So I took the kids to Toys R Us last week, all of them, (and a neighbor kid), because their Christmas money was burning a hole in their pockets. We walked through the sliding doors and their eyes got the size of saucers, “Choose” I announced and they all began to drool. Of course “choose” had some limitations but for all practical purposes they got to pick out what they really wanted. Joey decided he was going to save his money, Josh and Johnny had blown much of theirs on a shopping spree at Target so it was mostly the girls we were there for. I had a few ideas of what I WANTED the girls to choose but I was going to try to let them take the lead. Dress-up clothes? Nope. Dollhouse furniture? Nope. “My Little Ponies”? Nope. We ended up in the molded animal aisle with big rubber dinosaurs and dragons. They played with those for a while, taking up half the aisle with their three-headed dragons, but then Callie found a huge rubber snake! Really? 42 aisles of fun and she wants a giant rubber snake (did I mention I have a slight aversion to snakes?)?
I know I should have embraced her choice and encouraged her love of nature but truthfully I tried to talk her out of it (I know, minus two parenting points) but she was insistent. She won. What do you suppose her sister wanted? Yep, the giant rubber shark. How do you explain to grandma what her sweet little granddaughters got with her Christmas money? I know, I know, it’s the 21s century and when Callie writes her memoir I certainly don’t want it dedicated to her dad because her mom squelched her love of reptiles. I just think it’s a hoot. Who are these little people I am raising?
Lexi decided to get a huge puffed pink stuffed cat, similar to a pillow pet, but round. Who knows. I let her get it and she was happy.
Anyway, the girls snuggle into bed each night with their giant rubber animals. When they make their bed the snake and shark are right on top. I shouldn’t have been too surprised, a few weeks back we went to the store and I let them pick out a stuffed animal and they chose a green stuffed snake and blue stuffed shark. Now their dinosaurs have someone to fight with.
-Cindy
Barren to Bonkers! 