Lollipop sticks.

As I sit at the kitchen table pondering which joyful moments I should share on Square Piece tonight, my basset hound, Beauregard (A.K.A. “Stink”), is enjoying dinner to my right.

Tell me, is this the canine equivalent to putting your elbows on the table?

Onto other thoughts…

I’m sure you’ve noticed the Christmas-y commercials that have already begun, right?  The jumbo Target and Toys-R-Us toy guides have already come in my Sunday paper.  Soon you’ll be tempted to believe that Christmas isn’t special enough until you get more complicated and fancy gifts…

Okay, I don’t have kids, so perhaps I can speak objectively (or ignorantly), but come on!  Just yesterday I was reminded of how simple a child can be when I looked to my left and saw what was entertaining my client’s young daughter:

This little girl was delighted to play with cards and receipts.  Cards!  And receipts!  Similarly, years ago a former coworker told me of a time when she was in Africa, working on behalf of AIDS orphans.  One day all of the kids were given lollipop treats.  (Mmmm, lollipops!)  When the kids were done with their candy, they then proceeded to play with the lollipop sticks.  (That just overwhelms me with thanksgiving.)

Sometimes the best things in life are free… or found at the dollar store.  What I wouldn’t give for a coloring book and a box of crayons right now.