Thursday, May 15, 2014

Max's latest obsession: the Official Review


Name of new obsession: Firefighter. As in, Max is going to be one when he grows up.

Level of obsession (on a scale of 1 to 10): 7, but inching upward.

Quality of obsession: High. As a waiter recently said when Max informed him that he will be a fireman when he grows up, "It's a noble calling!" As the guy behind the counter at the dry cleaning store noted, "You need to be brave!"

Cost factor: Low. Unlike Lightning McQueen merchandise (that obsession started about three years ago) or purple stuff (four years and running), you cannot purchase fire stations at Target or on eBay. Or, for that matter, firefighters. Max's new Fire Chief plastic hat: free, from the station.


Time factor: Moderate. Requires weekly/biweekly trips to the local fire house for approximately a half hour. Also: Occasionally need to do a drive by.

Clutter factor: Low. We have a couple of toy fire trucks, but they are not threatening to take over the entire household, unlike the Lightning McQueen crapola.

Yes, we keep a Lightning McQueen car in our breakfront
Groveling factor: Low. The firemen at our local station are incredibly welcoming, and have invited Max to come back anytime. That's totally unlike Max's car wash phase (circa July 2010), when Dave had to beg car wash employees to let our car go through a second time.


Therapy factor: High. Max doesn't yet say the letters ""w" "b" "f" or "t" so repeatedly uttering "I want to be a firefighter!" could really help.

Education factor: High. A whole new book topic to explore! Then there's the fire house knowledge: "What's that?" Max likes to ask as we walk around. He is getting to know the different parts of a fire truck. He is learning how calls come in to the station. He has gotten an insider tour of the firefighters' living quarters (and he has already picked out his bed).

Entertainment factor: High. One of the firefighters slid down the pole three times in a row for Max. At home, Max loves to stand in front of the bathroom mirror in the Fire Chief hat and stare at himself in awe.

Nuisance factor: Medium. Parent required to regularly say "Yes! You are going to be a firefighter when you grow up! And you will live in the fire house! And you will ride in the back of the fire truck!" Parent required to regularly tell that to total strangers as well. Also: Child may not be willing to part with Fire Chief hat at bath time.

Public perception factor: High. A kid wanting to be a fireman is easy to understand. People were definitely perplexed, however, during Max's spaghetti phase (also circa 2010) when I had to write "Max eats spaghetti sauce!" on a foot cast.

Bliss factor: High. When you say "Hi, fireman!" to Max, he squeals and his face lights up.

Cuteness factor: OMG.


13 comments:

  1. I love your blog! I enjoy reading about Max and your family. It is great that you accept and encourage each of his interests. I am the sibling of a special needs child. I have so many memories of my own mother doing whatever it took to encourage my sister and develop her interests. Keep up the great work. Go Firefighter Max!

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    1. Thanks, Anita! Yes, we try to encourage his interests, although there are only so many times a human being can utter "Max is getting a Cars 2 Talking Lightning McQueen for his birthday" before losing her sanity. :)

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  2. I too love your blogs! They are so cleverly written, I find myself smiling every time I read one, I have a five-year old grandson that I adopted that also has CP. Your family is very special and I want to thank you again for the insight and inspiration! As the old saying goes, "enjoy this stage because it will pass too soon"....

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    1. Tina, your grandson is so cute!!! I am glad you're here. And I've become hyper-aware of how quickly time is going by lately, especially last night when I went to put away some clothes Max has grown out of.

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  3. Max is an inspiration.

    You wanna be a fireman, Max? Don't you let anybody tell you that you can't. You'll show everyone someday, you can be whatever you want and you'll ROCK at it. :)

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  4. There are worse things to be obsessed about.

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  5. Ellen, I have to say - the other day my kids were watching "Max and Ruby" and there was an episode where Max the bunny kept saying, "Firetruck" over and over. I immediately thought of YOUR Max! The episode is called "Ruby's Piano Lesson" - google it if you are interested in seeing it. Seriously, I think Max would get a kick out of it!

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    1. Thank you for that hot lead!!! I will pursue it.

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  6. Ellen
    Depending on how interested Max is you might want to get him a POLICE RADIO SCANNER so he can listen to the firefighters on scene! There is a website, http://www.radioreference.com where he can listen to fire departments from all over the US

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    1. What an amazing site to know about--thank you, Justin! This would make Max ecstatic. I'm also a little scared that we'll never be able to tear him away from the computer again. He he.

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  7. I had my audition today. It went well because I obsessed over my music.

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Thanks for sharing!



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