That'll Show Her ...

Some of you may remember the nuggets of truth about parenting that my husband Bob imparted several years ago. One of them was, "Get used to the idea that you will be outwitted by a 2-year-old." My 4-year-old son Milo showed his sister that the same can be said about being outwitted by a younger sibling.

One day we were all spelling simple words together and our oldest daughter Neva, who just turned 7 this week, was unimpressed by the attention Milo and 2 1/2-year-old Willa were getting. She needed to be a smarty-pants and one-up her brother.

"Okay, Milo," she challenged. "How do you spell baby?"

Milo responded, without hesitation, "W-I-L-L-A!"

Happy sweeping!

Kathleen Gunther
Editor, ContestHound.com

The World According to Neva ...

My 7-year-old daughter started Grade 2 this fall. Mostly what they've been learning in the last 3 weeks has been review from last year. One of the subjects under review is Geography.

The other day Neva came across a children's map of Canada. It boldly and clearly marks the provinces, territories, capital cities and main bodies of water. Neva was excitedly looking it over recalling for her 4-year-old brother Milo some of the places she remembered. Here is what she taught Milo:

1. The capital of Manitoba is "Winsburg".


2. The northern-most bay, up Greenland way, is "Buffalo Bay".


3. North of the Northwest Territories and Beaufort Sea is "Ant Ocean".


4. Our newest territory is "North America".


5. And the western-most territory, bordering Alaska, is "Hong Kong".

As she drew her finger across the country, stopping at some of the places she remembered, she thought about where she'd like to visit if she were to travel across Canada.

"I would like to go ... to the US! Yeah, definitely the US.


For those who are unfamiliar with Canadian geography:

1. The capital of Manitoba is Winnipeg.


2. The northern-most bay, up Greenland way, is Baffin Bay.


3. North of the Northwest Territories and Beaufort Sea is the Arctic Ocean.


4. To Neva's credit, she has since remembered that our newest territory is
   Nunavut.


5. And the western-most territory, bordering Alaska, is the Yukon.

Happy sweeping!

Kathleen Gunther
Editor, ContestHound.com

Champagne Dreams ...

It's funny how kids get things mixed up in their heads. Like the time our 7-year-old daughter Neva was talking about someone in a coffin and said, "You know, in the esophagus." It took Bob a minute to figure out she meant "sarcophagus". (How she would remember either of those words is beyond me!)

The other day, we were watching a program on The Discovery Channel about hot air balloons. Neva had seen it before and was excitedly telling us what was happening.

"When they land they drink wine. And when they blow up the balloon, they fill it up with champagne!"

"They don't put champagne in the balloon," I corrected. "They drink champagne when they land."

"No, that's what they said. They fill it with champagne." She insisted.

Again, Bob clued in: "Propane," he said. "They heat the air in the balloon with propane."

"Yeah, that's it!"

Happy sweeping!

Kathleen Gunther
Editor, ContestHound.com

Odds Are ...

This morning I think I woke up on the pessimistic side of the bed. I was feeling especially tired, so my husband Bob asked our oldest daughter, Neva, to get breakfast for the little ones. In her almost-seven short years, Neva has, more often than not, proven to be a little less than cooperative when asked to help out in a situation like this. I had my doubts.

Everything sounded cheery in the kitchen as she got bowls and asked 4-year-old Milo to get the jug of milk from the fridge.

"I'll bet you a quarter she spills the milk on the floor," I wagered.

"I'll bet you a dollar she doesn't clean it up," Bob countered.

Wouldn't you know it, she proved us both wrong.

And that is a bet I don't mind losing!

Happy sweeping!

Kathleen Gunther
Editor, ContestHound.com

W-W-W-What's That?

With my 4-year-old son Milo starting Junior Kindergarten, I've been helping him learn alphabet sounds. We'll pick a letter and look for things that begin with that letter. "B-B-B-Book starts with B."

One day he picked the letter Y. So I pointed to a yellow fish on the shower curtain and said, "Y-Y-Y-Yellow begins with Y."

"No!" Milo corrected. "Y-Y-Y-Lellow!"

Happy sweeping!

Kathleen Gunther
Editor, ContestHound.com

Under Construction ...

It's newsletter day today and we weren't sure this issue would make it out. The city has finally begun construction on our street. We spent most of our morning watching the big excavator dig up the boulevard and the pavement, dump trucks filled with dirt and enormous flat bed tractor trailers arriving and unloading the giant concrete sewer pipes. It's busy, noisy, exciting and we get a kick out of watching it.

Can you imagine how much less work we're going to get done when the kids all get home from school and want to watch too?!

Happy sweeping!

Kathleen Gunther
Editor, ContestHound.com