Car Conversations

This morning, as we were sitting at a red light on our way home from running an errand, Madeleine suddenly realized she could read one of the words on the traffic sign outside of her car window.  She has several sight words, including the names of her family members, but she hasn't yet applied her knowledge to an actual reading context without being prompted.  Today was a first in that regard, which was as exciting for her as it was for me.

MADELEINE: (pointing at a "No Turn on Red" sign) Hey, Mama!  N-O!  That sign says "No!"
ME: You're right!  Hooray!  Great READING, Madeleine!  You read a word all by yourself!

Not to be outdone, Julia rushed to chime in and explosively read the first thing she set eyes on.

JULIA: (pointing at the street sign of the intersection we were at) "May Street!"


Wow, Julia.  Way to hit it out of the park.  May Street.  You sure showed us that you can read.  But wait.  We knew that already.

Julia then proceeded to read EVERY SINGLE THING she saw during the rest of the ride home.  That'll show Madeleine for daring to read the word "no" aloud.  Julia put her to SHAME.  "Summer Concerts!"  BOOM!  "Right turn only!"  BOOM!  "59 Bus Stop."  BA-BOOOOM!

Since we spent a large chunk of time in the car yesterday on our drive home from Vermont, there were plenty of opportunities for the girls to pipe up from the back seat with all sorts of commentary, questions, and demands.  As we drove around downtown Winooski looking for a parking spot so we could grab some lunch, Julia helpfully pointed out to Ethan that all of the spots were taken. 

ETHAN: Maybe I can park here...
JULIA: Uh, no, Dad, there's a CAR there!
ETHAN: Well, that's a big pile of poop.
MADELEINE: (suddenly becoming interested) Where is it?  Where?
JULIA: (pointing at the car) THERE!
MADELEINE: No, where IS it?  I can't SEE it.
ME: Madeleine, Daddy just meant that it stinks that we can't find parking.  There's not really a big pile of poop for you to see.


At any rate, the lunch stop was one of MANY along our ride.  Julia only had to pee about a million times during our drive.  Because she is so responsible and trust-worthy, and because she's old enough that she doesn't need constant monitoring, Ethan and I both left her to feed and hydrate her own self at Nana and Gramps' anniversary party the day before.

Consequently, this happened:

JULIA: (holding up a cup of pink lemonade) Mama!  This is my NINTH cup of lemonade!

Combine that with the tall glass of water Julia drank at lunch before we hit the road for real, plus the 20-oz bottle of water she drank in the car, and we had a girl with a bladder that constantly needed voiding.

At one point, we stopped at a gas station to use the bathroom, per Julia's request, and I insisted Madeleine try too.  Madeleine diligently sat upon the toilet, only to announce, "No pee-pees," after a few seconds.

Not to worry.  No more than twenty minutes later, as we were back on the highway, Madeleine was ready to try the toilet again.

MADELEINE: Uh, Daddy, I need to go POTTY!
JULIA: (brightly) Me too!

At any rate, we are back home and slowly attempting to get back into the swing of things, with an exciting day of swim lessons and camp ahead of us, and who knows what other kinds of adventures the day will bring!