We are in full swing for the holidays. Every morning you and Eliza wake up giddy and go hunting for your Elf on the Shelf, Tinsel. (We can’t find previous elf Elfie, so Tinsel came to the rescue via Target.) Then you go to your Advent calendars, which are really low fidelity, cardboard toy machines, and punch in a perforated box to receive your small Lego Star Wars toy. Your sister has a PlayMobile version. Back in my day it was cheap chocolate. Who says the next generation has it tougher?
You’ve added a lot of things to your Christmas list these past weeks as you see them but can only recall a PJ Masks tower that I believe Santa will deliver.
We’ve talked about being naughty or nice this hoilday season. Most days you are both. It’s a progression every day. You start most days the right way. You have a nice tone in your voice and are affectionate. As the day goes on you get tired and therefore grumpy. Like the world is crashing. Hanger can’t be the source of angst because you eat constantly. It’s just tiredness. You put a lot of energy into everything and wear yourself out. Then you furrow your brow and yell in waves of increasing volume. You threaten to pinch and hit and sometimes act on that. As a result, I sometimes carry you off into bed, which you naturally fight against. I think we’ve found a solution in ignoring any negative words or actions. You lose steam as you lose attention. Sometimes you turn back to being snuggly.
It’s something like that little fire lizard in Frozen 2. You’re all flames until you eat a snowflake and then you just want a back rub. Can you tell that how diverse my media consumption is these days?
I should also mention in this letter your interest and fear in coyotes. You talk about them a lot. We do have some in our neighborhood (that you’ve never seen) but the idea of them stays at the top of your mind. You ask about them and think you hear them. “Are the coyotes out yet?” “Do coyotes eat cute bunny rabbits?” “What would you do if you saw a coyote?” You’ve transitioned some of this anxiety to hippos lately, which do not roam our neighbohood yet occupy similar questions.
My answer to all of the above is always the same: “My job is to keep you safe. If an animal tries to hurt you I will punch it in the face.” That makes you laugh and feel better. I trust if you’re in fire lizard mode the animals won’t want to come near you anyway. Too hot too hold, too much to handle.
Love, Dad