loving the buzz

Our not quite two-year-old son, Henry, has developed an obsession for Buzz Lightyear.

Although we own the movie Toy Story 1 and 2, we don't watch either of them very often. Still, for the past several months, Henry loves anything - and everything - having to do with the purple and white Space Ranger.

Why, I think it's safe to say he loves him to pieces.
When I took the children shopping at Costco a few weeks ago, William spotted a Buzz Lightyear bathing suit. Whenever Henry saw the suit, he almost fell out of the shopping cart with excitement. Unfortunately, I couldn't find a suit in Henry's size, so I had to buy a 3T, because there was no way I was going to leave that store without a bathing suit for both boys.

Especially when Henry held the suit up to his face and yelled, "YAY BUZZ!!"

Since that fateful day, Henry will insist on wearing his Buzz Lightyear bathing suit.

Any day.

All day.

Every day.

When he wakes up in the morning, it's just a matter of time before he is riffling through the dirty clothes hamper looking for his bathing suit. "BUZZ! BUZZ!" he will call out. "Wheh AWE you?!"

Once he has his bathing suit on (which is usually dirty because I frequently forget to wash it at the end of the day), he will run through the house with his arms over his head yelling, "TO INFINY AND YOND!"

He likes Woody, too.


And Mr. Potato Head.

Who he refers to as "Tato."

For a while there, he was particularly attached to a really small Buzz Lightyear doll that he carried everywhere with him. But it was just a matter of time before a toddler will lose something that is only an inch and a half tall.

Recently, he has attached himself to a soft Buzz Lightyear doll that a manager at a local sporting goods store gave to us. One day, when I was in shopping for a few pool items, the manager of the store noticed that two of my children were dressed from head to toe in Buzz Lightyear garb.

It seems a Buzz Lightyear doll had been sitting in the store's lost and found bin for several months and when she came out waving the dirty toy and asking if maybe our children would like it - I didn't even have a chance to say, "Ewww. No Thanks." Before it intersected Henry's plane of sight and his arms went flying up in the air and he started screaming, "BUZZ WIGHTYEAR!! BUZZ WIGHTYEAR!!"

So. We accepted the doll, brought it home and promptly washed it.

Twice.

With bleach.

Now, at least one night a week, we gently pry it out of his sleeping hands and wash it. Since he takes it everywhere with him, it gets positively filthy.

For whatever reason, Henry's been scowling a lot, lately. I don't know why he does this - since no one ever scowls at him. But it is hilarious to watch him scowl and babble and throw out a random "BUZZ WIGHTYEAR!" in the middle of it all.

This 35 second video clip is quintessential Henry.



This attachment to an object is age appropriate behavior because I recall that when the triplets were Henry's age, they had their own loveys. William had a blanket that he chewed on. Carolyn had a blanket that she chewed on. Elizabeth had - and still has - her bunny.

It's clear to me now that Henry's lovey is Buzz Lightyear. Specifically, his lost-and-found doll AND his too big bathing suit. At the end of the day, when it's time to put on his pajamas, he fights me tooth and nail to take off his Buzz bathing suit and get him ready for bed.

The hysteria.

The back arching.

The kicking.

The thrashing.

The screaming.

Frankly, it makes me want to go crack open a bottle of wine and get my own buzz.