pretty: I like playing with the shutter speed when there’s a fountain around. This one is in the main park in Erin and Rocco’s downtown.

happy: Annalie loved this ziplining thing on the playground in the same park. She went on it over and over and over again. There was a similar piece of playground equipment on the playground at our old church in Maryland, and she loved that one too. And she was pleased as punch with herself when she was able to go all the way across the rings on her own.

funny: Silly ice-cream posers. And goofball me, posing on Annalie’s scooter with Elliora on my back.

real: This is what happens when you accidentally fall asleep with wet hair when you’re putting the baby to bed for her afternoon nap.

Pretty, happy, funny, real is about capturing the context of contentment in everyday life. Via girlwithgreencard.

Note: I interviewed Annalie for this post back in February or March, wrote it up and added photos and everything, and then…got stalled. What stalled me? I needed to take one photo of a self-portrait drawing Annalie did that was hanging in my kitchen. That is my life right now: I’m going in a million directions all the time and couldn’t even manage to take a photo—of something I see every day—for months. Sheesh.

What is your name?

Annalie.

How old are you?

Six.

Where do you live?

Washington, D.C. Well, actually we live in [Town], [State].

Do you have any pets?

Yes.

Wanna tell me about them?

Yes. I have two pet cats. Their names are Katy and Lily, and they’re very sweet. They’re both girls, and Katy really likes to spend time with me; Lily, not so much. But Lily really likes it when I scratch her belly!

Who do you like to play with?

I like to play with Bug, and Suki and Amber, and I like to play with Gabby and Annie. Sometimes I like to play with Mackenzie. She isn’t as rough as some kids. Also Christa and Cassie and Jack and Morgan and Dylan. And Daddy! I like to play with Daddy, and Elliora.

What’s your favorite cereal?

Hmmm…Lucky Charms!

What’s your favorite vegetable?

I like carrots because they’re good plain and with ranch, and also good cooked. I also like peas; they taste good plain and cooked. This is an odd thing to tell people, but I also like peas sometimes in ranch dressing. It’s good, you should try it!

What’s your favorite drink?

I like…lemonade, and I like root beer, and sometimes chocolate milk. Oh, and I like Kool-Aid! Ah, the sweet taste of Kool-Aid.

What’s your favorite flavor of Kool-Aid?

Fruit punch. For the record, I really like the kind you drop in the little tablet and you see it fizz up and evolve into the whole drink!

What’s your favorite snack?

Strawberry cream cheese roll-up, and crackers and cheese. I like simple kinds of crackers, like Club Crackers or Ritz, and cheddar cheese.

What’s your favorite toy?

I like a lot of toys, that’s hard!

Well, I just remembered I need to put the cookie dough in the fridge. Hang on a sec.

That’s good, I can think about it for a minute then.

Okay, did you think of a favorite toy?

I did think of a type of toy I really like, but it’s not really a specific toy. I like toys you can play with in pools like goggles and flippers. I especially like goggles because you can put them on and see underwater!

What’s your favorite TV Show?

Wild Kratts. And I like Johnny Test, Pokemon, Spongebob, Fairly Oddparents, Chuck, and Dragonball Z-Kai. Did you write all those down?

What’s your favorite movie?

I like Tangled, and I also like Space Chimps.

What’s your favorite game?

Angry Birds. And I also like, um…the game I almost always play with Daddy, the car-racing game. It’s one where you can drive anywhere, like off-road and up the mountains, and you can do leaps. Sometimes you can feel it in the game controller when you jump off things! It’s kind of funny.

What’s your favorite book?

The Boxcar Children. It starts out a bit sad, but then it ends really happy. And one of the girls’ names is Violet, which is my sister Elliora’s middle name!

What’s your favorite restaurant?

Ooh, I like a lot of restaurants. That one in Omaha we go to a lot, what’s it called?

Wheatfields, the one with the fountains?

No, the one we go to with Uncle Ben a lot, where sometimes we can get balloon animals?

Oh, Spaghetti Works?

Yeah, Spaghetti Works! And I like Wheatfields too. They have fondue, and the big paintings, and the fountain! I love that place. Maybe we could go there for my actual birthday dinner, since we’ll be in Omaha?

