Sock it to me

hands on, originally uploaded by toyfoto.

Last night when I got home the house was silent.

For exactly seven minutes I was alone in an almost empty house. I quickly went to work preparing to turn my hard day's work into milkcicles, and spent the next precious few seconds of alone-time ignoring the dog (who was jumping around like a crazy tumble weed trying to get me to feed her) and sifting through the mail.

Mmmmm. Bliss. (Too bad it was only circulars and catalogs).

Then, this seven-minute sojourn ended with the muffled thud of the car door and the rapid pounding of a tiny mitten on the window glass.

"Hellllllllllllllllllllllllllllll-O," she calls. "Anybody there?"

And it doesn't stop until bedtime. ...

"I have a great idea! Why don't we do a project together. You can get down the craft box from the closet and we can do something together. I know. Let's make valentine's cards for Lori and Great Aunt Maureen (whose cards were waiting for her when she got home). Or ... I know ... Let's make a sock puppet. I'll get this old sock from my drorer and you can watch me. Sit right over there. No. Not there. HERE. Ok. Well maybe not this striped sock. That's not good. Will you go get me a sock that's good? Oh. That's a great one, Mom. Good JOB!

"OK. Now. I will put on the eyes and the nose like this. You could sew it for me, I guess, but I'm thinking it would take too long. And glue is better. I like glue. So I will just use glue like this.

"OK. Now he needs a collar. I think he would like a ribbon that is here. See. Pink. You wrap it around and then glue it. ... Well I'm having some trouble here. Could you help me here? Just glue it down. No, not like that. More like around it rounder. Yes! That would be perfect.

"OK. Now we need some pom-poms. I would put them around her just like this. But they will fall off. So I don't think this glue is really working for it. Maybe we need some of that other glue. This one here. The GLUE STICK!!!! That's what we need.

"OK. Now we need some feathers for arms. And I think the glue stick will be perfect for this job. I tried to get the pink and the blue and the red feather on. But it won't stay. And it needs arms and head feathers, too. Will you help me with that? No. It needs to go here. And you have to have them stand up. Not OUT. UP.

"THAT IS BEAU-TEE-FUL. You are doing great WORK!

"OK. Now I have to go to the potty. Can you just wait here? Maybe dad needs to get you a rootbeer.

"I'm back. Daddy said he didn't have any rootbeer but that he would make you a ritamargo if you wanted. Oh, I don't know. Did you see I wrote my name on the em-bell-ope all by myself? I'm going to let the sock dry now and then I'm going to put it in the bag so I can take it to school sometime. I think that would be a great idea.

"Later if I take a shower will you let me splash you with cold water? I promise it will be warm. I promise it's true. I'm being true!