my daughter has a box of dream cards that she keeps by her bed. at night she often chooses one, we read it, and she puts it under her pillow. lately she has been letting me have a dream card as well. sweet, yes, but since she often remembers the dream cards as i am walking out of her bedroom, i see it as a stalling technique. i grit my teeth and try to keep from rolling my eyes as i read our cards. their message is veiled by my desire to yell "it's 2 minutes past bedtime!", crumple up the cards, sprint out of her room, and slam the door. the other night, when it was ian's turn to put koruna to bed, he came down with a card she'd insisted was mine.

