Snippets of time

- I was washing dishes this evening when Jack shambled out into the kitchen, an armful of big legos clutched to his chest. "Can you make Cowboy Bob, Daddy?" (I make the cowboy on the side of the lego box, who I called Cowboy Bob.) "Can you make Cowboy Bob?"

- In the living room, in the midst of all his blocks: "Can you make a train, Daddy?"

- At the park the other day, a sunny and relatively mild day where I took Jack to get some fresh air and exercise -- and there wasn't another soul there. I called Emily to share that fact, and afterward Jack was repeating what I said. "There is nobody HERE. Nobody HERE."

- Sledding in Vermont, in 2-foot drifts of soft, powdery snow that Jack couldn't stand up or move in, and Jack not having much enthusiasm for it -- tough to blame him, he was kind of helpless. But he LOVED seeing Daddy go down the hill in the sled, and Daddy fall over backwards in a pratfall (intentional....really), and Daddy set him down on the porch, out of the snow at last.

- Emily tells me that she and Jack have a game at night, when she puts him in the crib. He leans forward in slow motion, puts his face against the bars, and kisses her. And as he moves forward, he gets this little excited, mischievous look on his face.

- When I put Jack down for a nap, or for bed, and he's in a good mood, he says (as I leave) "Good night, Daddy!" Halfway down the hall: "Good night, Daddy!"

Good night.