Sure, we can do that.

(We did!)

Can we get cheese fondue?

Yes we can.

I love that! I cannot get enough of that.

What’s your favorite holiday?

My favorite holiday iiiiiizzz…Easter, Valentine’s Day, and Christmas. Because on Christmas you sometimes get to go sledding, and you get Advent calendars, and you get to open presents right away in the morning, even in your pajamas! And on Valentine’s Day, sometimes you get Valentines and gifts, and you can make cookies. And on Easter you get to go Easter-egg hunting. Sometimes on Easter my mommy gets me and Dad special baskets, and she’ll probably get a little basket for Elliora this year too.

What’s your favorite animal?

Horses. I like horses.

If you could change your name, what name would you choose?

I would choose…[thinking]…Crystal! It’s a pretty name, isn’t it?

What do you love about each person in our family?

I love that Elliora is a cute baby, and I’m glad that Katy and Lily are nice and gentle and they love me. And I’m glad that Daddy is a funny guy and he almost always tickles me, it’s so fun. And I’m glad that Mommy’s cooking is delicious, and she is really good at making me birthday cakes. They taste the best when they’re made by my mom—not just any old mom, MY mom.

Aw, thanks. I’m happy you like my cakes.

And remember that one time you made those mini pumpkin cheesecakes? Those were soooo good.

Thanks!

And I’m glad that Aurora is one year old and she’s cute and adorable and can walk now! I’m glad she’s my cousin. I can’t wait till the next time I get to see her!

What do you love most about yourself?

Well, that’s hard.

Why, because you like so many things about yourself?

No, because if I say things I like about myself, it’s sort of like I’m saying, “I’m pretty and you’re not!”

You mean like bragging?

Yeah. I just don’t think it would be very polite, would it?

Well, there’s a difference between bragging and just saying things you’re good at.

I guess so.

So is there anything you think you’re good at or that you like about yourself that you can say without bragging?

I think I’m good at making pancakes. I’m a good cook, when I have help from you. And I’m good at coloring, and I’m also good at playing Angry Birds.

Where would you like to go on vacation this year?

Hawaii.

Well, we’re not gonna make it to Hawaii this year. But I think we are going to visit Erin and Rocco in Oregon, how does that sound?

Good!

What are some of your wishes for this year?

This year I wanna have a Zoobles treehouse. And I wish I could see Niagara Falls! That would be the funnest thing in the entire world. And I want to lose more teeth! Another one is loose, I think.

Thanks for the interview, Annalie!

You’re welcome, Mama.

Annalie’s self-portrait, age 6y8m

Inspiration for this interview originally came from New Year’s Interview for Kids at Blissfully Domestic (via The Crafty Crow).

I did this interview in 2009 and 2010 too, though I published them in a much more timely manner both those times.

I am thinking about the six baby blankets I want to make in the next three months. Two of them are already in progress. Am I insane to think I can manage that? We shall see.

I am thankful for everything, really. I feel like I whine and complain a lot these days, but I know how blessed I am. I have the luxury of being annoyed when the signal I’m using to access the internet as we drive down I-95 blips out for a second. My problems could be so much bigger, and they’re not. #diamondshoes

I am wearing a nightgown. But that’s boring, so instead I’ll tell you about two things I wore today which you may also find boring unless you are a breastfeeding mother. Feel free to skip ahead if you’re bored already.

I’ve been searching for the perfect nursing shirt for, oh, seven years, really. I think I may have finally found it: the nursing criss-cross tee from Momzelle. My main problem with most nursing shirts is that I have broad shoulders and a wide ribcage, but I’m not, shall we say, overly endowed in the chestal area—not even when I’m nursing. So shirts that fit my shoulders and torso completely droop down my front and show my bra to the world. Shirts that are more modest fit me like cling wrap, which is neither flattering nor comfortable. So I’m fairly excited to have finally found a shirt that (a) fits my proportions, (b) is comfortable and cute, and (b) is easy to nurse in. Huzzah!

