Scout

Scout came into Lilly's life on her first birthday, courtesy of Jerry and Mel (we will be returning the favor when Baby Ruggieri turns one). It was love at first sight. Even though Lilly was sick, she managed to muster up a smile for Scout and she hasn't looked back.

At first glance, he looks like a normal stuffed animal, aside from the fact that he's a green dog. Well, anyone who has come in contact with Scout knows that couldn't be farther from the truth. You plug Scout into a computer and can upload information. He sings about Lilly, her favorite food, color and animal (or what I perceive those to be, since we really have no idea if indeed her favorite color is pink, her favorite food is blueberries and her favorite animal is an elephant). Each of Scout's paws has a button that you can push, and Lilly pushes those buttons relentlessly, often interrupting what he is saying to get him to sing something else. She carries him around the house, hugging him and dancing to his songs (as witnessed in the video from Austin). Scout comes in the car when we go places and believe it or not, his singing does not go very well with what is playing on my iPod. So, unless Lilly drops Scout, I usually end up turning down my music and slowly going crazy listening to Scout say, "2 minutes of...5 minutes of...10 minutes of bedtime music..." It is only after Lilly has set Scout up to play 10 minutes of bedtime music that she tosses him to the side, just out of my reach and the 2 of us are stuck listening to bedtime music.

I learned the hard way that Scout is not a good bedtime companion for Lilly. I let her take him in her crib one morning for her nap. Instead of snuggling up with him and playing her bedtime music, all I could hear was Scout's talking and singing...for a solid hour. There was no nap that morning and that was the first and last time that Scout was a part of nap time.

Scout's songs have a way of getting stuck in your head. Just ask my family. We brought Scout down to Austin with us and everyone was singing about his favorite things and at any given time, you could find Joseph or Edward singing "in the evening when the sun goes down...I brush my teeth and put my pj's on..." Scout drives Dad crazy. He said it's something about his voice...and the way that even when Lilly isn't anywhere near him, Scout starts talking or singing.

Having strawberries with Scout.

I can go on and on about Scout and how he has enriched our lives, but I think he can speak for himself. I hope you enjoy this little snippet of Scout. Feel free to watch it again and again to get the full effect of how integral a part of our household Scout is.