Sotomayor, Toby's Birthday, Bunk Beds (not in that order)

This past Sunday, as most readers of Planet Jekatobru know, was Toby's 6th birthday. I've often heard parents say "I feel old" at the passing of one or another landmark in their child's life, and now I know what that means.

Toby's a great sport: even though we're putting off his party until after the regular summer festivities of the Three Weeks, he hasn't really batted an eye at the delay. On the menu for the post-Tisha b'Av party: Cake, baseball in the park across the street, watching Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace and then, Toby insists, re-enactments of key scenes in said film. Looks like it's gonna be a marathon.

Toby and Beruria's new bunk beds have arrived...and it's pretty cool. Toby LOVES being on the top bunk. I keep trying to convince Beruria how cool it is to be in the bottom bunk ("It's like your own little fortress, Bru!") but I don't think she buys it. Sadly we have to usually resort to simply telling her "It's too high, you're too small, and you will fall out." Not surprisingly, such logic doesn't really persuade the two year old mind.

Finally: the confirmation of Sotomayor. One day and I'm already sick of it. Tell me, and I know I'm not the only person to ask this: if she's a shoo in, why do we need to go through this theater of the absurd? What I've learned thus far: a) Vermont is pretty cool to have a senator like Leahy; b) Jeff Sessions is an intensely irritating little man; c) it is never a good idea to cut loose and talk about identity politics in Berkeley if you are angling for higher office. Good thing I only did it in Palo Alto...I'm sure no one was paying attention.

Now could we please just get on with it?