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Jan 7

Novelists or comic artists, doesn't matter. Everyone can share.

My female lead is raising her second cousin (FL is 27, second cousin is 5)


“Did you have breakfast?”

Again she nods. And I think I should ask something else as she gets down from the chair and pushes it back into place, preparing to follow me.

“Who’s that on your backpack?”

She smiles slightly shyly and hugs the bag tighter still.

“Prince Julian and Emily.”

She clearly loves this show.

I think these are the same characters from the show she was watching the other day. I watch the way her eyes brighten as I pick up her car seat from the corner behind the door, and she walks beside me down to the car.

“Prince Julian is a prince who came from another realm. But now in a strange world, he can’t get on by himself,” she says theatrically, and I get the feeling that she’s quoting the theme song.

I just realized I have no idea whether the car seat is supposed to be fastened in some way, and if so, how?

“He fell through a portal in his mirror and appeared in a little fish pond on Emily’s family farm. And it was so funny because he was all shivery and wet, and when she saw him for the first time, she thought he was a water monster.”

I think it’s fine. There’d be a harness on it of some kind if I was supposed to secure it, right?

I’ll just drive slowly.

“But when the prince got cleaned up, and put on a pair of Emily’s dad’s clothes, he was so handsome. And he got a job working on their family’s farm and he goes to Emily’s school. But he doesn’t know anything about animals, so he has trouble working on the farm. But she teaches him and he learns how to take care of all of the animals. And he’s so handsome and nice.”

She’s lighter than I expected, and I have no trouble picking her up and putting her in her car seat. She keeps talking the whole time, smoothing her frilly tutu the instant I set her down like a little lady.

“It has sparkles on it,” she tells me, as if I couldn’t see that. “See?”

She points out one of a thousand little pieces of glitter for me to look at, and I resist a sigh but lean forward to admire her tutu.

“It’s pretty.”

“My daddy bought it for me as part of a costume for Emily’s dress. Mom says it’s not supposed to be worn unless I’m playing dress up but Daddy says it’s okay. Do you like playing dress up?”

I almost laugh at that, but just shake my head as I buckle her in, “Not really. Grown-ups don’t usually play dress up.”

Not for fun anyway.

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    Jan 6
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