Things I Want to Remember

 

Two things about Jake today:

"I have something bad to tell you," he said yesterday. Inwardly, I groaned. Usually this is the prelude to an announcement of something broken, lost, or spilled. But not this time (and I'm starting to think this kid's a little melodramatic and I shouldn't assume the worst when he says things like this). 

Jake took a deep breath. "I want to collect these little bobble head animals," he said. I saw nothing wrong with this. Jake's a collector: so far he's collected Pokemon, Bakugan, marbles, and rocks. He is also working on a collection of dirty socks shoved in between the couch cushions. Jake likes animals, so this latest infatuation seemed reasonable enough, given that we've been reading chapter books about magical pets. The illustrations on the covers of these books feature kittens and puppies with glowing eyes that would be a little creepy were it not for the hint of glitter sprinkled around them. 

But Jake seemed embarrassed. He covered his eyes and squirmed while he waited for my reaction, as if he had just told me that he wanted to paint his fingernails and wear lipstick. "What's wrong with collecting those little animal things?" I asked Jake.

"Girls like them," he answered. "You know, they're girly things. And I'm not a girl." That I know very well, seeing as how I gave birth to him and changed a few million of his diapers. Also, he's always resisted the idea of painting his room pink. 

So when we ended up at Wal Mart this afternoon, Jake wanted to check out the bobble head animal aisle. Only, he made me go down the aisle by myself while he waited by a store display. I immediately understood why. Everything--even the signs above the toys in this particular aisle--was pink. And everyone shopping in that part of the store was female. It was like I had walked into the gynecologist's office, which I'm quite familiar with. Or a Disney princess movie, which I'm not so familiar with because my boys won't watch princess shows with me. Suddenly I felt like spinning around and singing, "Someday my prince will come." I envisioned Jake and I waltzing through the store, a crew of Wal Mart employees singing and dancing along with us. The stuffed animals would come to life too, only they wouldn't be like the evil kind in Poltergeist. They would be cute bunnies who would beat their feet on the linoleum and say, "My name's Thumper, because I'm thumping." I would laugh, but not a snorting laugh like I usually do, but a high trill of delight befitting royalty. And there would be birds, little ones with speckled wings, and they would flutter around my head twittering happily. Little grey and white mice would come too, carrying tiny scissors and needles. They would make me a dress--no, make that a gown--and then they would get me some pearls from the jewelry cabinet and put them on my neck, which had magically become smooth and soft, like it was when I was twenty. Oh, this was indeed a magical place, this Aisle Twelve. And I wanted to stay forever. 

But I could not. I had a little boy waiting for me. And he was standing at a safe distance, watching me. 

"Hey, Jake," I called. "Come help me choose a new bobble head kitty for my collection."

Jake's eyes widened. "Mu-ther," he said, his voice low and gritty. This was not part of his plan. Nor was it part of mine. He didn't move. And neither did I. But this was a good idea, or so I thought. I wouldn't have to remember all the prices and Jake would get to see the animals under the guise of helping me.  

Then, slowly, he walked to my side. I put my arm around his shoulder and pointed to the kitties and the puppies. "What do you think of that one?" I asked, gesturing towards a purple cat in a plastic purse. He said nothing, just looked. So I shut up and let him shop. 

In the end, Jake didn't have enough money to buy anything. With shoulders slumped, we walked out of the store into the parking lot, empty handed. And then I thought of something. Eventually, if he saved his allowances, Jake could start his collection. That would mean we'd have to come back to the Land of Aisle Twelve, where the fluorescent stars shine brightly in the warehouse woods. I giggled at the thought and nearly skipped to the car. 

"What's wrong with you?" Jake asked, studying my face. 

I took his hand and squeezed it. I considered asking Jake for a waltz through the parking lot. But from his dejected expression, he wasn't in the mood. This was not going to be a happily ever after day. At least not for him. "Oh, nothing, my little prince," I said.     

#2: The other day we hit upon an infomercial about stuffed animals that turn into blankets. While everyone else made fun of it, Jake grabbed a piece of paper and wrote down the phone number. But then, the price flashed on the screen. "Nineteen ninety-five?" he said, his voice incredulous. He threw his pencil down. "What a rip-off." 

Comments

[♥ shelby]

What a sweet, sweet boy! He must have such a tender heart if he has a little soft spot for those kinds of things! I love it! (But what a great quality for a future boyfriend/husband, right?) :)

Ya know...I think boys get the short end of the stick when it comes to this... My Brooke LOVES all things boy! She'd choose playing with a transformer over a baby doll anyday. People wouldn't even think twice to see a girl playing with boy things, but the other way around is a different story. Poor Jake! Hope he can start saving up allowances to start that collection soon!

[Traci]

we have a load of them here, since my daughter and I myself like them , so I can't stop buying them. But my son has a few himself. so nothing wrong wit it!'Hope his collections goes and goes!

[chizuko]

My son got stuffed animal from the zoo last year. Polar bear. He still plays with those with his friend. I asked missionares how long had you played with those and one of them said fifteen, sixteen. I don' worry about that scince then.

[Rebecca]

we also have a little shop like that in the mall in prove

[Rebecca]

Okay one if you ever wont to watch princess movies I'm so there and two I think that the littlest Pet shop animals are so fun but painful if the boys throw them at each other. And we have a few kids in our ward that are boys who do play with them to.