A Great Idea

One of the (many) cool things about having Lucy in our family is all the ideas she comes up with. At least ten times a day she'll say to me, "Mom! I've got a great idea!" And it's always something totally unexpected. I love to get little glimpses of how her mind is working. I'm often surprised (and sometimes can't really follow, if you want to know the real truth. But it's still fun.) One time I opened the freezer and found a tiny pink plastic pig (who oinks when you press a button). I think he was on some sort of travel journey.

Another morning when we woke up, she wanted us to go on a treasure hunt she had created. She had a treasure map, and our eventual destination was her inner closet (the girls have a closet within a closet) where she had hidden some of Darren's theological books. Later on, we were enjoying the beautiful spring weather, and she found some magnolia petals on the sidewalk. "I've got a great idea," she said excitedly. "When we go home, I want to get an envelope and you help me glue these to them. Then I'm going to color on it. Then I'm going to write: (and she began to sing) 'Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me! I once was lost but now am found, was blind but now I seeeeeeee!'"

The day before yesterday, she and Elaine had taken Rabbie and Bittie outside to go down the slide with them. (Anyone who knows Lucy or this blog knows Rabbie too. Bittie is Rabbie's identical twin sister. She now belongs to Elaine. For anyone who doesn't know, these are stuffed rabbits.) Elaine (because her mothering skills still need some fine tuning) left Bittie lying outside on the grass by the slide. At lunch, Lucy saw her. "Ohhhhhhh!" she cried. "Bittie is out there all alone by the slide! I can hear her sobbing. I'm going to get her." She brought her in and announced, "She's crying because she was stung by a bee. And now I need to take her temperature." (Darren heard "...she was stung by a bee" and said, "Elaine was stung by a bee?" "No, Bittie," I answered. He just looked at me.)

Later on, I found Bittie on the couch. The girls had taken all the afghans off various couches and covered her with them. When I lifted up the afghans, I saw that Bittie was packed in ice as well, ice that was rapidly melting all over my furniture.

Yesterday I heard Lucy put on a Strawberry Shortcake CD in their room--her favorite song, "The Festival of the Fillies." I heard both girls dancing around and talking excitedly. Then Lucy burst into the bathroom where I was brushing my teeth. "MOM!" she said dramatically. "Dobbin has won the festival of the fillies. (Dobbin is their rocking horse. He's a boy. I'm not sure how he was allowed to compete in a festival of fillies, but we'll let it go. I'm not ready to have that conversation yet.) He won twenty prizes and got Best Filly in Show! I brushed him, and he looks so beautiful; you have to come see!"

Later on, she came up to me again. "I had the greatest idea, Mom!" Then I interrupted her and said, "Lucy, wow. Your hair looks great! We haven't even combed it or anything, and it looks so nice!" She thanked me but was eager to get back to her ideas. "First of all, I tucked Maisy into Elaine's bed for her nap. She looks so cute. Then I brought Dobbin in the closet for his nap. He's so tired after winning all those prizes. Please come take a picture of them!" (She had turned on lullaby music for them as well.)

I went and took pictures and then she said, "I want to send these pictures to Pastor A. and Mrs. A" (our associate pastor and his wife--she loves them). "I'm writing a note with the pictures. Here's what I want it to say: 'Dear Pastor A: You are a great teacher at Kids4Truth. Dear Mrs. A: You are great at playing the piano. Love, Lucy." Then she looked in the mirror and added, "Who has great hair."

Maisy napping



Dobbin napping (after his amazing award sweep at the festival)


The girl with the great ideas. And great hair.