“Watch out, Dad…”

As usual, Luke woke up before 6:00am this morning.  Also as usual, we brought him to our bed in a futile attempt to get him (and ourselves) back to sleep.  Seriously, who are we kidding?  It hasn’t worked in months.

At approximately 6:15, still somewhat groggy, I heard Luke cheerfully declare, while standing on the mattress at the foot of the bed, “Watch out, Dad…”  and then diving on top of me.

He then rolled off and declared, “I’m ok, Mom.”

Thanks, Luke.  Good to know you’re ok.

His I’m ok’s seem to be a conditioned response to an anticipated, “Luke, are you ok?”  (I guess we must say that a lot.)

He’s also been saying, “I’m careful,” quite a bit, usually when he’s in a precarious position (such as trying to climb to the top of the couch or climbing on my head as I try to get more sleep).  This seems to be another conditioned response, in this case to an anticipated “Luke, be careful.”  (Another expression that must roll off of our tongues quite frequently.)

Luke seems to do most of his ‘extreme sports’ in close proximity to padded surfaces: a couch, a mattress, pillows, me (and often a combination of the above).  Smart kid, he works with a safety net.  He’s taken to, as Charlotte calls it, ‘doing tricks.’  Like Charlotte, he often uses a husband (a pillow with arms whose names implies that, well, a husband is simply a pillow with arms) propped up against the headboard.  He’ll climb to the top of the husband, being ‘careful’ by steadying himself against the headboard, get in position, then let himself fall dramatically to the mattress.  Often, because I suppose the mattress isn’t quite soft enough, or maybe just to establish a landing surface, they’ll lay out one of our pillows as a target.  Luke frequently misses the pillow, which is usually followed by “I missed” and “I’m ok”.

Luke’s fearlessness around pillows, cushions, and mattresses has not been matched on the playground.  In fact, up until recently, he’s been afraid of slides.  But about two weeks ago, he started going down a small slide at Charlotte’s school’s playground.  He quickly advanced to two slightly higher, side by side slides (one with a big dip, and another with a big bump) at our local playground, and today went down a pretty high corkscrew slide.  I was impressed with his quick progression.

Thankfully, while our kids are relatively cautious, they have not inherited my significant fear of heights.  (As long as they’re not trying to jump out of planes anytime soon, I’ll be happy.) 

I just hope they continue to be ‘careful’ and, when they do get a little risky, give me the courtesy of a “Watch out, Dad!”  (Especially if it involves jumping on top of me.)

I hope you enjoyed today’s serving of ‘mac & cheese.’

Natural Born Citizens

This past weekend marked the first Red Sox/Yankees series of the year.

 

I’m proud to say that Charlotte and Luke seem to have embraced their destiny as natural born citizens of the proverbial Red Sox Nation (for better or worse, and lately it’s been for better, by a wide margin).

 

As a side note, I must say that it’s amusing to me that the team initiated annual dues (or in essence, taxes) to be an ‘official’ member of Red Sox nation.  I paid my lifetime dues in 1986 as an 11-year old when my world was shattered, my innocent heart broken, as the Red Sox fell to the Mets in painful fashion.  (It should be noted that I was one month and seven days old when Carlton Fisk waved his blast fair in 1975 and three years old for Bucky ‘Bleepin’ Dent.  It should also be noted that we received official confirmation that Karen was pregnant with Charlotte the same day we went to the 2004 World Series Championship victory parade.)

 

But back to the present.

 

On Friday night, the first game of the series, I turned on the tv to catch some of the game before putting the kids to bed (just in time to see Jacoby Ellsbury score the first run of the game from second on a passed ball).  Needless to say, I was excited, as were the kids (probably more so because of me than the actual game.)  Both Charlotte and Luke grabbed their baseball gloves and put on their Red Sox hats (insisting that Karen and I don ours, as well).

 

My favorite moment was when, after a pitch, Charlotte made a motion as if she was catching the ball in her glove, proudly announcing, “I caught it!  It hopped right out of the tv and I caught it!”  My enthusiastic reaction led to both Charlotte and Luke “catching” the ball from the tv several more times.

 

When I put Charlotte to bed that night, I asked her what she had enjoyed that day, and she responded, “Playing with my friends and watching tv with you.”

