Eli's Fav Hat

The other day Dad-oo asked me what I thought Eli would be when he grows up. Of course my first answer was an Astronaut, which was met by a blank stare. So I thought and thought, and the only thing that came to mind right away was a comedian because this kid is always looking for new ways to make us laugh. But of course, I want my son to be successful and have a stable career, so that went right out the door. I finally settled on architect. I’m not really sure why, other than he’s smart and likes to build blocks. Or rather, he likes to knock the down. Maybe demolition man would have been more appropriate.

Anyway, one of the things Eli does that always gets a giggle, a snicker or a full out belly laugh, is putting on his “hats”. Sometimes it’s the birthday hat with candles sticking out the top that Dad-oo got on his 30th birthday. Often it’s a blanket that was lying around the house. But his all-time favorite is the box from a 12 pack of soda. Yup, cut the bottom off and you have the perfect-sized Eli hat. He slips it over his head, down to eye level, then peers up at you, out the bottom of his hat, with this silly grin splashed across his face. But it doesn’t stop there, he’ll walk around the house with his “hat”, taking it off, putting it back on, adjusting it just right, taking it off again. He’ll even pull it down over his eyes and attempt to walk through the house. That doesn’t usually last long, but he does try it over and over again.

In case you are wondering, Diet GT cola comes from Aldi. Yes, it’s super inexpensive, but it tastes just as good as Diet Coke. I promise. And remember, it’s called frugal, NOT cheap.

Diet GT Cola Hat

When Eli was a newborn, he wasn’t really interested in stuffed animals. He does have two living, breathing, snorting stuffed animals to amuse him after all. So most of the stuffed animals that he received ended up on a shelf in his room (one or two unfortunate animals ended up as pug toys, oops). He does have his favorite go-to animals, a red puppy with no eyes from Grandma. A white, gangly lamb from his gangly Godfather, Kurt. And a large tan bear that a little boy at the 4th of July parade gave up for Eli. These have served him well and have managed to escape the slobbery jaws of the pugs.

Well, this morning, the usual animals just wouldn’t do it. Eli needed something new to help him wake up with. Something to bury his face into and wipe his running nose on. So I was digging in all of his bins of toys, and everything was met with a ”No!” and a shaking head. Finally, one lone toy, hiding behind layers of jackets and sweat shirts hanging in Eli’s room, was THE toy. A baby blue and soft green butterfly that plays Twinkle Twinkle Little Star when you pull on it’s body. This is a toy that Eli never showed the slightest interest in as a newborn, and now all of a sudden, it’s the toy that he can’t live without.

All day long he toted this butterfly around, saying ”Again!” every time it stopped playing. He would snuggle it right up to his ear, to make sure that he didn’t miss a single note. And while he knows that it is a butterfly, and can say but-er-fwy, he insisted that it was a baby. Then insisted that it was a bear (be-ar, two syllables) with a look in his eyes that say “Come on mamma, get it right!” He confused me enough that I started saying, “No it’s a baby, not a bear”. Tricky little guy.

It’s funny how some toys are THE toy for a month or two, and they quickly outgrown. The floor gym and jumper, while fantastic while they lasted, Eli grew out of the far to quickly. And then those toys that were not very popular to being with, all of a sudden become a staple in Eli’s routine. Right now’s he’s curled up with the butterfly sleeping away. We’ll, that’s not actually true, since he always throws out his bedtime friends before falling asleep. But, the butterfly is laying on his floor and that will be the first thing Eli reaches for when he wakes up in the morning.

On a side note, tomorrow. I will be baking some cinnamon carrot bread, and maybe some corn and carrot waffles. We’ll see how ambitious I am. Stayed tuned for the review.

Eli's Fav Toys