Two Hours

6:30 PM

I walk into Wegmans with Bill, holding James, who has buried his face into my shoulder. His arms around my neck as he clutches Steven and George, and he refuses to look up or be put down. I ask him if he's okay.

"Yeah."
"Are you scared of Bill?"
"Yeah."
"Is Bill scary?"
"He's scary, Daddy."
"Can I set you down now?"
"No."
"Are you afraid Bill is going to get you?"
"Yeah."

8:30 PM

J pulls into the parking lot of our apartment complex and James screams with giddy glee as he jumps up and down in the back of Bill's pick-up truck. As she gets out of her car she's met by the following torrent of trebly two-year-old speech:

"Mommy, the garage door is UP an' we went to eat dinner at MEMWANS (Wegmans) an'I gotta AHS'-CREEM and PECKUP (ice cream and ketchup) on my dinner an' we drove inna car and Daddy got sungasses an'I got sungasses an I drove a cart at Memwans, Mommy, an'I gotta cookie an saw d'train an get in Bill's truck and Mommy gonna sit RIIIGHT HERE an' a garage door is up an'a cars comin' in an' go in d'GARAGE door and Bill has a garage door an'a TRACTOR an'a tractor is lellow and I fell down an' it was funny, Mommy, an' I wear my sugasses and Daddy wear his sungasses an' Daddy sit RIGHT HERE an'a cars go to Mommy' church an' now the geen car is HOME-YAY!!!!!-an' tomorrow is Friday an' the garage doors gonna go up an'a tractor's gonna come out an' mow the grass, that's right Daddy, that's right Mommy, an' we're gonna see Bill's garage door an' there's a lellow TRACTOR in a garage door an'a tractor's gonna come out an' mow the grass an' I'm'a throw sticks in Papa's POND!"