Titanic

I took Maura to see Titanic in 3D today. There were maybe a dozen people in the theater. I wasn't sure how it would go. It gets pretty intense towards the end. It was the steamy motor car scene that made the biggest impression. Or perhaps it's that she was watching this scene with her mother. The camera does a tight shot of Rose and Jack in the motor car...and I hear a little voice to my left...clear as a bell...

Maura: Awk-WARD!

Telephone Etiquette

Upon being scolded for interrupting while Roger was talking to his commanding officer on the telephone...

Roger: I'm sorry that I shushed you, but I asked you to be super quiet while I was on the phone with my boss.

Schatz: Well. Next time, could you just tell your boss that your daughters are talking to you; they don't want to shush; and you'll call him back tomorrow?

Kids are so Transparent!

My neighbors are Muslim and don't eat pork. It's never been a big deal. I am just careful about what I feed their kids when they come over to play. These days the girls are getting sneaky (and I'm pretty sure they came up with this together...)

I was fixing lunch last week when Schatz and Chuku came into the room to tell me something important.

Chuku (age 5): Miss Jamie, I'm allowed to eat pork now.

Schatz: Yes, her dad says it's okay now.

Me (skeptically): Oh, yeah?

Chuku: Yes, so I can have pepperoni and bacon and stuff when I come over for lunch.

Me: Okay, but I'm still probably going to check with your dad before I feed you pork.

Chuku (getting nervous): You don't need to talk to my dad.

Me: I kind of do, Chuku.

Chuku: Well. He doesn't really like to talk about it. It hurts his feelings. He says we can eat pork as long as we don't TALK about it. So I can have the pork, but you don't have to tell him about it.

Me (chuckling a little): It doesn't really work that way, Sweetie. We can't lie to your dad. That's not being honest.

The conversation then turned to honesty and why it's okay to not eat pork...but this part has stuck with me all week.

Pretend Friends

Schatz (holding Maura's hand): Today, let's pretend that we are best friends.

Maura: Best friends on a road trip.

Me: Why do you have to pretend? Can't you just be each other's best friend?

Schatz (exasperated): MOM! Because we are just playing pretend!

Children at Funerals

Kids have a way of making you smile even during the sad times. We attended a Memorial for a friend of mine who passed away last week after a long, difficult battle with Leukemia.

Speaker (while speaking about Kimberly's life as a military wife) : Kimberly always met life's challenges with poise and grace.

Maura (in a LOUD whisper): Mom? Who's Grace?

Musical Beds

Schatz: Did you come get me in the middle of the night?

Mom: No, you woke up and crawled into Mommy's bed.

Schatz: No, I didn't. Daddy must have gotten me.

Mom: I don't think he did.

Schatz: Well, I did not wake up and come get in your bed.

Mom: Maybe you were sleep walking.

Schatz: Yes, that's it. YOU were sleep walking and came to get me in your bed.

Everyone's a Critic

While flipping through her Daddy's iPod...

Schatz (disgusted): Daddy, I can't find P!nk, but you sure have a lot of cowboys.