Scene: AJ�s bed, last night.

Harriet: (closing a copy of McDuff Comes Home by Rosemary Wells) What song would you like me to sing tonight?
AJ: Hmm. How about a bunny song?
Harriet: �Little Bunny Foo-Foo!� We haven�t sung that in a long time.
AJ: Not that one. The other bunny song.
Harriet: (wracking her brains) What other bunny song?
AJ: You know. The one that goes, (sings) �My bunny lies over the ocean��

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After a month on a low-carb diet, we spent our anniversary last evening drinking wine and eating pizza and ice cream sandwiches while watching the presidential debates and, when we couldn�t take any further cringing, a DVD of The Pink Panther and looking at photo albums from our wedding and honeymoon. Pizza never tasted so good. We don�t generally exchange real gifts for our anniversary � we tend toward the silly but meaningful if we do anything at all � but my husband sent me a beautiful vase full of roses with an amazing scent. The whole house smells classier. AJ got in on the action by reading our cards out loud. Over and over. And over.

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Today is picture day at AJ�s school, which meant that all of the boys showed up with their hair slicked down and all of the girls showed up in ruffles and bows. They looked pretty adorable running in, dragging their backpacks behind them by the straps. Their homework assignment from Wednesday was to find a leaf to bring to class today. AJ and I spent part of yesterday afternoon scouring the wooded parts of our yard for the perfect leaf. We collected several excellent specimens and laid them out along the edge of the front porch while AJ marched up and down in front of them like a miniature drill sergeant conducting a review. He finally selected a beautiful, flame-red specimen of Virginia creeper, which he carried around with him until it was limp. This morning he placed it carefully in the pocket of his backpack and carried it to school, where he immediately removed it and began running around the room showing it to everybody. �Look at my beautiful leaf!� he exclaimed excitedly, as proud as if he had made it himself.

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