Page 79 of Tides and Tidings

“I think the next episode is about turtles!” Blythe plopped down next to her and grabbed the remote.

“No way!”

Blythe nodded. “I saw it the other day when we changed shows.”

Wren squealed, and I sat down on her other side.

“What do you know about sea turtles?” I asked, knowing damn well Wren would be able to rattle off a list of fun facts.

“Did you know that sea turtles are herbivores, Daddy?”

How does she even know what an herbivore is at six?

“Wrenny, tell your dad what that means.” Blythe encouraged, a large smile spread across her face.

“It means they only eat plants.” She said matter-of-factly. “The group of eggs is called a clutch.”

I looked at Blythe with wide eyes. She nodded.

“That’s very cool.”

She held her hand up. “I’m not done. They live a long time.”

“How long?”

“A really long time.”

“My last one. Did you know there are seven different species of sea turtles?”

“I had no idea. Thank you for teaching me all that.” I was genuinely amazed by what this kid knew. I sure as hell didn’t teach her, so whatever she and Blythe had been doing was giving her all the knowledge. I might be biased, but we might have the smartest six-year-old ever to grace the planet.

Blythe looked at Wren, beaming with pride. “Awesome job, Wrenny! You’re so smart!”

Wren was clearly very proud of herself.

Blythe turned the show on. “I’m not sure if you need to watch this. I think you could teach this show.”

Wren shook her head. “No, there’s still lots to learn.”

My baby went off to kindergarten and came home a real person.

“Wren, if I lift you, could you put ornaments towards the top of the Christmas tree?”

I know it shouldn’t be funny, but watching Blythe overcome her bouts of perfectionism to allow Wren to put the ornaments where she wanted was hilarious. With each decoration that was placed a foot and a half above the bottom of the tree, Blythe offered a broad smile. It was only after Wren would reach for another ornament that Blythe grimaced.

Wren grabbed another ornament and lifted her arms to signal she needed to be picked up. Blythe accommodated and boosted her up, and Wren could put the ornament towards the top of the tree.

Was having a five-foot-two woman lift my daughter up to decorate the top of the nine-foot-tall tree a smart idea? Probably not, but it was hilarious because a large chunk was still undecorated.

Watching the two of them move around the tree warmed my heart. This is the first year we’ve decorated a tree. I had all the ornaments and decorations ready to go, but then Wren’s mom dipped out, and all my holiday spirit went out the window. This year is the first time I don’t feel like Ebenezer Scrooge.

“Babe, we’re gonna need some help.” Blythe finally capitulated.

I pointed to her. “You supervise, we’ll decorate.”

“Actually, you decorate the tree and I’ll decorate the rest of the house.”

Perfect. Blythe decorating would make the living room even cozier for my surprise.