The World's Saddest Reindeer

Quick update -- after four days, got Verizon to admit that I was supposed to be getting 15/5 service and not 10/2. I was ensured it would be upgraded by 5 pm yesterday. Hahahahahahaha. Still 10/2 here. Monday I'll call. Whatever

But on happier news, yesterday was the Boy's first Christmas pageant. I'm still not sure why they do things like Santa and pageants for toddlers because they don't have a clue, but Lord love them, they try. Unfortunately the pictures from the pageant portion didn't turn out (too far away, bad lighting), but here's the recap.

In the morning when I dropped him off, I said to the teacher "I'll see you this afternoon and will watch him freak out". (International day last spring had been a huge disaster -- he was inconsolable. He doesn't like crowds and noise). Instead of the teacher reassuring me "no, no, he'll be fine" she said, "He will probably cry. He hasn't even liked going over to the big hall to practice". So I was set.

I get there early, get a seat, and then the pastor starts with a few comments and a prayer. Then they open the curtains to the tune of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and up on stage in a kind of staggered formation are 18 1-year-olds looking quite literally like deer in the headlights. They're all in brown with antlers on their head, staring out at the audience. One or two are kind of bouncing up and down in place. It's really adorable. Parents are flashing cameras, people are going "awww" and the whole shebang. Then, suddenly, from the rear, one lonely reindeer breaks formation and wanders down to the front of the stage, crying. Yup, you guessed it, that was my boy. Mommy was so proud. One of the teachers come and grabs him and brings him to the back again. Then the cutest thing happens. The boy's one little relative in class turns around from halfway across the stage, sees him crying, and wanders over to Boy to give him a big hug. I actually caught a picture of the other boy turning around to go to him, but it's not great quality, and I'm weird and don't think I should post picutres of other people's children on the internet.

Finally the song ends, and they take the kids off the stage. I go out into the hallway to collect whimpering boy. I see one of the other parents who said that "there was a pool about who would cry first. Nicholas was the odds-on favorite". I told him that that was a sucker bet if you didn't take Nicholas, although that man's son was the first runner up. Surprisingly, that boy didn't cry until afterward in the hallway. I take him back to his classroom, put on this coat, and by then he's happy enough for us to get this picture:



Ho, ho, ho. Someone asked what reindeer he was, and I said "Weepy". That's a reindeer, right?