We played outside before naptime and, as usual, Elizabeth wanted Laylee to come too. However, she didn't want Laylee to go out in her pajamas because they might get dirty. I explained that we didn't have any other clothes for Laylee. Elizabeth said, "Momma, ih okay, we can share." So she took Laylee to another doll and had Laylee ask, "Can I wear tha? Okay? Okay." And the other doll got stripped to provide a blue dress for Laylee. "Momma, we share!"

Elizabeth is getting to be able to use the potty very well. I might be most proud of her ability to follow her guide for how much toilet paper to use (a four sheet long graphic that hangs from the roll).

It seems a little strange to be proud of such a thing, but it isn't objectively strange, and I keep feeling it, so I'm sticking with it. If you're proud of your kids, best not to explain it away.

Elizabeth and Wil spent most of yesterday morning taking Laylee and LarryBoy to the potty. I'm taking this as a good sign since Wil has been very resistant to my suggestions that he learn to use the potty. "I pee in the potty for pretend," he said yesterday, which is an improvement from "No! I dohn wan to pee in the potty!"

Elizabeth has also been very particular about Laylee's cleanliness. Laylee wasn't allowed to sleep in Elizabeth's crib after our trip to the zoo because Laylee's pajamas were, in Elizabeth's estimation and objectively, too dirty. We have since washed them, and Laylee as well, so she's back in the crib.

No one showed up for playgroup, so we went to the zoo. It was great. Maybe the best visit ever. (I'll warn you now, this is going to be a long report. There are a couple of entertaining quotes, but mostly I just want a record of our visit. The zoo is possibly my favorite thing about living in Tulsa.)

We spent a long time watching the chimpanzees. They'd just been given "enrichment toys" that they had to shake to get food out of. The toys are suppose to simulate activities the animals would perform in the wild. The twins loved watching. One chimp came right up to us to show us what he found. Wil kept saying, "Wha you eat, monkey?" Then the chimp would point at us like he was mimicing people pointing at him. Elizabeth said, "He play game wih me." and "Tha monkey like Laylee."

We also went on a search for a peacock. On our last visit we crossed over a bridge and ran right into one, so Wil wanted to do that again. I was about to give up when Wil found one sitting under a bush. For some reason they decided the peacock was sad and wanted his momma. The llamas were in a pen across from us which solved the peacock's dilemma. "There your momma. There your daddy," they told the peacock.

The twins were thrilled with the baby dwarf goats and baby sheep at the Petting Zoo. But they considered pumping water from the well an even bigger treat. Usually there are too many bigger kids pushing each other for a turn.

We saw a lot of our usual favorites, too, like the tiger, lions, sealions, flamingos, giraffes and elephants. The brown bear and black bears were also out and active. But the best was the cheetah running alongside the train as we passed. We'd never seen that before.

Everyone stayed in a good mood and as we were getting ready to leave Elizabeth said to me, "I luh you Momma." "I love you, too, Elizabeth."

On the way to playgroup this morning, the twins were chattering away in the backseat. Then they both start saying, "Momma, Elihbeh tole a joke." "What's the joke?" I asked. Elizabeth started explaining, but they both burst into giggles so soon that I never understood what she was saying. Something about Larry Boy. When Elizabeth tells a joke, she puts her hand over her mouth and nods her head. It looks like a pantomime but I think it's for real. Very cute.

Yesterday Sean was singing, "It's been a long time since I rock 'n rolled...." With authority Elizabeth said, "Tha from Ses-mee Stree, Daddy."

Time to defend myself.

I thought Wil was saying 'Larry Boy is going to take out the Fib!'. As far as I knew, it was on the video. If that's not what he was saying, it was an honest mistake. Christine accused me of polluting him with my questionable euphemisms. In this case, it was an accident.

"Larry Boy ih going to tay ow the Fib!" Who said that?

One of the twins' favorite videos right now is Rolie Polie Olie, especially an episode where they go to an ice cream planet. Today Elizabeth wanted to read a book about the ice cream planet. I explained that we didn't have a book like that. She said, "When we geh home I will wry a leh-ler to Giji and she will make me a book a-bow the ie keem pla-neh and a lee-lo (video) wih Dora." When we got home the first thing she did was get out paper and pencil to write a letter to my mom.

Wil made a drinking fountain out of his workbench and xylophone. You've got to see it to believe it, but trust me it's amazing. He even thought to hook it up to a water source.

In the store yesterday -
Elizabeth: Tubby-tubbies! (Teletubbies.) Can we ha them?
Momma: No. You know Daddy doesn't like Teletubbies.
Elizabeth, defiantly: We wah Tubby-tubbies at Gamma Sue how.

Elizabeth didn't take a nap yesterday, and actually did pretty well with it. When she hadn't fallen asleep by 430, having gone down around 3, I went to get her up. Christine and I were previewing Disney's new repackage 'American Legends' to make sure it was appropriate for preschoolers (which it was). First think she said was 'Daddy, what you watch?' Those kids have xray ears for videos.

At lunch time Wil asked, "Can we pretend we having picnic?" "Of course," I said. He picked up his sandwich crusts and said, "Thee my carrot stick." Elizabeth didn't want her sandwich to be carrot sticks, so I told her she could pretend they were something else. She thought for a minute then said, "My sanwich ih cookie!"

We did puzzles this morning. Lots and lots of puzzles. Or rather Elizabeth did. She'd finish one and go on to the next. Wil would finish one then do it again. Then again. And again. He can put a puzzle together about twice as fast as she can.

Laylee, Elizabeth's favorite doll, got tired of puzzles after her first attempt. "Laylee tired. I go lay Laylee down." Elizabeth put Laylee in her crib, closed the door and layed down on Sean's Thermarest beside Laylee to hold her hand. Every so often she'd open the door and say, "Momma (or Wil) if you nee help, juh ax. I lay down wih Laylee."

Eventually Wil wanted to get in on the game. He put LarryBoy and Junior in the crib with Laylee. Once Elizabeth got everyone situated, she opened the door again to remind me "If you nee help, Momma, juh ax."

Did you know you can watch "The Little Mermaid," (or "Ariel" as Elizabeth calls it,) in under an hour if you fast-forward through the Ursula parts?

Wil was sweet this morning first thing, he came and crawled into bed with me and got under the covers. He brought his veggies. He thought that was pretty fun. Then he said 'Let's go watch a video.' He got me my socks and slippers. Sweet boy.

After that, it was tv coma over 'The Little Mermaid' for both of them. Elizabeth said she didn't want to give me a hug and kiss. Sheesh.

When I say 'I love you' Wil has recently started replying 'I love you, too, Daddy.' And Elizabeth has picked it up.

Yesterday we ran an errand together and I said 'Let's go home and see our girls. I love our girls.' and he said 'I do, too.'

Sweet boy.

I was reading a story today in which Michael's dog is unnamed. Elizabeth very much wanted to know the dog's name and wasn't satisfied with "What do you think the dog's name should be?" So when I read "Michael enjoys making things..." she asked "Ih the dog name Joys?"

I made an amazing discovery today. The twins can match rhythm. I kept it pretty simple like 'clap, clap, rest, clap,' but they got it. Cool.

I called from Charlotte to check on the twins. Elizabeth gave me a detailed account of all they'd been playing. "We pay on the train. Furse Laylee ride. Then I ride. Then Nic ride...." You get the idea.

My conversation with Wil was briefer: "Hi, Momma." "Hi, sweetheart." "Momma, I wan to go home." "We'll go home tomorrow." "Oh, OK." Then he went back to playing.