Back in the habit

Haven't blogged in too long so need to write some stuff down. Like:

- In Week 1 of the NFL season, I had to give Kate her bath before bedtime, so I asked Jack to take notes for me. Here's what he wrote:

"Eagles win! .... Jay Cutler looking good. ... Falcons get big loose against Bears." (I think he meant "lose.") "Persi Harven get run back for t-down on first play of game." Thanks, Jack.

- Jack's first organized soccer practice! Considering Pee-Wee Soccer in Greenwich was mostly just running around (plus his Dad coached him his final season), this to me seemed like a bigger deal. And he did great, running and kicking and having the ball taken away from him and playing goal (because all the kids wanted a chance at playing goal, it was a little odd). And afterward he wanted to stay and take shots on goal, but we had to go because Kate had gymnastics. Which brings me to...

- Kate's birthday! It was basically a weeklong birthday, with the family over on Sunday, her actual birthday on Tuesday, and a party for her preschool friends on Saturday. Some highlights: I saw one present, the "My Little Pony" stuffed toy, and said, Oh, My Little Pony. Kate, indignant: "No. MY little pony."... The night before her birthday, she asked if she could wear her blue dress, the one she thinks is like Cinderella and she would wear every day if she could. It was dirty, , but I said of course you can, and washed it and dried it that night so she could wear it the next day. ... At her birthday, they did a "Hide and Seek" thing where they hid her for her friends to find her. Uh, they found her, when she started wailing for Mommy because it was dark where they hid her. OK, maybe that was a lowlight. ... She liked bouncing on the trampoline and walking on the balance beam. Of course, she'd been doing that that very morning, at her gymastics class. Which you can tell she loves because she smiles, pays attention, and does what she's told. It's stuff she doesn't love where she is more, shall we say, resistant. ... I put her to bed the night before her birthday and sang Swing on a Star with goofy voices. I could see her little cheeks crinkle as she smiled at me.

Kate at morning

Got up with Kate this morning to give her breakfast. She was kind of chatty as we sat in the kitchen, me drinking coffee and her eating cereal.

"When I grow up, I'm going to put that chair like that." (Indicating my chair, which I was sitting on at a slight angle.)

"And when I grow up, I'm going to drive to work and Mommy's going to sit next to me."

"What is Jack going to be when he grows up? Oh! He's going to be a scientist. I wish I could be a scientist." You can, I said. "But I don't want to me, I'm going to be a Mommy when I grow up." You can be both, I said. "Oh! I know what I'm going to be. A mermaid!"

(Looking at me writing all this down as she spoke.) "That's a lot of words, Daddy."