Christmas Came Early

So Harper may have a little teeny, tiny, obsessive streak in her personality. This is shocking. . . I have no idea where she could possible have gotten that! Anyhow, one of her current favorite obsessions is Blue's Clues, which is mildly unfortunate, as we do not have the cable channel that carries that particular show. On second thought, it's probably a good thing, since having that channel might mean that our entire day would revolve around the Blue's Clues schedule.

By now you are probably wondering how Harper became obsessed with a show on a channel that isn't beamed directly into this house. It began with a video from the public library (Did you know your library has videos and DVD's? They're free, please use your local library!). Then I found a $5/multiple-episode DVD at a discount store. Jackpot! Blue is the best thing since Elmo, which we still enjoy very much. It is nice to have a child obsessed with more than one character, which saves me from watching the same thing over and over again.

If you are not familiar with Blue's Clues, Blue is a very sweet, non-verbal dog. Blue's owner/companion Joe (or Steve, on older episodes) plays a game called Blue's Clues to figure out what Blue wants to eat/do/draw/play etc. The episodes consist of Joe, Blue, and friends traipsing around, looking for clues, and discussing color, shapes, sharing, and other preschool- friendly topics along the way. The show is extremely formulaic and predictable, which is why my little OCD monkey loves it so much. In fact, next to "Twinkle, Twinkle," Harper's most requested songs while driving in the car are those featured during Blue's adventures. She likes the theme song, the mail song, the good-bye song, you get the idea.

So why the title, "Christmas Came Early" for this post? Recently Auntie M's sister hit the jackpot at her local Goodwill store and purchased, for $1, a play-along TV set for Blue's Clues. The set came with a little plush Blue, three felt paw prints/clues, and one "Handy Dandy Notebook" with wipe off crayon. I thought Harper's head was going to explode with joy when she discovered these items yesterday morning. Her favorite being the "ha dadee otbook!"

Here's how you play Blue's Clues:

1. Hunt for felt paw prints which Mommy has hidden. Find them!


2. "Write" about the clues in your handy dandy notebook. This takes a long time.



3. Sit down in your thinking chair and think, think, think. Just like on the show. Consider all three clues to figure out what Blue wants. This is serious business.


4. I don't have photographic representation of the last step, but it basically involves jumping up and saying, "We just figured out Blue's Clues!" You also proclaim your infinite smartness. After celebrating and singing the good-bye ditty, Mommy gets to help you do the whole thing over again.

While the game may be a little boring for me, I can tell that this is going to provide fabulous entertainment for crummy/wintry/rainy days like today. In fact, I got Harper to go down for her nap by saying that we could play Blue's Clues when she gets up. I never thought I would be so grateful for television tie-in merchandise.