Swimmy AKA Big Ted

Last week Mason caught a tadpole. His dad let him bring the thing home, and Mason promptly named him Swimmy. I love how little kids name their pets so descriptively. White dog gets named Whitey. Black cat gets named Blacky...etc. Anyway - Swimmy took up residence in a Pyrex bowl on the center island in the kitchen. After a day or two I noticed that Mason had changed Swimmy's name to Big Ted. That makes no sense according to the descriptive naming technique. Swimmy was definitely not big and there was nothing "Ted" about him. Who cares, though, because Big Ted has to be the funniest name I've EVER heard for a tadpole! By about the 4th day, Big Ted began to swim across the bowl and butt his head against the glass over and over. We convinced Mason that Big Ted needed to return to his natural habitat. Mason was so sad. He cried and cried which made the rest of us feel so sad, too. Mason decided that we should hold some sort of service in remembrance of Big Ted. I suggested we do it the next morning before school, but Mason informed me that we wouldn't have enough time then, as this would be a fairly long service. He even scheduled bathroom breaks for us! In the end, he painted a portrait of Swimmy AKA Big Ted and hung it in his bedroom right above his nightlight. Each night he can go to sleep as Big Ted is illuminated by a red and blue glow. Being a mom is so much fun.