rivka

Scene: Reading Babies on the Go, one of our favorite library books. It's about how animals carry their babies. We're on the snow monkey page.
Me: 'Perched upon a mother's hip,' ...look, it's snowy where they are.
Alex: They need rainbowcoats.[1]
Me: They should wear their rainbowcoats to keep warm in the snow?
Alex: Snowy. Need hat and gloves.

Scene: Alex is holding a small plastic figurine of a (male) farmer.
Alex: This the vulva.
Me: That's his bottom.
Alex: Alex find the vulva. rotates figure for further inspection.
Me: Um. He doesn't have one.
Alex: mercifully moving on. Little guy go in the barn.

Scene: At the park, playing in a big empty fountain.
Alex: Soccer ball!
Me: Honey, we didn't bring the soccer ball. That's too bad.
Alex: in exaggeratedly tragic voice. Awww, Alex v. sad.[2]
Me: equally exaggerated voice. Awww, Mama will hug you.
Alex: V. sad, Mama hug you. happily runs away to play.

Scene: Still at the park, hanging out.
Alex: Alex see a little crescent - a letter C.
Me: I don't see a crescent. Where is it?
Alex: Hide and seek! Mama play hide and seek. runs over to a tree and leans her face against it. One, two, three, four, five... Mama hide. points to the other side of the tree. Mama hide right there.

Scene: hanging out in the living room.
Alex: Mama sing the ME song!
Me: to the tune of "It's Raining, It's Pouring." My name is Alex Wald, this is my address: [## which includes 8] Park Avenue, Baltimore Maryland.
Alex: singing, but not to any recognizable tune. I Alex Wald, this my red dress! Eight... Park... Diapermore, Maryland.
Me: falls over laughing.

Scene: At dinner.
Alex: pointing. Mama glass of wine, Papa glass of wine. Alex like a glass of wine.
Me: No, wine is just for Mamas and Papas. Is Alex a Mama?
Alex: Noooo!
Me: Is Alex a Papa?
Alex: Noooo!
Me: Is Alex a little girl?
Alex: Noooo!
Me: surprised. What is Alex?
Alex: Alex is a pumpkinhead.[3]

[1] This is her pronunciation of "raincoat." She also says "rainbrella." She does also know the word "snowsuit," but we've had such a mild winter that she's used to wearing her fleece-lined raincoat outside.

[2] Yes, she said "v." Not "very," "v." - pronounced "vee." She picked it up from Michael and me, who picked it up from

cassieclaire's Very Secret Diaries, which (obviously) picked it up from Bridget Jones' Diary. Yes, we are a little embarrassed about this.

[3] Can't argue with that.