Conversations with Collins

• Apparently, Collins has heard his friends scream "cannon ball!" when they jump. He joins in except he says, "Cannible!" 
• Has a stuffed frog he calls "Hermit." Gets Kermit and Hermit Crab confused!
• He was watching a fishing show with Jake one morning. When the guy caught a fish Collins asked, "Did he spank that fish?"
• Lately says "It took ages" and uses "horrible" not-so-appropriately. For example, "That was a horrible big truck!"
• "Told you."
• Quizzed him one day on what happened on the Fourth of July. He guessed, "God's birthday!?" I said, "Nooo..." Guessed again, "Noah's!?!"
• We talked one morning about the birds we saw and I explained that a big group of birds is called a flock of birds. He got it almost right the next day when he observed, "Look at that big chunk of birds."
• He whistles. But instead of whistling it is a high pitched squeal that resembles a great whistle. Funny.
• According to his friend Tate, there are "snake fish" in the river. Collins totally believes it because Tate said it.
• He also believes everything Finley says: "It's going to rain today." I said, "I don't think it's supposed to today." "Yes it is, Finley said it's gonna rain." 
• He told Ms. Jordan he was going to grow up tall, marry his mama, and then marry her :) And Mrs. Megan told me yesterday that Collins informed her that she was going to marry him in four weeks.

• More about marriage...he told me that he was going to give me an earring so he could marry me. I asked where we were going to live and he said, "in campus."
• Collins still likes spooky stories about witches and vampires and such. Probably freaks out his teachers. He's never even seen a movie or show about a vampire other than The Count on Sesame Street, but his good ole mama tells him about them (I never make them super scary, it's okay). Anyway, I recently worked in a little literature lesson while talking about witches and taught him the witch chant from Macbeth: "Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and caldron bubble." So a few days later I hear him reciting it: "Bubble, bubble children trouble"!
• One of the Bearenstein Bears books we have starts out with Brother Bear stalling at the library. Sister Bear tells him to hurry up and he says, "Hold on, I'm looking for a good mystery." In typical fashion, Collins tries to apply it to his life! He was standing in front of the pantry one day looking for a snack, so I urged him to hurry. He said, "Hold on, I'm looking for a good myffery."
• Looked in my throat one day and said, "I see your echo."
• We went to baby Liam's infant baptism recently. It was the contemporary service, so there was a praise team on stage and they had lights/smoke/a band. When I pointed out the smoke Collins asked me, "Mama, what are they cooking up there?"
• Another book we have has a picture of a kangaroo and you can push a tab to see his leg move. It has broken off, so Collins told me: "He broke his hopper."

Collins got this balloon from Jake McLaughlin's first birthday party. He LOVES balloons!

• I made him a banana split one day. He liked it. Since then he asks for "another banana swool" (swirl)
• MawMaw brings him "squashy hamburgers" pretty often (gummies). The last time she was here he knew she had one in her purse, but he had to wait till the next morning to get it because it was bed time. That night he included this in his prayers: "God, please help MawMaw give me a squashy hamburger in the morning." :)
• One night we were trying to hug each other good night and we bumped our heads together. He grabbed his head and said, "Mommy, that's your problem." ha! He gets "problem" and "fault" confused!
• Calls Hadley "Sister Woman" (from Cat on a Hot Tin Roof) because I do. It's just funnier coming from him!
• Referring to cars at an intersection the other day: "Look at that toe jam."
• He was looking at a Kids Life (local magazine) the other day and saw a picture of a group of youth cheerleaders. He asked if I knew them and I said, "No, but I think they're cheerleaders." He said, "They're beautiful...very beautiful!"
• The kids and I stopped by my office last Friday while I was off (preschool was closed). Somebody asked Collins when he would be four years old and he responded, "On my birthday."
• The other night at dinner Collins said, "Mommy, we're a messy family." I guess the truth's the truth!