Rock Lobster

Dear Kids: Sorry, life's moving at a faster clip than normal lately, but I'm slowly catching up. I promise I'm jotting down all the delicious nuggets of charm and wonder you guys are displaying everyday. They'll eventually find their way here. Promise. 

On a random weekday morning last week, Aria pulled Buddy's lobster costume from the dog closet. A lobster costume for your dog? Yes, before kids, I was one of those pet owners. I still call them my fur-kids and if you knew Buddy, and how much he loves his sweaters in the winter, you wouldn't judge. However, he never, not once, fit into his lobster costume. I wondered...will I ever find a use for this?

Aria had tried on the costume randomly with me a Saturday or two before. We were just goofing around playing dress up in our pajamas while feeding the dogs. She liked it, but didn't wear it very long.

However, on this day, as she marched out the front door with it tucked tightly in her fist I figured it was just like her extra coat she sometimes carries. On the drive in she kept it perfectly centered in her lap, playing with the tentacles. When I took her out of the car she screamed for it, lunging back into the back seat. Ok. You can take the lobster costume to school, the teachers won't mind right? And you'll only wear it for a minute, right?

Wrong. When I washed Aria's hands and turned her over to the teacher she took the costume out of my hands and tried to put it on. I assisted, kissing my little rock lobster goodbye and headed to work.

This is the daily sheet I found in her lunch box that had me on the floor laughing:

Please notice this section in particular:

And for those who can't make out the handwriting:

"Aria wore her lobster get up ALL DAY. At one point she hid in the basket of stuffed animals and we thought she had snuck out of the room."

And from the teachers I received:

"I laughed till I cried. It made her so happy."

"She was furious that we made her take it off to sleep. But we put it right back on her when she got up. She was asking for it!"

All day? With the velcro strap tight under her chin? I got a bit nervous that we were about to see the start of a strange, although cute, obsession, but the next day, no lobster. So for that random day in March, Aria rocked the lobster. And I sing the B-52s every time I see this photo:

This one should be called, "Tormented Lobster"

These days are too much fun!