Life as Connor

In one sense it can be pretty tough. Pretty much whatever he does, he's got Jamie there to deal with and Jamie is hard on Connor, there's no way around it. Really doesn't give him a break about anything. Jamie got to make his 4-year-old the world is the way I say it is because I say it is proclamations free and clear, we just nodded obediently. But when Connor says anything, "17 + 15 =12" for instance, or some metaphysical equivalent of it, he has Jamie to say, "Noooo, Connoooo, it's 32." Connor tends to stick to his guns and a fight ensues.

On the other hand, Connor sometimes leads a charmed existence. We think he's irresistibly cute, of course, but we have concrete evidence that other people do as well. He just gets things. A couple of weeks ago we were at the pool and we went over to the sort of little kids area, where off at one side there was a party. Connor had barely uttered the inevitable "I'm hungry" when a darling little 3-year-old girl, the birthday girl it turns out, sidled up and said in her squeaky voice to him, "Do you want some chocolate cake?" Off they went together. Winning.

Meanwhile the other parents at baseball, and even the older sisters of the players, have discovered that you can make Connor happy by giving him things. This happens most often when he's sad about something, so I will look over from the field and see that he has scored cookies or donuts or drinks or all of the above. He has made great buddies with the younger sibling of one of the kids on Jamie's teams and before we even realized it the other day he had gone off with the parents to the snack shack and been given all manner of things.

So Jamie may give him a hard time but life as Connor can be pretty sweet.