Hurry home (and don't forget your suitcase)

Parents, especially new parents, can often be heard saying something along the lines of "why buy the kid toys, he loves the tupperware!" Though everyone knows about this behavior, parents seem honestly astonished, not to mention enourmously entertained, by the fact that little Billy is having a torrid affair with a potholder.

And I was no different. Sam became smitten with many an inanimate object, and each one I thought completely whacky and totally adorable.

First there was my Orange Flip flop.



Then the spatula, which he carried around EVERYWHERE.




I was regretting fostering this little relationship as I realized he was getting dangerously close to biting through the rubber, when it disappeared at Dulles Airport. Not on purpose, I swear! Oh Spatula, I can imagine you stored in some back room, protruding conspicuously amongst mittens and cellphones, puckered by Sam's teething marks.


And, like every baby I know, there was the occasional fling with the remote...



His obsessions lead to a reorganizing of our space. The closets got fuller and fuller as nothing out in the open was safe from his amore. Our stash of umbrellas had to be relocated due to a continued rocky relationship with all things "stick". If it's long and skinny, and can be wielded in a destructive manner, he's a huge fan. Brooms, plungers (I know, ew), floor lamps, and if available, kayak paddles.



This morning I was having difficulty keeping his excited little self off another one of his loves...luggage. Jay had his suitcase down, packed for his snowboarding adventure to Whistler. Sam dragged, climbed, pushed. He was in heaven. Finally, after the second full body launch and plummet to the hardwood floor, I had to put it behind the baby gate. He was not happy. But soon he was distracted by all the looking out the window. Jay was waiting for his ride. I was dreading his departure. It was snowing (still is, as a matter of fact). With all the airplane stuff recently I'm not exactly thrilled about him flying across country. Somewhat ironic that he is traveling so far, to a place with less than perfect snow totals at the moment, when they are calling for a blizzard here at home.

As the boys pulled up and Jay gathered his things, Sam gave him a big hug and a kiss. I was pretty sure he didn't really understand that Daddy was going to be gone for a whole week, and assumed he thought he was just going to work. But as Jay put his suitcase in the back of the truck, Sam pounded on the window with bottom lip in full effect. Jay waved and Sam waved back. It was so sweet.

And as they pulled away Sam turned to me, still frowning with tears in his eyes, and said... "Daddy suitcase AAWwwwwLLLL gone."