My Sunday With Rachel

Just back in from sifting through a couple of boxes in the garage. T-shirts I haven't worn in like five years. You look at them and think, "No way, that event wasn't 14 years ago!" Yes, it was. I now have a garbage bag full of shirts I plan to part with, as I try to streamline "my stuff."
This was just a delightful day. Mommy taught Sunday school and went to lunch with a friend, so we had a daddy/daughter day.
We started at Kroger. "Low prices everyday," my daughter informed me as we got out of the car. Daddy got much-needed prescription eye drops for his fall allergies (like going through dusty boxes in the garage!)
Then we went to the mall for some Aveda Shampoo. Although I shampoo every day, it lasts me a long time...not much hair to deal with. Then we had lunch at Panera Bread. As usual, Rachel seized custody of my croutons and ate the parts of her chicken and wild rice soup that met her specifications ("I don't like celery!")
Her favorite food remains black beans and rice. Queso is right up there, along with chicken fingers, grouper, ketchup (daddy always squeezes it out in the shape of a smiley face), pudding, raisins, pretzels, apples and sweet tea. Seeing your wife and daughter arm wrestle over sweet tea is quite the sad sight. Occasionally, she has to be reminded to dip food in queso and ketchup, not her fingers. Okay, more than occasionally.
She's also starting to drink from a glass without spilling water all over herself. If only daddy could get the hang of that too!
The next stop after the mall was the park. It was an absolutely gorgeous day to be outside. Rachel rode the big girl swing for the first time and I saw her climb the ladder apparatus to the walkway leading to the slide, so that was a first as well. There were brief tears when she asked for a hand getting off the slide and I gave her a jolt of static electricity. The tears dried up quickly. What's really funny is watching her go down the plastic slide and seeing her hair rise like Bride of Frankenstein by the time she got to the bottom.
She's definitely going through the twos though. There has been a lot more standing in the corner lately. One standoff lasted ten minutes yesterday until she suffered the indignity of putting the crayons she dumped on the floor back into the box.
"No" is still real popular with her right now. What cracks me up is the way she emphasizes her displeasure. "No! No! NO! Not yes!" Thanks for the clarification.
She loves school. She's come home and started singing songs in Hebrew, along with hand movements that go with them. Depending on the day, her boyfriend is either Max or Bennett. And depending on the day, her favorite color is pink, purple, red or orange. She talks about circle time (when they tell stories.) And the first thing she says to any stranger is "I go to school." She is very proud. "Wednesday." Apparently, going to school Monday and Friday hasn't made as much of an impact.
I think the most funny and horrifying thing she did recently occured at the mall. Rebecca and Rachel went out to lunch with our neighbor Christina. Both women gave Rachel a quarter so she could get a ring and a ball out of gumball machines. Around this time, I called my wife on her cell phone and I hear Rebecca say with exasperation in her voice, "No, Rachel! NO!"
Concerned, I asked what was wrong. Rachel was hitting up a stranger for a quarter so she could get another ring or ball. He gave it to her.
Great, we gave birth to a 2 1/2 year-old panhandler!