Donna the Dog had her way, and I did not shop. Ahahahaha, I'm such a wuss.
Maybe I'll go today. We had a stimulating day, a visit to grandma's house and
a new park, in an effort to wear them out. My 5 year old is getting to be such
a big girl, and so bright. It is slightly stunning to hear the thoughts that
spring from her head. We were driving along behind a dumptruck full of soil,
that had a grey tarp pulled tight over the mound. She said "Mom, where are they
taking that elephant?" I didn't understand for a minute, but when I looked up
at the truck, she was right. It looked just like the back of an elephant.
The vision of a 5 year old is a rare gift. It's such a treat to be handed a
pair of magical kid glasses every now and again, to see the elephant where there
was only a tarp covered pile of dirt. We made it home, had a great afternoon
with very little discord, and got to bed at a reasonable 9pm. Even I was in bed
by 10pm, which is unusual. Apparently, the thanks for the sleep offering to
the Parenting Gods was insufficient. My youngest woke with a song in her heart
and a spring in her step. At 1:30 am. I couldn't be mad at her, she's too
stinkin' cute and was just thrilled to be alive and have my undivided attention.
Or, I guess, what passes for attention. I sprawled on the couch, with a
comforter and every 30 minutes turned on another TiVo'd nickjr program. Not
to say that she actually watched these shows. No, she was crawling around on
the floor, meowing like a cat. Then, she found the magnet for our tot-lock
system and started banging it against the window. Then she chased the dog
around the kitchen floor. Then she stood on her tiptoes in front of me,
chanting wuuuuuuuun, tooooooooooo, freeeeeeeeee, foooooe... all the way up to
10! Wow, I hadn't realized she was doing that yet. Anyway, I'm laying there,
one eye open, one eye closed, and feeling very picked upon, when dawn broke.
What a glorious sunrise. It was red and pink and the whole yard had a golden
glow to it. I'm standing there at the window with my not-such-a-baby in my
arms, smelling her morning smell and watching the sun creep over the horizon.
It was a sacred moment, just me, my baby, and the knowledge that I have another
day on this earth to start fresh. And I think to myself: what a wonderful
world... oh, yeah. - Louis Armstrong