The other thing I was wearing today that might interest you if you’re a nursing mother or plan on spending a lot of time holding a baby is this turquoise nursing necklace from the Etsy shop My Lil Market. I had a couple of nursing necklaces when Annalie was a baby, but they were more of the bright-tacky-plastic variety. This one is so pretty, I will probably be wearing it long after Elliora has stopped nursing. But I’ll definitely keep wearing it now because Elliora loved it. She spent several hours today playing with the beads and shoving different parts of it in her mouth. Not surprising, really; I’m sure this string of beads and stones is far more enticing than the specifically-designed-to-interest-a-baby necklaces I used to have, because babies always reject their fun toys in favor of the forbidden grown-up things, don’t they?

I am remembering that tomorrow, in addition to being my nephew Brett’s birthday, is also my other sister-in-law’s wedding anniversary and the anniversary of the day my mom, my brother and I were all baptized.

I am going to brush my teeth. Be right back.

I am currently reading I’m a Stranger Here Myself: Notes on Returning to America after Twenty Years Away, by Bill Bryson. This is another one I’m re-reading. Bill Bryson is one of my favorite authors—partly because he’s hilarious in a nerdy, befuddled, self-deprecating way that just rings my bell; and partly because he once sent me a letter in reply to one I’d written him—and reading his books is kind of like eating meatloaf and mashed potatoes or homemade macaroni and cheese. It’s comfort food for my brain and soul.

I am hoping that our drive home tomorrow goes as well as the 4.5-hour drive down did. Elliora slept for a total of three hours and change, played with a toy or looked out the window for another hour, and only cried for a few minutes right after lunch and about 15 minutes at the tail end of the trip. Fingers crossed.

On my mind: Samantha and her parents.

Noticing that Annalie is almost as tall as I am. I picked her up today for the first time in a while and was kind of shocked how big she seemed. I’m sure part of that is because these days I’m usually carrying Elliora, but still.

Around the house we have way too much stuff. Troy and I were just talking yesterday about how we’re overdue for a good clearing-out and getting-rid-of. Usually we do that as we unpack after a move, but maybe we’ll do it before we move this time.

In the kitchen, I am spending a lot more time lately. (Yoda, I sound like.) Elliora loves to eat. Like, she LOVES to eat. I am happy to make most of her food but it means I’m spending quite a bit more time in the kitchen lately, feeding her as well as cooking for her. I don’t really mind a bit, though. It’s so fun to feed a baby who likes everything we’ve offered her.
Applesauce (with and without cinnamon), mashed bananas, oatmeal, mixed-grain cereal, carrots, sweet potato, butternut squash, peas, green beans, spinach, pears, peaches, mango, avocado, refried beans, broccoli, rice, beef, turkey, ham, blueberries, pumpkin, watermelon, chicken, black olive, bacon, cheddar cheese, goat cheese, plain yogurt, mashed potatoes with garlic, Cheerios, asparagus…I’m sure I’m forgetting some. Seriously, she likes everything.)

One of my favorite things is finding awesome new TV shows to watch, and then geeking out over them with friends.

From my photo archive: Speaking of Elliora eating, here is a picture of her (on the right) eating carrots at 5 months old. Annalie (on the left) was about a year old when this picture was taken in June 2005, and was eating Spaghetti-Os.

Outside my window I can hear the teenagers who live down the street playing basketball in front of our house (their basketball hoop lives in front of an unoccupied house in our cul-de-sac) and Annalie bounding around on her new Gymnic Hop Ball.

I am thinking that as good as this last episode of Castle was, next Monday’s looks even better. I’ve just recently re-watched all of Seasons 2 and 3 on iTunes while crocheting a baby blanket for my friend Laura, and I think it’s official now: Castle is my current favorite show.

I am thankful for my Ergo, and how Elliora seems to be turning out to be a better sleeper than Annalie was. She’s still not that rare creature I’ve heard about but never birthed, the Lay-Her-Down-Awake-And-She’ll-Drift-To-Sleep Baby, but she’s definitely more willing to sleep than Annalie was at this age, especially if I’m wearing her in the Ergo. We always had to trick Annalie into sleeping, she was so determined to stay awake lest she miss something.

I am wearing black yoga pants, a purple t-shirt, black Teva Mush flip-flops (my all-time favorite shoes), and Elliora in the Ergo.

I am remembering how many birthday cards I did not send this month. I know a lot of people with February birthdays.