 

I tried to remember what we watched that she could have enjoyed so much that it ranked in her top two, above going to the playground, finding worms while prepping the garden, and various other fun activities.

 

When I asked, she answered, “Baseball,” a response that made any other outcome of the game seem trivial (even a Red Sox/Yankees game).

 

I hope you enjoyed today’s serving of ‘mac & cheese’ (while wearing a Red Sox hat).

 

PS: But just for the record, the Red Sox won in 11 innings on a walk off homerun by Kevin Youkilis and went on to sweep the series, three games to none.

Night (and Morning) Away

This week, Karen’s mom came over to watch the kids for a night (and day), giving me and Karen some much-appreciated time away.  Grandma arrived on Wednesday afternoon.  Appropriately enough, Wednesday morning emphasized one of the main reasons a night (and, more importantly, a morning) away would be a nice break.

 

Luke started making noise not long after 5:00am.  We’re not quite sure what he was doing, but there was a lot of banging noises coming from his room (heard through the monitor), along with some humming.  He seemed content to stay in his crib for the time being.

 

At about 5:30, as the noise level began to increase, I went up to get him.  As I walked up the stairs, Charlotte, woken up by the Luke ruckus, started calling for Karen.

 

I found Luke lying quietly in his crib.  His head was covered by his blanket, and he announced, from underneath the blanket,“I’m hiding.”  He also declared that he had been “singing.”  Then, as he stood up, asked, “Where’s Charlotte?”  (My unspoken response, “It’s 5:30, where do you think?”)

 

So we went to her room, got Charlotte (who still rarely gets out of bed on her own), and went downstairs to snuggle in bed (in the futile hopes of getting the kids back to sleep so we could get some additional rest).

 

Luke was his usual squirmy self and determined to keep Karen awake.  Apparently, he was applying a pseudo-wrestling move known as the iron claw, which prompted the following exchange:

 

Karen (frustrated, very sternly): Luke, don’t grab me in the face like that.  I’m trying to sleep.

Charlotte (patiently and cheerfully): Luke, fall asleep now, please.

Luke (excitedly): Let’s get up, Mom.

Karen (exhausted and defeated): Luke, I’m tired, it’s early, let’s get some sleep.

Luke (not even pausing to consider): Let’s get up, Mom.

            Charlotte: But Mom, this sun is up.

(Apparently, at this point, Charlotte had changed sides in the “get up/sleep in” debate.  Unfortunately, she did have a point, as sunlight had begun to shine through the window.  Darn sun. Not even 6:00, and we were up for the day.)

 

And that is why we were probably looking forward to the morning away more so than the night away.

 

I hope you enjoyed today’s serving of ‘mac & cheese.’

Sue-Zée: Oh, the places we’ll go!

This week, we got a GPS (global positioning system).  It’s pretty cool – like something out of a science fiction novel.  We got it mainly because Karen, in her work as an interpreter, often has to drive places she’s never been before. 

 

Of course, it will also come in handy in our other travels.

 

On the day we got it, Karen and Charlotte took it for a test drive, driving around town during Luke’s nap.  Charlotte loved it.  It talks with a woman’s voice.  Whenever it stopped talking, Charlotte would ask, “When’s she going to talk again?”

 

After Luke woke up, they drove over to a friend’s for a play date.  Turns out, Luke’s also a big fan of the GPS.  Whenever it gave directions, Charlotte and Luke would lean forward to look at each other and giggle. 

 

When they decided the GPS needed a name, Charlotte quickly decided her name would be ‘Sue-Zée.’ (We’re almost positive she got the name from character we saw on a tv show a couple of weeks ago.  Whenever someone called her “Susie,” she would correct them by saying, “It’s ‘Sue-Zée.’”

 

So on the way home, whenever the GPS, I mean, Sue- Zée, stopped talking, Luke would ask, “Where’s Sue- Zée?” (Often repeatedly, until she spoke again.)

 

Sue-Zée has quickly become a cherished travel companion.  (When Karen drove to the library yesterday, Charlotte asked why they didn’t use Sue-Zée.) 

 

Sue-Zée has already guided us to numerous destinations (most of which we’ve been to before.)  But who knows to what unchartered territory she (and the kids) will take us in the future?  (Oh, the places we’ll go.)

