Anka Spada

So, Bug has her own language. And her favorite phrase in Bugspeak is "anka spada." So what does "anka spada" mean? Anything she wants! Yesterday it meant "I love you" and today it meant "Good morning!" She likes to randomly say it throughout the day and is even more tickled to keep you guessing at what it means. Silly Bug!

Mugger's Quote of the Day

"I have a loose tooth, Mr. Bathroom!"
Yes, Mugger is a bit excited this morning that he can wiggle one of his teeth (bottom left middle). They grow up so fast...

Back to Corvallis

We made it home at 10:15 last night-- and no, I don't regret the decision to drive all the way to OC and back! Mugger and Bug are great travelers! So great that we drove almost 9 hours yesterday with only 1 stop. (And yes, Papa got to drive all the way home from the Bay Area since I had done the other 3 legs solo.) Of course, it helped that Bug fell asleep for the last 3 hours of the trip...

We'll post pix of our great California adventure soon, but I know the kiddos are happy to be home and have the whole family together again. Bug is currently dancing around the living room for her Papa!

And Corvallis must be growing on Mugger. As I drove him to school this morning, he gazed wondrously at all the fall colors and said, "Corvallis sure is prettier than where we used to live," and then asked me, "Does Oregon have more trees than anywhere?"

Sure is good to be back in our "tree house" (named because about all we see out any window is trees!)

Happy Birthday Mugger!

Today our Mugger is 5-- how can it have been 5 years already? I asked Mugger tonight as I tucked him in (after his big day playing at Disneyland and California Adventure) if his first day of being 5 felt any different than his last day of being 4 and he said...

"Well, now that I'm 5, I think my bed feels smaller."

Mugger's Quote of the Day-- Sunday, June 8

Mugger's question in Sunday school this morning...

"If God has the whole world in His hands, how does He keep all the people on the bottom from getting squished?"

Happy Half-Birthday to Bug!

Bug is now officially 30 months old! To mark the occasion, I cut her hair! No, actually, she needed a trim as her fine hair gets into scraggly knots rather easily, so she's back to a bob. We also measured her today and she's now passed the 3-foot mark. (We measured Mugger, too, and he's just past 43 inches.)

She's quite the independent two-and-a-half year old-- of course. She always wants to do EVERYTHING on her timetable and if you start to count to 3 to hurry her along, she'll scream that she doesn't want you to count! So for now, what seems to work best is me asking her if I have to count. Usually she'll say no and take that bite of dinner or finally put down her toys to get in the van or whatever is requested.

Last night she was prancing around in her brother's superhero cape, her unicorn slippers, and her pop beads proclaiming, "I'm a princess!" Not sure where she got that one, so I told her that she could dress up and still be Bug. I was awfully proud of Mugger for adding, "Yeah, 'cuz God made you special." Of course, he then had to add, "And He loves you very much. Bye-bye!" Can't tell they're Veggie Tales fans, can you?

Mugger's Quote of the Day

"I'm so happy I bet I'm gonna fall on my head!"

said by our Mugger when I told him, yes, he could give Gramps the whole batch of Oatmeal Raisin cookies we made this morning. I guess his reaction was because they're Gramps' favorite...

Or perhaps he was just anticipating his afternoon bike ride-- he and Papa have been pedaling home on their tandem every Tuesday after preschool. If you missed that pic, click here.

Tuesday Night at Costco...

To set the scene: when we go through the check-out line at Costco, the kids (riding in the cart) go through on one side of the register, while Papa goes through the other side to pay. I go wherever the kiddos need me to-- they sometimes don't like sitting on the register side without one of us.

Mugger: Mama, we don't need you. You can go stand with Papa.
Bug: Mama, Papa doesn't need you. You can come stand with me!

Goofy girl!

Mugger's Joke of the Week

"Hey Mama/Papa-- I can count to 900! 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900!"

This is the height of silliness to a 4-year old, and Mugger has told this joke to EVERYONE this week!

"Mama, what's heaven like?"

Exerpts from a conversation with Mugger in the car yesterday...

• Mama, are there toys in heaven? We'll have everything we need to be happy, Mugger.
• But will there be enough trains for every kid to play with? Yes...
• Does God have a really big, big backyard? I'm sure He does.
• With frisbees? (laugh)

All because he was concerned that he would be as happy in heaven as his great-grandpa is...