A Bird Song for Carson

Carson loves birds. He chases the robins constantly. One day he tried calling a robin as if it were the cat, Ricky Bobby. "Here," he said as he patted his leg and then made a kissing sound that seems to be a universal way to call a cat.

He also loves it when I sing that lullaby to him which begins with the line "Hush little baby. Don't say a word. Mama's gonna buy you a mocking bird..." So I made up some new verses just for him...

And if that mocking bird won't sing, Mama's gonna buy you a cedar wax wing.

And if that cedar wax wing flies away, Mama's gonna buy you a loud blue jay.

And if that loud blue jay starts to cackle, Mama's gonna buy you a shiny black grackle.

And if that shiny black grackle eats a pin, Mama's gonna buy you a fat robin.

And if that fat robin has to go, Mama's going to buy you a little sparrow.

After that last line, I make up something different every time, but nothing that sticks with me or that 's worthy of remembering. I would like to find something that rhymes with cardinal because he likes and recognizes those birds the most.

Any suggestions for how to continue and end my song????

The McDonald's Greeter

Carson "reading" the plaques at the Nature Center

My son is a reader! At least that is one thing I learned from the last professional text I read - The Book Whisperer. The author is a teacher and an avid reader. She talked about "reading" as a child and how her mother would praise her when she recognized common symbols like a McDonald's sign. She said that it was early reading experience, and Carson does that too.

Today, as we went through the McDonald's drive through, he saw the symbol on the side of the building and read it like he always does, but today he added something new, "Thank you, Welcome,
McDonald's!" And he smiled at himself in the mirror. The mirror is the one I used before I could face his car seat forward. Now I have it strapped to the back of the passenger seat so he can see himself. He likes to practice words and expressions while watching himself in the mirror. Sometimes he laughs at it, and it is like he and the boy in the mirror are sharing a private joke.

Part of me wonders if I have already corrupted my son by feeding him McDonald's, but honestly, it is the only thing he eats that he hasn't gotten sick of, but of course, we don't have it every day. It is also a very easy place to take a kid with milk allergies because their website is very helpful (yes, he is still allergic). He can't have the chicken nuggets, the fries, or the caramel that comes with the apples, or any of the Angus burgers, but the hamburgers are just fine. Luckily, he loves them, and when he sees a McDonald's sign, hamburger is usually the second word out of his mouth. Even if it is 7am, he says "hamburger, hamburger, hamburger!" as if his little heart will break if he doesn't have a hamburger right now. Yes, he is spoiled.

On his second birthday, I decided that lunch at McDonald's might be a nice treat for both of us. Since the experience, I have decided lunch in our parked van is a much better treat. The first 2 minutes went fine, and then he wanted to get out of his seat and walk around. His blood-curdling scream, when I tried to distract him from this plan, was enough to make me give in quickly. People were staring and not in a nice "Isn't he cute?" kind of way. I thought, OK, he will stand and eat, but he had a different plan in mind. He became the first ever McDonald's greeter.

"Hi, hi, hi," he said to each table as he stopped. Then he held his hamburger up higher and said, "Hamburger, hamburger, hamburger." All the while, I was following and apologizing for my son interrupting peoples' lunches. Most people were very understanding and even seemed to like being greeted.

A few times he almost escaped out the side door by the drive through. One lady gave me a compliment, "Well, I can see how you stay so skinny!" and another woman remarked how wonderful this age is, and of course, the old "Enjoy it. It gets harder." I think she was either not there for the blood-curdling screams or she chose to ignore that part.

Eventually, Carson, joined two gentlemen by pulling himself up onto a chair at their table. Luckily, I knew them, and they were very understanding, and like an easily distracted, 2 year old, Carson got bored and moved on to something else after about 5 minutes.

It was an experience I will not soon or ever forget, and not just because I'm writing about it. It was reinforcement for why we don't go to nice restaurants with him anymore. Someday we will again, but who knows. I wonder if he will remember this birthday and how he became the first ever McDonald's greeter.

Maybe a future job is what he was practicing for in the van today when he added the "Thank you, Welcome." And once he gets a job, then he will want a car, a cell phone, a later curfew. Ugggg! That does sound worse....but I shouldn't get worked up about things that haven't happened. It may or may not come to be. One thing I know for sure is that my son is friendly, outgoing, a really fast runner, and already a good reader. Now all we have to hope for is that all of this will take him a lot farther in life than McDonald's. I just hope he doesn't start saying, "Would you like some fries with that?"