words and phrases

Words Caleb can say:

- Uh-oh. He says this all the time, and each time he does (even when it's because he angrily threw a toy across the room) it's adorable.
- Hi. It's especially endearing when he's standing behind the front door as I walk in and says it with his neck craned.
- Bus. Which he says while we're waiting for the bus (city or school). When he sees it [finally] coming, he'll point to it as he says it.
- No. Of course, every kid says this, right? When Caleb says it, he shakes his head, too. That always makes Garrett laugh.
- Tickle. Which he says almost as a sound effect when he's tickling either himself, me, or Garrett. (For some reason, he doesn't tickle Blake much.)
- Mama and Dad. To Blake's dismay, he says Mama more than Dad, but what Blake doesn't see is that whenever he buzzes the building's front door to announce he's home from work, Caleb runs to the door and happily says "Da!"
- Baby. He never uses this to refer to himself. He knows better, apparently.
- More. He uses this request as he points to, and sometimes makes a grabbing action at, what he wants.
- Blanket. Referring, of course, to his special silky, blue blanket.
- Shoe. He loves to wear his shoes and slippers and is incredibly adept at retrieving a complete, and correct, pair both when requested and whenever he feels like wearing them.
- Clean up. Said in a sing-song voice (think "The Clean Up Song") when he's putting toys away.
- I did it. This phrase is usually slurred together, but I'm counting it because he says it at the right time and usually also claps his hands with satisfaction after doing whatever it is he did.


Phrases and terms Garrett uses frequently:

- That's cwazy. (That's crazy.) Everything is crazy to Garrett these days. In fact, the other day he raised his hand in Primary and when he was called on he answered, "That's cwazy." I don't know what the question was, but I'm pretty certain that was not even close to the right answer.
- That's siwwy. (That's silly.) Also, "He siwwy," and "That's so siwwy." He usually says this in reference to something Caleb did, whether or not it was something silly. It's also a synonym for the above.
- Hungry store. This refers to the restaurant Five Guys. It's his favorite place to eat out.
- Chinna. (China.) A couple months ago he learned about China at school. His teachers must have shown the class where China was on a map because now to Garrett China means any map or place on a map. It's especially funny when he pulls out the subway map, points to somewhere in Queens and proclaims that it's China.
- You wike it? (You like it?) He asks me this whenever he's created something -- a picture, a "sassle" (castle) out of blocks, a "scared monser" (scary monster) out of his magnet toys -- that he's proud of.
- I wuv it. (I love it.) His own response to the above.
- I care. (I'll carry it.) When he wants to hold something, he'll tell you he cares.
- Ooh Ork City (New York City) and Bookyn (Brooklyn). Dad works in New York City; Garrett lives in Brooklyn. He's got it all figured out.
- Ishop Annison (Bishop Anderson). A few nights ago at dinner Garrett was quite caught up in a conversation he initiated about how Blake works in "Ooh Ork City" in tall buildings with water towers when he suddenly called him Bishop Anderson. Apparently the child has been paying attention at church.
- I wuv you, too. (I love you, too). He likes to tell me this, complete with the "too," which he apparently doesn't yet understand the concept of, out of the blue. It's always a very sweet to hear him say.
- Mom-mom. This is his hurried cross between Mom and Mommy.
- I cited. (I'm excited.) He's excited about a lot of things these days.
- Sansing. (Dancing.) To Blake's ears, this sounds oddly like "sexy," and he can never figure out why Garrett would use that word. And then he sees him breaking down to groovy music in the living room and it suddenly all makes sense.
- Hanks. (Thanks.) He's not only discovered the shortened form of "thank you," he's discovered he prefers it.
- I got it. He's become a fiercely independent kid, my Garrett. Whenever I try to help him with something, he tells me he's got it.
- We try again. Because he hasn't always "got it."
- Trash can truck. His term for a garbage truck.