Mommy was at work so I took Tenley to Gymboree last night for open play gym time. This is a great part of Gymboree that happens every Monday and Friday night. The best part about this is that it tires Tenley out quite nicely.About 40 mins into playing Tenley came up to me and promptly announced "Bye Bye!" She was done and ready to go. So I put her shoes on and opened the door for her to walk out. She took off running toward the door and out into the open mall. She turned left and went immediately into the Build A Bear store. I chased her in and found her standing in front of the bins contemplating which animal she was going to hold.
This happens frequently and usually after she touches a few of the animals she is content to leave without spending any money. However, this time was different and you could see by the look on Tenley's face as she was about to make a choice that she intended to keep. She looked over each bin and settled on the Giraffes. She grabbed one and it would have taken the jaws of life to get it away from her. Almost immediately one of the workers at the store saw Tenley and her big wallet (me) and came right over to help us complete our new Giraffe. Tenley got to pick out a heart for the Giraffe which she kissed before she put inside. After stuffing and sewing up the back the Giraffe was ready for an air bath and some clothing.
First Tenley picked out a little purple skirt for the Giraffe. I told her I didn’t think that the Giraffe would look good in the skirt and she should try again. This time, after much debating, she chose a Hello Kitty T-Shirt. We took the Giraffe to the dressing area and I put the shirt on the Giraffe. Let me tell you, if you haven’t dressed a Giraffe lately, it’s not as easy as it might seem.
Next we moved on to the computer for naming and printing of the birth certificate. Here’s where it gets really funny… as I filled out the form on the screen I came to the section that asked for the name. I looked at Tenley and said, “What do you want to name your Giraffe?” She looked back at me for a moment or two and then proudly stated a name. I had to stop and think, did I just hear what I think I heard? I asked her to say the name again and she stated it proudly again. This time another store worker was passing by and asked me , “did she just say what I think she said?” I asked one more time and this time, very loudly Tenley stated that the Giraffe’s name was going to be George. I have no idea where she heard this name or even that she knew how to say it. I almost fell off my seat laughing. It was so cute. George the Giraffe wearing a Hello Kitty t-shirt.
We printed the birth certificate, paid for George and then headed off for home. I tried to carry the box for Tenley but she was having none of that. George was hers and she was going to carry the box even if it was almost as big as she is.
We got George home and she spoke to him all night. When it was time for bed, we were saying goodnight to the cats, and everything else in the house, when she started getting whiny and calling for George. So we went back out to the living room and got George and put him in the crib with her. She went right to sleep with George watching over her. When Michelle got home from work we both crept in to see George. Tenley was dead asleep with her feet resting on George. It was very cute. She was sleeping hard but that wouldn’t last…but that’s another story.
George and Tenley sharing a cute moment!
