Crushes, Zoo Boo, Nostalgia

One morning this week, Evie was asking me about people in our family tree, trying to figure out who was still alive and who had gone to heaven.  I ended up drawing her a family tree to try to explain things.  After I was done with my explanation, she said, "Now, add Desmond and our ten children."  She knows how to stick with a plan.  And apparently so does Desmond because he's been telling his mom the same thing.  My mom and dad went to Evie's school on Friday for Peace Day since Seth and I couldn't go and my mom was told by Desmond's mom that she had asked Desmond one day how he knew that he and Evie were going to get married and have ten children and he said, "Evie told me."  You know, when you find a man who's willing to be that agreeable, you probably should plan to marry him.

Evie's been playing different kind of pretend games lately, more based in her own creativity than in reenacting a movie she's seen.  One of these games involves her calling me and telling me that she and Desmond are going on a trip and she needs me to come and babysit their ten kids.  I got some of it on video.

Language funnies:

• Evie was telling me that one time she and Seth had gone to an ice cream shop and she had tried three kinds of ice cream at once: chocolate, blueberry, and peanut butter.  I asked her how that went and she said, "Not good."
• Instead of her Guessing Animals game, we were playing Guessing People in the car where I usually give clues like, "You come to see me when you're sick" and of course the answer is the doctor.  Evie gives me the clue, "I kinda look like Tarzan except I have clothes."  The answer was Jesus.
• Playing Beauty and the Beast one night, Evie did an amazing job at playing her character.  I was Belle and she was Gaston and we had the following exchange:

Evie as Gaston: Why do you not like me?

Mama as Belle: Well, for one thing, you're illiterate.  You don't read books.

Evie as Gaston:  I do read books.  At my house.

Mama as Belle: Oh? What books do you read?

Evie as Gaston: Well, books about me.

Evie is still playing soccer, though her interest in it has waned.  She's more concerned that she might be hit with the ball so when it comes toward her, she cringes and moves away.  But in practice, she does the drills pretty well.

Thursday night, we went to meet Ivy's new baby brother Corwin.  Evie and Ivy enjoyed playing together - they did very well - and then Evie got to hold Corwin.

When we were leaving, Evie and Ivy decided to share a rocking chair and watch the stars come out.

Saturday night, Granna and Grannadaddy joined us for a trip to Zoo Boo.  Evie was Rapunzel and she had a great time going around the zoo, trick-or-treating, petting live snakes, riding camels, and riding the kid rides.

Me and Evie on the spinning ride that almost made me lose my tootsie rolls.

One of the many ways in which my mom is magic is that she has saved several of my outfits from when I was a baby and little kid.  We are about to the end of those saved outfits and I was so glad that this purple jumper was one of the ones she saved and that Evie was able to fit into it still once the weather here finally turned cold enough to wear long sleeves.

Same dress, thirty years later.