Too Cute

On Sunday night Dave, Meg and I went to dinner at the home of our new friends and care group members, Bob and Amy. They have three little boys, including Deacon, whom we think is two years old. Deacon is one of those kids who leaves an impression; our first encounter with him left us with the notions that he is bright, observant, creative and very sociable. Oh, and really cute. One incident in particular played a part in those conclusions.

The Campbells were also there for dinner, along with their three kiddos, so there were lots of little ones running around. Meg, still in the bright orange dress that she wore to church that morning (pictured above), was introduced to the other children and kindly given permission to play with the toys of her hosts. Overall, she seemed to make little impression on her peers, since she was really too small (and self-absorbed) to join in their "big-kid" play.

For the first hour or so after we arrived, the kids ate dinner and played around the house with whatever caught their attention. Around 7:00, the older kids all went outside while Meg and Aiden were packed off to bed. After a bit, the others returned to the house for dessert. As his mommy unwrapped his popsicle, Deacon seated himself at the kitchen table with Eva and me and looked around curiously. After a few seconds, he looked up at Amy and asked, "Where's the orange baby?"

For a moment, Amy was baffled. "Mommy, where's the orange baby?" he repeated, and suddenly Amy burst out laughing. "The orange bab... do you mean Meg?" Deacon nodded earnestly. At that point, I joined in the laughter heartily.

Two days later, Dave and I are still referring privately to Meg as "the orange baby." It's just too cute to think that Deacon noticed Meg's absence, thought to ask about it, and coined such a unique and fitting way to describe our daughter! In our minds, a quotable quote was born that night. The orange baby she shall be... probably for a long time to come.