blog for a December day

Blog December 10, 2010

            This weekend I am keeping my 2 ½ year old granddaughter Ruby while the rest of her family is out of town doing things that would not be fun to do with a 2 ½ year old along.  Ruby and I are getting on famously.  That is, we were as soon as I recognized who was in charge here.

            It’s not me.  When I picked her up, we headed immediately for the lake, because, of course, the lake is the ultimate wonderful place and we would have a great time.  It was pretty cold in the cabin when we got here, the thermostat having been turned down to fifty-five degrees when vacant, but right as the bags were hauled in, Ruby wanted to change her clothes. 

            “Put on a pincess dess,” she said.  “Glass sippers, too!” she said.

            “That’s great,” I said, pulling off her dress, “but you have to leave your turtleneck shirt on until it warms up in here.”  The princess dress had spaghetti straps, a thin satin bodice, and a short flouncy skirt.

            She looked at me incredulously.  “A pincess not wear an ugly shirt!” she announced.  “And no socks with glass sippers!”  How could I be so stupid?

            We wrestled a while with her pulling her shirt off and me pulling it back down, all the while she stood on  the toe of her socks and pulled them off by dragging one foot at a time out from under the other.

            I stopped pulling and considered my options.  I could make her wear the shirt and the socks, I was bigger and could out-wrestle her.  Or I could pick another battle.

            I smiled brightly.  “Okay!” I said with as much cheer as I could muster.  It’s terrible being defeated by a two-year old.

            But really, who ever heard of a princess with socks and a turtleneck?