They crack me up. Everyday.

Em's skills at sarcasm are starting to rival her father's. She's learning how to cope with frenemies at school and is into email, talking on the phone and picking out special outfits (esp. from certain stores - she's suddenly VERY brand conscious).

Luce just had her first sleepover birthday party. The girls went for "Princess Manicures and Pedicures". As we arrived at the nail salon some girls were there getting ready for prom (our high school's prom was the same night as Lucy's b-day party). The little princesses in our party asked: "What's prom?" Then they all ooh-ed and aahed over the teenagers' pretty hair up-dos and fancy nails. One high school girl showed the girls her hairstyle (like a princess! Those curls!) and explained it takes all day to get ready for prom. The girls all turned to me and said: "When do we get to go to prom?" I told them: "Just about 10 years from today, ok?"

Michael is learning that if he gives a really smooth explanation that he can get his way sometimes.
He talked me into his eating a chocolate Easter candy one morning this past week because he explained it had "all medicine in it" that would make his sore throat all better.
It was so earnestly delivered and cute (and I figured no harm could come from a tiny piece of chocolate first thing in the morning, esp. for him because he's lost so much weight lately) I let him have the candy.

I've taken to jotting down the really funny things they say - because the kids crack me up so often. The other night Jeff and I were tucking Emma into bed and he was going to (playfully) hit her with a pillow. I made a good show of trying to wrestle it from his hands - and ended up with a 2 inch cut on my finger that I somehow managed to cause with my own thumbnail. When I showed Emma she said: "Sheesh Carolyn - you aren't to be trusted with soft objects!"

Last Friday morning Jeff called me and Mr. Man had this to say to him:
"Daddy. I very disappointed in you and I be angry with you because you don't stay home with me and I sick." When Jeff called me and we laughed about this, Michael, in the back seat of the car began to get REALLY mad and corrected Jeff:
"Daddy! I already angry at you."

The other night Michael came up to me dragging a quilt and said: "Mommy, how 'bout we play I patching." I said: "Patching?" ...instantly my mind went to thinking about quilting..but I could tell that wasn't what he wanted. I finally figured it out: he wanted to play he was a HATCHING baby bird. So, I wrapped him up in the quilt and he "hatched" and peep-peeped like a baby bird. He thinks its so funny when I say: "OK, the mommy bird will feed you chewed up worms now!" and make fake barfing noises - that cracks him up and he giggles for a long time.

The best was last week when I was giving the kids a bath and had the TV on in our bedroom. I was flopped on the bed watching the Miss USA pageant while rotating kids in and out of our tub. Lucy walked in to take her bath, took one look at the Miss USA swimsuit portion of the pageant on TV and said: "Ewwww. Gross!"