Well, Thanksgiving is over and my family has all returned safely to Colorado after their travel-for-longer-than-the-visit-is trip to central Missouri.  I believe that only lunatics travel for 4 days for a 2 day visit, but I do understand that my new daughter is an irresistible lure.  Whatever the reason they did that drive, I'm glad they did.  It was the first time in quite a while that we've all been together.  All together in my sister's smallish duplex!  It was cozy.  (Come to think of it, I guess I don't KNOW that they all returned safely.  My family takes the opposite approach to calling to let people know you've arrived safely from every other family in the world.  No news is good news.  If I were to call my mother the second I got home from a trip it would give her a heart attack because she'd be sure it was state patrol calling with dire news.  If you're safe, don't call.  Not sure what sense that makes, but it's how we roll.)

I think Big D, who doesn't get to see his Colorado family nearly enough, is slightly confused as to which aunt and uncle go together and who lives where.  Not that he really cares.  It's his cousin Conner that he was fascinated by.  Even though Conner just turned 7 and Big D is 3, the two of them seemed to have a very good time.  They played football, Conner let D hold the other controller while he played Wii, and they made play dough creations together.  It is clearly Conner, not the aunts and uncles and grandparents who made an impression.

D: "When I turen 16, Daddy is going to get me a car."
Me: "Really?  What kind of car?"
D: "A green on with green wheels."
Me: "That sounds nice."
D: "And Daddy will come in it too.  And you too.  Ooh!  And Conner will sit in the passenger seat and I will sit in the driver's seat!"

Mark your calendar, Conner.  Keep July 2021 open. 

I realized that this blog has been rather Belvedere-heavy lately. So to make up for it, here's a list of things I love about D:

• How when I ask after a suspiciously long silence from the bathroom, "What are you doing in there?" I get, "I'M NOT GOING TO DO THAT ANY MORE!!!"
• How he can change the first letter of every word in a song and still sing it full speed, "Dinkle, dinkle dittle dar, dow die dunder dat dou dar."
• How when he calls out FIVE minutes after he's been put in bed to say he has to potty, and when only about 3 drops of pee comes out he turns his big brown eyes to me and says, "See?  I did have to pee!  Are you happy?"
• How fascinated he is by everything around him and how incredibly fast he learns things.
• How the ONLY word he consistently mispronounces is "hospital". As in "Did Daddy have to go to the hopistal?" And now Medman and I always say "hopistal."
  
• How he will keep a cheerful dialogue up with the entire line of disgruntled people in line at the post office while we are up front at the counter.  "Hi man, is that your package?  It's brown.  This is my package.  It's white and it has THREE pillowcases in it.  It's very heavy.  They have candy here.  That man behind that counter gave me a candy one day.  It was called Butterfinger.  It's my dad's favorite candy.  Hi girl.  What is that?  A lock? What do you lock with it?  A bike?  When I'm five I get a bike.  Can you spin that lock around?  Hi everyone!  Mommy!  I said hi to everyone and some said hi back, but some didn't.  Mommy, can you sing a song for me so I can dance?  Can you sing 'How Great Thou Art' so I can dance to it?"   ----I did not make any of this up.  He said it all.  
• How his cheerful chatter (see above) can make even a beaten down Walmart cashier smile. 
• How he prayed at dinner, "Dear God, thank you for this day.  Please help mommy to be quiet while I'm on the phone."
• How he thinks that chewable vitamin C is the greatest treat in the world.
• How he turns everything into a picture of his family: "Mommy, look!  Potato chips!  A big daddy chip, a middle sized mommy chip and a little D chip!"  "Where's Belvedere?"  "She's this LITTLE TINY crumb."

Well, she is pretty tiny...