Grandma Hammond's Weapon

Several weeks ago we called my Grandma to say hello. We asked her about her time as a Marine in WWII. Victor had a specific question:

Victor: Did you use a gun?

Grandma, laughing: No, I didn't use a gun.

Victor: So what did you use? A sword? An arrow?

Grandma: I used a typewriter.

Zeke: That does not kill anyone.

I Swam the Length of Haw River

Today, I swam my final 55 laps in the Swim the Length of Haw River challenge at the Y. It took me 8 months to swim 110 miles. That's 3960 laps.

I enjoy swimming, but my fingernails are suffering from all of the water and chlorine.

Victor Chooses an Instrument

Yesterday, Victor sang in the Primary Program. His sudden show of musicality made me excited. After church I asked him:

Me: Victor, what instrument do you think you would like to play?

Victor, immediately: There is only one.

Me, interested: What's that?

Victor, very seriously: The harmonica.

FHE: Goals

Last night we sat down for Family Home Evening. Jeremy asked Victor what gospel topic he would like to learn about.

Victor chose setting goals. Or as he put it, "writing down what you are bad at so you can improve." After the lesson, he insisted on giving each person a Rice Krispie treat, which has a blank space on the wrapper where you can write things. We then had to write our goal on the treat so we would see it tomorrow.

Victor's goal is to do a really, really good job mowing a lawn (no sharks). Zeke's goal is to get his green band in swimming at the pool (which would grant him access to all parts of the pool).

It was a good lesson, and the boys were enthused about it. But I'm not sure where they learned about goals or why goals are so attractive to them. I would have predicted the opposite.

My Mother Dear

One of Zeke's favorite songs is "My Mother Dear." He likes to sing it to me. My favorite line is, "Like happy songs of bluebirds," just because of the way he says "bluebirds."

Tonight he sang it to me while he was going to bed, and for the first time ever he sang the last line: "A person bright and lovely is my mother dear."

Until tonight, I had been his "mudder dear."

Invisible

Zeke got a Happy Meal on Saturday, with a Batman toy. He put in on an outside table while he ran into use the bathroom. When he got back, the toy was gone.

Zeke: Where's my Batman?

Jeremy: I don't know. Where did you leave it?

Zeke: On the table, but he's missing.

Jeremy: Hmm. I guess you'll have to look for it.

Zeke, sweeping his arm over the space on top of the table: He's not invisible . . .

Victor Drives a Bus

Look to your right and you will see a picture of Victor driving a bus at age one. He is ecstatic.

Here he is now, age seven, and still thrilled to drive a bus.