calebisms.

Just some things recently seen and heard from our Caleb B:

Caleb was playing with Play-Doh at his little table. Kenzie kept stealing pieces and trying to eat them. He was patient at first, calmly telling her “No, no baby. That’s not for eating.” But after the fourth or fifth time of telling her to stop, we heard him say, “Kenzie! I said don’t eat it! I’m tired of this!”

I was sick and resting in our room while Luke and the kids were playing in the living room. I got up briefly to go see what they were doing. Upon seeing me, Caleb says, “Mommeeeeeee! Are you feeling better? Join us!”

The other day we were snuggling on the couch and I was looking at Caleb’s hands. Caleb looked up at me and said, “I think you need to cut my nails. It’s time.”

Luke and Caleb were going somewhere and as Luke was pulling out of the garage, he realized he forgot something. He pulled back up, ran into the house and then got back into the car. As they began driving away, Caleb said, “Okay, let’s try this again.”

Caleb is an expert at naming stuffed animals and toys. He named Kenzie’s dolls Ela and Olivia, and her lion Kuma. He named some other toys “Finally” and “Dinkin” and “Bucky.”

One night, Caleb was crying in his crib because Luke wasn’t home and he wanted his daddy to put him to bed. I let him cry until he was ready to talk it out and be a big boy. The next morning Kenz was crying about something this convo ensued:

C: No, no, Kenzie! No throwing a fit!
M: Then why did you throw a fit last night?
C: I did? (He put his finger on his lip and looks up like he’s deep in thought.) I’m sorry!

There are a few words that Caleb mispronounces and I just can’t correct him because it’s too cute. He says Vancougar instead of Vancouver, alligator instead of elevator, mines instead of mine (“is that yours or mines?”), mato instead of tomato, cado instead of avocado, froggy instead of foggy … just to name a few.

We’ve been calling him Caleb B his whole life, so he calls his sister “Kenzie Bees.”

He’ll say the most grown up things like “What did you say, now?” or “What was that, now?”

He’s a protective big brother and thinks he can tell Kenzie what to do. The other day, Kenzie was playing with a small object, and he said, “No Kenzie, you can choke put that down.” When she didn’t, he said, “Onnnne, twoooo, threeeee … that’s it – you’re going to time-out!” I stopped the little charade when he attempted to pick her up and remove her from the scene. She just looked confused the whole time.

Other frequent brother to sister phrases we hear:
“Kenzie that is NOT okay.”
“That is unacceptable baby.”
“Gotta tell the truth!” (Never mind that she only knows three words.)
Kenzie, mommy’s here, it’s okay!

When he wants to get out of doing something he’ll say, “How bout we do that tomorrow?” or “Not today, maybe tomorrow.”

We constantly hear “What are you doing?” and “Where are you going?” even if the answer has already been given. Repeatedly.

I love it when we are getting ready for dinner or a nap and he asks sweetly, “Can I play for a little bit?”

I’m a little afraid sometimes what will come out of his mouth. The other day we were touring a house and he kept looking at the realtor. Finally, he asked me (with her standing right in front of me) “What is her name? Does she have a dad?” (That could have gotten awkward, but she thought it was hilarious.)

Every time he stands on the back of the stroller he says “On aboard!” (instead of all aboard).

Sometimes he’ll be playing with his toys, giving them different voices. When I say, “Who are you talking to?” he’ll say “Nothing.”

He loves it when we are all four sitting together, laying in bed, driving in the car, or going on an outing. He calls it “family day,” and often calls for “group hugs.”

He has always been so quick and generous with his “I love yous.” We get them all the time at random moments and it never gets old. Recently he’s been saying I like you, too. “Daddy, I like you.” “Mommy, I like you.” And we take those opportunities to tell him, yes we MORE than like him … we LOVE him with our whole hearts. But the liking part is important, too. The more he grows and we learn more about his quirky personality, empathetic heart and effortless humor, the more I can say with complete certainty that I LIKE this boy. I really, really like him.