And so the Salad says . . .

Riding in the car with a boy . . .

M: "Mommy, do birds have birthdays?"

Me: "Sure they do, every living thing has a day that it was born."

M: "Do they get presents?"

Me: "Maybe their mommy brings them a big juicy worm."

Silence.

M: "That's not a very good present. Do they at least get cake? Or do they only get seeds to eat?"

Later in the tub . . .

A (playing doctor with S): "Take a deep breath. Now another one. And now one more."

Me: "A! You sounded just like a doctor. Do you want to be a doctor when you grow up?"

A: "No, I think I'll be a princess."

Me: "Well, OK, I guess. How about you, S? What do you want to be when you grow up?"

I offered her a few more ambitious options than princess. Although, if Grace Kelly could do it, why couldn't A?

Me: "Maybe you could be a soccer player or a teacher or the President of the United States?"

S: "Mommy? I think I just want to stay with you."

At least a million times a day I want to scoop that kid up and put her in my pocket and then whenever I needed a healthy dose of feel-good, I'd pull her out.