Farewell Kayla (otherwise titled "Grandpa had to call the "Cobs" on Car-Crunching Meanies")

Do you want the good news or the bad news first?

The good news is that our family got together to celebrate Kayla before she heads to college out of state.  We got together at Grammy and Grampy's for dinner (hot dogs, beans, chips and salsa, watermelon, and I could go on... lots of food) and had fun talking and trying to unlock the secrets of the Blackberry (apps and settings and calendars, oh my!).  Aunt Colleen showed me a couple of apps I had to download and the kids played everyone sat around the living room chatting*.   

* Except Cole.  He hung out downstairs and might have had a nap.  This hasn't been confirmed but he was dressed in comfy clothes so it's totally possible.  He did rejoin us after about an hour.  He was missed.  Especially because the kids seem to like being chased and picked up by their feet.  (Ahem, Cole and Uncle Mark!)

Paigey also did a Beyonce impersonation of Single Ladies.  Have you ever seen something so cute (there were no lady gyrations... the moves were all G-rated!) that all you can do is grin... and when it's over you want to see it again?  This was one of those things. 

So as we were getting ready to roll our full tummies out (and maybe that was just me...), *now here's the bad news* dad got a call from John saying that someone had hit dad's Suburban.  Parked Suburban.

In the summer, dad parks it in the street but not close to the corner or anything, and someone in a red car came around the corner, hit their brakes, and plowed into the back of it.

Then the driver turned off his headlights.  And zoomed away.  

I know.  So.Rude.

John filled us in when we got home and my dad called the police (or as Katie says, "the cobs") and waited outside with Katie for them to arrive.  Katie had to get her jammies on first and she was *so* excited to see the police and she was *so* afraid of missing their arrival that we had to get her jammies on in the living room as she watched out the window.

We didn't wait long till the officer arrived and took dad's statement.  Katie and I walked over so she could get a close look at the "cob" and the officer stopped talking to my dad and turned her attention to Katie.  Katie was thrilled.

She shook Officer Bridgett's hand and Officer Bridgett chatted with her for a few minutes.  And then...

She offered to let Katie sit in the back of the car.  Where the (possibly dirty, possibly pukey, possibly drugged out, possibly injured) bad guys sit.  You can imagine my relief when Katie politely declined.  Or maybe just violently shook her head "no".

BUT when she offered to let Katie sit in the FRONT of the car, right in the drivers seat, and she didn't want to do it, I felt I had a duty to push her out of her comfort zone.  Not too much, just a little.  Which is why I held her while *I* sat in the drivers seat.  And looked at the computer.  AND pushed the switch to turn all of the lights on.  *grin*  I'll just say it was fun.  And pretty cool.

We finally got out and the officer told Katie she could call the police at any time and someone would come.  She also told my dad she would follow up on the car-crunching meany* who hit his bumper.  

* So maybe she didn't use those exact words, but she was probably thinking them.

Then, as she pulled around and passed our house again, Katie waved and waved and Officer Bridget turned on the lights AND started the siren for just a second.

Too exciting!  For Katie, of course.