Very early on, The Pumpkin could recognize the logos for stores like Target, Costco and Trader Joe's--and ask to to there, unprompted.  (Oh, and distinguish between bookstores by the Borders and Barnes & Noble logos.)

Just now, as we're getting ready to drive to preschool and she's pushing her stuffed hippo around in a stroller through the house, I heard her say this:

"I'm taking my hippo for a walk."

<wait for it, wait for it>

"We're going to Starbucks."

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Last Saturday, I needed a haircut, badly.  We'd been trying for months now to convince The Pumpkin to let us cut her hair so it wouldn't be in her face all the time, but hadn't been successful up to that point.  However, I figured that having her come along and watch me wouldn't hurt, and might even do the trick, so all three of us went into the Great Clips on California at Stockdale.

The Pumpkin's hair was slow growing in the beginning, and thin and fine, but now it reaches her midback, and (before last Saturday) she was always brushing her hair out of her face.  It doesn't help that she rarely keeps her "pretties" (any assortment of rubberbands and clips) in her hair for more than a few hours at a time.  But no amount of playing the "Look, your friends x, y, and z all have bangs and they don't have to brush hair out of their eyes, don't you want to do that?" game seemed to move her.

But when we got to Great Clips (my first time there too), she immediately started watching an older girl getting her hair cut.  The woman cutting my hair was extremely friendly and talked to her while she watched me get my hair cut too.  When my turn was done, we asked The Pumpkin if she wanted to try, and miracle of miracles, she said yes.  She sat up on the booster seat, let the woman put that tarp thing around her, and didn't flinch or anything at the spray bottle, the scissors, any of it.  She was fascinated by the first lock of hair cut that we grabbed and saved and wanted to hold it.  When she was done, she grinned at herself in the mirror and asked for a balloon.

Since then, she tells everyone she sees that she got a haircut, and even talks about getting another one, maybe even doing more than bangs next time and trimming some of the back.  So, one milestone done, a zillion to go.

And the other cool thing?  Great Clips is one of RaisingBakersfield.com's Parent Perks advertisers.  Every month, our vendors offer our community members a different discount or deal--all you have to do is print out our Parent Perks discount card and show it.  So not only did get we both get nice haircuts and The Pumpkin got her first ever, but we got them at a substantial discount.  So check out what our advertisers have to offer and come back often for the latest deals.

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On Mother's Day, we celebrate all the mothers in our lives.  But for us, Mother's Day is much more than a single holiday on the calendar that comes once a year.  Here at RaisingBakersfield.com, we celebrate mothers and mothering, and parents and parenting, every single day, through all the triumphs and challenges, big and little, that mark our journey through this adventure that is bringing up children in our modern world.

To our partners, our wives, the mothers of our children; to our mothers, our grandmothers, our aunts, sisters, daughters, and daughters- and mothers-in-law; to our dear friends, our family-by-choice, and those who've been like mothers in our lives—to all of you, we wish you a Happy Mother's Day.  For all you are and all you do, we love you, and you are all Raising Bakersfield.

The first time The Pumpkin busted out with the Pledge of Allegiance, we were totally surprised.  Apparently, a different kid in her class is chosen every day to be “the leader,” and one of the duties of the leader is to lead the class in the pledge.  When she first role-played this for us, she even included her teacher (she played her teacher) correcting a whole bunch of kids individually on which hand to use [her teacher got a kick out of this when we told her].  This week, The Pumpkin is Student of the Week—every student gets to be Student of the Week once during the school year, with photos from home and things about them [we had to edit “My favorite thing about school is: playing with Priscilla” to “...playing with my friends” so as to not exclude anyone!] on the bulletin board.  And one thing kids get to do as Student of the Week is be the leader.  So this video is la dra. helping her practice.  Heh.

(Crossposted from daddyinastrangeland.com.)

So, my wife, "la dra.," is in Kansas City at a conference.  She left yesterday, and we pick her up at Meadows Field on Saturday night.  While we've recently done some nights-without-the-parents-at-the-grandparents' (for the first time) and had one night where la dra. was away for a one-day conference, this is the first time The Pumpkin will not see her mama (and just her mama) for several days.

So far, she's been fine, no "I miss/want Mama!" meltdowns (yet--I'd knock on wood, but my workspace is all  plastic and metal and fiberboard).  But just to be on the safe side, I've scheduled a lot of evening "friend" time to distract her from her mother's absence.  Last night, we had dinner with her BFF (and BFF's mommy and baby brother) and then we all met up at the Beale Library for a cool performance by folk musician and storyteller David Holt.  (Unfortunately, the three toddlers' rambunctiousness forced us to leave both the auditorium and the whole library early, right before he actually invited the kids to the stage to dance!  D'oh!)  Tonight, we're gonna hang at BFF's house after school (where she will also see and play with said BFF).

All of which makes what happened this morning even stranger.  Over breakfast, I gave her the thank-you card from BFF's recent birthday, which has her picture on it.  Right then, la dra. called to say good morning and check in--but even before I put the phone on speaker, The Pumpkin's whole demeanor had changed.  She was frowning her sad-face, with her head down on her arms on the table, with one hand still gripping the thank-you card.  "Are you crying, baby?  Are you sad?  It's Mama on the phone," I said.  We both assumed she'd been stricken suddenly with the realization of her absense.

But finally, as I gathered her into my lap, she spoke.  "I miss BFF."  BFF?  But sweetie, you just saw her last night, you're going to see her in like an hour, and then we're going to her house for dinner!  Did we hear you right?  You miss Mama?  Say hi, she's on the phone!

"I miss BFF," she repeated, in her saddest non-crying voice I've ever heard.

Transference?  Easier to deal with missing her friend, who she'll see momentarily, than her mama, who won't be home for days?  Or just the emotional life of a three-year-old?  I have no idea.