Sometimes I forget Lulu is not even three yet:
“Lucia, take your fingers out of your mouth. There are germs under your fingernails…blah de blah, long scientific explanation of microbiology…”
“But germs are yummy! HA HA HA!”

“Lucia, I’m pretty sure you’re big enough to do this,” Me, trying to get her to do something menial.
Devilish look, “Maybe not.”

But then she’ll be so literal…
M0 finishing up a strange joke, “…and then the baby was in the oven! HA HA HA!”
Lu, “NO Mo! No say baby in oven! Oven is hot!”

Lu calls her sister “Monka” which I love, and I know won’t last forever, but it’s so perfect to hear them talking (yelling) back and forth, “BABY LU?!”  “MONKA?! Where you are MONKA!?”

Mo, “Jessie said our flowergirl dresses have to be orange and poofy.”
Lu, “I don’t want one. I want dinosaur one.”

It is one of the greatest pleasures of parenthood to watch a child’s world expand. In little ways (like learning where worms live) and in big ways, like last night:
We were talking about all the people we love (Mama! Daddy! Auntie Corey!), and I saw Lulu’s eyes go wide as she contributed, “I love…the whole people…The whole people in the whole world!”

Monica is as delightful as ever. Her almost-five-year-old brain just blows me away, and often cracks me up:
Dominic recently face-planted off the one step in our house, between the kitchen and the playroom.
As I was hurrying towards him from the living room, I saw Mo run towards him from the opposite direction. She threw up her hands and exclaimed, “How did we not see this coming?!”

“Baby Lu, hold still. We have to see if you can do jumping jacks while I hold your feet…”

“Monica, do you want to be a firefighter women when you grow up?”
With a horrified look, “No! No I do not! I just want to be myself!”

And this one’s for you Jess: as Mo looks down at her belly button, “Mommy, why did Jessie take her ladder out?”

Dom, you’re saying words! Kind of.

Well, you hiss at the cats. So that counts as a word. You love the ceiling fan and make a “ffff” sound when you point to it.
You sign “more” by clapping. Express joy by clapping, and sometimes clap your hands in frustration.
You also clasp your hands together in prayer during grace (oh! my heart!), reach out for hi-fives, and stand at the screen door to wave at people who leave.
Currently, your love language is biting, which no one really appreciates (much to your frustration). But we’re working on better ways of communication.

You’ll be laughing and joking and talking about serious stuff with your sisters in no time.