Boy and Fruit Bat
My mom tends to take the boys to “Henry Bear’s Park,” their favorite toy store. She also tends to BUY them toys (Grandparents!), especially -these days- animal figurines. This week Gavin brought home a FRUIT BAT, accompanied by interesting musings about the FRUIT BAT. (“They eat insects AND fruit!”) Today he also made his Fruit Bat a SCHEDULE, which he is modeling here (next to his pooped-out, snow-day dad):
Fruit Bat Schedule
He explained that he and Miles sometimes pretend their animals go to “one of those schools where you don’t have any parents.” Some kind of orphan boarding school, apparently, where Fruit Bats take Karate three days a week, and baths on Monday and Thursday. (But that our baths were so regular.)
Note cool symbol for “Karate”
I’m reminded of when a real *live* bat flew in the house, once when Gavin was a baby. The bat flew in the open window and couldn’t find its way out, until I stopped filming and realized the sound of Red Sox on TV was blinding its echo-location. So we turned off the volume and it flew right out.
[Click to play Bat in the House, circa 2008!; 48 seconds]:
And THIS reminds me of probably my favorite animated movie –Bat Thumb– which I excerpt for you HERE [the first 2.5 mins, specifically, click to play]: Bat Thumb
You’re welcome! (And note to Tommy Deihl, my all time best co-Bat Thumb Fan; I miss having whole conversations comprised solely of lines from this “film!” ;oD)
And watch out world. When I take his picture these days, my son is full of “cool” faces like THIS:
Plenty more where this came from!
Can you handle it? Can’t say I didn’t warn ya.
(o:
circuskitchen 
Think about it — a whole store-ful of toys and Miles and Gavin consistently choose anatomically-correct wildlife creatures — with which they exercise their caretaking impulses, build imaginative scenarios around, construct shelters for, draw plans of parks and amusements for, draw up schedules for, keep track of, imagine relationships among, voice conversations between, read and learn about, bond with each other over, and have grandma knit clothes and blankets for. They’ve created a school, family, and universe for these animals, have appointed some as teachers, serve as the animals’ parents and managers, are always kind to them and solicitous of their physical and emotional well being (they’re careful not to put predator animals and prey creatures in the same enclosures, for example.)
I ask you: WHAT COULD BE BETTER?
In addition — the weekly visit to HBR punctuates their week. They derive joy and entertainment just from being IN the toy store and looking at everything, especially when they do it together. They enjoy the anticipation of going there. They construct lawyerly argument to persuade me to take them there. They do math to calculate what they can buy with today’s limit. They confer with each other on the best toy for each of them to buy. They’re sensitive to the kinds of toys I do and don’t like to buy them. (It led this week to a discussion of guns, bows, and swords, and whether weapons are really necessary to have an interesting life, and whether anyone should keep real guns in their home.) They peruse the books and find gems. They’ve built relationships with the store employees, have conversations with them and pepper them with questions, including the daily riddle. Sometimes they help stock the shelves and interact with other kids. AND — last but not least — they really enjoy their after-school poop in the kid-friendly bathroom.
Again I say: WHAT MORE COULD YOU ASK OF LITTLE BOYS?!
Love the cool symbol for karate!
Note to Crazy Bunny Lady: People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.
The boys’ animals do not eat, pee, poop, smell, reproduce, lactate, occupy prime household real estate, need a vet, cause sleepless nights, or die.