 

In other news, we’re currently searching for a ‘new’ car (well, a used car that’s new to us.)  Our ‘work’ car seems to be falling apart, so we’re looking for an economical alternative (Craig;s List, don’t fail us now).  Unfortunately, because we’re replacing our commuter car, it doesn’t look like we’ll be answering the siren song of the mini-van for quite some time.

           

Oh well.

 

Anyway, welcome to the family, Sue- Zée. 

 

I hope you enjoyed today’s serving of ‘mac & cheese.’

The Lion Sleeps Tonight…

Luke has added a new element to his bedtime routine. 

 

Prior to this week, Luke’s usual routine was:

1. Story time as a family, usually in Charlotte’s room, while changing into pajamas.

2. Good night song (improvised) sung by Luke and the parent putting him to bed that night (alternates from night to night, although Charlotte has expressed her strong preference that Mom put her to bed every night);

3. Good night hugs and kisses before Luke and appointed parent depart for his room;

4. Mom/Dad reads two stories to Luke while holding him in lap and rocking in chair;

5. Mom/Dad lays Luke in his crib, placing him on his stomach, and pulls up the blanket;

6. Mom/Dad sings Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer (Dad)/The Alphabet Song/ABC’s (Mom) while rubbing his back;

7. Mom/Dad quietly leaves his room and tiptoes down the stairs.  Luke usually falls asleep shortly thereafter, sometimes after humming for a bit.

 

But over the past week, he has occasionally inserted the following step, which can occur after either five or six and which I will refer to as addendum 5a/6a.

 

5a/6a. From the lying position, Luke will arch his back and slowly raise his head and upper body while he roars.  It’s a slowly emanating roar that builds: ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAR.  He’ll return to the lying position and then repeat two more times (total of three.)  One of the first times he did it, his mother asked if he was a dragon, to which he responded, “No, I lion!”  before repeating it several times. 

 

Thankfully, he then settles down for the night.

 

On a related note, Luke was roaring to go today.  Apparently, he was a lion for most of the day (especially during dinner), which led us to our new joke.

 

But before I present the joke, let me provide some background (and hopefully build suspense).  One of our favorite pirate jokes is “What’s a pirate’s favorite letter?”  Answer: Arrrrrrr!  A pirate’s second favorite letter: Aye!  (This was a much funnier joke before the whole Somalia pirate incident.)

 

So, now presenting, our new lion riddle…

Question:  What’s a lion’s favorite number?

Answer: FOOOOOAAAAAAARRR!

 

I hope you enjoyed today’s serving of ‘mac & cheese.’

A Fancy Tea Party

In light of the good weather and Charlotte and Luke’s enjoyment at having other kids over to play, we decided to host a tea party on Thursday, inviting the other young kids in the neighborhood.

 

Apparently, one of Charlotte’s favorite activities at school is hosting parties in the play kitchen.  Or, as she calls them, fancy parties.  After her teacher told us about it, we asked Charlotte about the parties she liked to have at school.  Apparently, she simply announces, “Everybody, everybody, there’s a fancy party at 12 o’clock.”  (Regardless of the actual time, the party is always at 12 o’clock.) Then she and her friends have a fancy party.

 

So, needless to say, Charlotte was VERY excited about hosting the tea party.  As soon as she got up in the morning, she was asking when people were coming over (not until 3:00.)

 

As the appointed time approached, we began to set up in order to adequately fulfill our hosting responsibilities.  We moved the small children’s table (with sun umbrella) and chairs down to the patio and brought out the tea set.  Charlotte put on the dress-ups she had chosen to wear for the tea party and brought out some for her guests to wear, if they so chose.  Luke was sleeping (he’s been taking very long naps of late and ended up sleeping through a good portion of the tea party.)

 

Charlotte could barely contain herself when her guests started to arrive.  She had laid out all of the tea set pieces, matching up the colors.  Thankfully, she has a very active imagination and there’s usually no need to actually fill the tea cups or other containers with anything.  She simply imagines sugar, cream and tea (and sometimes, the tea is too hot.)

 

One of her friends prefers to work with tangible, real items.  The first time she came over for a tea party and was given an empty cup, she pointed out that there was nothing in it.  When Karen asked what she usually put in her tea cups, she responded bluntly, as if it was quite obvious: Tea!

