Things I Don't Get

Things I don't get:

• I love popcorn. I hate popcorn flavored Jelly Bellies. *shiver*
• Why I always find one piece of Christmas paraphernalia a week after I pack away Christmas.
• The movie, "Chicken Little". But Isabella seems to love it.
• Gin and Tonics.
• My Linksys.
• How my baby came to be 2 inches taller than I.
• Why we have to have below zero weather. Fahrenheit.
• ...and on a related note, why my ancestors parked their lazy asses in Indiana...and why, after the first winter here, they didn't keep moving to anywhere warmer?!
• 6-year-olds - I don't 'get' them, but they sure do crack me up...

Isabella spent the night here last night. And she is full of it. She brought 6 movies and thought we were going to watch all of them. When I told her, after 2 movies ("The Pacifier", which may make me reconsider my low opinion of Vin Diesel, and "Chicken Little", which I had to stop watching after 15 minutes because 'Oh! The stupid!'), that it was time for bed, she looked at me and exclaimed, "But Auntie! We didn't watch all our movies!" It only took me about 5 minutes to convince her that it would take until morning to watch all of them and if we stayed up to watch them, we would get in trouble with Mommy. When I put her to bed, I asked her where she wanted to sleep: In Mackenzie's bed (which was unoccupied as Mac was at Wago's with Sydney), or in my bed. She said, "Your bed." But when we got in my room, she informed me that she wanted to sleep "on the ground".

"On the ground?"

"Yes, on the ground."

"On the floor?"

"Yes, on the floor. Next to your bed."

"Why?"

"I like it there."

(Ok, if you say so...)

So I piled up two sheepskins in an effort to make the hardwood less ... hard, piled a blanket on top of that, and added a pillow. She seemed satisfied and kissed me goodnight.

She only bounced up twice. Once, to tell me that she "always" has to know where her water is in case she gets thirsty at night. I reminded her of the conversation we had 10 minutes previous where I informed her that I had put her water (while she was watching me) on the floor, about 6 inches from her head so she could reach it whenever she wanted. And I put her back to bed. 15 minutes later, she bounced up to tell me that her pillow was "too squishy." It was. I prefer those feather pillows that thin out to nothing and then your head is lying right on the mattress, causing you to wonder why you even bothered with a pillow in the whole first place, and apparently that's not her thing. I looked for a foam pillow but I didn't have one so I told her I would just give her two. She seemed ok with this and went back to bed. She didn't bounce up again. I think it may be a record.

I slept fitfully all night, worrying that she would decide to climb up in my bed in the middle of the night, scaring the crap out of Taiko. I'm not certain how long he would growl before biting if someone tried to climb in my bed in the middle of the night. (Rapists, beware.) Even Bella. But she didn't, and he didn't, and she slept until almost 9:00. She is invited back.

And then, against my better judgement (because who can resist this face - if you can your heart is made of cold, cold steel):



...I let her eat pancakes with syrup on my sofa. I win the Coolest Aunt Award (Or the Clueless Aunt Award. It's debatable.).

She didn't even spill and and we had a great, great time.