Sophie is a very happy almost-4-year old. Except when we tell her ‘no.’ In that, she’s taken cues from her older sister. Chloe, while a bit intense sometimes, is generally happy, too. Except when we tell her ‘no.’ Two peas in a pod, these girls.

Chloe was feeling a little sad tonight because Grammy took Sophie back to her place for a sleepover. Chloe would like her own exclusive sleepover with Grammy. She doesn’t always like to share. I promised her she’d get her own exclusive sleepover in the very near future.

In exchange, Chloe and I shared a movie night together. “Confessions of a Shopaholic.” Her choice, not mine. Which is fine – since Chloe in no way resembles the shopaholic of the title. And has no chance of ever becoming the shopaholic of that title. She hates shopping, and basically has no interest in clothes. Except t-shirts. Sophie, on the other hand, only time will tell…

Need I say more? This is Chloe with her friend imagining themselves as doorjamb acrobats.

Sophie served as the circus assistant, responsible for handing them the hula hoop and throwing a beach ball through their legs.

I don’t know if we should have insisted that they stop this dangerous activity, but we didn’t, because it was kind of amusing. I think that makes us a little irresponsible. But they did have fun. And Chloe got to use her muscles a little more than usual.

The girls had the opportunity to spend a day with their Uncle James before he went on his boondoggle Galapagos trip with my mom. Boondoggle James also got himself a new iPhone for his birthday – the lucky dog.

But my envy is neither here nor there. The girls adore their uncle James. Go figure. He does everything they ask him to do. He also makes great compilations of loud music for them to dance to. And now that he has an iPhone, that makes him even cooler in Chloe’s eyes.

Chloe is asking to visit him and her aunt Romy in Texas again. This will likely be their last year in that godforsaken place

(ok – they’re in Austin and Austin is bearable, I guess. Hell, if they end up in North Dakota or Oklahoma then Austin won’t look so bad anymore), so we’ll need to decide soon. Maybe around January/February time when it’s cold and icky here. If they’re willing to have us. See you soon, bro!

Tonight’s pre-bedtime subject of conversation was death. We hadn’t broached that subject in a long time. It had been at least several months since she last asked about her Nanny and why she died.

Sophie wanted to know if I had a father. When I told her everyone has a father, she wanted to know his name. “David,” I replied. “I can say that name,” she excitedly responded. “DAVID!” she exclaimed. When she asked where he was, and if he had died, I told her he had. “Why did he die?” I started to respond that he had been sick. But then I thought better of it, because I figured she doesn’t yet understand that there are degrees of sick. And I certainly don’t want her to think that not every kind of sick causes death. So we told her that he died because he was old (so not true – he was only 56 – only 16 years older than I am now).

That response led to a classic Sophie facial expression – a combination of fear and unease, with her big brown eyes and a pout. Embracing me in a bear hug, she worriedly said, “I don’t want you to get old. If you get old and get sick and die, me and Chloe will be alone.” I told her not to worry, that Mommy and Papa were still young and that it would be a long time before we got old. And that before that happens, she may even have a children of her own.

That comment, of course, opened up another can of worms. “When are children going to be in my tummy?” “Hopefully not for another 20 years, at least,” said her Papa. Boy, has he got that all wrong, I’m thinking to myself. 20 years??? Let’s try 30 next time.

Oh well. Pretty soon, there won’t be any more beach time this year. Only a couple of weeks left. And it ain’t happening this weekend or next. Ugh. This summer – other than our vacation in July – has turned into a lost season for me. We haven’t even been to the pool that much, mostly because of the weather.

In any case, I am looking forward to a calm weekend. Perhaps the pool, perhaps some back to school shopping. But all of that pales against the relative quiet that will

prevail in our house. And that’s what I’m truly excited about. Quiet. Quiet. Quiet.