Obsession with Cartoons

While shopping at Goodwill the other day, I picked up a VHS copy of Fantasia. Yes, I know VHS. I live in the dark ages. Let's be honest. I would like a show of hands...how many of you still have a VCR?

That's what I thought. Stop judging me.

If it helps, I don't particularly like Fantasia. I just figured String Bean would because of the musc and the cartoons. Any kind of cartoons mesmerize this child. For example, Mr. Bean plays video games on our Wii or PlayStation2 and she is glued to the TV screen saying, "Pew, pew, pew!" She even goes through his games and picks which ones she wants me to put in. This child has a complete obsession with cartoons.

Up until today, I didn't think she really knew any one cartoon character's name with the exception of the entire cast of A Charlie Brown Christmas. Watching it 30 times in a week will do that to anyone. She roars when she wants to watch the Lion King and says "doggies" when she wants to watch Wallace and Gromit. To be fair, when I say "watch" I mean that I put it in, she sits down to watch it and 3 minutes later is on to the next thing; however, when you turn it off she throws a fit and says "watch" over and over until you distract her with something or put it back on.

Back to my original thought: Fantasia. String Bean was unimpressed with all the music and all the cartoons. So, I kept fast forwarding looking for something that might intrigue her such as the hippos dancing or Mickey wearing the sorcerer's hat. Mickey came first. We watched it for a minute or two, and she was paying NO attention to it because there were imaginary cupcakes to be made, so I turned it off. We went and dealt with the laundry.

Cue naptime.

"Watch, Mickey Mouse! Watch, Mickey Mouse!" was yelled complete with tears and heartache that accompany a 2 year old not getting her way.

Who has been showing this child Mickey Mouse cartoons behind my back? This was the first time she has EVER seen it in my presence. I demand an answer. And perhaps counseling for my obsessed child.

Mr. Bean on Wii Fit

I have enjoyed the Wii Fit almost exclusively for the entertainment I get from watching others work out. Of course it is a lot of fun to do it myself, but nothing like watching other people.

I personally enjoy the step aerobics. Most people would probably say it isn't too difficult, but I am rhythmically challenged. I do play the bass guitar, but that requires rhythm in your fingers. I am completely unable to coordinate my body to do what I want it to do. I am not what you would call "body smart." In fact, I am "body challenged" if there is such a thing. The step aerobics are great because it is challenging at just the right level for me. Now, the advanced boxing--forget it! I am always stepping forward when I should be stepping backwards, punching with my left when I should punch with my right...Oh, it is exhausting just concentrating to do the Wii Boxing. (Yet, I am compelled to try again and again!)

Perhaps the most fun is the Hula Hoop exercise. I don't do it too often because I'm completely out of shape and it is really difficult to do more than one or two times in a row. That, and you're working out muscles that you don't normally work out!

If you haven't seen someone do the Wii Fit Hula Hoop exercise before, you may want to check out this You Tube video which I think looks a lot like Mr. Bean looks when he Hulas. He is tall and lanky just like the kid in this video.


When you haven't worked out in awhile, your Mii (the alter ego of yourself that you create as your user profile in the Wii games) starts to dose off while in the Mii Plaza (aka waiting room) of Wii Fit. Since I've been fairly regular about working out with the Wii Fit, I enjoy watching everyone else's Wiis dose off. I told Mr. Bean his had fallen asleep and he decided he needed to Wii tonight.

I've seen a lot of strange, large circular motions with the lower half of Mr. Bean's body and long arms flailing (don't get too close!) this evening.

Tuba in the Toilet

It seems that every time I flush my toilet these days, it sounds like there is a tuba in the bathroom with me blowing its low tone until the tank fills up again. Add to that, the wall shaking and the metal pipe between the toilet and the wall vibrating making a metal clinking sound.

I asked Mr. Bean to look into it, but it seems the PlayStation 2 has taken over his day. I can't complain though because I have a Wii addiction. If it were the Wii Fit, no one would be complaining, but it is this game, Endless Ocean, that has me fixated.

If you are looking for a good tuba solo, stop by our house, flush the master bathroom toilet, sit back and enjoy the sounds! It could be awhile before it gets fixed.

Sleep Deprivation

To update our regular readers on how the 12 hour journey with the 13 month old went... I'll start by saying: We survived! The journey actually took 13 hours due in large part to torrential downpours in the Nashville area of Tennessee while we were driving through. The speed limit was 70 miles per hour, but we were doing as low as 35 because the rain was so heavy. Hey, we are just glad it was not snow!

String Bean slept for over half of the journey which ended up backfiring on us once we arrived in Alabama. She would not go to bed. Finally around 11, we got her down. She woke up several times in the night. Since she'd been running a fever leading up to our trip, we thought she might be sick and getting up a lot because she was not feeling well. We were wrong. At 3:45 am, she got up and was inconsolable. When we finally went down to the kitchen and fed her cheerios and grapes to her hearts content, she stopped the screaming and eventually went back to bed.

We are happy to report that even though the doctor told us the fever would last 3-4 days (diagnosis: roseola), after 24 hours it was gone. We have a healthy child. We are sleep deprived, but here in once piece, playing our new Wii (and Wii Fit) and enjoying time with family.

Hope your travels were less eventful than ours have been. Hope your holiday is full of happy moments and new memories!