Day 4! Fence repair with Kate, Jack the music critic

On Fridays I have Kate with me; first she and I went out to the hardware store for chicken wire to patch our fence (in anticipation of getting a dog, perhaps, tomorrow). She was very helpful, trying to pull a roll of metal wire taller than her out of the rack. "Here. I get it," she said.

Then the grocery store, where we were able to get a red-and-yellow racecar, even though we only bought two things (and "smashed bottles," the euphemism for turning empty soda and beer cans and bottles into money).

Then home, where I used a staple gun and wire cutters to manipulate the fence into place. Kate wanted to help. How does a three-year old help with a staple gun, wire cutters, and wire chicken fence? Well, she doesn't. But she tries, by following me into narrow spots behind tangles of bushes despite my pleas for her to stay back. Kate, I told you not to come back here. "But I'm helping you."

After school, we picked up Jack. He immediately lit out across the playground with a couple of friends. They spent the next 10 minutes running, running, running. I walked Kate over to the jungle gym area. There were bigger kids on it, so Kate would approach something, see a large kid heading toward it, and slowly back over to me. But, she did get to stand on this little platform thing, hold the bars at either side, and swing slowly, a small smile on her face. Until a big kid got too close and she came over to me again.

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I played a "Police" CD for Jack today, Regatta de Blanc. Jack had plenty of opinions.

"I like this music with guitars and drums better than music with keyboards. It's a lot better."

"Reg Aah Tah dee Blanch is the most famous song, and it doesn't even have any WORDS. They're not even SAYING 'reg aah tah dee blanch.'"

"I like when everyone is singing. It's more of a party song."

"I thought THIS guy was Sting, because he has a picture of a bumblebee on his shirt."

"Why are they called 'the Police?'" I don't know, Jack, maybe one of them had his life saved by a policeman. Or maybe they just thought it was a cool name. "Or maybe Sting is a policeman. Or maybe he USED to be a policeman. Or maybe....Stewart or Copeland did. Or...."

"Message in a bottle is my most favorite song." And then he got off his chair and did his typical butt-shaking, foot-stomping, knee-sliding dance, that I promise I did not teach him.