Annalie drew this miniature portrait of our family to mark Troy’s birthday on her calendar, complete with him in a party hat.

I am going to Omaha in March with my girls! It’ll be Elliora’s first plane trip. I debated it for weeks, and had just about decided against it because the price of a direct flight from DC to Omaha was too high, when I reconsidered and checked the prices again…and there was a fare sale! The tickets were almost half the price they had been a week ago. So now, we’re making a really quick trip to Omaha to introduce Elliora to my brother and his family and my Gramma B, and so Annalie and Aurora won’t have to go almost a year between seeing each other. (We probably won’t have time to see everyone we normally see while we’re there, but if we miss you this time we will definitely catch you in May, when we’ll be there for a longer visit. Promise.)

I am currently reading American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot, by Craig Ferguson. I’m re-reading it, actually, because when we were watching The Late Late Show one night recently I was telling Troy he really needed to read it, and thinking about it made me want to read it again, so I did. If you’re a Craig Ferguson fan and you have not read this book, find it and read it. It’s hilarious and moving and really, really interesting.

I am hoping that when we get in the car and go to a movie in a little while, Elliora does not spend the entire 20-minute drive crying. She’s getting a little more resigned to her carseat with every trip.

On my mind: a friend who is in the hospital for pre-eclampsia. She and her husband will be meeting their baby girl a few weeks earlier than planned.

Noticing that Elliora isn’t such a lightweight anymore, relatively speaking. I’m sure she’s still below the 10th percentile for babies her age, but she’s noticeably heavier than she used to be.

Around the house we have been cleaning up way too much cat pee lately. Lily is almost 15 years old and totally neurotic. She has gone through phases in her life where she peed on rugs, clothes left on the floor, etc. We always take her to the vet to make sure there isn’t a physical cause, and it always turns out to be behavioral. Troy took her to the vet today, and after $400 worth of bloodwork, exams, and an x-ray, we know that it’s still behavioral. So we’re getting a third litterbox and starting Lily on Prozac. (Yes, seriously; this is the second time she’s been on Prozac in her life.)

In the kitchen, I rock. Sorry for the lack of modesty, but it’s true. I love to cook and I’m good at it. I’m so thankful that this time, having an infant has not meant I never cook. When Annalie was a tiny baby I don’t think I cooked more than two meals a month; with Elliora I’ve been managing at least two meals a week, usually three or four, plus occasional baked goods.

One of my favorite things: this Flickr group, reminding me to look for happy things. And then take pictures of them.

The other day I noticed the light was shining through the glass lamps on our dining-room ceiling fan in such a way that it refracted into a circle with a faint rainbow (which didn’t photograph very well) on the outer edge. On top of that, one of the hearts in our garland was casting a perfect heart-shaped shadow.

From my photo archive: this picture of 21-month-old Annalie eating an apple, taken almost exactly five years ago.

Whoa. This is my 800th post.

My friend Jill posted a short video of herself on her blog Jill Will Run, reading a list of words and answering some questions with regional-specific answers. She saw it done first at Healthy Tipping Point. I thought it was a really fun idea, so I made a video of my own. I can do that, now that we have electricity in our house again, after a snowstorm knocked out our power Wednesday night (along with thousands of other people in the DC metro) and we were without power for 47 hours. I’m wallowing in the luxury of having electricity again, and being able to do things like make videos and upload them to the internet.

Just for background, I was born and grew up in Omaha, Nebraska. When I was 21, I married Troy and moved to San Diego. Since then, I’ve lived in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; Virginia Beach, Virginia; Tempe, Arizona; Southern Maryland; San Diego again; and the Washington, DC, metro area. I tend to pick up accents and regional expressions wherever I live. By the time we left Ottawa, I was saying “eh?” at the end of a lot of sentences, and then I picked up “y’all” when we lived in Virginia Beach. Someone listening to me during that time would have been very confused about where I was from.

bethany actually sounds like this – the accent vlog from bethany actually on Vimeo.

Wow. Watching this video, I was struck with how much I really do resemble my brother, not just in looks but in facial expressions and speech patterns. Also, I can see more clearly how much Annalie looks like me when I watch videos of myself. Weird.

