For someone who likes lists so much…Momma sure got this one wrong. She showed me the picture list of all the things we were going to ride on this trip in Alaska. It went: CAR. BOAT. BUS. PLANE…

I may be little. And I may not have a formal education yet…but this is NOT a plane. This is a train. Don’t get me wrong! I LOVE that we are on a train!!! But I just want to be clear…a train is not a plane.

So all the sickies recovered from the fun wave ride on the boat, and we took a bus trip here, where we met cool friends and now are getting ready to get on a train!!!

Back to this bus ride. Kids my age aren’t meant to sit still for that long….we aren’t meant to be quiet for that long…we aren’t meant to transition from one thing to the next without having a hard time. How would you like to be bossed around all the time, told what to do, when to do it, how to do it?  We are meant to LIVE!!! Let us LIVE! LET! US! LIVE!!!!

Anyway, no real harm done. It’s not like the bus ride was 6 hours long or anything. Now THAT would be harsh. Here we are, on the train!! A train!!! Lyla keeps saying, “Chugga! Chugga!” which is pretty cute, even I’ll admit that.   This is WAY better than a bus. We get to walk around, go outside, see everything, and eat snacks…all while the train is moving!!!

The train guy yelled, “All Aboard!” and we climbed up to our seats. On my way, I made sure I told everyone, “A train is NOT a plane.” And Lyla squeaked, “chugga chugga!”.  Momma shook her head and made weird eyes at me. Here we gooooo!!!!   I can’t wait to tell you all about this adventure! It is totally the best field adventure EVER!!

Lyla on the outside car of the train! It was windy!

Alaska Train!!

As we got in our seats, I heard Momma say to Daddy, “Hopefully this will be so fun that he won’t mind being on a bus for 7 hours tomorrow!!”

Whaaatt??!!!! Do you want to see my angry face???

It’s hard to be three. I think I’ve made my point with that a few times. But lucky for those of you who don’t learn as fast as I do, toddler skill #14 is repeating things over and over…and over. 

And over.

So yea, it’s hard to be three. It’s even harder to be three and have a banged up brain. See, I was running/racing inside on a rainy day (yes, it was a Momma-approved activity- so put your eyebrows down)…and my wheels went flat. I crashed. I crashed right into a door and the bottom thingy that sticks out. It cut open my head, made it hurt inside and outside, and made a mess. It hurt so bad, all I wanted to do was go to sleep. I tried, but Momma was mean and didn’t let me. Neither did any of the people that helped me at the *hopstitaw. I had to stay awake, look at lights, walk, wait for awhile, get cleaned up and have my head glued back together. Yep, they glued my head! So cool. Usually I get to use glue for projects, but now I have glue on my head!! So. Cool.

(SIDE NOTE: Can you believe that while I was bleeding and hurting, Momma was looking around at all the machines in the *hopstitaw and saying she wished she had her camera??? Excuse me while I roll my eyes and lay here hurting. This WAS after the doctor decided I could go home…but still…enough with those darn tootin’ cameras.)

Anyway…I haven’t been feeling very good since then. My head hurt inside for awhile, my tummy was angry, I was really tired, and just wanted to cry a lot. Even though Momma and Daddy and all my big people have been really nice to me, and have taken care of me, they still ask me to do things I don’t wanna do. I think that with a banged up brain, I should get a break for awhile. Seems okay to me. Lyla should learn to do more anyway!! She’s almost two and still doesn’t do that much. Sheesh.

It has been in this time of my brain getting better that I learned about negotiating…kind of like Momma’s whole “give and take” speech. Except that when you are hurt, you can kinda take more. Pssst…that’s a secret. So here are some times when I started practicing this new trick…err, I mean skill.

Don’t wanna eat what Momma gives me. “If I eat two bites, can I have that magic cookie that will make my tummy and head feel better? And then I don’t have to eat any more bites of this because it makes my head huwt?”  

Don’t wanna take a nap. “I’m feeling kinda sad Momma, and my head huwts inside. Can I sit on yow lap and get a big hug and wead lots of stowies and then play with my caws and then maybe it won’t be nap time anymore? Can we do that? I will even help you clean. Would that be good?”

Momma says we can read 2 books before dinner. “So, this book isn’t a long story, so I was thinking that maybe we could wead fwee books.   (WHEN SHE STARES…) Oh what a pwedicament. You wanna wead four books then? Not fwee? Would that make you happy? Are you so happy? Say something Momma!”

At the flea market with Daddy. “Can I touch that Daddy? No? What about this? But I want to! Do you want my help? Yes? Okay. Excuse me. Hey hey hey…would I like this flamingo (now getting to touch it)? How much? How much is this flamingo mister?! It’s not fow sale? But I weally like it! How much do you want? Hey hey- But I hit my head!”

These are just the easy ones. I’m still practicing. It works a lot though! Watch out. When I get really good, I’m gonna figure out how to get my hands on Momma’s camera and computer for good.

*Momma’s Note: hopstitaw= hospital. Nate just says it differently; it isn’t a spelling error.