This morning, as he often does, Isaiah woke up early and came to join us in our bed. Sometimes he snuggles between Ruth and I and goes back to sleep. More frequently, however, he does a less than stellar job of lying still and tests the fine line between adorable and annoying.

This morning was a combination of all three that managed to stay within the boundaries of acceptability. He snuggled quietly for a while, but soon had enough of resting and was ready to start the day off with an adventure.

Isaiah, as has been mentioned here before, loves machines and vehicles of all kinds. Recently, though, his interest has been showing submersible tendencies. He's become fascinated with submarines. In fact submarines have become a regular facet of his joining us in the mornings.

Submarines are easy to make- just flip a blanket over your head, and pull the sides down to block out all unfiltered light and presto- you're at the helm of an underwater craft! But evidently, easy as they are to find, it takes two to drive them.

"Help me make a submarine, Daddo!" is invariably followed by "Daddo, get in the submarine with me." I think he wants me to join him so that he can command the vessel while I take care of the chores of piloting it. I mean, after all, how much fun is a blanket subamrine without a crew? As soon as I close the hatch behind me, take my place at the helm and ask the captain for a destination. Our most frequent mission is to go to the muffin place to lay in a supply of blueberry muffins.

On this morning's voyage we encountered a strange new form of aquatic life- the amphibious Kroger. It was just after we'd surfaced in international waters to see if we'd need jackets when we got to the muffin place, that we saw it. As Captain Isaiah poked his head through the main hatch to test the weather, he saw the creature on a collision course for our vessel. It was just off our port bow moving at about eleventy-three knots. Just as the creature was about to impact our sub's hull, it subtly altered course so that we perceived only the slightest contact as the creature's slobbery appendage brushed the side of the conning tower. Incredulous, the commander could do little but shout at the receding creature.

"Don't lick my submarine, Kroger!"