March 24

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

“It’s a little bit dark out there, honey Mama,” Puck said when he came into their room at 5:57 that morning.

He was put back in his room until the sun had begun to rise, behind the gray. Then OLeif went to get him.

“I was good, Daddy!” he exclaimed. “I stopped talking!”

Then he cuddled with them for a little while until OLeif tickled him into a fit of giggles.

“This is gettin’ a little ridicoolous, Daddy,” he said.

Over at the house, while Collette worked with Francis on algebra, Collette and Carrie discussed the time that Carrie got hit by freak lightening.

“I talked to a meteorologist about it,” she said, “and he got really excited and said it was a very unusual phenomenon. He said it was precursor lightening. A storm must have been about a hundred miles away or so. I didn’t even see any clouds. I just saw a bright white flash. And my arm was numb for an hour.”

Those meteorologists…

“Did you hear about the murder?” Carrie asked later. “I chased Francis into his room, because he was being obnoxious about something. So then he tried to climb in my window and stepped right on my Gerbera daisy, the one I had worked so hard on to get growing again. He demolished it. So then he slipped a chocolate bunny under my door and said, ‘You’re not fat.’”

After another nap fail, Puck came over to rub noses with Collette.

“Mugga mugga mugga mugga, Mama!”

In the afternoon:

1. Mom and Linnea headed out for gymnastics, whereupon Mandarin returned with them to attend youth group with Linnea.

2. After working at the neighbor’s house, Francis, Creole, and Puff ‘o Lump departed to help Henri Eight move things for someone at church and then returned to examine old engines and ride the go-carts.

3. OLeif was dropped off by Gloria after suit-shopping in time for a round of hot dogs.

4. Joe came back from class and visiting with Grandma Combs, who had gifted him with a cast-iron model of a bicycle, which Joe proudly displayed on the piano.

5. Rose returned from work sporting a new ruffled silk rose-colored vest, which looked very nice on her. And she then opened her new Fantastic Mr. Fox.

   
   

“You bought this with your own money?” Dad asked, a little bemused that someone would intentionally purchase such a film.

“No, Dad, she bought it with your money,” Carrie said.

Dad gave Rose a look, and Rose wiggled her eyebrows. “Don’t worry, don’t worry. I’ll pay you back.”