Today I went to a Women's Breakfast at the church. I don't expect much out of these gatherings, but I'd failed to account for my deepening ties with the congregation, ties I'd begun to make just before Blake was baptized. I suppose it's a bit funny to be the Sunday School Superintendent and still wonder about one's place in the church community, but I'm nothing if not full of contradictions (not to mention full of fruit. Mm. Women's Breakfast.)

The reason I mention it at all is that I was struck with a fit of whimsy when I filled out my name tag. There are quite a few women who don't know me and just might believe that my name is Blossom. But the truth is that I wanted to go home and hear the Boy say, "Blossom. I didn't know you knew Blake."*

Yesterday Blake & I trucked into the city for a playdate with 4 members of the Original Six. (What is that, quorum?) At one point I looked around and marvelled; we all have toddlers. Every baby was walking & babbling & grabbing & eating & reading & screaming & smiling & drooling & tumbling. Blake is developing a rather unfortunate physical style: he uses his body to push through people in the pursuit of his desires. He made Dexter & Robbie cry when he pushed through them and pushed them down. He made Eva cry with frustration when he snatched her toy away. How is it possible that the Boy & I could have produced a bully? With our genetics I'd think that producing a blues-singing frog was more likely.

Bullying aside, it was utterly refreshing to plunge into this playdate. These babies refuse food (like Blake)! These babies wake in the night (like Blake)! These babies are perfectly happy on a low-sugar, low-meat, high fruits & vegetables diet (like Blake)! Sometimes when I'm mired in solitude, when my only yardsticks are the retrograde expectations of Spock and his ilk, I get discouraged. It takes a plunge like this one to bring me back to confidence, to bring me back to life.

And may I add, they brought scrumptious snacks to celebrate the end of my mat leave. My cup runneth over.

all of the food we tried to feed the boos. we all have babies with discriminating palates. but aren't dex & eva gorgeous despite?

robbie is such a deep thinker. you can just see the wheels turning under his dome when he plays.

blake & eva 'discuss' who will play with the red keyboard. (eva wins.)

* A long time ago, the Boy was finishing his high school diploma after a year in college. He was at least 2 years older than the rest of the students, and he spent a good deal of his non-academic time stoned, alone, and watching teevee. He developed a great fondness for 'Blossom' reruns, so much so that when he was sitting stoned in a party, he looked up, saw a girl with a hat, and almost said, "Blossom. I didn't know you knew Mike."

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- Rocketbride's adventure of 1/29/2005 08:07:00 p.m.