Does She Eat Peas?

Brought to you by the late, great Granny W.

Granny W was famous for talking about people who were present as if they either weren't there or weren't competent to answer for themselves. Wondering about my preferences during dinner preparation one night, she turned to my mother and asked, "Does she eat peas?" I was about 18 years old and standing three feet away at the time. "Yes, she does," I replied. But Granny continued addressing her questions about me to my mother regardless of who supplied the answer, and we all got a kick out of it. "Does she eat peas?" has become a family code phrase for the conversational bypass.

And now we're peasing the next generation, namely CNE, the Cutest Niece Ever. At nearly eight months old, she's not quite able to speak for herself yet — but, to her parents' surprise, she does eat peas. They've decided the veggie gene must have skipped a generation, because neither Sister-san nor Chef Jeff eats anything green that doesn't have M&M stamped on it.

I'll have a chance to set a good nutritional example, or at least read some amusing bedtime stories, when I head to CNE's house this weekend. I'll also get to hear that marvelous giggle and watch Princess Chews Nearly Everything pull her knees up into precrawling position. With my handy new camera phone on the scene, I might even remember to take pictures this time. On Sunday night, the grown-ups have tickets to a show that combines a cappella music with juggling (three guesses who chose that one). I'll be there for Sister-san's first Mother's Day as a mom and for my own birthday, so we will definitely encounter some cake and ice cream. If anybody else has half as much fun as I'm going to, they'll be grinning until the Fourth of July.

All of which is a roundabout way of saying that BND will be on hiatus until the 10th. To keep busy in my absence, call all your favorite mothers and tell them you love them.

Editor's note: Visitors to the BND home page will notice that I've finally started a blogroll (Recommended Reading: left sidebar; scroll down down down). Recommendations welcome!

Today around the world: May 5 is Ascension Thursday and Cinco de Mayo. Up, up, and ole!