Kira in Wonderland

After a really, seriously, stimulating afternoon at lunch with my friends from high school and actually hearing Dave Eslinger say he was going to do it with Brian Williams, I was pretty much ready to spend the rest of the afternoon shopping with my 2 year old granddaughter, Kira, Paul’s baby girl.

I picked her up at her house and strapped her little car seat in my car and we were off. Our first stop was Ingram’s Fine Jewelers. I had to take an earring for repair, but Kira and I admired the sparkling diamonds in the cases and then as we were leaving I educated her to the fact that cubic zirconium looks just as good and you can afford to have a lot more of it. Why have a few expensive pieces when you can have drawers full of cheap, pretty little baubles.

Next we were on to Walmart to pick up hair spray. I took this tender Grandmother/Granddaughter bonding moment to explain the importance of hair spray. It was ridiculous to spend any amount of time working on the perfect hair do if you didn’t put forth any effort to preserve it for the rest of the day.

Now we were on our way to Cal Ranch. That’s right, this Grandma knows how to shop. Jay and I have a stringent philosophy. If you can’t get it at Walmart, Cal Ranch, or Sportsman’s Warehouse, you don’t need it. Here Kira tried on some adorable pink cowgirl boots. However, Grandma refused to pay $45.00 for 3 inches of pink leather and a rubber heel. But, we did pick up new batteries for the dog collars, a stuffed cat for Kira, and a new toy duck for Tater that quacks when you squeeze it.

Now, I do have to add one more essential shopping location to Jay’s list. I could not survive without Barnes and Noble, so we were off to look at the books. Or, should I say, the great Paradise of Literary Utopia. We sat at the little tables and Kira would get a book,

carefully sit down, turn a couple of pages and then loudly announce, “de end”, and slam the book shut

and put it back on the shelf.

After wandering every inch of the children’s department, we decided to travel down the halls of the Grand Teton Mall and get us a Pretzel. Seriously, who goes to the mall without buying a Pretzel?

But, just before we got there, the echoes of children’s voices and the bright, colorful toys in the mall play court summoned her like the famous Greek Siren song and she squealed with delight as she drifted off to the play court calling, “play, play!!”

She climbed up the bridge and in the tree and slid down the other side. She laughed and ran with the other children.



One rather obnoxious little boy was determined to cause her irritation and he would block her access to the slides. Kira, in the true spirit of her daddy, refused to be irked by him.

She just smiled happily at his attempts and ran to a different toy. No matter how many times he tried to annoy her, she would have none of it and before we left he had given up his evil ways and decided to be her friend. Soon he was calling to her, “come over here and play with me.”

At last, I was able to break the trance that held her there and we went for that pretzel. She sat at the little table and nibbled the warm pieces of bread and then finally announced that she wanted to see her mom. And so our day was over and we wandered back to our car, Kira holding my hand while she stared at the ceiling, twisted from front to back, and stopped every few feet to just add a little hop to our walk.

I am so grateful for this precious little child. Every time I look at her pure white hair, clear blue eyes, and the shape of her face, my heart is filled with memories of her father. Her smile and her mannerisms are so much like his that I feel my heart squeeze with emotion until I feel like I might choke. And then, she squeezes the toy duck, giggles, and says, “quack” and she saves me from my own melancholy. Being with her is sometimes bittersweet. As long as I have her, Paul will never be forgotten, but observing her uncanny resemblance to him also ignites the exquisite reality that he is truly gone and he, who loved her the most, will miss seeing her grow into an amazing young woman.