The Aardvark

In our house, it's more real than Santa Claus, scarier than the monster in the basement... it's the Aardvark!! Aiiiiieeeeeeeee!

Reesa and Genevieve have a lot to say about the Aardvark. It's an animal, according to Reesa, and more specifically a horsey animal. No, Genevieve thinks it's like a satyr, except with a long nose. Really long, and it gets bigger each time she talks about it. Part fish tale, part troll-under-the-bridge, and part reality (because toys that are not picked up really do occasionally disappear for a long time), the Aardvark straddles their real and completely imaginary worlds. Unlike many other monsters they've heard about, they haven't had the benefit of seeing a picture of one in a story picture book. I believe this is because Aardvarks aren't in either the first or second ring of anthropomorphized animals approved for use in children's story books. And, since the girls do not currently get a subscription to "Fatherhood in three easy lessons," they do not have the benefit of seeing the illustration with this article.

Reesa doesn't like the squeaking sound that the Aardvark uses to wake her up, and she thinks the nose is as wide as she can reach. Which makes it as big as a nose could possibly get!

And where does the Aardvark keep its toy stash? Careful analysis has revealed that most of these items end up in toy bins that are kept in storage to be periodically rotated with the toys currently on hand. Some disappear from the household, going off to other children. So all parents hail the Aardvark, the toy vacuum excuse for toy culls!

[NOTE: This article has a hyperlink to a 4 minute audio file of the girls talking about the Aardvark. Let me know if it was an easy experience to link, or suggestions for improvement. It's the first try here.]