St. Nick's Day

St. Nick stopped by last night for Zoe. I didn't say anything to her when she woke up, as I wanted to see if she'd notice. We didn't use her shoes, but opted for the stocking on the mantel.

After she dressed, she headed out to the kitchen to take her cereal bowl back and feed the cats. I was getting dressed in our bedroom when I heard her feet pounding down the hall. "Mommy! I have stuff in my stocking!" I explained that today is St. Nick's Day, and I guess he paid her a visit. The feet pounded away, and then she returned with one of her presents, an owl pen with blue LED eyes and a "hoooo hoooooooo!" call.

I love that she returned with each gift one by one, savoring the newness and the excitement, instead of just dumping everything out at once.

She danced around like a little imp, thrilled that St. Nick came. She talked to her elf, Henry, and laughed that she found him in yet another box of tissues. "Why does he keep sitting on the tissues?" I said maybe he likes them because they're soft. She thinks maybe he likes them because he sneezes a lot.

She is cracking me up these days, and I love seeing the world through her eyes. We've become big fans of The Wizard of Oz, which she's watched both at school and at home. She determined that bad witches are green, and good witches are "skin-colored," and that's how you can tell them apart. Because the maniacal laugh doesn't give it away at all.

This child, this little person who looks like both me and my best friend, who is both insanely creative and intensely analytical (also traits inherited from her parents), who is so empathetic and energetic...she blows me away. You'd think I'd be used to it after six years, but I'm continually surprised by my capacity to love, and to learn from her.