Archive for the ‘Songs’ Category

Seeing things from Reid’s perspective

Thursday, January 21st, 2010

I took Reid to Melonheads hair salon for kids on Monday night. She’s been resisting having her hair cut because she wants her hair to be long for Amanda and Nam’s wedding in May. I finally persuaded Reid that a trim was necessary since it was getting more and more difficult to brush her hair. As always, Reid didn’t make a peep as her hair was washed, combed and cut. I can’t offer a police motorcycle for her to sit in at home but I do let Reid watch videos – especially Sesame Street on YouTube – or read when I brush her hair. Still, there is carrying on. After the trim, the hairstylist sprayed sparkle hairspray on Reid’s hair. Reid looked at herself and said, “Look, Mama, it’s like I have fireworks on my head.” And she was right. The way the light glinted off the sparkles was a lot like the little handheld fireworks. I’d never noticed that before.

On Tuesday morning, the biggest-ever snowflakes were falling as we went to Reid’s school. Reid was chattering about the “bits of fluff” and then she was silent as she stood, mouth agape, trying to catch some snowflakes on her tongue. It slowed us down but put a big smile on Reid’s face. It’s as important to take the time to taste the snowflakes as it is to smell the flowers, you know.

On Wednesday morning, I was combing Reid’s hair while she watched the Muppets singing Bohemian Rhapsody on YouTube. Ken was brushing his teeth but came out of the bathroom to ask, “What are you listening to?!” His voice conveyed surprise and disbelief. My matter-of-fact “the muppets are singing Bohemian Rhapsody” didn’t allay either. He had to watch for himself. It really is something to see, especially the part where Animal improvises on the “Mama” passage. Reid liked the song and I liked introducing her to it.

Oops, I just missed my bus stop. Writing is too distracting.

Super Dad and So-So Mom

Wednesday, May 27th, 2009

Reid and I were listening to “Super Dad” by Jam Sandwich on the way home from school yesterday. Reid asked me why there wasn’t a “Super Mom” song, too. I said that I didn’t know why and asked Reid what she thought the reason could be. Reid didn’t know either but suggested that they’d sing “Super Mom” in the places where they sing “Super Dad” in the original and then sing about moms doing dad-jobs. I couldn’t resist asking what she meant by “dad-jobs”.

Reid explained, “Dads fix fings.” She continued, “And dads build fings that don’t fall apart.” Unlike moms who build things that *do* fall apart, I guess. She also told me that dads can do much more than moms. Feeling a little worried, I asked Reid what jobs moms usually did that dads don’t.

Reid thought a bit and at last came up with, “Moms sing songs.” I asked if there wasn’t anything else that moms do. After still more thinking, Reid finally said that moms clean the house. And eventually she remembered that moms plant gardens. I’m in trouble, here, folks. Reid doesn’t let me sing very often anymore and I don’t think I’ll be nominated for any good housemaker awards. As for my gardening abilities, I tend to be better at the planting then weeding or watering.

Since I’m a glutton for punishment, I asked which parent does more. Definitely dads, according to Reid. She talked again about fixing and building things and then added that dads are big and strong. In fact, Reid noted, “Dads are so good at working faster than moms.” Reid decided to pursue the topic. Like Diego, she wanted to review what we’d learned. She had me list the 3 things that moms can do and then all of the things that dads can do. Just in case I missed her point, Reid asked, “Which parent can’t do as much?” And I had to answer, “Moms.” But I protested that I thought Reid had missed one or two things that I can do. Like take photos, cook, sew, knit and …

In the end, I guess there is a very good reason that there is no “Super Mom” song because moms just don’t do enough to warrant it.

Mega, mega clipboard

Sunday, December 7th, 2008

I finally figured out what Reid has been singing off and on this past week. It’s “mega, mega clipboard.” I think that I’ve always heard it and known what it was but since it didn’t make sense I decided I was mistaken. Friday night, though, I made the connection between her song fragment and the Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer play we saw on Sunday and it finally clicked. Santa used a clipboard and every time the word “clipboard” was mentioned, the other actors would sing “mega, mega clipboard” a few times (or maybe they said, “magic, mega clipboard” which is how Ben remembers it). It was funnier to see and hear than to read, I think.

Reid has also been asking for what she calls “the Christmas song” but what is actually “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”. We sang it at least a dozen times Thursday night alone. Now that we’ve moved the tv to the basement (and by “we”, I mean Ken), I can’t listen to the Christmas music channels that we get via cable and I’m not sure where my few Christmas music cds are. I’ll have to find an “all Christmas music, all the time” Internet radio station since my repertoire of songs is much more limited than Grandma Joyce’s.

What is your waking up song?

Thursday, December 20th, 2007

The other day when I was waking Reid up I sang,

Good morning to you,
Good morning to you,
Good morning, Reid Elizabeth,
Good morning to you.

