I am a stranger to these people, and yet their life and their struggles have been a big part of a profound life lesson learned. I pulled David closer to me, kissed his sweaty head, and put my arm around him. I awoke to a substantial kink in my neck; the result of the position of sleep through the night. I used it as a reminder for the lessons I learned in the wee hours of the morning. Every time I turned my head, I remembered to be grateful for my many blessings. I came downstairs this morning, and instead of thinking about donating to the Nielson fund, I did it. My contribution will likely not pay for much, but my donation added to the thousands of others who have already donated will make a difference. (If you want to donate, click here.) I am also planning on ordering this necklace. It will be my reminder when the kink in my neck is gone.

"I need" and other David-isms

I know I just did a post about David, but there are some David-isms I need to write about before I forget.

-He is very in touch with his feminine side. He doesn't mind dressing up, and he even has a doll. It is one of Olivia's old dolls, and he re-named her Tasha (hopefully not after the demon cat). Pictured below is David after (one of the many times) Olivia and Lily dressed him up (this time Lily did the dressing up and Liv was the photographer). He will sit still through manicures, pedicures, and hairstyles. While I was getting ready to paint my toenails one day he came in and said, "Mom, can you paint my nails?"

- He doesn't want anything, but he "needs" lots of things. "I need a hold you" "I need a treat" "I need my silky" "I need a watch a movie". I finally figured out that it is because when he is sad I say, "What do you need, buddy?"
- One day Darin was eating a jolly rancher, and David said, "Wha have?" Darin said, "Nada". to which David replied, "I need a nada". He now thinks all sucky candies are called "nada".
-He calls flip flops "foot lops"
- He calls jammies "jazzeem"
-He asks me to "bowl" his food when it's too hot "Mom, bowl it."
-Here is a recent conversation about eyebrows:
David (while touching my eyebrows): Mom, you got eyebrows?
Me: Yes. I have eyebrows.
David: It's kinda like hair.
-His favorite ways to say "I love you"(that I may have forced on him because he sounds so stinking cute when he says them): I love you so much, I love your guts, and I love you to the moon and back!

A scare

Last night at about 8:45 we got a knock at the door asking if we had seen Eric. He is fairly new to our neighborhood and had been missing for about an hour. My heart sank as I put myself in the mother's shoes. I went outside to see ambulances, fire trucks, police cars, 4-wheelers, and neighbors knocking on doors and sharing information to see if anyone had ideas about where he could be. Fortunately the search was successful. He was found two neighborhoods away inside a friend's house; the result of some of the door knocking that took place. We were all very much relieved as we saw him walk home with his grandma, apparently unaware of the anxiety and heartache he had caused. (I'm sure he had a little talking to when he got home!) Not only did this teach me how great our neighbors are, but we also got a little chuckle at the end of the evening as we heard the kids talk about their feelings. As the search party passed Teague's house he (Teague) said to Eric, "You scared the lungs right out of me." and then as we got home Warren said, "That totally freaked my heart out!" We were all grateful for a happy ending and a few giggles that will last a while!

Monkey Boy

Our little boy (David) loves snacks. He is also part monkey. So if his pleas for snacks go un-heeded, he simply helps himself. The first time he did this he yelled, "Mom, can you get me down?" He is capable of climbing down himself, but doing so while holding a treat in one hand can be tricky. The second time he did this I took a picture, and now we keep the pantry locked!