Anyway! Here’s the list of words:

Aunt, Route, Wash, Oil, Theater, Iron, Salmon, Caramel, Fire, Water, Sure, Data, Ruin, Crayon, Toilet, New Orleans, Pecan, Both, Again, Probably, Spitting image, Alabama, Lawyer, Coupon, Mayonnaise, Syrup, Pajamas, Caught

And here are the questions:

• What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house?
• What is the bug that when you touch it, it curls into a ball?
• What is the bubbly carbonated drink called?
• What do you call gym shoes?
• What do you say to address a group of people?
• What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped body and extremely long legs?
• What do you call your grandparents?
• What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry groceries at the supermarket?
• What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining?
• What is the thing you change the TV channel with?

Do you have a special name for rain falling while the sun is shining? I don’t know a term for that, but I do have a rain term that as far as I know is specific to my family: when it’s raining so hard that the drops of rain are creating circular ripples and then bouncing back up, my family calls that raining ballerinas, because if you squint it kind of looks like a ballerina with a tutu. I think my brother or I called it that years ago, and it just stuck for some reason.

Feel free to play along. If you do, please let me know in the comments where you post your videos so I can watch them! If you don’t feel like making a video, just tell me about a weird regionalism of yours.

I am thinking about how unfair it is that I am dealing with my third cold in six weeks. Boo.

I am thankful for Emergen-c, Puffs Plus, and the fact that I’m not pregnant anymore…my mom being here to help us out and letting me take as many naps as I need…Annalie’s graceful acceptance of and enthusiasm for life with a little sister.

I am wearing black cropped yoga pants and a black nightgown with little pink stars scattered all over it. And a sleeping baby.

I am remembering that despite my complaining and procrastinating, I actually like making and sending out Christmas photo cards.

I am going to bed as soon as I finish this post. Really.

I am currently reading nothing. Which is crazy! I’m always reading something, and I have a stack of good books waiting to be read. I lost the ability to concentrate on reading anything longer than a blog post at some point during my pregnancy, and instead took to doing Sudoku puzzles. I’m almost done with the 200-puzzle book I bought in September, and after that I’ll start in on the pile of books. Either the Bryson or the Winchester will be first.

I am hoping that tomorrow we can get some Christmas cooking and crafting done. I’m not expecting to get much of either one done, mind you. But some would be nice.

On my mind: how much longer will it be before Elliora smiles? Annalie smiled at eight weeks old exactly, but she was born four weeks early so with her corrected age, she smiled at four weeks. If Elliora follows in her sister’s footsteps, then she’ll start smiling in two or three weeks.

Noticing that Elliora looks more like me than Annalie does.

In the kitchen there are way too many bags of chips and boxes of holiday cookies. My mom just discovered the wonder of Utz brand chips (they’re an East-coast thing, not available in the Midwest) and I am a sucker for Trader Joe’s Candy-Cane Joe-Joes and Pfeffernuesse.

Around the house it’s definitely beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Stockings are up, Christmas cards are hung on the mantel, the tree is up and half-decorated and there’s a big pile of wrapped presents underneath it.

One of my favorite things: Did I mention the Trader Joe’s Pfeffernuesse? Also, TJ’s holiday peppermint coffee.

From my photo archive: this photo of Annalie & Auntie Erin was taken in December 2006, almost exactly four years ago. Annalie was 2 1/2 here, and we were eating dinner at Spaghetti Works in the Old Market in Omaha. I loved that Rock Star shirt Erin gave her. Ooh! I bet we still have it in a bin of Annalie’s outgrown clothes somewhere, and now Elliora will get to wear it. Yay!

Outside my window It’s raining hard. We have a tarp spread out on the deck because the window right under the deck was leaking when it rained hard the other day, and…to make a long story short, it was our stopgap solution to keep the window from leaking again before it gets fixed. So far it’s working, and as a bonus the rain sounds lovely hitting the tarp.