I usually follow up with a verse of “What day is this?” and then “It’s Tuesday today” (or whatever the appropriate day). And usually, despite my awful singing voice, Reid grins when I sing – helped a bit by me tickling her.

On this particular day, though, Reid stopped me and so I switched to “How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning“. Ot at least I tried but it turns out I know only the first line of the song. I’m going to have to commit the first verse to my memory:

Oh! How I Hate To Get Up In The Morning,
Oh! How I’d love to remain in bed
For the hardest blow of all is to hear the bugler call:
‘You’ve got to get up, you’ve got to get up,
You’ve got to get up this morning!’

Reid liked the latter song and started to sing the “Oh, how I hate to wake up” line all by herself with enthusiasm. More enthusiasm than you would expect from someone professing to hate to wake up. Reid generally has no problem waking up, provided that she can have some milkies and wake up slowly.

How about you, what is your waking up song?

Do you know the Christmas song about dying?

Sunday, December 16th, 2007

On the way to daycare on Wednesday, I was asking Reid about the holiday concert. She didn’t have an answer to my question, “What song will you be singing?” I asked if she had learned any new songs. No. Had she been practicing any songs? No, again. I let it drop and a short while later Reid asked me if *I* knew the song. I told her that I would ask the teacher. Reid paused again and then asked if I knew the song where people die and kids die. I had to admit that I don’t know any carols with people dying in them but I said I would *definitely* ask the teacher about it.

Reid sat down at the snack table as soon as she had her outdoor gear off, despite the large serving of chicken noodle soup Ken had made for breakfast. (Pardon the digression, but isn’t he a sweet man to cook soup for Reid when she doesn’t want cereal?) With Reid busy, I had the opportunity to ask about the Christmas song. The teacher I spoke with wasn’t sure what song they’d been singing and was shocked by my prompt that is was about people and kids dying. She was sure that no one had sung such a song. I grinned and said that I suspected that Santa Claus is Coming to Town has been on playlist.

Really, you should only believe about half of what your kids tell you about their school day and hope the teachers do the same about your home life.

And if you’ve a hankering for the words to Santa Claus is Coming to Town, by J. Fred Coots, Haven Gillespie (c) 1934

You better watch out,
You better not cry,
Better not pout,
I’m telling you why.
Santa Claus is coming to town.

He’s making a list,
And checking it twice;
Gonna find out Who’s naughty and nice.
Santa Claus is coming to town.

He sees you when you’re sleeping.
He knows when you’re awake.
He knows if you’ve been bad or good.
So be good for goodness sake!

O! You better watch out!
You better not cry,
Better not pout,
I’m telling you why.
Santa Claus is coming to town.
Santa Claus is coming to town.

Song for the road

Tuesday, October 2nd, 2007

Reid and I left for our mini-vacation at the Great Wolf Lodge in Niagara Falls (Ontario) about 5:30 this morning. I was awake at 4:12 but tried to sleep until 5:00 but succeeded in lying more-or-less still for only 20 minutes before Ken admitted to being awake, too. I’d forgotten to pack food or dishes and so did that first thing. We got the car packed before pulling Reid out of her bed. She fussed a bit but we were able to convince her that it was still time for sleeping. She slept the first hour or so, waking when we were only 5 kilometres from a rest stop. We took time for a potty break and then picked up a cup of tea, some milk and a few doughnuts.

Reid knows where we’re going and is very excited about it. As we drove, she sang what might be our theme song for this trip and it hints that Christmas is far from Reid’s mind. She sang, “Ho, ho, ho, hotel. Ho, ho, ho, hotel.” The second verse was just like the first. There was a smile involved, too, although I could only get a quick peak since I was in charge of driving the car.

Playing with dollies and singing out loud

Tuesday, July 17th, 2007

At supper, Reid asked what we were going to do after supper. I asked what she wanted to do and she said that she wanted to go “some bery far away, like Daddy’s work.” Ken suggested that Reid and I could go to Dairy Queen for ice cream. And bring him an banana split, of course. 

After supper, I (selfishly) wanted to use the bathroom alone. I went upstairs as Reid protested loudly and with great enthusiasm. Ken later told me that she was saying, “I like to watch!” I’ve always suspected that about her. Reid followed me upstairs and sat outside the closed door and wailed. I had privacy, yes, but neither peace nor quiet. As we went back downstairs, I offered to carry Reid but she gave me a “I’m punishing you” look and said, “No.” I started down the stairs and Reid realized the flaw in her plan. Everyone has to learn about not cutting off your nose to spite your face, eh?

