How Did You Get So Smart?

It seems like a lot of our teaching moments with Noah are while we are riding in a vehicle. I guess when you live as far out in the boondocks as we do you have to do a lot of driving. Anyway, the other day Joe and I were explaining to Noah the importance of observation. I tried to tell him that he always needs to listen to what is going on around him because one way that we learn new things is from other people's experiences.
For example, Joe does not have much in the way of a formal education, but he is one of the smartest men that I know. He can do or fix anything. A major part of his "education" was watching and listening.
That is the background, here is part of the conversation...

Me: Noah do you think your Daddy is smart?
Noah: Yes Mam!
Me: Now how do you think that he got so smart?


.....a long pause here....


Noah: By listening to YOU!!!

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

There you have it...from the mouths of babes. I'm telling you, that kid is a genius for sure! Of course Joe did not think that was the least bit funny. Perhaps he is not as smart as I thought he was. Needless to say I laughed so hard that I forgot all about the point I was trying to make. Oh well, I guess we will work on observation skills another day!

Peaches

And yet another genius moment from Noah! Okay, so maybe he is not genius, but he just thinks so differently than I do. It amazes me how his mind works. I challenged him in the car with four items and he had to tell me which one did not belong. The items were: peaches, potatoes, carrots, and peanuts. Of course the answer I was looking for was carrots. It starts with a "C" whereas the others start with a "P". Noah's answer? PEACHES!!! I was almost afraid to ask why, but I did it anyway.
Potatoes, carrots, and peanuts all grow under the ground. Peaches grow on a tree.

Genius

I am convinced that I am raising genius children. I would like to think that it has something to do with my intelligence, but after this morning's conversations I am no longer so sure.
Trying to keep the kids occupied while we waited on Noah's ride to school, I decided to test Noah's math skills. I would give him an addition or subtraction problem and he would shout out the answer. He was doing really well and boasted that I could not stump him. I could not let him think he was smarter than me so I challenged him to stump me instead. He said "Okay, what is infinity plus infinity?" Ummmm....Oh look, there comes your ride!
I decided to move to Jonah at that point. I would say the name of an animal and he would make the correct noise. I gave him cow, pig and chicken. He came back with moo, oink, and cluck. I thought I could redeem myself and at least prove that I was smarter than my two year old, so I asked him what sound an alligator makes. Without missing a beat he came back with "CHOMP CHOMP"!
I did not get a chance to test Micah's wit, and I am pretty sure that is a good thing. I don't know how I would have taken being out witted by all three of my children. They certainly do keep me on my toes.

Pappy

Noah thinks that my Dad is the smartest man in the world. Anytime he asks a question that Joe or myself do not have a ready anwer for, he says, "Well, I will just have to remember to ask Pappy." It doesn't bother me that he looks up to my Dad, but our conversation just the other day let me know where I ranked on his "smartness list".

Noah: What did Pappy used to be?
Me: I don't know what you mean.
Noah: What did he used to do? Was he a scientist or something?
Me: No, he has never been a scientist.
Noah: Well then how did he get so smart?
Me: Pappy went to school and he reads a lot of books.
Noah: Did he go to school for a long time?
Me: Yes, he went to school for a good many years.
Noah: Well, I figured he must have gone a lot longer than you!

Nothing like an honest five year old to crush your ego.