Frog Rainboots @ Target

Aren't these cute? They made me so happy the other day.

How Old Do You Think I Am?

:Last week @ the preschool:

Note: I don't have this word for word

[Kids say something about kindergarten]
Me: "You guys are going to have SO much fun in kindergarten."
A: "How do you know about kindergarten?"
Me: "I was in kindergarten a loong time ago."
A: "Aren't you in our class?"
Me: "No. I am in your class, but I'm not a preschooler. I'm older than you."
A turns to L and says, "I think she's in fifth grade."

A Special Guest

:@ preschool yesterday:

Mrs. B.: "Tomorrow someone special is coming to visit us."
Kid (I don't know who said this): "I know who it is!"
Mrs. B.: "You know who it is? Who?"
Kid (maybe same kid): "A chicken?"

Although the student was taking a wild guess, he's actually remotely close. Today, the owl lady is coming and bringing in two owls and a hawk (or something else). I'm excited!

Berkeley Professors Say Funny Things

“I spent three days hallucinating with howler monkeys…. It is funny in retrospect.”
-- Professor William Hanks on Palenque, where he got Salmonella

TMI, Dude.

:Today:

A (very matter-of-factly and nonchalantly): "Today I pooped in my pants. And then my grandma wiped me and I took a bath."
Me: "Oh no!"
A: "And sometimes my butt itches."

Tooooo much information. And you're definitely not shy or easily embarrassed.

I'm Either Five or 100

:Today:

Me: "How old do you think I am, V---?"
V.: "Five."
Me: "J---, how old do you think I am?"
J.: "A hundred?"

Haha...so S isn't the only one who thinks I'm five years old...and J thinks I'm 100. Lovely. haha So cute.

Luke was actually close (well, closER). He guessed 16 or something like that the other day.

Mommies, Trash Cans, Food, Death, & Attachment

Wow. The kids made me smile and laugh A LOT today, but I don't think I'll be able to remember everything. Here are the few things that I do remember:

L.: "I miss my mommy."
** She's been saying this every day this week...and luckily she's gotten better at not
crying. ::sigh::
Me: "I miss my mommy too."
** I was trying out a new strategy because two out of my three consolation attempts had
failed. **
S (I think): "You have a mommy?"

Haha! This time I was able to hold back my laughter and give her a serious answer: "Yes I do. I have a mommy and a daddy."

--

The preschoolers were talking about putting things in different places, and then one of them mentioned putting me somewhere, but I didn't hear where, so the following conversation ensued:

**paraphrasing because I can't remember exactly what was said exactly in which order (they all tend to talk or shout at me at the same time)**
Me: "Where are you gonna put me, J---?"
J. (getting slightly embarrassed): "In the lake with your swim suit on."
** I'm glad she had the decency to allow me a swim suit **
Me: "V---, where did you say you'd put me?"
V.: "In my lunch pail."
A.: "We're gonna put Miss ---- in the trash can."
Me (acting sad but then smiling): "In the trash can? That's not nice."
A: "People don't go in the trash."
**I had told them this before**

--

Me (handing each kid a wipey to clean their hands after recess): "You guys are gonna eat something cool. Something yummy."
V (or someone...): "We're gonna eat something cool and yummy!!"
*This made me happy because I hadn't expected them to really pay attention to what I
was saying.

--

Avery: "When you turn 99, your skin peels and then you die. And then you go to the cemetery and then you're a ghost."

--

K: "Sit right here."

He always says that to me unless I sit right next to him.

Today, I said, "I'm sitting right here."
K: "Why you sit there?"

Sometimes he says, "Sit with me!" with an English-learner accent (so cute). He uses a deep, monster-ish voice (I really don't know how else to explain it...raspy?) sometimes that also cracks me up. Aaand sometimes he gets kinda shy, smiley, and giggly around me. I think he became attached to me because he knows I look kinda like him (as far as looking Asian goes) and I seem goofy and soft-spoken (not that he doesn't love his other teachers!!). He used to call me "sister," but then he stopped. I was worried at first after he learned that I would sit next to him during carpet time when he misbehaved because I thought he might misbehave on purpose to get my attention. So cute. I'm flattered. :P

I wish it were safe and appropriate to post pictures and videos of these kids. ::sigh::

Make sure you eat your happy food first!

A: "I'm big!"
Me: "I know! It's because you eat healthy food, huh?"
A: "Yeah."
V: "I eat happy food!"

Distracted By Her Ear Gunk

Yesterday, when I was helping this girl write a final draft of a little paragraph about her "wild thing," she stopped writing and stared at the paper. I assumed she had lost track of where she was in her sentence, so I started reading the next few words. Here is her response:

"I know. I just had gunk in my ears."

Oh...great. I...hope you got it out?

One Girl Thinks I'm Five

Samantha: "I'm four."
Me: "I know!"
Samantha: "Are you five?"