caleb speaks

Caleb is a talker and, in addition to parroting everything his older brother says, is starting to say funny things of his very own. They're not quite as bizarre as what Garrett thinks to talk about, but he's certainly headed in that direction. Here's a sampling of the things he says so frequently, we'll probably be quoting them for the rest of our lives.


This is a conversation we have every single day during lunch.

Me: Okay, after lunch Caleb is going to take a...
Caleb: Map!
Me: That's right. You're going to take a nap---
Caleb: Bunkbed! Down bunkbed!

Even though he's been out of the crib for a couple months now, I think he still worries I might forget.

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"Stop it out, o-KAY?!"

"Stop it out" is a combination of "Stop it" and "Cut it out." Lately he attaches his highly inflected and drawn out "o-KAY?!" to anything he wants to emphasize, though usually only when he's getting frustrated.

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"That's siwwy."

His sense of humor is starting to become more developed and he finds lots of things silly these days. Often Garrett is the thing that is silly, and he'll make a point to say so: "Dahrrett so siwwy!" Of course, Garrett eats this up, and before too long both of them are giggling on the floor as they mirror each other's silliness.

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"I do it myself!"
"Mommy/Daddy/Dahrrett do it!"

Caleb is becoming fiercely independent, almost obnoxiously so. He wants to do everything by himself...except for when he's feeling lazy, at which time he'll assign someone else to do it for him. And you'd better not volunteer to do something in place of someone else -- he takes his doled out assignments incredibly seriously.

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"I hungry. I hungry, Mommy."

There's nothing like a little face standing two inches away from yours first thing in the morning as you lay half asleep in bed telling you that he's hungry to drag you out of your warm bed.

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Favorite shows, which are requested on a daily basis as soon as Garrett is off to school:

"Nonan" (The Snowman)
"Eye and Eeah" ("Alex and Leah," also known as Signing Time)
"Pigeon Bus" (Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus)
"Boo's Coos" or "Paw Print" (Blue's Clues)
"Gagga Gagga" (Yo Gabba Gabba)

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"It's ovee"

The second a show ends and the credits start rolling, Caleb runs to the TV, announces that it's over, and turns it off. Apparently he's all about saving energy.

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"Mommy! I poopy-toot!"

He's showing nearly all the signs of being ready to graduate from diapers (even, despite his way of telling me he's uncomfortable and needs a new diaper, the difference been passing gas and something more) except the most important -- an interest in using the potty. If I could just convince him to be interested, I think we'd be set. But there's no point in rushing these sorts of things, especially with a personality like Caleb's. When he's ready, he'll let the world know.

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"Bee sou-ee!"

This translates as "Bee cereal," which translates further as "Honey Nut Cheerios." This, along with a mug of hot chocolate with marshmallows ("mar-mos"), is his favorite breakfast.

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Other favorite things:

"Bandie" (his silky, blue blanket)
"Bee-bee" (his new baby doll; the old baby doll is now usually referred to as "Mommy's bee-bee" as he thrusts the doll and all the responsibilities to care for it onto me)
"Goggy" (doggy, whether real or plush -- he loves them all)
"Cheese-ham-teeta" (cheese and ham melted on a tortilla, which is his favorite lunchtime food)