Tad loves to tickle my back, but it’s the things that he says in the course of a day that really tickle me. I try to jot them down on sticky notes, but I’m afraid that I’m going to lose the little pieces of paper, so I want to record the witticisms here.
Family Prayer (10/23/12)
This morning, BT had to rush out the door with the girls to get them to school. We’ve done so much better in getting them there on time this year, but I think that today might be the day Vivi gets her first tardy. Anyway, as Ari was hustling to the truck, she shouted over her shoulder, “say family prayer for us.” I love that she’s always so good about reminding everyone to pray. At her request, Tad and I stood at the back door, and he said the family prayer. Excited about moving on to the adventures of the day, Tad kept it short. Here are his exact words:
“Heavenly Father, this is Tad. I bless that we won’t pee in our underwear today. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.”
He didn’t mean to be funny. He was as sincere as a little four-year-old still striving to master his bladder could be. I was tickled.
Fruit (8/7/12)
As the kids and I sat around the table one evening (BT was at church meetings), the topic of conversation somehow turned to Adam and Eve. Tad got excited because he had learned about the famous Biblical couple in Primary. I asked him what he learned from his Primary lesson. His exact words:
“Don’t eat any fruit off of any tree or we’ll have to move to a different city.”
Sweet Georgia on His Mind
This past summer and for the first time in several years, the extended Tolbert family had a reunion. Everyone had a blast, and on the morning that we were heading back home, Tad resolutely announced that he would not be joining us. He was going to stay with Gran (doting board game partner), Poppy John (patient tractor pal), Papa (cuddly lap), Sadie and Sassy (drooling dogs), Gran’s funny-looking guineas, and all the other little critters that he and the other cousins had discovered in the 100-acre wood of Shady Hollow Trail. Who can blame him? While we were there, the well kept running dry, so a dip in the lake counted as a bath, teeth brushing was kept to a minimum, and suddenly Tad was getting praised for NOT flushing the toilet. Thankfully, we finally convinced him to keep our family intact and come back with us.
Several weeks later, I was sorting through the SD cards from my camera, and I came across pictures from the reunion. The imaged stirred fond remembrance in Tad. His little heart longed for Georgia, a place of adventure and unconditional love. He sighed and quietly said, “I should have stayed there. Right, Mom?”
(The picture at the top of this post is one I took of Tad sitting on Poppy John’s tractor this summer.)
Promise? (10/27/12)
Last week, Tad was watching “Pirates of the Caribbean” with a little friend that I was babysitting for the day. They reached the part of the movie where Captain Jack and Elizabeth Swan are marooned on a deserted island, and the pirate unsuccessfully tries to kiss the leading lady. I overheard Tad explain to his friend that his Dad did not like kissing movies, especially not those where the characters kiss on the lips. Tad then turned to me and said, “Mom, I promise that I will NEVER kiss anyone on the lips.”
Whew! His teenage years will be easier than I thought.
Oklahoma! (10/21/12)
On Sunday as we waited for sacrament meeting to start, Tad leafed through his Book of Mormon. Suddenly, he stopped at a picture of Lehi and his family on their ship headed to the promised land. In the picture, Lehi is holding a ball of curious workmanship. He excitedly exclaimed, “Mom! He’s holding the OKLAHOMA!”
Ok, so maybe we do need to redouble our efforts at family scripture study.
(I know that the previous post was all about Tad, but the fact is that he and I spend a lot of time together in the course of a day. As such, I sometimes have more blog-worthy material amassed for him than I do for the others.)
