Saturday, May 28, 2011

Just sayin'....

Human beings have been vomiting for about 6 million years (off and on), and for the vast majority of that time they didn't have washing machines.

Just makes you think, y'know?

(Yeah, Ben's a little sicky.)

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Couple more....

Yesterday:  "Is today the actual day of you guys's anniversary?"  [The answer was yes.  We loved the "you guys's" construction!]

Last night at the beginning of dinner, Neil put plates on the table and said, "Is there anything else we need from the kitchen?"  Ben's response:  "We're all set, thanks."  [I guess we've been going to too many restaurants lately!]

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Two Toronto Bennyisms

  • Yesterday, driving along the Gardiner Expressway:  "It seems that every other light is turned off."  [He was right -- every other street light was turned off.]
  • This morning, when Neil opened the curtains and Ben was suddenly in full sun:  "There is sunlight on my shoulder, and it isn't making me happy at all!" [Think John Denver, "Annie's Song."]

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Poor Dixie Down!

A little over a week ago, Ben got his first guitar.  It was a big hit, right from the start.  Usually when I go to pick him up from daycare, he's so involved in playing that it's like pulling teeth to get him out the door.  But every day last week he marched right up to me and said, "Let's go home so I can play my guitar!"  We'd get home and I'd still be down in the kitchen fixing a snack, and he'd already be upstairs rocking out.

As you know, if you've been following this blog, Ben is a serious John Denver fan.  On our greatest hits collection, there's a track where John Denver covers The Band's song "The Weight."  This led us to watch YouTube videos of The Band's original version, plus their various other hits.  That explains Ben's song line-up for this impromptu gig.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

My Mother's Day

This is how it started:  I was in the kitchen making biscuits (it was a Formula 1 race day).  Ben ran in, put his arms up to indicate that I should pick him up, and announced:

"This is your Mother's Day hug!" [big hug]
"This is your Mother's Day kiss!"  [sloppy wet kiss]
"This is your Mother's Day back rub!"  [back rub]
"This is your Mother's Day cuddle!"  [cuddle]

Yeah, life doesn't get much better than that!

Here's the "John Lennon Hotel" that Ben built while we were watching the race.  He usually builds animal hotels, to house his large collection of small plastic animals, but this time he decided that John would be the featured guest.  Note John's banana slug button.

Later in the morning we went for a Mother's Day walk, during which Ben addressed everyone we met with a hearty, "Happy Mother's Day!!!"  The two school-age boys down the street who were out riding bikes were a little nonplussed by this, but the neighbor woman two doors down was tickled.

Here's a random shot from last week.  It was the first warm, sunny day we'd had in awhile, and Ben was trying on last summer's sunglasses before we headed out to a playground.  This of course meant that he had to go get his ukulele, for full effect.

Sunday, May 1, 2011

He must be operating on a whole different plane

Starting at about 7:30 this morning, Ben woke up laughing.  He continued to giggle sporadically for the next half hour.  When he finally got up, he told us a joke that apparently had come to him in a dream.  It goes like this:

Where is the ball?
It got stubbed on a toe.
Why did it get stubbed on a toe?
[big punch line coming up; break into pre-emptive helpless giggling]
It is because you keep moving the bat!!!

Yes.  That's the joke.  No, we don't get it.  But that is the joke, and he proceeded to recite the entire thing, without deviation, at least 50,000 times during the rest of the day.  Even tonight, roughly 12 hours after the initial recital, he was completely unable to contain his hilarity as he built up to the final punchline.  At least he knows how to entertain himself!