The phrase “kids say the darndest things” is really an understatement. My 9-year-old neice Quinn is the perfect example.

To put it blountly, the kid is a little too grown up for her own good. But, at the same time she comes up with some pretty unique observations.

Here is an example from last week.

Quinn: “Reed (her older brother) is at a friends today, I got something cool at the bookstore AND Walmart, I had waffles for dinner and now we are watching Rango. It’s been the perfect day…too perfect. When are y’all gonna drop some bad news on me?”

Not all of her observations are quite so pessimistic. She is also heavily involved in the politics of our nation and it’s worldwide dairy representation. Recently she told her mother “I think it’s really a shame that the United States doesn’t have a national cheese.”

Quinn is also a real go-getter, but smart enough to set achievable goals. We learned this one morning when before departing for school she declared “Goal for today…grow a unibrow.”

We can’t really explain why she wanted a unibrow, or why it moved to the top of the list. But I do respect her for keeping her eyes on the prize.

Her overachieving attitude is not limited to growing the unibrow. She has also expressed an interest in the amount of education you need to become an ostritch trainer and sent a letter to her Congressman protesting the removal of toys to discourage children from eating Happy Meals at McDonald’s.

Of course, there are some days when even Quinn can’t get motivated. However, these rare occasions are not without explanation as well. When asked why she was sitting around the house she answered “Mom, do you know why I’m lazy?  I’m saving my energy for my 30s.  I have a LOT of stuff planned for then.”

The children in our lives are truly remarkable people. Sometimes we don’t give them the credit they deserve. They are always listening to us, observing how we solve our problems and how we approach tough situations. Maybe we should return the favor and listen to their ideas and opinions a little more.