Boogers and Doctors and Brachydactilia, OH MY!

A couple blogs ago I mentioned that I used to make up rhymes for our daughter that helped make various daily activities more fun. Activities like, oh, you know, having to get up out of bed, going to the doctor to get our eyes, ears, and nose checked or, maybe something like. . . GET A SHOT!!!! Anyway, here are a couple of my silly songs.

For getting up:

It’s time to get up and go to school

Get all dressed up and eat some gruel

Get in the car and drive, drive, drive

See Mr. Clark (fill in teacher’s name) and give a high-five!

It’s time to get up and go to school…

Sometimes I made up additional verses that fit something like hideous weather or Valentines Day and then hit Repeat until I got total & complete co-operation or I lost my mind. Of course, sometimes these events happened at the same time.

For going to see our pediatrician Dr. Julia the little ditty went like this:

We’re going to see Dr. Julia.

She checks for brachydactilia. (bra-kee-dak-til-ee-a)

She is a very nice lady!

And says I’m not a-fraidy.

FYI: Brachydactilia; n. an abnormal shortness of fingers and toes… (Funny sounding unless you have this rare medical condition.) We made up our own definition for brachydactilia.We decided it was the condition of really hard boogers. The bonus of using impossibly huge and complex words with a 2-5 year old is the spontaneous hilarity that ensues when pushing their verbal skills to the brink. I just love hearing what will come out of their little mouths! Plus, I think laughter on the way to the Dr. is always a prudent move. On the other hand; if your child is not feeling co-operative you can always use the real meaning of brachydactilia as leverage or a threat. “Hey! Sweetie! If you don’t get your fingers out of your nose you will develop serious brachydactilia!”

Speaking of boogers, this leads me to one of my all time fave little kid books.

Yummy Yucky

Written & illustrated by Leslie Patricelli

“Burgers are yummy.”                     

“Boogers are yucky.”

“Spaghetti is yummy.”                      

“Worms are yucky.”

You get the idea. It’s a giggly treat of a board book. Leslie Patricelli has brilliantly managed to distill this “yummy, yucky” concept down to the barest of bare minimums. Where was this book 10 years ago when I needed it? Check out her adorable website replete with games and other amusements. 

On a personal note; my phrase for something yucky was “icky poo poo ka ka la la.” What makes this work are the stop plosives of the “p” and the hard guttural “k” sounds stirred in with repetition and part of the musical scale; “la la”. These elements added with various scary faces and screaming will also get the point of “yummy vs. yucky” across to your pre-K child in nano second.

When Charlie McButton Lost Power

Written by Suzanne Collins

 Illustrated by Mike Lester

OK, this is the funniest rhyming (and you know how much I adore a good rhymed yarn!) picture book since Dr. Seuss’ Fox in Sox or Gertrude McFuzz! (Both of which I’ve read no less than 100 times each…love them! I’m headed down the same path with Charlie McB.) Charlie McButton has an addiction; computer games (sound familiar?). He NEEDS anything electronic. Until, one day, there is a power surge and there is power no more. What will he do??? He can hardly breathe. His mother says:

“You’ll have to find something without plugs to play.

Read a book! Clean your room! Sing a Song! Model clay!”

That’s it! He’s done. His life is over. He pitches a fit. Has a time out.  Hurts is sister’s feelings. Then feels bad, makes up with her in the bathroom and rediscovers how fun it is to play, to make believe, and just hang out.

Suzanne Collins’ has nailed the phenomenon of today’s youth and their electronic filled obsessions while telling a great story in rhyme. This is no easy task. Some of her rhymes are so incredibly clever I couldn’t help but to dissect them. The rhythm and rhyming is perfect and often internal which makes for super fun read aloud time! This is simply a must read for the whole family.

To be continued…