Crow
Miranda writes, “Dad crowed, like he was the first guy in the history of the world with a younger second wife about to have a baby.” Crowing is representative of delight which is attributed to the news concerning pregnancy. The tone in the speech underscores the father's celebration.
“Movie star”
Miranda writes, “Megan is spending so much time at her church. She goes to services every Sunday and she never used to and she does stuff with the youth group at least twice a week and sometimes more and for all her talking about how she’s found God, I think all she’s found is Reverend Marshall. She talks about him like he’s a movie star.” Miranda employs the metaphoric “movie star” to underscore Megan’s admiration of the reverend which has triggered her to adopt a spiritual persona. Perhaps, Megan is infatuated with the reverend as one would with a ‘movie star’ which inspires her to attend the services so she can have a glimpse of him.
Nauseating
Miranda confesses, “The funny thing is I’d just as soon not eat. It turns out if you don’t eat for long enough; the idea of food becomes nauseating.” Miranda could be suffering from an eating disorder because she is forced to eat. Her detest for food could have been influenced by her friend Megan who prefers being hungry to eating.
‘Pre-moon Heaven’
Miranda admits, "I know I've been crazy thinking about Springfield as some kind of pre-moon heaven. Conditions there must be about the same as they are here." Miranda appreciates the environment and the times she spends at Springfield with her family. For her the locale is peaceful and comfortable; thus, the news about her not going there, due to unfavorable circumstances, annoys her greatly because it means she will not experience the heavenly times she had anticipated.
Breakables
Miranda recounts, “So after breakfast this morning, which we all ate, we moved the furniture out of the dining room and into the living room. All the breakables had to be moved first…Even Lisa carried chairs out, although Dad watched over her like she was one of the breakables.” Equating Lisa to a breakable underscores her fragility because she is pregnant. Her husband’s looks depict his concern for her. He is a cautious lest she hurts herself in the course of moving stuff.
