Sunday, November 04, 2007

First Joke

Well tonight Hazel told me her first joke.

Ginger's in a very fussy, whiney stage right now so by the end of the day my nerves are raw and I snap at any little thing either one does. I gave them a late dinner and Ginger's shrieking was so unbearable that I left Hazel at the table to put Ginger to bed. Partway through the kicking, fighting, crying process I heard Hazel calling from the kitchen, "Mommy, I need more water!" over and over. Deep breaths.

Once Ginger was down I went back to the kitchen where Hazel was waiting, admittedly very patiently for a 2.5 year old. I refilled her drink and sat down to hopefully squeeze in a few quiet, quality moments with her. As she ate, my mind wandered, so I was totally surprised to hear her say quite clearly:

"Knock, knock."

Knock, knock? Where did she learn a knock knock joke?

"Who's there?"

"Owl."

Being so late in the day it took my mind a few seconds delay to put it together. But then I realized the joke - it's from a Little Bear episode we've seen 500 times.

"Owl who?"

"Hoooooo else?"

I'd been strung so tight I thought I'd snap. I mean I was teetering on the brink of insanity after the day and week I've had. And with one horrible knock-knock joke and a proud little smile, my toddler managed to melt my stress away in about 5 seconds, and it came pouring out my eyes. I laughed and cried so hard I couldn't talk, and I hugged her as tight as I could. She proceeded to retell the joke no less than 10 times, and one last time right before bed.

They say in comedy, timing is everything.

And I would have to agree.


12 comments:

Jeni said...

That is soooo cute!!! I love it when they do stuff like that!!!

Maren said...

Way to go, Hazel! That brought a tear to me, too. Once they get the hang of it, they make up the stupidest things, but it is still funny.

Aaron said...

That's a great post. Good buildup, great description, and a nice pithy end. Go Hazel!

Shanda said...

I love Hazel! What a sweetheart! Sometimes kids know just what to say.

Unknown said...

Before you know it you'll have a little New York observational style humorist on your hands.

"What is the deal with nap time? I'm not even three yet, I can't tell time."

Mia said...

What a great story. Hazel sounds like a wonderful girl. It is so sweet that she seemed to know that you needed to laugh.

Dave Y said...

I love Hazel. dxb

David said...

great post kari. what a little ham.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Mia - I think she's not only demonstrating a developing sense of humor, but a developing sensitivity to the emotional climate of a situation and how to contribute to it in a positive way. Or maybe I'm reading too much in. how cute.

kat said...

Very cute. Way to save the day, Hazel!

Camille Foote said...

Tag your it! You are suppose to write seven interesting things about yourself. and than tag seven other people. I don't care if you tag anyone else, but at least write seven things about yourself.

Anonymous said...

Hi Kari!

I just have to tell you how much I enjoy reading your blog. Having two boys the exact same age as your girls...I can totally relate! You capture "mommyhood" so well...and bring a welcomed laugh along with validation of the reality of what we do every day. Plus, I love all of your product reviews...I've taken your advice more than once. You're a GREAT mom!!

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