 

Oh well.  To each her own.  Imagining the drink just isn’t her cup of tea.  In fact, when she arrived for the tea party this week, it was after I had brought out the snacks and juice boxes.  She immediately squeezed the contents of her juice box into her teacup. 

 

All in all, the tea party was a smashing success.  After the refreshments, the kids ran around the yard and played on the swing set.  Charlotte and Luke, after he woke up, really enjoyed playing hostess and host.

 

When Charlotte’s Aunt Jen found out about the tea party, she had one question:

            Was it a fancy tea party?

Indeed it was, Aunt Jen.  Indeed it was.

 

I hope you enjoyed today’s serving of ‘mac & cheese’ (with a spot of tea).

Magical Mystery Tour

On Tuesday, we received a flyer informing us that Charlotte’s class would be going on a field trip to the Swan Boats in the Boston Public Garden.  So later that day, Karen asked her about it.

 

Karen: “Charlotte, did you know you’re going on a field trip with your class?”

Charlotte: “I did not know that. Where are we going?”

Karen: “You’re going to ride the Swan Boats in Boston.”

Charlotte (hopefully): “Are they racing boats?”

Karen: “No.  They don’t go very fast.  In fact, they move by someone pedaling them.”

Charlotte (holding out hope): “But does one boat go faster than the rest?”

 

We’re not exactly sure why she seems focused on racing boats.  We did see one a couple of weeks ago, but it hasn’t come up since.

 

In other travel news, Charlotte seems to greatly enjoy the role of tour guide.  Today, Karen and the kids met some friends at one of our favorite hangouts, Overlook Farm (seeing as Charlotte wants to be a farmer.)  On the way over, Karen told Charlotte that two of her friends had never been there before, so she’d have to tell them about the animals and point things out to them.

 

Apparently, she took this to heart, leading the group for most of the visit and explaining what they were about to see:

 

Charlotte: “Most pigs are pink, but these pigs are black, and there are two of them.”

 

Charlotte: “These are the water buffalo, and their names are…”

            Charlotte (softly aside): “Mom, what are their names again?”

            Mom (softly) “Hope and Joy.”

Charlotte (confidently): “Hope and Joy.”

 

Luke, meanwhile, has become his own self-guided tour, having entered the stage where he describes everything he’s doing as he does it:

            “I’m jumping.”

            “I’m spinning.”

            “I’m bumping.”

            “I’m running.”

            “I’m playing.”

 

No kidding.  He’s quite pleased with himself.  Although often he seems to think his ability to describe his actions imbues them with more importance. 

 

“Luke, it’s time to (insert ‘take a bath’, ‘get a diaper change’, ‘go outside’ here).”

To which he petulantly replies, “But I’m (insert ‘playing’, ‘running’, ‘spinning’, or ‘jumping’ here).”

 

I hope you enjoyed today’s serving of ‘mac & cheese.’

The big, bad… Easter Bunny

Last Easter, Charlotte was deathly afraid of the Easter Bunny, at least in person.  We went to a local Easter Egg Hunt, and Charlotte refused to get anywhere near him. 

 

In recounting the event to her grandparents, her description of the event was essentially, “There was a big bunny there.  He tried to scare me.”  She also remarked several times that “Luke and I were scared.”  (Even though Luke kept trying to crawl toward the bunny.)

 

To her credit, she realized there was more to it than meets the eye, remarking, “Dad, I think there was someone in there.”  If you think about it, being freaked out is probably the most appropriate reaction when encountering a person dressed as a giant bunny.

 

Thankfully, her experience with the big scary bunny did not dampen here excitement for the imaginary Easter Bunny, which joined the retinue of other imaginary guests that were staying at our house at the time, including Shrek, Princess Fiona, and the animals from Madagascar.

 

This year, she has turned her attention to training for tomorrow’s Easter Egg Hunt at Grandma and Grandpa’s.  Today, she gathered up some plastic eggs, announced she was going to hide them, and asked us to close her eyes.  After what seemed like an interminable amount of time with my eyes closed (she accidentally dropped several and it took her some time to retrieve them when they rolled under the couch), she finally announced she was ready and yelled, “Go!”

 

I opened my eyes just in time to see Charlotte dash off to retrieve each of the eggs she had just hidden herself.

