Christmas Turner-isms 2009

Turner is very verbal, and is almost constantly talking to one of us or just to anyone or anything that will listen. This holiday season, she was a constant bundle of hilarity and I told Mark that the only way I would ever remember what she said was if I had a notepad tied around my neck all day. While I didn't do that, I did start recording some of the things she said that I didn't want to forget. I am trying to write enough explanation with them so that they'll make sense to those who "weren't there" but also to me after time passes and these aren't so fresh on the mind!


We have a tradition in my family called Christmas Eve Gift - this is something that my Granny, Eunice, absolutely loved. Someone remembers to call another family member and shout "Christmas Eve Gift" before the other person can. Whoever claims that they said it first supposedly gets an early present that they can open on Christmas Eve. (I have never gotten an early present, just bragging rights that I won!)
Well, this year, Mark and I coached Turner on Christmas Eve morning and sent her out to go "get" my mom. I asked her to repeat "Christmas Eve Gift" to me twice and then sent her off the bed to go find Mom. On her way out, Mark said, "Turner what are you going to say?" Turner responded, "I already say it to Mommy". Well, alrighty then! :) She goes to find my mom and all we hear is some giggles, and then my mom say, "Did they tell you to say Christmas Eve Gift?" When we came out to the den we asked what she had actually said and it caused much hysterical laughter. She came out and said, "Happy Thanksgiving Day!"

Turner came to me one night when obviously she was hungry:
Turner: "I want something to eat."
Me: "What do you want?"
Turner: "I want pineapple, bring me some!"

We had eaten Sister Shubert's sausage rolls on Christmas Eve morning. Christmas Day, we had the plain rolls for dinner. Turner looked in the roll and asked: Where's the hot dog?

I was in the kitchen doing something and my mom was in the den with Turner attempting to turn on a recorded episode of Turner's favorite show SuperWhy! Turner came running for me, grabbed my hand and said: "Mommy, come turn on Super Why, Tootsie not workin' it!!"

Turner started learning several Christmas songs this season (Silent Night, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, Jingle Bells, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, We Wish you a Merry Christmas), but this sent us into hysterical laughter every time it happened. Think she's heard the phrase "Calm down" more than once? "Silent night, holy night, all is calm down!"

At the Christmas Eve service at church, Turner had to go meet and greet her "friends", otherwise known as about 15 of our senior adults at church. She greets them each Sunday morning and I am not sure who enjoys it more - Turner or them! After the service we were riding in the car and we started going through roll call of who she saw at church and we came to Mrs. Martha Nell. Turner quickly said, "Martha Nell? Martha Nell is my friend!"

Then also in the car on the way home, she turned to her Uncle Richard and said, "You come home with me? (Richard: "Yes, I am going home with you.") Ok, nice to meet you!"

We went to ride around our neighborhood one night to look at Christmas lights. A house around the corner had a Noah's Ark inflatable, with a lion who popped in and out of the doors of the ark about every 20 seconds. Needless to say, it scared Turner to death the first time it popped out. In an effort to prevent a freak out, we just told her it was saying "boo". Then she started singing along to "We Wish you A Merry Christmas" on the radio. (She was listening and learning the song as we were driving around - it was not one we had previously or purposefully taught her.)
The funny part is that the song stuck and she can pretty much sing it accurately without much prompting, and her version has a special tag on the end. "We wish you a Merry Christmas, We wish you a Merry Christmas, We wish you a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year. That lion say BOO to me!" I guess the song and the pop-out lion were cemented in her memory together??!!

When I asked her about her visit with Mema (my grandmother) while in Andalusia, she said, "We take pictures. We take lots of pictures. Smile Turner, Smile."

Over this holiday break, I have noticed a distinct increase in Turner's imaginative play, things such as:
--Using a hairbrush as a camera, then pretending to look at the picture in the viewfinder.
--Cooking me cupcakes, but baking them in her tea pot! She does this hilarious thing where she twists her wrist and raises her arm (mimicking turning the knobs on an stove and raising an oven door?). It totally cracks me up!
--Showing an interest in a doll (my original Cabbage Patch circa 1985) for the first time and recognizing that she might have needs such as a bottle, diapers, paci, etc.

Such a funny child! We laugh at her every single day - a LOT. She brings us such joy.