Happy Holidays!

So Christmas has come and gone but the glow lingers on.
The Mud Puddle is officially obsessed with the fat man in a red suit. He has asked, oh, about 3,000 times when Santa is coming back.
Now, “Santa” technically only gave him three presents. But the whole concept of Santa for him is presents. All about the goods for the Mud Puddle.

At one point on Christmas morning, I look down and he has ripped open one of his Uncle’s presents (the poor guy only had two under the tree to begin with) and had discarded it to move on to the next item. I quickly threw an appropriate fit (captured on video of course) and he was ‘clearing’ his unwrapping with me after that. But man, he was like a pit bull with a chew toy, ripping, tearing, growling. It was quite the sight.
Next year, I am wrapping up individual socks for him to open if it is all about the paper ripping.

Needless to say, as the only grandchild/nephew/son he made out like a BANDIT. Toys GALORE. I did manage to get a couple of shirts and some drawers under the tree so we keep the illusion of humility but it basically was Toy Fest ’05.

Now that it is all over, he wants to go again. The advent calendar had the items put back in their place last night and he wanted to start it again. The advent calendar has 24 ‘things’ the Mud Puddle has 362 days to wait for next Christmas, I am not sure how to convey THAT to a three year old.

He was actually well behaved (no nap, which is always dicey) all day long. He even played with my dreidel and we had talked about the menorah and the candle for each night. Never hurts to know what else is out there.

The Dora DVD still has not shown up so I may have to give it as a Valentine’s Day gift, but I am not sure I want to hear about Cupid for a month after the fact.


As this year closes, we hope that you had a happy holiday and have a wonderful New Year!

Big Stinky Fish

I feel I have neglected to paint the true picture of the Mud Puddle because I have not talked yet about one of his most defining features: Nemo.

The Mud Puddle is the proud owner of a 2 foot long stuffed Nemo fish. He was the given the fish as a present (there will be retribution some day) for his second birthday. Since that time (approximately 1 year, three months and 7 days) the fish has gone with him EVERYWHERE.

Now, I am all for having the one ‘thing’ that is your prized possession, your chosen love. I had a pillow I carried with me everywhere (still use it as a matter of fact), my brother (the Nemo giver) had a ‘blankie’ and a stuffed sock monkey named Joshua (no, that is not a coincidence; the Mud Puddle was named after a sock monkey).

My problem with his ‘thing’ is that it is two feet long, is matty and dirty and 90% of the time I wind up carrying it. Like I don’t have enough to manage without being the personal Sherpa to a stuffed fish. And people KNOW you by that fish, it is hard to miss and other parents say “Oh, look at that Nemo” in a tone that says “Please let it never come to my house.”

I tried when the Mud Puddle was an infant to steer him toward a ‘thing’. Something that was small, and easily replaceable. HA! I thought I had the system beat. He did carry my chosen thing around for the first two years (Ellie, an elephant head on a blanket with his name on it). We had two, they rotated through the wash, and everyone was happy.
But once Nemo arrived, Ellie was regulated to an occasional trip out of the house and as a backup at bedtime.

Again, I am confronted with the sad truth that no matter how much you try and control the chaos of parenting the more it backfires in your face. I am reminded of this every time I have the orange fish under my arm.

I refuse to give up just yet though. “Santa” has purchased a one foot long Nemo, all soft and new and he will be waiting under the tree for the Mud Puddle this weekend. I can almost handle carrying around half the fish and none of the stink of the current Nemo.
That would be a great Christmas present to me!

My Orange Hat

I love my orange hat
It fits me just fine

Mom says it is ratty
But it is all mine!

I wear it in the winter
To keep my head toasty

I wear it in the summer
When it is a bit roasty.

I won’t give it up
No matter what they say

I love my orange hat
It is here to stay.

Mom has bought me others
But for that I will not sit

When she tries to put them on
I throw a big old fit!

I know my hat and I
Will have a long time

Mom fears it will go with me to college
But she couldn’t make that rhyme.

You may laugh
And think me a hick

But before you snicker
It may be a trend to stick.

Other kids at school
Have started sporting the same

But unlike my original
Their knockoffs are just lame.

I will love my orange hat
I will wear it at any cost

Mom holds out hope
That it will soon get lost.

I don't mean to brag...

Okay, I TOTALLY mean to brag, who am I kidding?
I had the thrice annual parent/teacher conference with the Mud Puddle’s daycare teachers. That is where they tell you where your child is developmentally (the standardized testing starts early I guess) and how they are doing generally.

The Mud Puddle is a ‘joy’ and a ‘wonderful little boy’. Those are direct QUOTES people, not me paraphrasing.

Now I have always known that he is a good kid, polite, and well behaved. The one thing that made me a little misty was when they told me about his empathy. Whenever another child is crying, hurt, or upset he is the first one there to offer comfort and help. That to me is one of the things you hope for in a child. Be happy, be healthy, but if you can show genuine caring to those around you? That right there is the trifecta my friends. A triple threat if you will.

They have started sending him up to the 'fours' (the room with the four year olds) on a regular basis. Even though there are older ‘three year olds’ he qualifies based on his potty accomplishments, and his ability to be self sufficient. That’s right the Mud Puddle is trained and independently capable. NICE! And he LOVES to visit the fours, I am not sure if it is the better paints or the sophisticated games (they have a foosball table) but he threw a hissy fit one day when I picked him up. He wanted to STAY, for the first time in his daycare career.

But I digress, in addition to his empathy, independence, and potty prowess, he is also a LEADER. When the other kids are playing and he joins in, he suggests different ideas and ways to do things (I got the sense that this is welcome help and not some bossiness in the making). For example, the Mud Puddle joined his chums (the shyness is apparently not as wide spread as I had suspected, right, tell that to Coopah!) in the block area the other day and went about constructing a snake house. He apparently has quite the imagination as well as project management skills.

I am trying not to get ahead of myself, but my daydreams of him raising the Stanley Cup have been replaced with Doctor, Engineer or Noble Prize Winner. I figure if his daycare teachers realize he is this good, the sky is the LIMIT. I have just glimpsed how those pageant moms get their start. One good review and your kid is the next Marlon Brando. I will try and keep myself in check! No tap shoes or French lessons… yet.