Coco got some fabulous things for Christmas but strangely the thing she likes best of all is her Mr Potatohead. Mr Potatohead was purchased for her by her older siblings at Disney World. He’s got all sorts of theme park gear like a Mickey Mouse sorcerer’s hat and an ice cream in the shape of Mickey with a bite taken out of it. From the moment he was opened, it was love.
I myself have never understood the charm of the Mr Potatohead. As a kid I thought it was weird. As a parent I think it’s weird.
Layr, a much more accepting and nonjudgmental person, made Coco really laugh once when he took Mr Potatohead’s ear off and put it on top of his head, replacing his hat. She thought that was hysterical.
Mr Potatohead sits on a shelf in Coco’s room, adjacent to her crib. Each morning when I go into her she scampers right up and looks quite glad to see me for a brief moment. Then she points her little fat finger at the Mr Potatohead and says “dah?” Together we walk to the shelf to say good morning. She smiles like crazy at him, reaches out both arms, pulls him off the shelf and hugs him tight. (I have yet to receive one of these bear hugs.) Then the three of us all head into my bedroom where the changing table is.
Last night Layr went in to get the girl just before eleven for one last nurse. That is part of our nightly routine, the hope being that this last feeding will prevent dead-of-night wakefulness. It’s not always successful. Anyway, I heard him chuckling in there. When he came back into our bedroom he explained that when he picked Coco up, she was half asleep and a bit disoriented, but she pointed her finger at Mr Potatohead, and said, “dah?”
