This is the 31st installment of a 100-day challenge to write a new vignette every morning.
Today I dressed my unicorn in preparation for the race. She couldn’t very well go without her cape, could she? That would look ridiculous.
Allie dressed her bear in a snazzy bow tie, and Johnny dressed his giraffe in a pair of shoes that he insisted were magic. Full disclosure: I wanted the shoes, but sometimes the adult in the room needs to make sacrifices for the 5-year-old. Devastating, right?
We lined our animals up at the dollhouse, and Allie explained that the toy chest would be our finish line. We all agreed on the terms and conditions of the race; we even shook on it. Johnny wanted us all to spit in our hands before the handshake, but I vetoed that plan.
Despite my valiant efforts, the unicorn arrived at the finish line last. I flopped onto the floor to grieve the loss of the marshmallow trophy—of which I was the defending champion—and the kids laughed and laughed.
Moments later, I heard the front door open and watched out of the corner of my eye as Allie and Johnny’s parents returned from date night, doggy bag in tow.
“Will?”
I rolled to face them. “I lost the race.”
I raised my eyebrows and and tilted my head and did all the things with my face you’re supposed to do to get other adults to understand they’re supposed to play along. They did, but I could pinpoint the exact moment we all noticed the grin on Allie’s face and realized she would be repeating this display the next time she lost a board game.
Miles Away 