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Sunday, August 10, 2008

When You Hear Stories About Your Kids

Yesterday we went to the book signing for Off the Beaten Subway Track in the New York City Fire Department Museum. The boys had a great time. Of course, before and after we were in the museum, we had a 3 hour car drive. After deciding that I did not want to go through yet another car ride where I a) drove like an insane person by pulling over to the side of the road every two minutes for time outs b) contemplated sticking my head out the window for the entire ride or c) a combination of the two, I invested 8 dollars in coloring books with stickers and crayons and a couple of books from the grocery store. I doled them out sparingly during the ride. Much to my surprise, it actually worked...on the way to New York. I feared that the newness factor would have disappeared by the time we returned to the car, potentially causing them to be transformed into projectiles. Sure enough, they did not use any of their gifts on the way home. They fell asleep almost as soon as the Big Giraffe got the car moving. Phew.

The book signing was like a reunion. I got to talk to people I hadn't seen in years, and of course we exchanged ancient anecdotes. I also heard some stories that were not as old, including one from only a week ago about my kids. While we were in the Catskills, Suzanne's husband helped the Big Giraffe put the boys to bed. The boys had already chosen their two stories, and the Big Giraffe was well into The Cat in the Hat. The boys asked to sit on Suzanne's husband's lap for the rest of the stories. It seemed safe enough. The boys were comfortably settled long before cat left the house and the Big Giraffe moved on to the boys' second selection, Amazing You, which to Suzanne's husband's chagrin proved to be a book to introduce toddlers and preschoolers to private parts, what they do, and how special they are. He later told us he had expected a more standard bedtime story like Good Night Moon. On the up side, he learned all about how important it is to take pride in your private parts. What can I say? We are very open in our family. My Older Son (OS), my Younger Son (YS), and the Big Giraffe each picked a story for the trip, and that was what YS wanted to bring.

A. Elliot's Lesson Learned: Before you cozy up with other people's children during bedtime stories, make sure you know what the stories will be.

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posted by Alex Elliot @ 6:47 PM   6 comments
6 Comments:
  • At 8/10/2008 10:25 PM, Blogger Heather said…

    That's too funny.

     
  • At 8/11/2008 11:09 AM, Anonymous Suzanne said…

    I told my family that story because of Husband's reaction to the book as a bedtime read, which I find hilarious. Actually, it was the fact that they sat in his lap while the story was being read that made him squirm.

    I hope that you didn't think I was criticizing you, as I think being open is the best way to be about these things and it is great that it does not embarrass you or Big Giraffe to talk about body parts. I wish it had been that way when I was growing up.

     
  • At 8/11/2008 11:36 AM, Blogger Alex Elliot said…

    Hi Suzanne,
    No not all! We thought it was hilarious too. Plus you know the Big Giraffe and we're pretty upfront about things that bother us :)

     
  • At 8/11/2008 12:55 PM, Blogger painted maypole said…

    that's hysterical!

    and yes, we've learned that a few dollars spent on car goodies makes the trip much more bearable

     
  • At 8/11/2008 4:28 PM, Blogger Jen of A2eatwrite said…

    That is very funny. You never know what will become fave books for little ones. ;-)

     
  • At 8/12/2008 11:10 AM, Blogger Goofball said…

    so cool, so funny

     
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Name:Alex Elliot
Home:MA, United States
About Me:Professional Mom of two cats, a dog, an ant farm, and oh yeah...two boys: a 6 year old and a 3 year old. Also found in my house is my husband who is known on this blog as The Big Giraffe.
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