 

We’ve all picked out our Easter outfits, and Charlotte is very excited for us all to wear white shoes (I have a pair that I wore for band in college.)

 

I hope you enjoyed today’s serving of ‘mac & cheese’ and are looking forward to a generous serving of Easter candy.

 

Have a Happy Easter!  (If you see me, I’ll be the one in white band shoes trying to beat my daughter to the colored plastic eggs that she hid.)

Stolen Cookies, Cheesy Segues, S’More Donuts…

Charlotte recently discovered the song, Who stole the cookie from the cookie jar?  She absolutely LOVES it, as does Luke (though not quite as much as Charlotte.) 

 

They both get really into it with enthusiastic “who me?”s, “then who?”s and  “couldn’t be!”s.  They take particular glee in accusing each other and their parents.  They could do it for hours without tiring of it (the same cannot be said for their mom and dad.)

 

Speaking of cookies and camp songs (how’s that for a segue?), I recently developed what I feel to be a tremendous new donut for Dunkin’ Donuts “Create Dunkin’s Next Donut” contest: The Dunk S’More. 

 

Unfortunately, I waited until the last possible night to do it, then kept getting an error message when I tried to complete the final step, so I’m pretty sure I’m not officially entered, which is a bummer because the top prize is $12,000 (and the adulation of donut lovers everywhere.)

 

I know, it would have been a longshot anyway, but I’ll let you be the judge.  Here is my entry:

  

The Dunk S’More

A new take on the quintessential campfire treat that has been enjoyed by children of all ages for generations: marshmallow filling surrounded by raised dough and topped with chocolate icing and graham cracker crunch.

 

What could be more comforting than curling up with a mug of hot coffee, cocoa, or warm milk and the scrumptious new “Dunk S’More.”

 

At a time when value is at a premium, this new donut gives you more.  In fact, it gives you s’more.  Presenting the new “Dunk S’More.”

 

Oh well.  The tough part is I can’t even comfort myself with a delicious donut (at least for another couple of days) because I gave up donuts for Lent. 

 

Now, if I could just find out who stole the cookie from the cookie jar, at least I could eat that.

 

I hope you enjoyed today’s serving of ‘mac & cheese.’

When I Grow Up…

Karen was invited to participate in a career panel for the deaf studies program at our alma mater.  Charlotte was very excited and very proud.  (Ok, I was, too.)  I somewhat foolishly brought the kids to watch. 

 

We sat in the back row so we could make a quick exit, if necessary.  (Oh, it was necessary.  Luke was more restless than usual.)  Charlotte kept trying to get Karen’s attention, waving proudly at her on a number of occasions.  She was also taking pictures.  She took a couple from the back before quietly making her way to the front and taking some more.  She was very serious.  It was adorable.

 

Charlotte probably would have made it through the event, but Luke clearly didn’t want to be there, so we took a few breaks and walked around outside the room where it was held.  Charlotte was not pleased: “But I want to watch Mom talk.”  Unfortunately, Luke really wanted to watch the dance troupe that was practicing in the ballroom across the hall.  So we watched them for a few minutes while we were waiting for it to be Karen’s turn to speak on the panel.  Charlotte kept running back in to make sure we weren’t missing her.

 

When I suggested that we might leave early, Charlotte was aghast –“But I want to watch Mom talk!”  (I know, Charlotte, I know.)  So watch Mom talk we did (despite Luke’s remonstrations and appeals to go home.  As usual, she was great.  (This is the second time she’s spoken on this panel, the first being four or five years ago.)  As we left (immediately after she finished her presentations), both Charlotte and Luke waved proudly, calling out “Bye, Mom.”  (Oh sure, now he was happy.)

 

I’m not sure if this is normal for an almost four year old, but Charlotte seems very career oriented.  She often discusses what she wants to be when she grows up.  For a while, after she and Luke had blood drawn for some tests, she wanted to be a ‘blood doctor.’  She tried to convince Luke to be a ‘blood doctor’ as well (which would be somewhat ironic since he cries uncontrollably whenever he sees a doctor, especially a ‘blood doctor.’)  Charlotte eventually decided he could be a ‘librarian’ (which, in her mind, also refers to a person who works in a book store). 

