Out of the Mouths of Babes

Thursday is almost past, and that means that day 6 of John's 10 day road trip is also just about complete. He left last Saturday for some speaking opportunities in Tennessee, and so the girls and I have been keeping each other company these last days. We've done some really fun stuff together, including going for walks in our new double stroller, fixing puzzles on a rainy day (today), and cuddling up to read stacks of books. But there's no doubt, we really all miss John.

Clara Anne has been asking for "Daddy" repeatedly, and every time the phone rings or there is a knock on the door, she gets excited, just ready for him to talk to her or walk in the door. The significant events in her life (wearing a new skirt, going to the bathroom all by herself) have been marked by an eager "Go tell Daddy!" only to discover afresh that Daddy is not here. I have been a little sad for her as she keeps wondering where Daddy is!

On Monday, I was washing some lunch dishes as the girls played for a few more minutes before nap time. Clara Anne was busily putting on her shoes and her backpack, and then came over to me and announced "Go to (Asia)! I want to see Daddy!" I tried to convince her that Daddy wasn't there, that he is only a few hours away, but to a two year old, it doesn't really matter where as long as he isn't HERE. So just as I was thinking, "Maybe I just need to give Clara Anne some attention; maybe that would help her not miss him so much," Clara Anne said "Mama, please give me some (at)ten-tion. I need some (at)ten-tion." She said it in such a bashful voice, I could hardly believe what I was hearing! Where did she get that phrase?! And how did she learn how to use it in the appropriate setting?!

Needless to say, that got my attention and so we very quickly sat down and read some books together. The recent favorite: "Guess How Much I Love You" which we have had in our collection for quite some time but seems to be Clara Anne's first pick this week. I do love reading with her, and lately with our busy schedule, it really feels like a luxury--we both truly enjoy it.

John will be home again next Monday, PTL! He will have three very happy girls to greet him! The only downside--I guess I will have to start cooking some "real" food; crackers and cheese, grapes and yogurt will probably not qualify as dinner in his book!

In other news:

Last night I was so happy to have joined in the choir rehearsal at our home club. Probably my favorite conductor in the whole world, Chip Stam, leads that group with a wonderful mix of fun, excellent music, and great technique. I didn't realize how much I missed being a part of it until I was there last night again! Chloe stayed down in the nursery during the rehearsal but Clara Anne was with me--alternately sitting quietly and listening, holding her music as if to sing, and getting up off her chair to dance along. She enjoyed herself thoroughly! Midway through the rehearsal, we were all treated to a big surprise put on by two tenors: One of them (he happens to be blind and amazingly musically talented) moved to the piano and started playing some "Hoe-down" music, and the other picked up a length of rope and started doing lasso tricks! (Did I mention that these were tenors?! Leave it to the tenors!) Apparently this was all worked out beforehand and was meant just for our enjoyment! Only in the Clifton choir would such silliness take place! By the end we were all clapping along and singing "I'll Fly Away" in a hoe-down style. Fun times!

On Tuesday Clara Anne, Chloe and I took out our new stroller to the prettiest place in Louisville, in my humble opinion: the Cave Hill Cemetary. It sounds a little morbid to visit a cemetary voluntarily, but in fact Cave Hill is a truly lovely place. It is like a very quiet garden, with curving walks, well-maintained plants, towering trees, several ponds and wildlife, and benches here and there to sit and appreciate it all. Cave Hill is also an arboretum so the plants are all labeled--which I appreciate since I am curious, but fairly ignorant, about those types of things. Tuesday morning it was warm, quiet, and lovely on the cemetary grounds. The ducks and geese flocked to us when we started tossing out some stale bread, and the only noise was that of a lawn mower humming in the distance. I got some great exercise pushing the girls all over, Chloe got a good nap in the stroller, and Clara Anne and I enjoyed the quiet, birdsongs, fresh scents, and pretty scenery. Unfortunately the dogwoods and redbuds are all leafed out now, and the daffodils and iris are done too, so it was mostly just green everywhere, but we'll go back next week to see the peonys open up. Lovely, lovely, I tell you. Any of you readers in Louisville, don't miss out on Cave Hill! It's a treasure, a quiet place right in the city!

And finally, just a note about Chloe! Our happy younger daughter seems to have gotten the short shrift in the blog coverage lately, sorry about that Chloe! She has been such a sweetie lately; giggling like mad when Clara Anne plays with her, giving me a HUGE grin whenever I come around her side of the car to get her out of the carseat, pulling up and standing next to the furniture with a big smile on her face. Tonight she was playing peek-a-boo with me as I sat in a big armchair--she kept pulling up, smiling and giggling at me, then sitting down again, then pulling up, giggling again, and then disappearing by sitting down. She loves to get her hands on whatever Clara Anne is playing with, especially puzzle pieces! (Of course that annoys Clara Anne to no end.) But Clara Anne still loves her sis and lately always begs me to let her feed Chloe. I have a great picture of Clara Anne feeding Chloe yogurt--I will post it soon, I promise! It isn't hard to get Chloe to eat--I usually have a hard time getting her full! All of that physical exercise lately seems to create a bottomless pit in her tummy. This morning I even caught her trying to eat some lint off the floor! I managed to fish that out of the mouth of that babe later.

Speaking of which, those crackers and cheese didn't really fill me up at supper. I'm feeling hungry! Maybe I need a midnight snack . . . something more tasty than lint . . .