Sippy Cups

"You're a big girl now. You don't need a sippy lid."

Tessa climbs up onto the counter and gets a lid for her cup and hands it to me. "I'll give up my sippy cup when I'M ready. I'm not ready."

Baby Sister

One of Tessa's favorite shows is the Bernstine Bears. No one in the Bernstine family has names, they're just called, Mama, Papa, Brother and Sister.

"Tessa, what is your baby sister's name?"

"Sister."

"Yes, she's your sister. What's her name?"

Tessa shrugs.

Someone else asks, "What's the baby's name?"

Tessa thinks for a moment. "Kenny!"

New Baby Sister

Today Tessa became the big sister to a 2-1/2 week baby girl named Vanessa!

Vanessa lived the first two weeks of her life at an intake foster home with three other babies. Tessa liked the other babies because they were active...not just laying there, like Vanessa. On the drive home Tessa announces, "Mommy. Let's go back and get another one."

Monsters

Tessa and I are spooning just before dawn in a hotel room.

Tessa whispers, "Mama. There's a monster."

I mumble back. "There's no monster. Go to sleep."

"Shhh. Do you hear dat?"

*snort*

"Dat. Dat's a monster."

"No it isn't. That's grandma snoring. Go back to sleep."

Anger Management

We go to one of those indoor water parks. Little-miss-daredevil and I go down a three-story waterslide. On the second trip she wants to go down alone, so I go down first and then wait for her to come. I see a wild-eyed child flailing and falling out of control down a slide much larger than her. With a swoosh she disappears under the water. When I retrieve her she is screaming, "I'M NOT MAD ANYMORE!"

"What? That made you mad?"

"NO! I'M NOT MAD ANY MORE!" And she runs off to climb the stairs and do it again.

So, if you or somone you know needs anger management. It's the blue waterslide at Chula Vista Resort in the Wisconsin Dells.

Bendy Straws

I’ve always loved bendy straws. The only time I got them as a child was when I was in the hospital. Mom may have bought them once, after much begging on my part but only once. So when I saw a big bag of bendy straws at that store where everything is ONE price, I had to pick them up...for Tessa...because I didn’t want HER to live the same deprived childhood I had to endure.

That night at dinner Tessa was totally engrossed in her bendy straw.

“sssslllluuuurrrpppppppppppppppp
pppppppppppppppppppppppppppp
pppppppppppppprrrrrrrpppppppprr
rrrrrrrrppppppppppprrrrrrrrrrrrpppp
ppppppppp rrrrrrrpppppppprrrrrrrrrr
ppppppppppprrrrrrrrrrrrpppppppppp”

On second thought. Tessa will get over her non-bendy-straw-childhood. I’m now over mine.