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When your DD10 was the only child invited to speak to a group of adults at a local river watershed association fundraiser about a summer river camp that she has attended for the past 4 years or so last Saturday.

Among other stories she happily told them how I had been very impressed on a birdwatching/dog walking trip along the shore of a nearby reservoir when I had pointed out some teeny tiny snails in the water to her and she had exclaimed "That's a gilled snail so the water here must be very clean!". The director then interjected that it how similar the gilled and the lunged snails are and that you really had to know what you are doing to be able to tell them apart when DD blurted out - "yes! one opens on the right and the other to the left. She had learned this at river camp once over 2 years ago!

When your dd5 is bouncing around and being hyper active and you tell her to calm down and she yells, "it's like I'm radio active!!"

at playcentre, DD set up a dinosaur museum exhibit complete with fossils and bones. When the other 3 and 4 years showed little interest she started taking the mums for tours. I had one comment to me later, she talks like she's reading a book, as though she's thought out what to say and memorised it.

I guess that's true she does talk like that. I love those playcentre mums, they don't get DD on any level, but they DO love and accept her, and are very happy to help extend her.

When you have to watch movies like "Apollo 13" as a lead into your vacation (because vacations have to have a museum/educational bent to them) at Kennedy space center. And as the parent you have to keep a laptop or tablet nearby during the movie to help answer the questions that come up. Otherwise you will never get through the movie, because we HAVE to do further research on everything and everyone involved.

And vacation isn't for another 13 weeks.

When your DS3 shows promise as a negotiator. (This is a skill we're trying to inculcate in him.)

DS: How about I eat 3 bites of healthy food for one bite of chocolate?

Me: You need more healthy food for a bite of chocolate.

DS: How about 6 bites?

Me: How about 12?

DS: Would 10 work?

Me: Yes, and if you eat the rest of your healthy food and have room, you can have more chocolate.

DS: One bite?

Me: (knowing he will be mostly full at that point and only be able to eat maybe 3 bites of chocolate) As much as you want!

DS: Wow. I can eat ALL THE DESSERTS IN THE WORLD!

DH: Buddy, you're constrained by the capacity of your stomach.

DS: Still, it's exciting to imagine!

Just proceed with caution.

My DD says she has an invisible computer in her brain that remembers everything. She says this invisible computer takes pictures of all music scores and remembers everything forever.

Definitely not the world's most reliable computer but I must say, sometimes, it feels like she has a computer chip in there.

One funny and one sappy:

Last night, DH and DS3 were sword fighting and practising creative insults. Among my favourites of DS' were "cat smuggler" and "varlet".

In the middle of the night, DS rolled over to nurse and said, "Do you know what, mama? I love you more than any person in the world." Aww!

My DD has been voluntarily doing my chores every night this week to win back her privilege of playing with her friends after school, so I say, inculcate away!

I like to teach life skills he'll need as an adult, even if there's a little short term inconvenience as parents. The cleaning sounds like an irresistible offer.