Additional Anecdotes

December 2007

Last summer, Kate and Connor are out of sight of Ellen and Eric, but we can hear Kate. “I’m tearing off the arms.” “I’m tearing off the head”. Ellen is curious. “Kate, what are you doing?” “I’m just looking at a pile of body parts mother.” Eric is amused. Ellen, not so much. “Whose body parts Kate?” “Jacob’s. He was mean to his little sister.” Subtle. Of course, Connor didn’t get the hint about treating little sisters well so he slept fine that night.

Kate found a small frog and picked it up. Ellen, distracted by a visitor at the time, made several requests of Kate to release the animal before looking over to find the frog lying on its back in Kate’s open hand. Ellen: “Kate, is that frog dead?” Kate: “Not yet, mother.”

Eric was passing by when he heard Kate tell Connor: “Don’t worry Buck, I will get a couple of grown-ups to handle it”. Curious Eric inquired if he and Ellen were the grown-ups she had in mind and Kate confirmed that yes mom and dad were now “a couple of grown-ups”.

Kate asked Ellen what she wanted to be when she grew-up, Ellen told told her that she was a physical therapist. Kate’s take: "They just help people. What else do you want to be?"

Ellen: "What would you like for dinner?"

Kate: "Buck Soup"

Ellen: "You have to cook something to make soup."

Kate: "He's my brother, I can do what I want with him."

Surprising in a different way, was an episode last winter when Kate was still 3. Connor and Eric are playing Connect 4 and are near the end of a long game. Connor is actually a pretty good Connect 4 player. Kate wanders into the room seconds before Connor makes a move. She stops and Eric makes a winning move. Connor is looking at the game when Kate offers: “You lose Buck. Four in a row diagonal. You should have moved here.” Pointing to a play at the last. This was especially surprising because no one had taught Kate how to the play the game and she had never shown any interest in it.