We're back. . . .

Another too short, but fun weekend with Oma.

Thea lost her fourth tooth Monday afternoon, just as we were finished walking Chelsea - my mother's neighbor's Boston terrier. Today was animal day: the kids got to pet Peanut, my mother's friend's cat and then we went to feed peppermints to her neighbor's horses. Thea's been doing this for a couple of years, so she's ok with letting the horses slurp the mint out of her hand, Micah was not game for it last time we visited, but this time he tried it once. He was not pleased with the giant horse lips, slimy tongue and big teeth, so he let Thea and Gertrude to the remainder of the mints.

My mother was exhausted by Micah's constant chatter - which is both funny and wonderful considering he had maybe about 30 words this time last year. We were driving back from Richmond on Sunday and she made the comment, "Does he ever SHUT UP?" And as much as I would like some quiet time, I hope he never does. Micah was consistently banging out seven to nine word sentences (I was counting.)

Thanks to the Presidents' Day sale at Kohl's and Oma's plastic, Micah got a new Thomas the Tank Engine shirt and is happy as a clam. The two choices for getting him dressed in the morning are 'puppy dog shirt' or 'choo-choo shirt.' He loves trains, trains, trains, of any sort. And he has a sense of humor about it: when we read his Thomas the Tank Engine book 'On the Track, There and Back there is a line in it that says, "I'm off to the station, a route I know well; To pick up Annie and Clarabel," which he now substitutes Grandma and Oma in place of the coaches' names. I don't know how Oma or Grandma would feel about this development.

Anyway, that's the fast and dirty. I'm happy to be back home; the Coleman air mattress that I use Mom's may have sprung a tiny leak. What started out as a nice firm air mattress each night deflated to a squishy blob by morning, and I'm too old and creaky to be sleeping on a floor.