Yesterday over on Shannon’s blog, I mentioned something in the comments about how I think my blog at this point is mostly a way to chronicle all of the little moments in Catie’s life that I worry I’d otherwise forget. Yesterday was one of those days that I want to make sure I remember.

It started off rough, Catie was in a bad mood during our playdate with the neighbor across the street. Then I realized we were almost out of milk, so I had to go to the store (she drinks a cup of milk before AND after her nap). She cried when I suggested going to the grocery store, so I told her that we’d go to Target (it’s a Super Target, has a grocery store included), and if she was really good, I’d buy her a toy. And you know? It worked. She was an angel through the whole store. No whining, no crying, no “cawwy you!” (she hasn’t figured subject versus object, so she still says “carry you” instead of “carry me”). She walked right next to the cart (no running off), and when she got tired, she asked to ride in it. After I got my necessary groceries, we headed over to the toy section, as I promised. She picked out a mommy and baby giraffe from the realistic-looking animal figures, and I said ok. The deal had been for one toy, but the baby couldn’t leave the store without her mommy, so… ok, I caved. The two animals together were less than $8, so fine. No big deal.

We came home, had lunch, and she went down for a nap. We lay in her big-girl bed together while I read her a few books, and when we were done, she said, “Mommy, snuggle,” and she hugged my head against her chest until she fell asleep. (It took a few tries to extricate myself without waking her up.)

When she got up from her nap, I noticed that the sky outside had suddenly gotten very dark. Friday is trash day, so I suggested that we go get the trash cans inside before it started to rain. I brought the cans in, and we sat in the driveway looking up at the gray sky and talking about the wind for a few minutes. Finally, it started to rain, so we went in.

Then we sat in the doorway, with the front door wide open, and watched the rain pour down. It was one of those really intense summer thunderstorms that I missed so much when I lived in Seattle, and I love to watch them. I didn’t worry about raindrops hitting the hardwood floors, or bugs getting in, or the fact that the door was open while the air-conditioner was running. We just sat there in the doorway, just the two of us, and watched the rain. Every time it thundered, Catie told me that it was a big panda up in the sky saying “BOOM!!” (I’m not sure where she got the thunder = panda thing, I think she misunderstood Dave the first time he said “thunder.” She heard it as “panda,” and we’ve been unable to correct her since then. So in case you didn’t know, thunder is caused by a giant panda up in the clouds. True story. Ask any meteorologist, I’m sure they’ll back up that theory. Or they might look at you like you’re crazy and back slowly away from you. Coin toss, really.)

After it stopped raining, we went outside to jump in puddles and throw leaves around.

Later that night, when Dave lay in bed with her to help her fall asleep, and she was still holding onto the mommy and baby giraffes, Dave asked her what the giraffe says. (He meant it as a trick question, as I’m pretty sure giraffes don’t say much of anything.) Without missing a beat, Catie responded: “Hi, tree.” Well, yes, I suppose that is what the giraffe would say, if he talked.

It was a very good day. And I want to remember all of this. I want to remember how funny and smart she is (and how she can crack up both Dave and me with a single phrase), how she gave me two big kisses smack on the mouth in the middle of Target for buying her those giraffes, how much I love to snuggle with her as she falls asleep, how her hair feels when she’s sitting in my lap, leaning against me watching thunderstorms. I hope that yesterday is one of those days that I can still remember when I’m old and gray. And maybe by blogging about it, and the fact that I’ll have a written record of it, it will be.