Oh boy… we knew this day would come. Much as Henry discovered “Ollie’s brother,” Finn has uncovered a second Leo. The other night he misplaced his little buddy before bedtime, and in desperation Margot & I tapped into “the nest” of looens stashed in her closet. We figured that the MIA buddy would turn up after Finn’s bedtime–but no such luck. A few days later, I came home to find Finn bouncing off the walls: “Dad-O, Dad-O, I have an exciting surprise for you!! Wait here!!” He emerged brandishing “TWO LEOS!!” I think he just lit up the western seaboard with his smile. 🙂 And logically enough, as he’d dubbed Ollie’s brother “Catamaran,” Finn named Leo’s bro “Leomaran.”
Perhaps needless to say, the two buddies have been accompanying us everywhere, appearing in new T.A.L.B. stories (where they’re rather emotionally reunited, having been separated as cubs back in Ghana, after which they try to catch bats in a pillowcase) and trying to “sneak” into preschool. Here’s a little gallery of one happy kid & two smooching looens.
I will say it’s getting a bit tough to answer Finn’s repeated inquiries as to exactly how and why Leomaran showed up (or Catamaran, for that matter–“because toys can’t flutter on their own!”). He’s noting little differences (notably a little string protruding from the “old” one’s face) that’ll make future rotations (for “baths”) and replacements tougher. Ah well–I guess we can treat it all as practice for future discussions of Santa Claus & the Tooth Fairy. 🙂