After a bit, I ran up to get Reid some clothes to wear out and she followed me. She was rocking on the Curious George rocking toy that I “loved” the eyes off of when I was a child and having a great time. I asked her if she would rather play with her dollies in her room than go out for ice cream. Of course, she said she wanted to do both but I told her she had to choose. She said she wanted to stay and so she played with her dollies and I sorted through her chest of drawers. That kid has many shirts and no small number of pairs of pants, in her size and the size she’ll grow into. It’s good that I did this, I found a couple of summer shirts that had eluded me when I got out her summer clothes. Grandma Joyce has mentioned the existence of some freshly sewn pants and so Reid is all set for fall and winter clothes. And I thought I might need to hit a Target when we were in Chicago! (I can hear Ken’s groan when he reads this – the very thought of more clothes will make him groan ;+)

Once Ken had finished cleaning up from supper, he joined us in Reid’s room. At one point, e offered his assistance to Reid as she struggled to put shoes on one of the dolls. She assured him that the shoes were too small for that particular doll. I was allowed to try, though, and as I accomplished the impossible, Ken protested that *he* could have done so. I’d have liked to have seen his big man hands working on the fiddly little shoes. He is much more dextrous than I am; it’s the contrast that appeals to me. Ken’s hands look very much like my dad’s. I love to look at them at anytime, come to think of it.

Reid took advantage of this time together to serenade us with a song of her own devising. She sang loudly and happily. Ken said he was sure the teenage boy in the next townhouse, the one who listens to loud bass music quite early  and all through the day, appreciated her volume. (But we don’t complain about him since he respects the usual quiet hours and we’re able to sleep, unlike our neighbour on the other side.)

All was well, swell even, until I gave a 3 minute warning and Reid asked to go out for ice cream. When I reminded her that she’d chosen to stay home and play, she told me, “I choosed two.” I agreed that choosing both would have been nice but that wasn’t the deal and it was time for bed. Reid said, “Let’s go sleep.” She ran to the other end of the room, stretched out on the carpet for at least 5 nanoseconds and jumped up with a “I no tired.” What a scammer. As I finished getting ready to put her to sleep, she climbed into the armchair, stood on her head and wailed. She knocked the pajamas that had been sitting on the arm of the chair to the floor and looked around for something else to take a swipe at. Ken said that when she noticed the box with too-small clothes in and on it, her eyes lit up. He choked back a laugh, which caught my attention, and I noticed what she was doing in time to intervene. What a kid. What a man.

There was a bit of storm still in her but eventually Reid fell asleep. This morning, Reid asked about going for ice cream before she was even out of bed but she didn’t mention it tonight. We reminisced about the fun of playing with dollies in her room without any mention of the troubles. We’ll do it again, I’m sure.

I feel, I feel, I feel

Monday, July 16th, 2007

On Saturday morning, we encountered a fly at breakfast and so I sang the “Shoo Fly” song. Until our most recent Kindermusik session, I knew only the “Shoo fly, don’t bother me” line. We learned the full song:

Shoo fly, don’t bother me
Shoo fly, don’t bother me
Shoo fly, don’t bother me
For I belong to somebody

I feel, I feel, I feel
I feel, I feel, I feel
I feel like a morning star
I feel, I feel, I feel
I feel, I feel, I feel
I feel like a morning star

Reid smiled and sang along. Every time Reid saw a fly, and several times when she didn’t, Reid sang the “I feel, I feel, I feel” lines over and over. She never got to the “like a morning star.” When there was actually a fly, she’d say, “go bug” but she didn’t sing the shoo fly lines, either. I tried a few times to get her to sing the full song or at least the part about the star in the second verse. Such attempts were rejected outright.

Not only do I have to deal with the songs that get stuck in my head, it seems I have to hear the ones that are stuck in Reid’s head, too.

If it can’t snow, the least it could do was not rain

Friday, January 5th, 2007

On the way into daycare today, there was a light rain falling. Reid said something about “raining” and so I sang:

It’s raining, it’s pouring;
The old man is snoring.
Bumped his head
And he went to bed
And he couldn’t get up in the morning.

And then Reid said, “Rain go away” and then I sang:

Rain, rain, go away;
Come again another day;
Little Reidie wants to play.

Reid was able to sing most of the words to this song with me. Or at least I thought that they were two separate songs. When I was trying to confirm the wording, I came across the Rhymes Nursery site with the words to many nursery rhymes. That site said that they’re two parts of the same song. Wikipedia seems to confirm it. I’ll have to ask Mom, I guess.

Books we read, January 5th

Friday, January 5th, 2007

It was a whirlwind evening in our house with Melissa over for supper. Reid and I read Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you See by Bill Martin Jr and illustrated by Eric Carle. In my hoarse voice, I sang/read This Little Light of Mine. Reid likes the song, I think, but also the pictures of babies and the sunrise and other images that illustrate the book.

When we got into bed tonight, Reid asked me to sing a song. I used to sing to her often but she told me to stop so often that I haven’t offered for a while. She chose “Wheels on the Bus” and did all of the actions (but I wasn’t allowed to do so), even suggesting some of the verses. I am hoping that sining a song counts as literacy building since we read only the two books today.

Update: When I got up on Saturday, I noticed that I hadn’t put Mommy? by Maurice Sendak back on the shelf last night. What a fabulous and intricate pop up book that is. It turns out we did read three books on the 5th.