yet another anecdote from our U.S. trip last October

Sagey and I were sitting on her grandma's back porch in Florida, when her uncle's dog Ace trotted out and promptly began taking a dump in the back yard.

"Mommy," Sage wanted to know, "what is Ace doing? Why is he sitting in the grass?"

"He's making poo-poo," I told her. "That's how dogs do it; sitting down, just like people."

"Just like people," Sage repeated, apparently reflecting on the matter. Then she called out, brow furrowed in distressed concern, "Ace! Why don't you use the potty?!"

Christmas present(s!)

This was Sage's third Christmas, but probably the first one she got to really, really enjoy. (Though I'm fairly sure she got a kick out of pulling the tree down back when she was less than a year old, still learning to walk, and decided that the Christmas tree would make an ideal support pillar...)

This year, she was old enough at last to understand the idea of Santa Claus, to make a wish list of the things she wanted, to 'help' decorate the tree, and to enjoy getting all dolled up on the big day itself. She was so good and patient about waiting to open all the gifts that she knew were piling up for her under the tree--every now and then, she'd just come up to me with a gift in hand, eyes appealingly wide for maximum cuteness as she'd coo: "Mommy, can we open just this one?"

But I was firm; she was patient; and it all paid off on Christmas Day when she received a veritable avalanche of presents from parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and of course, Santa Claus!

Her absolute favorites (so far):

1. the Cinderella's carriage Mega Blocks set from 'Santa'

2. the twirling train set given by Santa and painstakingly assembled by her father (despite a semi-serious manufacturing defect, eventually solved with Super Glue)

3. the Sleeping Beauty Barbie from Ninong Vin and Uncle 'Anjoo', along with the Fairytopia Barbie from Grandpa Reggie (listed as a pair since they are inevitably played with in tandem)

4. the classic-style teddy bear named Toffee (given, christened, and secretly coveted by her mother)

5. the Disney Princesses sing-along storybook from her friend Lumpia (whose real name is Alyssa, and whom Sage refers to as 'Loompy')

6. the Disney Princesses toy cell phone, makeup, and purse set purchased on direct request by her father

7. a pair of musical feathered plastic lovebirds in a plastic cage from her Grandma Meng

And this was just the tip of the iceberg! (Which happens to include a truly outrageous feathered-and-sequined pink shirt from her Grandma; and not just one, but two full sets of characters from The Incredibles.)

Thanks to everybody who remembered Sagey this Yule!

pinky & the brain

Sage and her father were playing little hand games--you know, like 'gimme five', 'high five', and so on--when Dean said, "Let's pinky-kiss!"

"Pinky?" Sage, having never encountered the word before, looked confused.

"Pinky," Dean told her. "Your smallest finger is also called your pinky."

"This one," I chimed in, wiggling my smallest finger at Sage. "This one is your pinky."

"No, Mommy," she admonished me, pushing my hand away and holding up her own smallest finger. "THIS ONE is my pinky. That's YOUR pinky."

And once again, I sit corrected.

our growing grammarian

Naturally, I had tears in my eyes yesterday when, on her way out the door to Sunday school with her nanny, Sage turned back and ran to her father, saying, "Dad, I haven't kissed you yet."

It wasn't just the heartwarming sentiment of the moment that had me all melting into a gooey pile of slush. It was:

Oh my God! Our daughter can conjugate!

Hey, it was a perfect moment in the present, but to a child born of writer parents, the past perfect is important, too.

look, new look!

Now that Sagey is really developing a personality of her very own, she deserves a look that really matches her tastes. Since she likes fairies (and likes to dress up as Tinkerbell... when she's not being Cinderella), this is it. (Um, because a Powerpuff Girls blog just seemed too... vibrant.)

If you're a regular reader of Sage's exploits, and would like to be included on her blogroll, please leave a note with your name and url in the comments!

the power of language

Another anecdote from our trip to the States:

My mother proposed eating out at her favorite restaurant, so Dean, Sage, and I went off to our room to get dressed. As her father helped her into her outfit (I was still fussing with my face), Sage asked him, "Daddy, where we going?"

"We're going to eat out," Dean replied. "Grandma is taking us to a Japanese restaurant to eat teppanyaki, mmm!"

"No, Daddy!" Sage protested, her face set in consternation. "It's yucky!"

Realizing immediately that Sage had associated the food with the last two syllables of its name, Dean corrected himself without missing a beat. "Oh, did I say teppanyaki? I meant teppan-yummy. We're going to eat teppan-yummy!"

"Ooh!" Sage said, eyes aglow with instant approval. "Hurry, Mommy, teppan-yummy!"

something for Sage and me to remember when she's 17 and we're driving each other crazy

You know you're really a mother when your sleeping daughter kicks you in the face, and your primary concern is that she may have hurt her foot.