Music lover

Oldie, but goodie.  (The video is from late January.)  Iohan is a much more spontaneous singer than Manny, who sang a lot more than Jonah did.  His late favorites are "The Itsy Bitsy Spider," "Baby Beluga," and "The Farmer in the Dell."  He can sing the Our Father with us at prayer time, which is not only adorable and soul-warming, but also slightly hilarious -- his Our Father singing voice is high-pitched and chirpy, the exact voice that Jonah used to make his plush pup Whiffy sing with.  I'll put money on that sweet little voice making a thousand angels smile, and sing, too.

Bone-crunchers

Though the boys occasionally complain of boredom, they’re rarely actually bored around the house.  Between the backyard, the toys (that I keep stepping on) and each other, they generally keep busy running, smacking, and building, and our home rarely lacks for excitement.  You might not have known that, though, if you’d been around late Thursday afternoon, as I was preparing dinner for the oven.  “DAD!!” shouted Manny, when Gabriel walked thru the door: “We’re having MEAT ON THE BONE!!”

I was roasting a chicken for dinner.

I’m surprised that the energy and excitement in our house didn’t cause some sort of combustion, to be honest.  And I wish that I could put into words how enamored the boys were with the idea and reality of tearing flesh from the bone with their "sharp canine teeth!"  As soon as he found out that I would be roasting a chicken, the day before the meal, Jonah told me numerous times how he wanted to crack the bones with his teeth and suck out the marrow.  Yes, for real.  Manny exclaimed, “Look! Blood!” during dinner when he did actually gnaw a bone apart and discovered the spongy red layer inside.  I had to tell him that I couldn’t look, because it would probably make me ill.  In true boy form, his excitement remained undiminished.  Jonah told me (as he often does when he enjoys dinner, I must admit) that the roast chicken was “the best dinner” I’ve EVER made.

I love these boys’ enthusiasm.  I love that a roast chicken, and its accompanying bone-crunching, is a highlight of the week.  Would that I had their enthusiasm and energy for life's small pleasures, even if said small pleasure is "just" MEAT ON THE BONE!!