Had the boys been just a little less well behaved…had Chris not wanted it so badly and asked so sweetly…had we a working budget and some self-control, perhaps the trip to Build-A-Bear would not have happened.
Chris saw an ad on T.V. and it was all he could think about for 2 days. Build-A-Bear. We decided to take a ride to the mall to “…check it out. No promises, got that?” That’s tantamount to ‘I’ll think about it,’ which is the enabling parent’s ‘yes’ which meant that Chris was all excitement by the time we got to the mall.
Had the boys been just a little less well behaved…had Chris not wanted it so badly and asked so sweetly…had we a working budget and some self-control, perhaps the trip to Build-A-Bear would not have happened.
Chris saw an ad on T.V. and it was all he could think about for 2 days. Build-A-Bear. We decided to take a ride to the mall to “…check it out. No promises, got that?” That’s tantamount to ‘I’ll think about it,’ which is the enabling parent’s ‘yes’ which meant that Chris was all excitement by the time we got to the mall.
And Alex, who has never been fond of the stuffed animal collection cluttering their room, suddenly decided that since Chris was going to build a bear then it was only fair that he build a bear, too. We almost had him convinced that saving his money was the better option, but, just like mom and dad, once he crossed the brightly decorated store threshold and saw all the cool stuff…well, he was hooked.
We were pleased to see that the animal skins were reasonably priced, ranging from $12 for the cat, which Alex chose and named “Mr. Whiskers,” to $22 for Frosty the Snowman, which interested neither of them. I pointed out a cute husky puppy but then Chuck quickly redirected our attention when he noticed the $22 price tag. Chris picked out a different, more economical, puppy, which he named “Jack.”
With their shells selected and in hand, we proceeded to the sound station. Sound was $3, optional, but Mr. Whiskers had to ‘meow’ while Jack settled for giggles as there was no barking dog sound (Thank you, thank you.).
The next stop was the stuffing station where we picked out hearts (complimentary!), stuffed the animals with fluff, sound devices and hearts, and then sewed them shut. There’s a darling little ritual the kids go through before inserting the heart into their animals: they hold the heart to their heads to transfer smarts, ears to transfer good listening skills, mouth to speak only kind words, and heart to fill it with lots of love, then they kiss the heart for more love before the heart is placed into the animal.
Once he’s stuffed and sewn, the pet needs an air bath where he is brushed to remove stray fur and fluff.
Up to this point, the whole experience is pretty reasonable – under $20 per animal. But, ooooh, then there are the clothes. The Build-A-Bear fashion mecca. How could we leave with Mr. Whiskers and Jack naked? We let the boys dress their animals with anything they wanted – until we noticed that each garment carried a $5 tag. Then it was <b>beep-beep-back-up</b> to try to get the boys to put back the vests. "That’s $10 guys," I whispered, lest any nearby mom think I'm cheap, "c’mon, your animals are in t-shirts and shorts; they don’t need vests! Here, I'll sew you a vest!"
By the time we left Build-A-Bear, our total was over $70 for 2 stuffed animals.
The clerk handed me the receipt and asked the boys if they’d like to carry their animals in their arms, or would they prefer the cardboard carrying house.
“We’ll take the houses,” I interjected. Y<i>es, for $70 I’m going to take the houses, too</i>.
Even though we’ll not be eating out for the next several weeks, it was precious to see the boys create their very own ‘pets’ and to cuddle them at bedtime.
I’ll give up my lunches for that.