 

After a recent visit to Overlook Farm, a Heifer International Learning Center, Charlotte decided that she’s going become a farmer.  When I asked her what she would farm, she responded that she would grow corn and have pigs.  She then turned to her brother and said, “Luke, I want to be a farmer when I grow up, what do you want to be?”  Luke,as if often the case, was too busy to answer.  Undaunted, Charlotte suggested a firefighter (their uncle is a firefighter.)  Right now, if I had to guess, I’d say he was going to be a knight, or possibly a dragon.

 

Charlotte often starts sentences with “When I grow up…” or “When I get bigger”, usually in the context of things she can’t do right now but will be able to do “when [she] gets bigger.”  On occasion, either Karen or I will go out and do some grocery shopping after the kids go to bed.  For some reason, this seems to stand out in Charlotte’s mind, prompting her to say things like, “Luke, when we get bigger, after mom and dad go to bed, we’ll go out in the car, go to the store and buy things!”  (These types of declarations always end on a very excited note, as if to say, “Imagine that!”or “Can you believeve it!?”)

 

Charlotte turns four in June and, all of a sudden, she’s very focused on her birthday party.  Whenever the number four comes up, she’ll say, “Dad, I’m going to be four!”  The guest list is growing by the day (pre-school classmates, neighbors, family, etc.) 

 

 

When Karen pointed out that perhaps she was planning to invite too many people, Charlotte replied that some of them could wait outside (and, I suppose, be ushered in at an appointed time, at which point others would have to leave).

 

Maybe I’ll get to be one of the lucky ones who gets to stay for the entire party. 

 

I hope you enjoyed today’s serving of ‘mac and cheese.’

Enter the Dragon…

Last week, when Karen took the kids to the library for story time, one of the other children put on the knight helmet that’s included in the library dress ups.

 

Luke didn’t miss a beat.  If someone was a knight, someone else had to be the dragon, and he was all too willing to assume the role.  He began roaring loudly, making menacing gestures with his arms, and chasing the “fearless” knight around the children’s room. 

 

The fun and games (at least for Luke) came to an abrupt end when the knight stopped running and pleaded “stop,” at which point Karen quickly scooped up our dragon and ushered him away.

 

The kingdom was quiet until another boy put on the knight helmet, and Luke’s roaring and fearsome gesticulations resumed.  The boy frantically looked to his mother, who explained, “He’s a dragon, he’s trying to scare you,” to which the boy responded, “I don’t want to be scared.”

 

The bright side is that at least he’s not insistent on always being the knight.  He often prefers the role of dragon.  Charlotte, on the other hand, must always be the princess. 

 

Luke’s favorite book of the moment is Tomie dePaola’s The Knight and the Dragon.  Great book.  And he’s big into acting things out, whether it’s a battle or other action scene from a book or movie.  On several occasions, he’s been in the other room, making all kinds of noise ending with a loud bang (most likely the sound of him bouncing off the couch, wall, or floor), followed by a declaration of “Mom/Dad, I’m ok.”  (In anticipation of the inevitable question, “Luke, are you ok?) 

 

Charlotte and Luke have very active imaginations.  When our backyard was invaded by pirates earlier this week, Charlotte bravely fought them off.  (Watching her fend off invisible pirates trying to take the deck was quite entertaining.)  After the battle, both Charlotte and Luke were very concerned for the neighbors and wanted to go warn them that the pirates were coming.

 

But with Charlotte and Luke to keep the neighborhood safe, I’m sure they have nothing to fear.

 

Unless, of course, Luke decides to become the dragon.

 

I hope you enjoyed today’s serving of ‘mac & cheese.’

And now, for a commercial presentation…

A week or two ago, I was contacted by a representative from Krylon/Sherwin-Williams asking if I would talk about their new product and their marketing campaign in my blog.

 

The product is a new Exterior Wood Stain Spray for refinishing old wood furniture, floors, fences, etc (“the first and only exterior spray stain”).  They launched a new web site, www.saveoursaturdays.com, to promote it by focusing on the time saving element and its appeal to fathers who have so much to do.

 

The site went live on April 1 (no fooling) and includes a sports trivia contest and the chance to win free tickets to the World Series and a free HDTV.  So I figured what the heck and have decided to participate in their marketing program for a couple of different reasons:

1)      I was flattered – I was approached professionally with an email telling me how much they liked “mac & cheese” (I know, I’m a sucker) and explaining the campaign.

