What the Toddler Wants...

One of the problems with having four grandchildren, three of whom live a ten-hour drive away (four hours, if Agnes is at the wheel) is that the nearest grandchild tends to get the immediate attention. It has nothing at all to do with how much you love all four...it's just that it's easier to cuddle the one that lives just a half-hour away.

We spent the afternoon yesterday visiting our daughter Yasmin and her family. This was a special occasion, as we were celebrating Yasmin's birthday, and so Leya was in Grandparent Overload, with two sets of old fogies all jockeying for cuddling time. I got on the scoreboard early...


I'm still not quite sure if she was happier at the attention of Grandpa or the ability to play with her feet.

After a very nice Indian lunch prepared by Grandma Indira, we got ready to cut the birthday cake. Yasmin is actually a bit more than six years old, but it's never too soon to stop calling attention to a woman's real age. Leya was very interested in the cake...


We thought it would be nice to have a three-generations picture of all the ladies, and so Grandpa Gopi and I tried to herd all the cats into an appropriate pose...Leya's not too sure about the whole thing...

Now we're ready for the picture. Everyone is looking at the camera...now!...quick - while everyone's attention is distracted...

Yep, you guessed it:


It's a little-known fact of child physiology that a toddler's arms can extend to a reach of approximately four feet when something interesting is within range. I believe she's thinking something like, "Forget all that pureed peas stuff...gimme the cake, NOW!"

Happy Birthday, Yasmin! You've got your work cut out for you!

Have a good day. More thoughts tomorrow.

Bilbo