"HOPPY" Birthday to Someone Special!

Twenty years/two decades/one score, like as in “four score and seven years ago,” … eh, scratch that last one… that’s just way, way too formal for me… aaaany who… any which way ya wanna say it… quite a lot of years ago… my daughter was born THIS day! Twenty years old!?! Doesn’t really seem possible?? TWENTY years has past?? Huh?? Really??

Here’s my little Doodle Bug when she was actually “little.” Sigh…

This cutie has bought much “COLOR” and “life” into each and ever year!

Now don’t let this picture fool you!! Oh, she looks all sweet and innocent here… but this was my “wild” child. I can’t exactly attest to it, but I’m fairly certain those cute blonde curls where bouncing around the photo studio milliseconds after the camera went “SNAP!!” Boing… Boing… Boing… Boing…

She had one speed… turbo! Walking was non-existent… dashing perhaps… sprinting, more likely. Or somersaults, even? Why not? This was a normal way to travel from room to room at our house. Frontwards, backwards, roll, roll, roll. TV was watched whilst on her head. Simply sitting was way too monotonous to even be a consideration. Sit? You are joking, right?! How about a nice cartwheel instead? I do not believe I ever read a book in its entirety to this girl, a few sentences in and she was off and on her way. Boing… Boing… Boing… springy curls in action… Boing…

Unfortunately, with this kind of energy came accidents. Plenty of ‘em!! Two broken noses, a broken wrist, head through a glass table, gashed and gushing foot, face plant with most of that “plant” part being on the front teeth, guess that would be a teeth plant then, huh?? Oh, I could go on and on. I attribute each and every one of these accidents to her speed control, faulty as it was. She was and is, in fact, very coordinated. Her fine motor skills at an early age were remarkable. Like watching a squirrel with nut, she could peel open a Hershey Kiss as soon as she could down solid food. Haven’t seen anything quite like that before or since. A downgrade to even a medium speed once in a while could have likely shaved off a few trips to the ER. Ahhhh… all the more time for headstands… or running… or bouncing… Boing… Boing… Boing…

A doll was marketed and sold when my daughter was young.

Her name was “Jumpsie.” A curly blonde-haired doll that came equipped with her own trampoline. HHhmmm. Wait a flippin’ minute here!! My daughter’s name is “Dempsey!” Jumpsie… Dempsey? Blonde curls with a propensity for bouncing? They even looked alike. Coinkidink? I think not!! If this doll was going to steal my daughter’s likeness, they could have at least got the jumping part down right. “Jumpsie” was NOT even good at jumping!!! WTF!! A jump and a half and she would fall off her trampoline. Plop. Pathetic. Hellooooo… your name is "Jump"sie!  Watch Dempsey, she’ll show ya how it’s done. She's a pro! Boing… Boing… Boing… That-a-girl!

So twenty years has come and gone like a blink of the eye. I no longer see a flash of blonde curls go bouncing or zooming by me. Haven’t seen a single somersault in I don’t know how many years?? I miss that spirited girl, but in its place, I now see a beautiful girl, inside and out, a college student, that I’m very proud of, one that has even learned how to sit and actually walk from room to room. That's a blessing... truly. We are still waiting for royalty payments from that doll company (bastards!), but aside from that, it has been a wonderful bouncy ride. Hoppy, Hoppy, Hoppy  Birthday to “my” Jumpsey!! The one and only, genuine, original Jumpsey.