I am thinking about Veronica Mars. Troy and I have been working our way through all three seasons on Netflix Instant for the past few weeks, and we both find that when we watch a couple of episodes in an evening we spend the next day or two thinking about the characters and whatever the current mystery is. We’ve both even dreamed about the show a couple of times. I’ve developed a whole new respect for Kristen Bell, have fallen more in love with Enrico Colantoni (whom I already loved forever for his role as Mathesar in Galaxy Quest), and have decided I might watch the cancelled series Moonlight, even though it’s about vampires, just so I can see Jason Dohring act some more.

I am thankful for how well homeschooling is going. I didn’t expect it to go badly, but I was a bit apprehensive about our first year of sitting down and actually doing lessons from a curriculum. I wasn’t sure how Annalie would do with her first taste of formal schooling…which is really hilarious because if you were to watch us during a typical school day, we are anything but formal. Anyway, things have been going great. Of course there have been bumps in the road and some moments of frustration, but I can deal with those, no problem. I’ve found myself very thankful for my years of experience as a classroom aide, tutor, camp counselor, etc. And Annalie has told me almost every day how much she loves homeschooling.

I am wearing cropped jeans, because I have temporarily misplaced my regular maternity jeans, a turquoise t-shirt, and black flip-flops. I am not wearing my wedding ring these days, which makes me kind of sad. But only a couple more months and I’ll be able to wear it again.

I am remembering that today is my nephew Leo’s 5th birthday! Happy birthday, Leo!

I am going to the post office later today, to mail some thank-you notes and a couple of surprise packages. Also to the grocery store because we’re almost entirely out of cereal.

I am currently reading Naked Heat, which is a book ostensibly authored by a fictional character from the TV show Castle. So far it’s just as good as the first Nikki Heat book, Heat Wave. And both books are as good as or better than an episode of Castle. Love it.

I am hoping that this baby will be born between November 26th and December 3rd.

On my mind: uh…sudoku? I’ve been doing lots of sudokus lately.

Noticing that I seem to be incapable of drinking a whole cup of coffee without reheating it at least twice.

In the kitchen there is a full cookie jar and leftover homemade pizza in the fridge.

Around the house are lots of things that need cleaning up, organizing, straightening, or put away. I’ve sort of fallen off the housework bandwagon lately. I think it’s at least partly due to my newfound hobby of figuring out ways to pick things up off the floor without bending over. Mostly I just ask Annalie help me.

One of my favorite things is how recently, Annalie declares that almost every day is a pajama day. Right now she’s wearing flannel PJ pants with rainbows and monkeys on them.

From my photo archive: this photo of Annalie was taken in January 2007, when she was a little more than 2 1/2 years old. I love the look of concentration on her face.

I am thinking about baby names, but not so obsessively any more. Troy and I have narrowed the list down to a handful of possibilities and we’ll roll those around in our minds for a while.

(Thank you, by the way, for all of you who commented with your favorite girls’ names. My goodness, we all certainly do like talking about names, don’t we? And I learned, from reading all your suggestions, that I have a complicated system of rules for naming my children that I wasn’t even aware of having. Which maybe explains why I was going so crazy for a while there.)

I am thankful for perspective, which makes my life so much less difficult than it otherwise might seem.

I am wearing a Gallifrey t-shirt and Wal-Mart maternity shorts that I purchased in 2004. (First person to know what Gallifrey is wins a crocheted coffee-cup cozy.)

I am remembering how uncomfortable all these baby kicks can be. I’m thankful that the baby is active and healthy, blah blah. But I can honestly say that once this kid is born I won’t miss all the internal pummeling one little bit.

I am going to California in 18 days! Yay!

I am currently reading an issue of Touchstone Magazine.

I am hoping that I can figure out this whole homeschooling-a-first-grader thing without going crazy or scarring me or Annalie for life. (Pretty confident I can. Just, y’know…fingers crossed.)

On my mind: the movie Inception, which I’ve heard praised to the skies from so many different quarters that I think it’s impossible I won’t be underwhelmed by it. I’m still avoiding spoilers, though.

Noticing that Annalie has probably been watching too much TV lately. But I like my midday naps, so for now I’ll let it slide.

In the kitchen there are a few cookies left. I’m trying to ignore their siren call.

Around the house is plenty of evidence in every single room that a 6-year-old girl lives here. My attempts to have her clean up after herself are failing to keep pace with her ability to spread her belongings about.

