5:17 pm November 9, 2009Partly
It’s already starting to look a little like Christmas around here… not because it’s cold, or snowy, or because we’ve put up any decorations yet (I am staunchly opposed to Christmas decorations before Thanksgiving), but because my kids are acting like the 12 days of Christmas have already begun. “The Santa Clause” has been playing non-stop for the last 4 or 5 days. Christmas wish lists have been made, and recited repeatedly. And when I say “repeatedly”, I mean the kids have been rattling off their lists every moment that they are awake until they see my ears start to bleed (that’s how they know that the information has sunk in).
Topping Jachin’s list is a Robo dwarf hamster. It’s sort of like a cotton ball with tiny feet. It speaks a lot of his nature that he wants something cuddly and cute instead of, say, a large python that he could feed live Robo dwarf hamsters to. Beneath the hamster on the list are assorted video games, a few Lego sets, and a basketball hoop for the backyard. I almost passed out when I realized that he’s asking for not just one but several things that don’t require a charger or a WiFi connection. Could I have heard him wrong? But then my ears began to bleed and I realized that, nope, I heard his list correctly. All 82 times.
Zoe’s list is particularly amusing to me. She wants nothing but an American Girl. Julie Albright, the girl of 1974. Because Zoe has decided that she loves the 70′s. Particularly anything with a peace sign on it (which is technically more of a 60′s thing, but let’s not split hairs about ancient times…). What is also funny is that Zoe has never before owned a doll. Never. She’s had stuffed animals by the truck load, My Little Ponies are just as prolific here as Lego pieces, and she’s bought the occasional Barbie, but she’s never, ever owned a doll. She’s never owned anything that needs to be carried around and dressed in different outfits. (Truthfully, her Barbies are usually naked, and she’s fine with popping their heads off to create new and exciting creations.) See, Zoe has always been something of a tomboy. She can build a Lego structure and talk Pokemon with the best of them. I don’t know if it’s been entirely by choice or because she’s usually been surrounded by boys… but she is most comfortable dressing in cute skirts and flowery hair bows, and then going out to throw rocks in the street or roll in the dirt with the boys. She’s a prissy tomboy, if there is such a thing.
So when she asked for Julie — and only Julie, she wants nothing else — for Christmas, I was a little surprised. I wondered if it would pass. I wondered if she just had a temporary longing because some girl at school mentioned how cool her’s was. But when the American Girl catalog came in the mail and she spotted Julie, it really went into full-throttle.
Plus, y’know, the whole thing about how she loves the 70′s.
“Do you know how much I want Julie?” she asks me.
“Yes, I think I get it,” I say.
“No, like, do you really know how much I want her? I want her so much I can’t stand it!”
“I can’t stand it, either.”
I hear about Julie every day. All day. Zoe carries the catalog to school. She eats breakfast with the catalog opened to the Julie page. She watches TV with the Julie page.
She — I am not joking — tucks in her catalog when she goes to bed at night.
Since she can’t yet play with a real Julie doll, she plays with a picture of the Julie doll.
But I know that excitement she feels. I know it perfectly. I remember the year that my sisters and I wanted Cabbage Patch Kids so badly that we thought we would literally explode from the expectation. We would all lie in bed at night and describe what our dolls would look like, what their names would be, what we would do with them. Every night. For about two months leading up to Christmas. I think we would have combusted from disappointment if we wouldn’t have gotten them that year. But we did. I’m pretty sure I cried and/or peed when I opened mine. (My sisters were just as excited as I was, but they aren’t nearly as emotional as I am. They are actually kind of hard-asses. Even as small children…)
So when I see Zoe talking to her magazine and giving her magazine picture a stuffed animal to sleep with at night, it just makes me smile.
I’m really, really hoping Santa comes through.
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Today, the school sent home a form letter for Julia to fill in her wish list for Santa. If she returns it to school, Santa will respond. So, yeah. Thanks SCHOOL. It’s started here, too – the wishlisting.
I hope Santa comes through for Zoe. I can remember wanting a special toy so, so much. For me, it was a Fluppy Puppy. Fancy Flup, to be exact. I think I still have it somewhere.
Comment by Leslie — November 9, 2009 @ 6:01 pm
I remember that Cabbage Patch longing. Sadly Santa betrayed me and gave my sister, who hates dolls, the cabbage patch. It took about a week before I was able to have my sisters parental rights terminated and I was able to adopt my little girl. Good thing for Zoe she has no sister and it is unlikely that Santa would bring Julie to Jachin.
Comment by Diana — November 10, 2009 @ 3:18 am
So funny! Sam wants a kitchen and HUNGRY HUNGRY HIPPOS. Yes, he yells for the game and screams and jumps around if he sees the commercial. Pretty sure Santa will bring it. He is really getting the Santa thing this year and it’s so cute. He’s getting a kitchen but Devin is also getting him a tool set. Of course. We must be equal in all things
Comment by Krista Hansen — November 10, 2009 @ 6:41 am
So true sad ish story. When I was in first grade all I wanted was a Madame Alexander Baby brother doll. I dreamed about him, wanted him, needed him. Anyway, ‘Santa’ got me the doll which I guess was wrapped in a box and put under the tree way ahead of Christmas eve. My family was at a church party and when we got home we had been robbed. My doll box was open on the floor with a missing doll. I thought it was the end of the world, baby brother doll had been stolen. Then on Christmas morning Santa delivered, I got my doll back. Not from the robbers, just a different one. Oh – and my mom said she called all over southern california looking for one, she found one in a shop in Old Town, but the shop keeper didn’t have a box, hmmm, yeah, our robbers left the box. Anyway, I hope Zoe gets her doll and I hope no one breaks into your house the week before Christmas and steals all your stuff.
Comment by Shahara — November 10, 2009 @ 7:35 am
[...] we move on to Zoe. Zoe, as you may recall, wants nothing but Julie the American Girl for Christmas. I have it on good authority that Santa may be bringing the goods. Therefore, I am [...]
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