Day 1: Mighty Bean

Theresa left a bag of gifts, one for each day for each kid. Awesome idea, no? How fun is it for them to open up something each day as a special thing to know that Mommy is thinking about them. Of course, I know Toby's inner workings, and so I attempted to set the appropriate context... "No matter what it is, you'll be thankful, right? You won't compare to what Anna has, right?" I thought this would work. But clearly Hygiene Bean (and associated plastic ramp) had other plans for a first impression. Upon opening the present, Toby processed for a few moments, then burst into tears because this particular Mighty Bean wasn't as good as the ones shown on the packaging and also not as good a bean as Anna had. His body went limp, he fell to the ground, and displayed all the other symptoms of a boy disappointed by his own high expectations for what might be found wrapped in brown paper. Emerging from his sobs were the phrases, "I want Mommy!" leading me to think it was more than the Mighty Bean toy impacting him here.

It took various parental therapies, reading a few books, commiserating a bit, trying some alternative beans from his collection to use on the ramp, and most importantly, a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios. He eventually collected himself, finished his homework, re-evaluated the bean and decided, "It's not so bad now."