Ever since the first leaf hit the ground this fall, Tessa has been hooked. It was as though she recognized what had been missing from her life all along: Leaves. Now she's always on the lookout for them. There's no colorful plastic toy that can compete with the allure of a dead, dry, brown leaf. Spying one on our floor, she crawls over to it immediately and a look of sheer ecstasy crosses her face as she grasps it triumphantly and crushes it in her chubby fist. She looks hopeful as she bites into it, then spits it out with a look of absolute disgust before deciding it deserves another chance. Into her mouth it goes again, until I dig it out with my fingers. I vacuum every other day, but this time of year the hardwood floors are always littered with leaves or their remnants. They come riding into the house on Hattie and Garp's paws, on our feet.
On what will probably be one of our last warm days, Nekos took a day off work yesterday and went out to tackle some yard stuff. Among other tasks, he raked up a pile of leaves in our front yard and then couldn't resist plopping Tessa (pretty dress and all) smack dab into the middle of the pile. After all, it's a cheesy rite of passage photo shoot.
The kid was in heaven. So many leaves, so little time.
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| Tessa Jean Barnes, (almost) 8 Months Old |
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| Hunky Husband, 30 Years Old |
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| Going in for the kill... |
