When Your 9-Year-Old Uses Big Words

Middle came up to me tonight after getting ready for bed, handing me her letter journal.

Hand-delivery. That meant a big question, an important question, one that she didn't want to have put off.

I was a little afraid to open it, I tell you.

This is what I found:

We're still working on verb tenses...

If only all my problems were this easy to address.

Now, Wednesday nights are chaotic, so the kids grabbed dinner for themselves before I ran them over to church and then scooted up to the grocery store for a couple of things. Now that we were all back home, I was finally getting myself something to eat, so Hubby was tucking them in.

Middle hesitated before heading upstairs with everyone. "Mommy? Will you...can you answer that by morning?"

"Yes, honey," I reassured her. "I'll answer it tonight. You can read it in the morning."

As they all tromped upstairs, I was struck by three thoughts:

• Only Middle would demand "evedence."
• I wish my dad was still here, because he would have loved this story.
• I wish I could hear my dad laugh one more time, because he would have let out a good one over the "evedence."

This led to me humming a very silly song from an old episode of M*A*S*H, where Hawkeye sings about wishing there was a way to communicate with his mother up in heaven every day.

And, if you were wondering how I answered Middle's demand for evidence, this right here was a big part of it:

Kimo doesn't mind this.

And this:

And Kimo will stay tucked in like this.

Oh, yes. Kimo has chosen Middle. Of that, I have no doubt.