A Picnic Fit for a Princess
Grace smiled, watching as Rich held Elise above him then put her down chasing her around the blanket. Elise stumbled over and fell on her bum then looked at Rich then Grace and giggled. Grace smiled and moved to where Elise was sitting in the grass and picked her up, kissing her cheek. “Are you hungry princess?” Elise shook her head and pointed at the ground. “No mama down. Play!!” Grace set her down and Elise reached out her hand towards her which Grace took in hers. Elise started walking towards a clump of dandelions in the grass. She grabbed for a puff then looked at Grace when it fell apart in her hand. “Mama!” Grace smiled and kneeled beside Elise. “That’s a dandelion, Elise.” She picked one carefully and held it out for Elise to take. “Can you blow it away?” Elise looked at her then at the puff and blew as hard as she could making the dandelion blow everywhere. “You did it princess! Now make a wish.” Elise closed her eyes as if making a wish then looked at Grace. She smiled and stood, picked up Elise and walked back to the blanket where Rich was eating. Elise fussed for her food so Grace began to feed her.
Rich was exhausted from chasing Elise around and was thankful when his wife jumped in. Rich grabbed his sandwich and took another large bite out of it as Grace taught Elise about dandelions and the bullshit superstitions that went along with them. Rich though could not help but smile as his daughter blew at the the dandelion. He took another bite of his sandwich as his girls returned to him on the blanket. Grace began to feed Elise who seemed to be jealous of Rich’s sandwich. “At least she has an appetite.” Rich laughed looking at Elise eat happily. “What did you wish for Elise?ow” Elise shook her head. “No dada.” Rich rose his eyebrows. “Apparently she believes in the school of thought that if you tell your wish it won’t come true? Where did she get that idea? From you?” Rich looked over at Grace in a mock accusatory way.
Grace was trying to feed Elise but she kept eyeing Rich's sandwich. Once he had finished the sandwich, Elise turned back to her and continued eating her food. Rich asked what she wished for and Grace smiled as Elise shook her head. Rich asked who taught her that and Grace giggled. "Everyone knows you're supposed to keep your wish a secret, Richard. It's the golden rule of wishes." Soon, Elise was full and moved to play in the grass again. Grace smiled and looked over at Rich. "She's so happy to be at the park." She looked back over at Elise, who walked over to the blanket, rubbing her eyes and looking tired. "Mama, dada. Nap." She walked over to Rich. "Maybe we should take the princess home and get her into bed." Grace began to pack up the food and blanket while Rich held Elise.







