Don’t let the Dotted Swiss dress fool you, mateys, Claire is a swashbuckler through and through, with enough swagger to put five hardened sea hands in their places. Just ask James about the black eye she gave him at the beach when she was only two. And he wasn’t even talking back. Claire is one mighty personality. At preschool graduation the teacher gave her description of each child, and Claire was dubbed “the little adult who uses big words and knows what they mean”. Well, this could be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on the word of the day. Just watching her commandeer a play group is enough to leave any parent shaking in their boots.
James wonders out loud how she got so strong willed. Hmm, maybe something to do with her gene pool? One thing is certain, though; with Claire in the mix, there’s never an uninteresting moment. The second day of kindergarten, she said, “Just drop me off at the curb, Mom; I know where I’m going. And I’m done with that hug and kiss stuff, too.” Whatever you say, Captain. No need to ask who’s running this family…
Yesterday as soon as the sprinklers went off, Claire ran out to the back yard with Jack in tow. I went to the kitchen door and said, hands on hips, “Claire! What are you doing?!? You’re going to get filthy, and your brother’s eating dirt!” Jack said “Uh-oh…” and immediately dropped the trowel while Claire threw down the gauntlet with her ditty of a response: “Getting wet and dirty is what we love to do, and then we come back in the house all sloppy just for you.” I surrender in a fit of laughter. She may be a bit of a pirate, but she’s a real treasure, too.
(photo by Debra Turner)
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