iCarly




So the other weekend, it was Sunday post-nap and I was thrilled to have just about survived the weekend as a single mom. (D was on call). Feeling particularly indulgent, then, we headed to the mall on this sweltering summer afternoon and found ourselves at the Build-A-Bear workshop.

Little did I know, I was ill-prepared.

Our first hurdle was selecting the animal to build. Narrowly avoiding the neon turquoise bear covered in peace signs, I felt in control when we settled on a caramel-colored bunny, tasteful, classic, and ready to be loved.

But... but.... I did not know to avoid the next station, did not know to batten the hatches, did not know to be wary of my hubris. Be forewarned: the next station is the sound. A sound chip can be inserted into the bear/bunny, a sound chip that can play in the car, in the house, in the stroller, on the bike, and in the bed at 3am when a sleeping child, still sleeping soundly rolls over upon said bear/bunny, or even at 5:35 am when a not so soundly sleeping child awakens upon rolling as such. Be forewarned. Again, I did not know to avoid the easily avoidable station and there we were. Weakened, I argued for the giggle or "I Love You." And boldly, bravely, and stronger than I, she argued for iCarly or Jonas Brothers. Don't ask me how it happened. We ended up with iCarly. And from there, it snowballed, it barreled downhill, and avalanched into the now-stuffed bunny needing, desiring, demanding to be donned in either
A. A satin wedding dress or
B. in a mermaid costume
That is how we ended up settling on the iCarly outfit. That is how we ended up with the lesser of evils, somehow replete with sequins and denim mini-skirt, our tween bunny was now dressed.

As the tide ebbs and flows, and the moon waxes and wanes, having been defeated in wardrobe, I gathered my energies to win the final battle: the naming. Elsie was going for the iCarly hattrick, the iCarly trifecta, and wanted to name the hare after her, but I prevailed and we settled on Lucy (after our Lucy gone to college).

As the Build-a-Bear girl checked us out, she asked Elsie who her favorite iCarly character was--a reasonable question considering our bear sings the iCarly themesong while dressed as a devoted groupie. Elsie seemed surprised that iCarly was a show but nonplussed. She was working on memorizing the themesong, a kind of victory march, as her vanquished mother settled the tab.