Last night after dinner we all had superpowers assigned to us by the kids. Much battling ensued.

Pumpkin: Candy Man (of course) with the sticky power of candy. He's actually the villain, complete with maniacal laugh. He makes the floor sticky so the superheros get stuck. He's got boundless energy, with nary a sugar-induced crash in sight. He's always trying to thwart the good-works of...

Princess: Spaghetti Girl (she gave herself this name) with the power to shoot spaghetti out of her fingers. Can you guess what we had for dinner last night? She uses her amazing spaghetti power to tie up Candy Man temporarily and to always have a quick and easy dinner prepared. To shoot, she extends her fingers like the Emperor from Star Wars, although spaghetti is far more innocuous than lightning.

Daddy: Sleepy Guy (dubbed so by Candy Man) has the power of sleep. He can fall asleep at any time, producing a boneless state that frustrates combatants. He has the power to put anyone else to sleep instantaneously, thus giving him a precious few minutes to lock them up and get away. Are there any other benefits to narcolepsy and transferent narcolepsy? I can't think of any.

Mommy: Innocent Bystander with the power to be captured and saved at the whim of the superhero/super-villain. I also have the power to clean up the dinner dishes with Sleepy Guy while all this epic battling is going on with nary a broken dish to be seen. That's the kind of superpower I like.

Oh, and flying. I'd love to be able to fly.

Scene setting:
Princess and I are having lunch today while out running errands. She and I spend a lot of time together these days, with Pumpkin in school from 9-3:30 and her in preschool only 2 days each week. She's very patient with all the things we run around and do, since few of them have much appeal to a 4 year old.


P: Mom, how come you and Dad have so many words?

M: What?

P: You and dad, you use lots of words with each other.

M: You mean we talk to each other a lot? (affirmative nod) Well, we're friends and we have lots to say to each other because we like to talk about things.

P: Mom, you and I are gonna be friends forever, right?

M: (wipes away mental tear) Absolutely, we'll always be best friends.

P: Then can we use a lot of words?

M: Definitely.

I come up with a few topics of conversation and she does pretty well: what was her favorite book we got at the library, where did the sun go when the sky was full of clouds, which hippo was the best one. And then my little conversationalist came up with her own topics:

P: So, what do you think Pumpkin is doing right now?
P: So, when will the snow fall so we can watch Polar Express?
P: Hey, that's my Frostie, give it back!!

That's my girl...4 going on 14. I've noticed an upswing in big emotions: deliriously happy and loving, scowlingly grumpy and frustrated, silly past the point of cute. Her preschool teachers want to give her an award for the "most cheerful kid in class". At church our 3rd hour classrooms are next to each other and I can hear her laughing and cheering through the wall.

We spend nearly every day together, but alone, without Pumpkin. And her newfound confidence fascinates and worries me. Her ability to see the beautiful things in life pleases me. Her "Abby (heart) Mom" notes warm my heart. And her mood swings baffle me.

And she's my Best Friend Forever. 



PS: why have I been gone from Blogger for 7 months, you ask? When blogging becomes a chore and not a pleasure, it's time to give it up for awhile. I heard this weekend that "Life is what happens while you're making plans for the future." Life is happening all around me and I decided to be a part of it for awhile. Occasionally, like now, I like to take a step back and record something on here, but most of the time I like to be right in the thick of things. I don't want to be one of those moms who makes her kids pose every 10 feet for a picture. I want to be traipsing through the daisy-covered meadows WITH them, not following them with a lens and a web page.

So, you'll get updates occasionally, you'll get pictures and info. But all in good time. And I have no desire to rehash the last 1/2 a year. It might burn me out of blogging for another 6 months.

The kids are still sweet. Pumpkin is becoming an excellent reader, Princess an excellent conversationalist. I'm in the Young Women program at church now (Mia Maid Counselor) and crocheting up a storm. Expect homemade Christmas presents. D finally has his beloved Mini Cooper back after a completely new engine had to be put in. And that's 6 months in a nutshell.