“Bright Eyes and Gooey Grins” – from Nathaniel Dunigan’s Journal
“Daddy, you see,” my toddlers all kept saying. “You see,” they scampered through the house about my feet. As they always do.
We remind me of the families of quails who flutter across the dusty Arizona roads where I grew up. The papa-bird leading the way, tripping the way, from one sage to the next. One ditch to the other.

“You see,” they kept urging me to go to the babies’ room—thinking I had not seen our newest addition: precious little Isaiah. The toddlers were eager to share this new life with me—thinking it would be a great surprise. (Who doesn’t ooh and ah over a new baby? And they know how I love them.)

Finally, I set my agenda aside to honor their request. All the while, trying to convince these little ones that I already KNEW about our baby; that I had welcomed him hours ago.

So, our top-heavy-float paraded through the kitchen and into the babies’ room.

And bless it all if I couldn’t help oohing and ahing all over again. Three of our babies were all snug in their beds. Each laying on his or her side. BRIGHT eyes, and little gooey grins.

So CUTE!

Each got a special kiss. An extra pinch. And my stupid chorus of glee.

And then I looked down at my little entourage. And I swear they were doing high-fives with their eyes; as if to say to each other, “Ya see that? I knew Dad would get a kick out of the new kid.”

And, of course, just like that they had a new agenda, and off we went, “Daddy, you see this now.” I was less interested in the new shipment of soy.