When we went to Claire’s check up in April, they gave us all of this literature about car seats, safety, and what to do or not do. The car seat she was in at the time was made to supposedly work until she’s like 100 pounds and a few years older than she is now. We’re all a little too eager for our child to grow up (walk already, wait for me, come back! OR say “mamamamamama”, shhhhh, will you just stop talking for a minute!?), so I was ready for a booster. A real booster without a back, that I can just prop her into and go. Something smaller that I didn’t have to clean as much; something she wouldn’t spill her damn milk on to stink up the car in the desert summers. Of course the pediatrician assured me that if her current seat still fit her shoulders, then stay with the 5-point harness. So I did. We lasted another two months and then she went to Pittsburgh for June.

The car seats in the grandparents’ cars were older, from when she was smaller. They had both bought her boosters, like the ones I wanted to get her. Damnit, they beat me to it. No going to Target to pick them out, choose cool colors, take photos of her with the thing, and then buying it. They beat me to it. Oh well.

So we came home, back to Arizona in July. Her car seat in Mama’s car was a little tight and not quite as tight in my car. Last week, Donna picked her up and took her out for the evening so I could write. I get home, there is a new car seat. Sitting in the back of my wife’s car is a purple flowered straight from Target booster seat. Pretty. No pictures, no Dada there to enjoy it with them.

Then I went into the truck and in all it’s glory was a brand new booster seat is bright orange and muted grey. All mine! For my truck! Woohoo. Claire’s been in it a week now. It’s easy to get her in and out, she can move a little more, but she’s learning to be careful in it, and it just feels like she’s growing up. She loves it, but now she’s demanding I put the headrest back on the seat that I took off in April 2005. I guess we’re never quite pleased.

Before going to Pittsburgh Claire was eager to get another tip on her karate belt. For young children, tips come before belt changes. They have several levels of white/color belts that are tipped before they move onto full yellow, etc… When we returned from Pittsburgh, Claire was really excited because they were tip testing the next week but I was worried because she’d missed a month of classes. I asked her instructor to show her how to do the moves she needed to know while I watched, and she and I practiced every day for a week.

The following week she did tip test the first day of the week, and she immediately did the entire series of blocks. She was really excited to pass the test so quickly, and after class the instructors told us she had enough tips and experience to belt test that weekend. Saturday afternoon Donna and I took her into the dojo and they were packed. Parents lined the place with cameras waiting for their child to perform. They were testing all levels from white/yellow all the way through brown. It was really a cool event, and Claire went along with it very well even though we had no idea what half the process was like.

Eventually it was Claire’s turn. She listened, performed, and passed! We were really excited, and we could tell she was terribly happy as well.

Not only has Claire picked up a wonderfully elaborate vocabulary from her parents, she has now begun to invent her own words to add to Webster’s Dictionary: Clairious. As in, that’s so funny it’s clairious!

Claire sitting at the coffee table eating dinner while Dante lays under her feet in hopes of catching some crumbs, “Dante! Leave! You’re pissing me off!”

Mama and Dad’s eye brows raised toward one another.

Me, “um….” Thinking it’s my truck driver vernacular that got us to this point.

Mama, “Claire, you shouldn’t tell the dog that he’s pissing you off. Tell him he’s upsetting you. That’s an adult phrase.”

Claire’s reply. “But, Mama, what if he IS pissing me off?”

Claire swims on Wednesdays. I usually pack her bag and get everything ready but recently we were on a cleaning spree. Mom was washing suits and figuring out what stayed for class and what went on vacation. When I got up, her bag looked packed. Her towel was already folded in the bag and her wrap was sitting across the top of the bag. We were running late from karate (check the punch my kid in the face post below!), and we got there with two minutes to spare. When we cut it this close, she changes in the truck of my truck. Well, we pulled everything out for the suit, and there was NO Suit!

I immediately called Mama, and she said of course there wasn’t a suit because I [me not her] didn’t pack it! She told me to just run in, buy one, and get her into the water. I dragged her naked, only in her wrap, inside. The manager gave me a list of sizes and then the swim coach came over. I quickly asked what size, he looked down at her, and called out a number. I quickly picked the really cool green and black designed suit and knew I was going to be paying an arm or leg for my first born. He scanned the suit, I handed him my card, and she ran into the locker room.

The photo below doesn’t do it justice, but she loves her new, sleek competition suit.

Today at karate Claire was early, sitting with other kids, and watching the other class. She suddenly shrieked, began to cry, and ran to me. “He punched me in the face!” she screamed.

I scanned the room. “Who?” I demanded.

“Him.” She pointed at a four year old boy near where she was sitting. I immediately jumped up, took three huge steps across the room, leaned down into this little guy’s face, and said “Don’t even think about touching my kid again.”

He timidly whispered “Ok” as he looked like he was about to pee himself.

Hahaha they won’t mess with my kid. The teen years sure’ll be fun.

I don’t mind traveling for work, and I enjoy flying around the country (for the most part), but being away from Claire is hard. When she was two months old she flew to PA while I took a trip down the east coast. This was a little hard because she was so new, but her mother was with her so that helped. In 2007 Donna and I flew to Europe without Claire. I’d been away from her for a few days before flying to Berlin that year, and by the time I hit Vienna I missed her so much. I can dig a day here or long weekend there, but once again she’ll be off to PA this summer to see her grandparents. I will literally be away from my daughter for 21 days: 3 weeks. Yes, I realize she will be around her grandparents and family and busy, and I will be super busy myself but it’s still hard. I hope to talk to her a few times, and I hope to Skype her. I will have to get my mother-in-law access to my ning to post photos of Claire so we can all enjoy them, too. Things’ll work out but it’s always a little disconcerting. In another decade she can just stay with us during this time and all will be fine.

Recently two pretty cool things happened. I was off to Maricopa Tech on May 19th and Donna took Claire to karate. Afterward Claire told Mama that she got a tip on her karate belt. Donna was surprised, but then Claire showed her. Donna completely missed Claire graduating a level, which I thought was hilarious. Claire’s now running around waiting to be tested again since the first three levels don’t necessarily go in order, so you can do one or another first or second… etc. Each day she wants to know when her next tip test will be, and I encourage her but I don’t know their schedules.

Then also in gymnastics, we’ve waited for her to graduate from this level for sometime. One week we thought she was done, but then she wasn’t. The next week she was tested, and then her instructor had her do things for the next level. She did really well and passed! She moved from the 10am course to the 8:30am course. We didn’t realize the next level is now 45 minutes long, so she gets more instruction time which works well. Then it’s great for an early brunch.

Here’s a shot of her getting her gymnastic medal, and, of course, you can tell how excited and happy she is.

A few months ago day care added an oven in Claire’s room. It’s a small thing where they can do basic cooking without burning anyone or anything, but now Claire comes home all of the time and thinks she can cook. Typically she wants to do it without us! She’s really into making dessert for us, and the other day we almost had to eat some really odd looking Easter candy and water concoction before we convinced Claire otherwise.

Monday I came home from work and wanted to grab a quick shower before we headed to dinner. I told Claire and typically she plays quietly with some art stuff, a book or the video game. This time I came out a few minutes later (I do NOT take long showers) and this is how I found her.

To this day I don’t know what she made, but I will tell you that she used half of the vanilla I had left from Nogales, most of the baking soda and a few cups of sugar. She also finished off our icing (from a former cupcake evening) and sprinkled everything with confectionery delights. She was very happy with her project and we left it there so Mama could see it before I tossed it after Claire was deep asleep that night.