Sophie and I went on a bug adventure earlier. We took a walk around the block to try to find bugs. Unfortunately, according to Sophie, ants don’t qualify as bugs. There were lots of ants, but not so many other critters.

We did see a butterfly, but it scampered away fairly quickly. And we saw a gnat, too. But that was about it. There were lots of little birds, but Sophie wasn’t particularly interested in those today.

After a few minutes, Sophie turned her attention toward the trees. “Mommy, is this the jungle?” she inquired. Sophie is obsessed with the jungle. Wherever we go, if there’s a tree, she sees a jungle. Now, while we have a lot of trees where we live, we obviously don’t live in a jungle. There are arguably forests nearby, sort of. But we were simply strolling along a nearby street, and she was focusing on a relatively young tree planted curbside. Not a jungle. Not a forest. I tried explaining that in order to see the jungle we’d need to take the plane and go far, far away. She doesn’t get the concept.

But she’s a kid and if she thinks she’s living in the jungle, who am I to disabuse her of that fallacy?

Chloe is still taking piano lessons and still seems to enjoy it, although she’s not as gung-ho about practicing as she was in the beginning (no surprise there).

As you can see from the photo, however, we still haven’t invested in her future as a concert pianist. She’s using the tiny play keyboard that my mom bought for her a couple of years ago, and it sits on the coffee table in the living room. She kneels to play. We haven’t even provided her with kneepads to protect her legs from rug burn.

What does this say about us as parents? That’s easy. It says that we have no faith that Chloe’s interest is going to last more than a few months. We know that as soon as we invest in a real electric keyboard (we’ve given up on the idea of an authentic piano), she’ll find a new hobby. And I know this because that’s how I was when I was a kid. Voice lessons, soccer, piano, Girl Scouts, tennis, swimming (I’m sure I’ve forgotten a bunch of activities) – I tried almost anything at least once – with a mixed record of longevity.

At some point, however, we’re going to need to bite the bullet and go keyboard shopping. But we haven’t yet determined what the threshold date is going to be – we keep pushing it back. In the meantime we’re spending a lot of money on lessons, and she can play the “Can-Can” while on her knees. Pretty impressive, no?

I got home a bit late tonight and my head is spinning. I have no particular stories to tell – except that Sophie lost her two new favorite barrettes – pink and purple butterfly clips that she received as a gift the other day from the kids’ hair salon.

Yep, after months and months of neglect, we finally got her hair cut. Except it doesn’t look that much different than it did before she sat down in the Barbie car. I love her curly hair. But it’s out of control. The locks are a little bit shorter than they used to be, and there are fewer stray corkscrews hanging at her neck. Otherwise, her hair is pretty much the same.

When I called the house earlier to let everyone know I was going to be late, Chloe answered the phone. This is how our conversation went:

“Hi, Chloe.”
“Hi, Mommy. Guess what, Mommy?” Chloe asks, sounding like she might have something bad to tell me.
“What?” I inquire, thinking to myself that she’s getting ready to confess a minor crime.
“Your warranty is expiring.”
“What are you talking about, sweetheart?”
“Some man called and said that your warranty is expiring. What’s a warranty, Mom?”

I wish she would stop answering the phone!

Chloe drew this picture of dragons the other day. No doubt inspired by her successful go at slaying the dragon during the MagiQuest game at Great Wolf Lodge, she spent a good amount of time creating this tableau of a family of fire-breathing, flying dragons.

Her drawing skills have improved magically over time – it’s pretty cool to see the evolution in her compositions. At the eye doctor today, she drew a family of pirates for the nurse to hang on one of the walls.

The family theme that permeates her artwork is definitely a good thing. They aren’t dysfunctional, psychotic families – just happy families of four. Whether dragons, pirates, bears or other creatures. When I see these images, I’m reassured. We must be doing something right.

Of course, these feelings of child-reading success are often undermined when one of the two little angels starts screaming at us for some perceived slight. At which point I start wondering, with increasing alarm, “what kind of monsters are we raising?”

But this usually doesn’t last too long, and then we’re all back to being lovey-dovey and happy until the next outburst.

On another note, I’m turning 40 in a few months. And every time I remember that I’m turning 40, I realize that Sophie will be starting college when I’m about 55. That’s crazy. When my mom was 55, I was already 31 years old – and pregnant with Chloe. Jeez.

Will my husband and I ever be able to retire? Probably not. Playing the lottery is looking more and more tempting every day.