«		ON THE OTHER HAND		»
A CONTRARIO SENSU

One smart guy

Having seen the word on a crayon, my 5-year-old and 7-year-old were debating the pronunciation of cerulean. I offered my opinion of its pronunciation, then suggested we look it up in the dictionary, asking, "Did you know the dictionary tells us how to say words, not just what they mean?"

Astonished, my 7-year-old put her hands on her hips, dropped her jaw, and said, "That Mr. Webster knows everything!"

— Erik & Linda Rolf
Marietta, GA

As a matter of fact . . .

When it came time to recognize my son's graduation from high school, I sent him over to Kinko's for some fancy bordered paper in order to design his diploma on our computer.

While my son was standing in line, the lady behind him noticed his purchase and joked, "I hope you aren't planning on making your own diploma!"

My son just smiled and replied, "As a matter of fact, I am!"

— Heidi Aurich
Lakewood, CO

Quick and easy weight loss

As part of a unit study on the solar system, we learned how to compare a person's weight on Earth with his weight on each of the planets. (On Pluto, a 100-pound person would weigh four pounds.) While riding in the car one day, my oldest daughter told us that she would like to lose some weight.

My 6-year-old John-Marc innocently chimed in, "Melaney, if you want to lose weight, just go to Pluto."

— Paula Austin
Chicopee, MA

There ought to be a law

My children and I were sitting around the table when my 12-year-old son asked me, "Mom, what does HSLDA do besides go to court for people?"

I answered, "They try to change the laws in each state to make it easier for people to homeschool."

Smiling brightly, my 5-year-old looked up and said, "Oh, that's a great idea, especially with math. They should make a law to make math easier for people!"

— Nancy Jean Briggs
Lubec, ME

Internet generation

My 5-year-old son was learning the letters of the alphabet. When we came to the letter w, I asked, "Can you think of a word that begins with a w?"

His confident reply? "WWW."

— Patsy Storm
Naperville, IL

No fame, no gain

Recently, our oldest daughter, Michelle, had a college admission interview. During our morning prayer time, 7-year-old Nicole prayed that we would be able to find the right channel for Michelle's interview.

Twelve-year-old Renee explained that the interview was not for TV.

"Well, what's the point, then?" replied Nicole.

— The Moulton Family
Artesia, CA

What a long face you have!

For his fifth birthday, Luke received a CD containing the Focus on the Family Radio Drama presentation of The Horse and His Boy. As he looked at the picture of the actor playing the horse Bree, David commented, "But it doesn't look like him!"

— Paula McQuitty
Laurel, MD

Not synonymous, but . . .

Our 9-year-old son, Samuel, was working on his 4th-grade astronomy lesson, which included a crossword puzzle. When he came to the clue that stated, "Having no limits or boundaries," Samuel didn't skip a beat. "Spoiled!" he exclaimed. The answer key, however, revealed the correct eight-letter word: infinite.

— Cindy Eis
Dewey, AZ

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