The Preston Plague

For the grand finale of our two-week vacation, we went to Grandma and Grandpa's cabin in Idaho.  It was relaxing and wonderful...for a few hours.  This look on Jakey's face was the first foreshadowing that the Preston Parade wasn't going to go all that well.  It started out with hot foreheads all around and ended up with me crouched on the ground in "child's pose" retching into the weeds halfway between Logan and Brigham City.  And I wasn't the only one who cut their trip short due to the Preston Plague.  Quite a few of us headed home early, carrying buckets.

The whole parade was a blur of flying taffy and trips to the Arctic Circle bathroom.  That's the bad news.  The good news is that somewhere in the midst of all that revelry, The Best Dad in the World got suckered into buying a bargain puppy for the kids!  Normally, buying a puppy is ranks at the bottom of Scott's to-do list, right under having his fingernails pulled out with pliers.  But there was something about little "Preston Marigold Cutie Ellison Scotty Dopp's" face that made him fall in love a little bit.  I think it was the way she batted her ginger-colored eyelashes and snuggled up to Scott's chest.  Or maybe it was Ruby's look of benevolent pleading.  At any rate, Scott said there was no way he was ever going to buy a puppy, then waved me on ahead with the kids.  Freestone and I, on a mission to buy cotton candy, hid behind a tree to watch the transaction take place.  We saw Scott talk to the owner, hand her the cash and lift the puppy out of the box on the sidewalk, cradling her in his arms.  We followed him as he strode carefully down the street with a smile breaking his concentrated look.  We watched as Ruby spotted him.  Her whole body filled up with joy and she ran, carrying Ptolemy, toward Scott.  I swear, her face was glowing from the inside.  When Golda saw what was happening, she burst out in tears of happiness and covered her face.  Scott handing over the little puppy to Ruby was one of "those" moments.  His eyes were teary, but his smile was wide.  Once in awhile, there is a moment that you just have to grab, or the magic is gone.  Scott knows how to recognize those moments and go for them.  It's just one of the things that makes him a great dad.

There are other things that make Scott great, like cleaning kids' throw-up out of the car's drink holders and staying up all night with a crying puppy.  But those things aren't quite as magical!