I could get all sappy right now and tell you that picking up each one of them and remembering his fat little hands with their indented knuckles holding them was one of the hardest things I've ever done...y'know, cleaning-wise. We read to him every night. Farmer Duck. Cows Can't Fly. Slug. THE CLASSICS. So moving them into a box was more than just admitting he is closer to adulthood than babyhood. It was saying goodbye to some of the most awesome rhymes ever.
To wit...
"A small girl yelled out, 'Mommy! What's that creeping on our food?'
She didn't know that Slug was just a hungry little dude."
Beat that, Bob Frost.
And it was heavy. Like really heavy, man. They're books, people. Not like when mommies of today just download Bennett Cerf onto their iPads.
Is Bennett Cerf even available on iPads? Because it should be! Seriously, if your child doesn't know what is big and red and eats rocks, you are not really a very good parent. Just saying.
Anyway, I spent a couple of days being all nostalgic. I'd go look at his new teen-agery version of a bookcase with it's clever novels and dark comic books and middle school yearbooks and wish that just for a minute, I could have that boy that's shorter than me back.
Then, I got in my car. That smelled like three day old milk left in a sippy cup.
Turns out teenager snowboard boot has exactly the same chemical makeup as curdled dairy product in plastic.
And I longed for short people no more.
AWWWWW! :)
ReplyDeleteJesus seriously though, if a slug was on my food you'd hear some new swear words and none of them would rhyme...
My daughter kept some of her books she had as a child and read them to her children. They are now teens! She still has two or three. Her favorites were the Mr. and Miss books like: Mr.Grumpy or Miss Sleepy.
ReplyDeleteI've kept some of my daughter's books: Going on a Bear Hunt, Nutbrown Hare and Peepo. I love 'em all.
ReplyDeleteBit a mayo and slugs taste great.
ReplyDeleteOh, and Happy Presidents Pets Day - the day after Presidents Day, as I like to call it. In the US, we love our presidents..... pets. See my blog if you’re in the mood for a good ol' irreverent howl.
So the smell emanating from my teenage son's room is his ski boot and not some new version of man stink I was not prepared for?
ReplyDeleteThank you. I will cancel the fumigation squad appointment now.
My baby, the youngest of my offspring, my baby boy turned 21 last week. There is just something wrong with the universe when it lets a perfectly cute little toddler turn into someone with a deep voice, more facial hair than Grizzly Adams and a height of 6 feet 2 inches (and still growing!)
ReplyDeleteI have some choice words for the suggestion box.
I don't have any children, but I remember the trauma of realizing my cat was no longer a cute, fluffy kitten. :) However, they have their own special charisma as they get older too, right? Kids and cats.
ReplyDeleteMy baby will be 16 April 17.
ReplyDeleteOh, my heart...