One of my favorite things is the color of the yarn I’m using to crochet this baby her own cuddle blanket—sort of a pale yellow-green.

From my photo archive: this photo of Annalie was taken in March 2007, when she was two months shy of her third birthday. I’m very interested to see if the baby will look as much like Annalie as I look like my brother.

Post inspired by Beck.

What makes your dad happy?
When I laugh at some stuff that he says.

What makes daddy sad?
When I don’t listen to him and I lie to him.

How does your daddy make you laugh?
When he says something, like…kickapowah! Or chicken bubbles.

What did your dad like to do when he was a kid?
Um, draw.

How old is your dad?
25?

How tall is your dad?
89 inches.

What is his favorite thing to watch on TV?
The race!

What does your dad do when you’re not around?
Watch racing.

If your dad ever became famous, what would it be for?
Um, for watching the most races in the most days.

What is your dad really good at?
He’s really good at…making me laugh! Hahaha!

What is your dad not very good at?
Watching ballerinas.

What does your dad do for his job?
Works at the Pentagon.

What is your dad’s favorite food?
Chinese.

What makes you proud of your dad?
He’s really funny.

What makes you happy that he is your dad?
Because he’s really funny and he has a good sense of humor. And he likes to help me with puzzles.

If your dad were a cartoon character, who would he be?
A cartoon racer!

What do you and your dad do together?
We eat together, we play together, he takes me to the movies sometimes, and to lunch.

How are you and your dad the same?
We’re a lot the same. We both have blue eyes, and we’re both very funny. I thought of one more thing that’s the same about us: we both like rainbows!

How are you and your dad different?
Well, I don’t really like racing, and he likes it. And I like ballerinas but he doesn’t really like it.

How do you know your daddy loves you?
Because he says it all the time.

What does your dad like most about your mom?
You both laugh at the same things.

Where is your daddy ‘s favorite place to go?
The movies.

I interviewed Annalie about Troy last year, and asked the same questions about me last year and last week.

What makes your mom happy?
When I give you a hug and a kiss…like right now!

What makes your mom sad?
When I do something I’m not supposed to, like eat too much candy, or sneak.

How does your mom make you laugh?
By tickling me. Do it!

What did your mom like to do when she was a child?
I think you liked to draw and sketch a lot.

How old is your mom?
75? What? Wasn’t it a close guess?

How tall is your mom?
You are…78 feet? And you weigh, um, 70 pounds.

What is her favorite thing to watch on TV?
Doctor Who.

What does your mom do when you’re not around?
Watch movies that kids can’t watch. And blog and twitter.

If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
Hmmm…[grinning]…for being the world’s longest blogger!

What is your mom really good at?
Sketching and being nice.

What is your mom not very good at?
Being able to reach stuff really high up.

What does your mom do for her job?
Dottery. What? You’re gonna be a teacher doing it!

What is your mom’s favorite food?
Chinese. Especially pork-fried rice.

What makes you proud of your mom?
You’re really nice to me most of the time, and you’re really good at loving me.

If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
You’d be a starfish on Spongebob. Not Patrick, just a starfish.

What do you and your mom do together?
Paint, watch Doctor Who, play together, and help each other.

How are you and your mom the same?
We both have blue eyes, the same DNA, and when you were little you had really blond hair like me.

How are you and your mom different?
Well, you have a little bit of long hair, and it’s dark. And I have short hair, and it’s light. I like to draw a lot, and you like to paint.

How do you know your mom loves you?
Because you give me hugs and kisses.

What does your mom like most about your dad?
He’s nice and he can reach things and he takes care of stinkbugs for us.

Where is your mom’s favorite place to go?
That Pottery Place.

I did this same interview last year. For the record, I did indeed like to draw and sketch a lot as a kid; Doctor Who is in fact one of my favorite shows; I am going to teach a class in painting dottery at my local pottery-painting studio at the end of this month; I do love Chinese food but I wouldn’t say pork fried rice is my favorite; and That Pottery Place could certainly be called one of my favorite places. However, I’m not 75 years old nor 78 feet tall, and I weigh considerably more than 70 pounds.

I think this was a Facebook meme originally, but I first saw it at Wannabe Hippie and Zebrabelly.