We Laugh Every Day

Nora says her hangnail is getting "bleedier." She has Harpo hair, his same innocent mien and a taste for the anarchic. When I ask her if the bath water is too hot or cold, she says "it feels wet!" There may be plenty of times I want to cry, but we laugh every day.

After the girls watched the LOL video about a cat sneaking up on his owner, they started playing the game with me. With wide eyes and eerie smiles, they stand frozen and stare at me, then mysteriously move closer when my back is turned. They look so sweetly Children of the Corn, I can't stop laughing in a panicky kind of borderline hysteria. "Stop it, girls, you're freaking me out!" I yell, wanting them to keep it up.

In my latest post on Chicago Moms Blog, I pine for the four of us to have a particular kind of fun together. I kind of got my wish yesterday in an unexpected way when Nora got tired of the water and decided to wrap up in a towel and sit on a deck chair. She watched us play for a while then announced, "I am the judge and you are the swimmers and I will say who will get ALL my blue ribbons and ALL my trophies." She waves her arms to help her explain. Her gaze is directed up and away from us toward the prizes she imagines in the air.

So we have a water ballet competition with lots of fancy flourishes, splashing and dramatic countenances. Randy's summersaults are especially impressive, but Nora bestows the gold to Mia every time. By the third time that I have placed third, I have to whisper to Randy, "family perfection," although it's more about satisfying mutual happiness than any flawless gloss.