On a decorative pine cone he found in a drawer: “Poop.”

On whose pink sandals those are and what he’d like to do with them: “Shoes. Abigail. Wear.”

On the mixture of dried fruit and insects we feed Grandpa’s turtle: “Have some.”

On his fallback position in negotiations, vis-à-vis the turtle food: “Hold it.”

On books, be they board books, pop-up books, hiking books or Russian literature: “Read it.”

On Momma’s glass of iced tea: “Beer.”

On opening the flaps in the early pages of the epic adventure, Where Is Baby’s Birthday Cake: “That? No!”

On discovering the birthday cake under the final flap: “Cake? Cake? No!”

On the final item on his list of the parts of a duck: “Butt.”