�Mommy, I�m having a rough morning.� Why does this sound so funny coming out of the mouth of a kid who�s not even three feet tall? AJ might as well have said, �Oy-veh. I really need another cup of coffee, but my spastic colon�� The words were spoken after AJ slammed his fingers in a kitchen cabinet and then managed to trip headlong over his blankie as he grabbed for it to console himself.

AJ has taken up a couple of phrases that we find extremely funny. One he likes to use at the computer when the screen freezes: �Mommy, it is simply not working!� I find this totally hilarious and I am completely in the dark as to its origin. It must be from school, because it doesn�t sound at all like something either I or my husband would say. It simply does not!

We were at playgroup today and he came running up to me, looked me up and down and said, �Mommy, I really like your outfit,� before zooming off again. The hit and run compliment. Outfit? And I might add, his taste is questionable. It�s laundry day and I�m into the dregs of the wardrobe.

He has also been working on a fascinating modification to his demands for things. This usually involves requests for TV or videos, something he loves but which we frequently deny, due to our feelings about such things. He started out saying, �I need�� then moved to �I want.� Now, however, he seems to be attempting to rationalize his desires. �Mommy, I really think I should watch a video now.�

All of this reminds me of an outing I took with my cousin S. about a decade ago when he would have been around three years old. I took him to a playground near his house. The playground had one of those little merry-go-rounds that you push around and then jump on. You hardly ever see these anymore. S. really wanted to ride on it, so after admonishing him several times to �hold on tight,� we set off. But S. was a boy of scientific bent and when warned of the dangers of letting go, he simply had to find out what would happen. He let go. He went flying off onto the frozen ground (it was Thanksgiving). I ran over to find out whether he was hurt. �S.,� I said, �are you okay?� Instead of bursting into tears like a normal three-year-old, he looked pensive for a moment. �Well,� he responded after taking mental inventory, �I�m a little bit angry and a little bit sad.� He stopped to analyze his feelings. Yup, this kid is definitely part of my family.

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