My kids always name their new stuffed toys things like; Snowflake (season permitting), Fluffy, Mr. Fluffy if he has a certain masculine je ne sais quoi, Whitey if the toy is brown, Brownie if the toy is white. Spike, Giraffe Walker (this was a bear donated to the hospital and given to kids after surgery—we still don’t know what Giraffe Walker means but he has neither a long neck nor the ability to walk).
The other day, they were at a birthday party and one of the gifts for the birthday girl included a small, stuffed toy that resembled a bunny or a hamster or a kitten.
“I’m going to call it Snowflake!” classic go-to name for a mid-summer, bun-ster-ten.
Ellie was then handed a pink balloon animal toy-poodle with tiny eyes and small round ears.
I expected her to opt out of naming because he wasn’t cuddly and she was using every muscle in her body not to tackle the kid on the receiving end of all the gifts so coming up with something creative for a lifeless, fake fur-less balloon animal took a lot out of her.
Me: Ellie do you have a name for your balloon dog?
Ellie: Yep, he’s so cute.
Me: Is it a Snowflake or Brownie?
Ellie: Nope, better.
Me: What?
Ellie: Rat Balls
