All is Calm and All is Bright

I used to think little girls were the cutest kind of little kid there was. Sweet little faces, bows in their hair, little mini pink clothes. But that was back when all I had were nieces. As soon as I had nephews, my point of view changed. Little boys are just as infinitely precious, if a little different, than little girls.

I am sitting on my couch enjoying a rare treat - a visit from my two nephews who live about a half hour away. I really don't have to do much entertaining - it is amazing what a box of colored bears plus a box of pattern blocks will do. And it helps that with two of them, they have a built-in play-mate. Aunt Nellie becomes merely a spectator to little boy genius.

The neat piles of colored bears lasted about 10 minutes.

The scattered piles of plastic which looked chaotic to me but apparently represented buildings, burned houses, firetrucks, etc., lasted about 15 minutes.

Then, upon discovering my roommate's various sets of hand weights near the t.v., they began hefting them to show off for me (in typical male fashion).

Now the weights have become wrecking balls and giant transformer feet, stomping all over the plastic pieces. (Good thing I don't have downstairs neighbors).

It is fun to just sit and listen to the high-pitched (even higher than their normal voices) play conversation (this is my secret to figuring out what all the toys represent - otherwise I would have no clue that the pile of blue bears in the middle of the living room equaled a building).

Here is a typical interchange that all of you who have interacted with boys will recognize the tenor of:

Me, noticing that Mr. Brown-eyes has a runny nose: "Do you need a tissue for your nose?"

Mr. Blue-eyes, older and wiser: "No, he likes his boogers."

Mr. Brown-eyes, who often repeats anything older brother says: "Yeah, I like my boogers."

I just laughed.

Yep. Gotta love boys.

After about 30 minutes, we have degenerated into everything in sight being destroyed. Mr. Brown-eyes has twice come to me showing me a finger that the "robot" (2 lb. weight) has "eaten".

I never thought this face in "Home Alone" was all that cute, but on my nephew, it is the best (and he did this all by himself):