Cady's first love

I would not be doing justice to Cady's childhood experience so far if I neglected to devote some space to the first boy she has ever loved ... well, the second if you count Daddy as a boy. Anyway, Cady loves Calliou. She was a fan of Elmo for a time when she was younger and she enjoys watching Curious George on PBS as well, but Calliou wins her undivided adoration. Hands down. She's been devoted to him since November, at least, and that's longer than I ever had a boyfriend until I was like 22.

For those of you unacquainted with preschool programming on PBS, Calliou is a little 4-year old boy with no hair and a whiny voice that can drive a grown-up crazy. Sometimes when we're watching, I hear him speaking with the exact same whine that Cady has adopted. Not good. BUT Cady loves him because he experiences things that every other child in North America does. She is so thrilled when she sees him in a situation that she herself has experienced too, like the first day of preschool or getting in trouble after playing with Mommy's make-up. When those moments come along, she sits bolt upright on the couch and watches with complete attentiveness, often with facial expressions to match Calliou's.

I have to admit that, as far as children's shows go, Calliou is one of my favorites too (barring the whining). It's so real ... Cady really identifies with the little family of four. There are no dragons or talking aardvarks or red monsters or singing purple dinosaurs. Although fostering imagination is good, I'm a fan of reality ... and really, isn't a whiny kid about as real as it gets??