Yesssssssss, Beneyney Efmos, Course

Just a few of the words that grace our ears.

Matthew and Renee have started saying yessss, ya and yeah are no longer.

Matthew says "couse" (of course, without the of and r), most often in response to "Matthew do you want a kiss?" "couse Mami".

Samuel has started to write letters, not really words though. But he'll write a string of letters and ask "what does this say". Last weekend the letters were E F M O S, so I read it as it would sound, and asked him what Efmos was. he explained that it's Plop Plop and Ding Dong's mom's last name and her first name is Beneyney (sp?), but Plop Plop and Ding Dong have a different last name. So there you go, it was Beneyney Efmos who named her children Plop Plop and Ding Dong.

And a significant milestone in my life, and that of Matthew and Renee. I recently travelled for work for 3 days and nights. I barely got the words "I'm going on a business tr. .." out of my mouth before Samuel started jumping up and down, shouting "SLEEP OVER" (he stays with my parents when Marc travels, and last time didn't want to come home). Matthew was ambivalent. Renee said "No, Mami stay with Nene" repeatedly, or sometimes "Nene go couver with Mami" (Renee is goingto Vancouver with Mami). So I was worried, but it was all for not. They were fine while I was gone, slept well, asked for me once in a while but were fine. I was fine too, except for the cancelled flight, time difference and insomnia.

How Matthew Uses the Kitchen

We got Samuel a play kitchen for his 3rd birthday, it was in instant hit, he loved it and still cooks with it to this day, so does Renee. Matthew though prefers an alternative way of amuzing himself - if you push the kitchen over, you can use it as a slide!! Who knew??

A house boat truck

An example of recent art. I love the complexity, intricacy and symmetry.

Bubble Bath

The boys like predending to be Tocayo (my dad) with bubbles to emulate his beard. Here Samuel is being "Sonic Underground Tocayo"

In this picture Matthew is being Tocayo. Other times, he is Batman, Superman, Spiderman, kitty cat, dog, or lion. And sometimes a combination. "Matthew, what's your name" "Mafew kittkycat, batman lion rrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrr".

Renee, in this picture and on a regular basis, is coveing her mouth while fake giggling and saying "boys is silly"

Two-and-a-half

Dear Matthew and Renee,

You are two and a half, the quintecential 2 year old girl and boy.

Renee, you are a girl through and through. You love dolls, especially Emma (Hanukah gift from Regi and Tocayo). Upon sighting a Barbie in Regi and Tocayo's basement, you picked it up gently and said "my baby".

You are precocious and recently told Daddy that you were six and when he asked if you were older than Samuel you said yes. You also got a Walt Disney purse kit from daycare, complete with a brush, compact and fake lipstick which you love "applying". Despite being the yougest and smallest, you act as a second mother to Matthew and Samuel (and Daddy and me for that matter). This morning everyone was downstairs and I was enjoying a few minutes to myself. You came upsatirs, openned my bedroom door asked "Mommy, what you doing?' I said "watching a little of Mommy's TV" and you said "OK Mommy, I go downstairs to see what boys doing". You often say "boys is silly" and cover your mouth in a fake laugh when you see your brothers being rambunctiouis.

You love "witing" (writting) which is a series of squiggles that look like WWWWWs in a row across a piece of paper, or sometimes, just a few WWWs on one page and then you move on to another page and another page and another page. You also love reading. There's a Spanish picture book you really like with animal pictures - when you name the animal in English, I give you the Spanish word and sometimes you repeat it but other times you argue back "no perro, doggy".

You take the normal toddler possesiveness to a different level, saying "my" several times in a sentence. "I want my Mommy my lap", "I want to my make with my Mommy" whenever I an cooking. After seeing Niagara Falls out of the car window, you exclaimed "my window my waterfall", and in the week since our trip there you've said "I want it my window my waterfalls" several times, as if we'd be able to make them re-appear.

Matthew, you are a boy through and through. All about trucks and trains. You love playing with train tracks. Tonight, at bedtime (or an hour after as you refused to go to sleep), you insisted "I need duba decka in bed" ("I need my double decker bus in bed") but then agreed that "duba decka can stay on floor".


We went to the Royal Ontario Museum today, or as you call it "dinosar house" (dinosaur house) or "muzemum" (muresum) and saw a marshal arts demonstration which you were enthralled by. You have been trying to immitate their moves all day, coming quite close to doing summersaults and cartwheels. I think if you had a little bit of instruction in gymnatics you'd be flying through the air.

You love eating, and ask for "befast cheerio pasitas" when you wake up (breakfast with raisin bran cereal, as all cereal is referred to as cheerios). You actually cheer when food is placed infront of you. A couple times, you have wanted a banana badly enough that you have bitten through the skin before I could get to peel it for you. You love "smoka sama" (smoked salmon). You also love coffee, asking for it by name when Daddy and I drink it. For a while you used to call is focky (reversing the consonants) which really confussed us.

Despite this love for food, you are ever generous with it. You frequently offer us bits of your food and don't like it when we say "no thanks", you reallty want the recipient to enjoy as much as you do. When you give something to Renee, you give it to her, she takes it, and then you say "tank-you Nene" - it could be that you are telling her to say thank-you, but it sounds more like you are thanking her.

You hate the cold, and get cold very easily whether it's outside or even inside, you are quick to get the shivers and have chattering teeth. You always want to wear your hat, scarf and "goves" (gloves).

Renee and Matthew - you are a joy to be with. You keep us euqally entertained and on our toes. On our way home from a restaurant tonight, you had the following conversation:

Matthew - "Matthew superman"

Renee - "No, Saml superman, Matthew Batman, Renee ABCD" (for the boys it is a reference to what super hero they want to be, for Renee it's her favourite You Tube video)

Matthew, emphatically - "No, Matthew Superman"

Renee - "No, Matthew naughty, boys silly"

Matthew - "No Matthew superman"

Marc - "Renee, Matthew can be superman"

Renee - "Matthew superman, Saml superman, Nene ABCD, boys is silly naughty"

And so on and so on, I was laughing so hard I could barely drive.

Here's to many more fun conversations!!