“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!” Tiburcia had stuck her tongue out as far as she could without hurting herself.
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!” louder this time, as though the snowflakes drifting down would be more likely to drop onto her tongue if she were noisier.
“Really, Tiburcia,” sighing wearily, Layla chided the girl.
“Come on, dad! Flip the switch!” Tiburcia yelled, clapping her hands and stomping her feet against the cold.
Rubbing her neck, Layla sighed heavily again. It had taken the adults all day to string up the lights the girl had picked. And Layla had been extra tired and sore all week. She blamed it on all the extra time she’d had to take tramping around town to find pretties hidden beneath the snow. Snow made everything a lot more difficult. How did her mom and dad make playing in the snow with their kids look so easy? She’d have to call her mom later to ask. It would flatter Helen.
At last the house was bathed in pink light as Ignacio finally made it to the fuse box and flipped the switch.
“Yeeeeeeeeeeesssssss!!! It’s wonderful! It’s perfect! I love it I love it I love it!” Tiburcia jumped up and down nearly knocking Layla over. “Sorry, mom.”
Smiling broadly, she hugged the little girl.
“It’s alright,” she told her. And really, it was. That reaction made all the extra work worth it.