We spent today (the morning part of it, anyway) at my friend Amy's house with her husband Greg and the boys -- Tony, 8, and Jake, almost 5. We brought over some homemade gingerbread and had brunch. The kids played more or less together (Jake sulked when Tony paid attention to Rachel) and then Rachel asked Tony if she could go upstairs and play with his toys. He took her upstairs and then rejoined us downstairs.
After a while we heard a bloodcurdling scream, "DAADDYYY!" Drew went upstairs to investigate, then brought Rachel back down and sat on the living room couch with her, reading books. When I asked him later what had happened, he said that Rachel had accidentally turned on one of the toys and a song started playing. It was loud, and, as she told Drew, "I was worried that I wouldn't be able to stop it and it would keep the boys awake."
I was totally speechless, and Amy was impressed. "She's so empathetic!" she said. "You can't teach that, you know."
Drew told us that he commented to Rachel about how she likes putting stickers on people. (She put three flamingos on Greg and one on me; and after we had moved into the kitchen and she was eating a piece of gingergread, she gave part of the piece to me and part of it to Drew, and then offered the rest to Amy and Greg). "I like giving people stickers because it cheers them up," she explained.
Later she sat on Amy's lap while Amy played the electric piano she and Greg recently bought. It was lovely hearing Christmas carols and then "Go Tell It On The Mountain." The house was filled with Christmas trees and decorations; it was very festive.
On the way home we talked about all the things we had to do with the rest of the day. "I can help you guys!" Rachel exclaimed.
Truly, we are lucky to have such a kind, compassionate daughter!
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