Cuckoo for Coconuts and Other Stories

Dear Kids,

Here are some stories about you.

You both like pop music. This is sometimes a source of frustration for your father and me, because we don’t particularly care for pop music. Whenever we’re looking for a good radio station in the car, we always dial right past the pop stations, and you always pester us to go back. One of Livia’s favorite songs is “Animals” by Maroon 5. It’s sort of disturbing, given the subject of the song, and that’s one of the reasons I dislike your music preference so much. A lot of pop songs are about the same thing, and not only is it adult subject matter, but it gets tiresome. However, since you don’t understand what the lyrics mean, and because I think you should be able to listen to your favorite music occasionally, I downloaded the song for you. We listen to it (and other songs) while we’re coloring together.

Though your musical tastes differ from ours, you often deliberately imitate us. For example, when I make instant oatmeal, I always smack each oatmeal packet against my body a few times before I rip it open. That gets all the oatmeal into the bottom of the bag. It used to be a totally unconscious habit, but Livia thought it was great. Now, whenever we have instant oatmeal, she insists on being the one to smack the packet, just the way Mommy does.

Speaking of oatmeal, I have a few cute stories to share from when you were younger.

  • Back when Marshall spoke Martian, he use to say “blueberry oatmeal” in a way that sounded like “blue-belly windmill.” He also used to say “wango” for mango and “bandanna” for banana.
  • We used to have a Family Train. Every night at bedtime, your dad and I would meet at the bottom of the stairs and holler, “Family Train!” The two of you would come running. Then we would all go up the stairs together, shouting, “Chugga-chugga chugga-chugga, Choo Choo!”

The last story is about a coconut that your father bought for us. You were both fascinated with it, even though it was just sitting on the counter. One day I told you that his name was Senor Coconut and that if you touched him you’d become his slaves. Of course, neither of your could resist touching him. You went into servitude willingly, providing him with everything he asked for, including a throne, swimming pool, bicycle, and pyramid. You sang him lullabies and served him tea. You were actually sad when I told you that he was sleeping and done ordering you around. But that wasn’t the end of it. Now he sits on his throne in the dining room, and almost every day you ask me what else Senor Coconut wants. The guy has money, wallets, a pet unicorn with a collar and leash, a bed with a pillow, a carpet, pajamas, and all sorts of other luxuries. I hope you will get tired of this game soon, because I don’t know what else Senor Coconut could possibly want!

Love,

Mom

This entry was posted in Dear Livia, Dear Marshall. Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.