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La Petite: I was watching an episode of Bones. It’s all about these great nerdy anthropologists.
Me: I should have been a nerdy anthropologist. That would have been a great career for me.
Amigo: You already have the nerdy part down.
Me: Yes, and I do the nerdy part well, thank you very much.
La Petite: (laughter) Well, they used the word onomatopoeia. I was so happy: a television show that used the word onomatopoeia!
Amigo: I had a weird, nonsensical dream the other night.
La Petite: Nonsensical? Did you just use the word nonsensical in conversation?
Amigo: Yes.
Me: Back to the dream.
Amigo: Petite, I think you’ll like it. Mom might think it’s funny.
Me: Should I leave the room so you two can talk?
Amigo: No, it’s okay. I dreamed that our whole family was in jail, and I don’t know what for, but we were all in jail. And to get out of jail, one of us had to wrestle a giant wild mountain lion and throw it in the toilet and flush it down.
(La Petite mimics muscles, wrestling moves, then nearly collapses with hysterics at the mention of the toilet)
Amigo: So I volunteered to wrestle the mountain lion, and I threw it in the toilet and flushed it, and then we all got out of jail.
(La Petite has to look away and cover her mouth for fear of expelling food due to uncontrollable laughter)
(I try unsuccessfully several times to sip my diet coke, still fearful of squirting refreshing beverage out my nose)
La Petite (eventually, with less snorting): I guess if there’s family court, there can be family jail.
Me: Yes, kiddo, that was nonsensical all right!

Husband doesn’t know what he’s missing when he’s at his train club meetings and doesn’t get to eat supper with us. Wait – maybe he does.