2)      The product seems like a good one.  I hate painting, particularly with a brush – spraying paint on is so much easier.  I’m a guy for whom, when purchasing a swing set, one of the main factors was not having to paint it (we found a swing set made of this magical white cedar from northern Maine – maintenance free and splinter free.  The name of the company is CedarWorks, which is somewhat expensive, but we found an off-brand made by the same company under the name “Play-A-Round” for Sam’s Club.)

3)      I’m intrigued by this type of marketing campaign (word of mouth via blogs and targeted web sites) and am anxious to see how successful it is, and

4)      They offered to send me the product to try.  I’m a sucker for free stuff.  Chances are, I probably won’t use it (so if you’re interested, let me know and I’ll give you a can.)

 

As a side note, “Save Our Saturdays”?  What about the rest of the week?  And how about developing a product with more widespread appeal?  Something to spray on dirty dishes, dirty floors, or grumpy kids.  But I digress.

 

While the campaign definitely seems targeted toward guys/dads, Karen’s probably the most likely out of the two of us to use the product, so don’t be deterred by the y-chromosome focus of the campaign.  If you check it out (www.saveoursaturdays.com), let me know what you think – both about the paint and about the marketing campaign/program.

 

I hope you enjoyed today’s commercial serving of ‘mac & cheese,’ brought to you by Krylon and ‘Save Our Saturdays.’

Huckle-Buckle-Beanstalk!

Yesterday, we introduced Charlotte to the game of hot and cold.  You know, it’s essentially hide and seek with an object, and as the person gets closer and closer to it, he or she gets “hotter” and “hotter”, and when he or she is way off, “cold.”

 

It started when Charlotte asked where one of her toys was rather than take the time to look for it herself (when she had just had it a short time before.)  The exasperated response from her mother:  “Charlotte, why don’t you look for it?”  And then helped her out by turning it into a game of hot and cold.

 

Charlotte loved it, and we played numerous times.  One of my favorite parts of the game is using different expressions to illustrate how hot or cold the search is. For example,

            “You’re frigid – better get your jacket!”

            “Start a campfire, because you – are - cold!”          

            “Build an igloo, cause you’re in the Arctic.”

            “You’re so hot you could fry an egg.”

            “Get an oven mitt, get an oven mitt!”

You get the idea. 

 

When Charlotte was the “caller,” her attempt to ‘spice things up’ resulted in the following non sequitur: “You’re hot… you’re so hot… YOU’RE A CHAIR!”

 

Say what?

 

Another funny thing she does when she plays this and hide and seek is to use the same hiding spot over and over.  Unless she likes yours better, then she’ll immediately switch to that one, right after you used it.  It makes things pretty easy on the seeker.

 

One interesting side note:  Karen grew up playing a slight variation of the version I played.  Apparently, when she (or one of her siblings) found the item, it was necessary to yell, “Huckle-Buckle-Beanstalk!”  And no, I’m not making that up. 

 

[Actually, I just looked it up on Wikipedia, and “Huckle Buckle Beanstalk” is, in fact one of the common names of the game.  Go figure.  Other names include the pedestrian “Hide the Object,” the culinary “Hot Buttered Beans,” and the sartorial “Hunt (or Find) The Thimble.”  You learn something new every day.]

 

Piecing Things Together

Another of Charlotte’s new favorite hobbies is puzzles.  We got a 100-piece puzzle from the consignment store with the characters from Madagascar.  She loves it.  Luke liked it as well at first, to a degree.  But he’s a little too young and lacks the necessary patience.  He was game the first few times we did it, but apparently he’s had more than enough.  Now, at his first opportunity, he’ll head to the coffee table it’s on and scatter the partially assembled pieces in every direction, sparking a new game of “Huckle-Buckle-Beanstalk” in search of the missing pieces.

 

Unfortunately, there’s no one to tell us if we’re hot or cold as we peer under couches and radiators.

 

Wouldn’t it be great if there were such a voice in our everyday life? An omniscient voice calling out “hot” or “cold” to lead us through the uncertainties and challenges of parenthood (and life in general), resulting in a triumphant, joyful declaration of “Huckle-Buckle-Beanstalk!”

 

I hope you enjoyed today’s serving of ‘Mac & Cheese.’