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In the latter hours of last night my wife and I were getting reacquainted when there was a soft knock on the bedroom door. There is also a hard lock on the bedroom door which I was grateful for at the moment. After a pause where I made myself presentable I opened the door to find Monster X. Her hair held back by her sleep mask, which is worn every night, was disheveled and her eyes were wide with concern. “Is everything OK?” she whispered and peered around me to find a smiling The Colonel demure under a hastily arraigned blanket. She took my assurances that all was well with a bit of wariness but was willing to be led back into her room, tucked in, fawned over, and wished sweet dreams. “Close the door on the way out” acted as my dismissal.

After the sun had crept in from it’s peccadilloes in the East and the day had started it’s beginning I woke Monster X as usual and she made the long trek from her bed to a spot next to the The Colonel under our blankets. As the morning is often a burden on one so young she still had her sleep mask in place as she cuddled close to her mother.

“I wanted to make sure you are OK.”
“I’m fine little monkey, why are you asking?”
“You were coughing so loud last night.”

Her concern is touching.

To celebrate momentous occasions we hied ourselves to Maria’s because some of us feel that the only way to celebrate is with tacos and the sultry sounds of of mariachi. Delicacies both tortilla and non-tortilla based were consumed along with Monster X’s go-to drink when out and about: The Shirley Temple. I don’t know about your S and T’s but this one apparently was a bit on the strong side because after imbibing our young lady started acting if not sheets to the wind then at least un-anchored. Among many fun activities displayed were holding a curled hand to her mouth and then blowing on her knuckle which “made” her pointer finger unfurl like a noisemaker (”I’m just seeing how this feels.”) When told to say goodbye to Her Grandmother MX stood and gave a rather formal salute, then announced:

Salute your elders! You never know that they might have been in a war or something!

The Colonel and I were discussing matters of no great import in the kitchen while Monster X busied herself on the computer in the other room.

The Colonel: You are crazy.
Me: No, you are the crazy one.
The Colonel: No, no, you are the one with the crazy.
Me: You’re crazy.
The Colonel: You’re crazy.
Monster X: (Yelling from the other room) What are you talking about?! He’s the only one who makes any sense in this family!

Discussing that, since she is sleeping over at Her Grandmother’s, all bets are off.

The Colonel: Grandma can feed you anything… I wouldn’t know.
Monster X: I’d hit myself in the head with a hammer so I wouldn’t know either.

Upon hearing about the fate of the children in “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”

Whoa! If I was in that factory I would stay still. I’d just sit and eat a sandwich I brought from home.