Have you ever read that book by Robert Munsch, Purple Green and Yellow?  Or something like that?  In it, the kid gets these wonderful markers and keeps drawing this great stuff.  The mom always says, "Wow, my kid is an artist!"

And here I am, cliche moment of the year, but, "My kid is an artist!"  She has such amazing fine motor control.  It really blows me away.  Her printing is, I think, even neater than mine!  She can write her name, Ephraim's name, mom, dad, and the other day she did Oma and Pake with some help.  I can spell off letters to her and she will write them down.

Now, I know what you're all probably thinking...  she is my daughter, and I probably am a bit biased...  but honestly, this kid is a GENIUS!  Must be the good genes she got from me!

Which brings us to the other genius child in the family, our son.  At his two year checkup, the doctor told us that the speech goal for two year olds is two word sentences.  Eph then told him a story about how Daddy took him on the bus.  I have to remind myself that he's still the young side of two...  his vocabulary is huge.  His understanding is amazing.  He blows me away. 

Last night, clear as a bell, he said, "I looked for Zia upstairs!  I looked but I couldn't find her anywhere!"  You can have a complete conversation with the boy.  Probably even on socioeconomics... 

And now, now he's almost there.  At the magic moment that all parents of young children wish for.  The toilet training.  He is doing GREAT.  Most of the time...  well, mostly as long as he's wearing his Bob the Builder big boy undies.  You see, the thing with these undies is that there's a little picture of Bob right on the front...  on the little flappy thing.  ((is there a technical term for that flappy thing??  What is it's purpose anyways???))  Saying "don't pee on Bob!"  Brings whole new meaning when he can look down and see Bob right there on the front of his undies.  The Franklin people need to get with the picture and put Franklin on the front...  it really doesn't do much good when the picture is on the back all the time!

I'm still putting him in trainers for naps and for when we go out anywhere.  Diapers at night.  But the messes are getting to be fewer and fewer.  Except, of course, when he takes himself to the bathroom.  I'm not really sure how he managed to get poop on the wall and on his socks...  and I'm not really sure that I want to know that one!

It's a hard life, you know.  Being the parents of such geniuses (geni-i??) as these.  What's especially hard is knowing that they're already smarter than us.  It makes me lose sleep at night.