Top Ten Favorite Things Our Kids Say Now

1. Word or Expression: "beskwit"
Translation: "breakfast"
Who Says It and How: Meg, confidently
Example/Notes: (The other morning as I came into her room to get her up for the day) "Mommy, can we go to Ice Cream Cone (Jimmie Cone) after beskwit?"

2. Word or Expression: "Med-eh"
Translation: "Meg"
Who Says It and How: Matthew, warmly
Example/Notes: (As I point to his sister) "Matthew, who's that?" (As a huge smile spreads across his face) "Med-eh!" This is something of a breakthrough since, until last month, Matthew always called Meg "sister".

3. Word or Expression: "besh"
Translation: "bless you"
Who Says It and How: Matthew, immediately
Example/Notes: Before my "achoo" ends, Matthew is saying, "Besh." Seriously, if you're in need of some blessing, just come over and let a big ol' sneeze rip. Our boy's got you covered.

4. Word or Expression: "go-go"
Translation: "Thank you"
Who Says It and How: Matthew, politely
Example/Notes: We think Matthew's "thank-you" is almost as cute as my little sister Lena's was at his age. Hers was "dee-too."

5. Word or Expression: "wan"
Translation: "van"
Who Says It and How: Meg, obliviously
Example/Notes: "Mommy, I'm weee, weee excited about getting in the wan for our wisit!"

6. Word or Expression: "dut"
Translation: "stuck"
Who Says It and How: Matthew, frantically
Example/Notes: (About 53 times a day, as his sleeve/toe/head/trike wheel get caught in or on something) "Dut! DUT! DUUUUUUUUUUT!"

7. Word or Expression: "What on ERF?"
Translation: "What on earth?"
Who Says It and How: Meg, indignantly
Example/Notes: (Any time she is mildly surprised, with hands cocked in the air and a shocked expression on her face) "What on ERF?" Dave says we should note that this is an expression she picked up from me. One of those things you don't realize you're saying till it comes back at you from your kid's mouth.

8. Word or Expression: "Kah-da"
Translation: "What do you call that?"
Who Says It and How: Matthew, obscurely
Example/Notes: Actually, we only think this is what he is saying with this sound-combination. If he says it while pointing at an object, and then we name the object, it seems to satisfy him. It's translation by the process of elimination... we can't figure out anything else that this could mean.

9. Word or Expression: "Die-die-die-die-die-die."
Translation: "My diaper needs some immediate attention here, people."
Who Says It and How: Matthew, urgently
Example/Notes: (After a moment of obvious exertion, patting his bottom) "Die-die-die-die-die-die." "Oh, do you have a poopy diaper, Matthew?" "Poopud-uh. Die-die-die-die."

10. Word or Expression: "Stinky turkey!"
Translation: Um...
Who Says It and How: Meg, hysterically
Example/Notes: This is a... what do I call it? An insult? Not really... it's more like a stand-alone joke that Meg invented this week. It grew out of a Sandra Boynton book in which the turkey character always puts items of clothing on the wrong parts of his body. (Shoes on his head, coat hanging from his beak, etc.) When Dave used to read it to Meg, he would always say, "Silly turkey!" at the end of every page. A couple of years and one three-year old mind later, I guess it just kind of... morphed. Now she hollers it to Matthew--"STINKY TURKEY!"--out of the blue, and immediately convulses, literally shrieking with laughter. So far, Matthew does not appear to be amused.