The Froggie Princess

When my mom was about 16, her dad said to her, "You know I've never called you Princess." She nodded her head. He continued, "It's because you're not." My mom then had a look of confusion on her face. He continued again. "You're an enchanted frog. When you were just a small frog you were hopping down the trail and you ran into a witch. You 'ribbited' at her wrong and she waved her magic wand and turned you into a little girl. Your mom and I saw you and rescued you."

They thought it was so cute and fun. Since then, they've been exchanging frog things. He buys her knick-knacks, she buys him a shirt. He made her placemats for christmas, she made him a quilt for his birthday. Frog things all over the house. So many frogs, that my father has made a few comments about having enough of them. But my mom and Grandpa haven't stopped, and probably won't until he dies.

My favorite frog thing that my grandfather gave my mom is a napkin holder. She asked for a napkin holder that holds the napkins flat, with a bar to keep them from flying off the table. He came up with a design of a frog hopping on a lillypad. The lillypad is the base of the napkin holder, and the frog is the bar that keeps the napkins down. It has a wheel that is offset, so that when you pull out the napkin, the frog hops. It's very fun to watch. So much so, in fact, one visitor to the house put in a roll of toilet paper just to watch the frog hop continously.

Because my mom loves frogs so much, she passes frog things on to lots of family member who know and laugh at the story. Audrey is one of those family members. The "Gramma Janet" quilt has frogs on the backside. Last November, my mom bought Audrey froggie PJs (with cute little frog feet). The Gramma Janet cradle cover is also frogs. My former student and mom bought Audrey froggie bibs. And my sister-inlaw bought Audrey a froggie onesie that was identical to the PJs my mom bought, except it was short sleeve and no pants.

When I told my mom how many frog things she was receiving, my mom was thrilled and nick-named her the Froggie Princess. Frog and Froggie Princess are two of the many nicknames we've been calling her. (Aud Ball and Little Miss are two others.)

My mom struck gold again when she sent Audrey another pair of froggie pajamas with froggie feet. This time they are flannel and have a pink background. They are VERY cute. I love them. They look and feel so comfortable.

On a related note, Josh and I are very blessed with good friends. One co-worker is continually cleaning out her storage unit and finding old things from her son and passing them on to us. And my boss' wife knitted Audrey a sweater that looks like it will be a perfect fit when rainy season starts up.

I guess that's all I have to say for now.