Tickle Bee

Mr. Growley Bear only came out at certain times. He never came out at night. Then there was the Tickle Bee and the Snorty Bug. Whichever of these three came out depends on Charlie’s mood.

When Charlie was happy and playing with his Legos or his cars or just running around and doing somersaults…sometimes the Tickle Bee would descend on him. The Tickle Bee is grandma’s hands and she wiggles them back and forth while coming at Charlie and he squeals and says “No, Tickle Bee..No, No, Tickle Bee”, but the Tickle Bee keeps coming anyway and just tickles and tickles him until he says, “Stop, Stop” with outstretched hands. Grandma then stops and Charlie likes that.

Sometimes though when Charlie gets scolded for things, he isn’t sure why he should get in trouble, he pouts and heads off to his room. Grandma comes in to say, “Okay, you know why you got in trouble, but Grandma’s not mad at you, just trying to get you to understand what you did that made Grandma upset.” Of course, Charlie being only 4 years old, thinks he never does anything wrong. How could it be wrong when he was only trying to entertain Grandma and make her laugh, and could he help it if in the process he knocked over his glass of juice or he broke a favorite knick knack or smacked at Grandma? So he thought to himself, I’m gonna stay mad and stay on the bed and just pout and hide under the pillow and not look at Grandma when she comes in the room.


Of course, then here would come Grandma and she would say, “Ut oh…now you’ve made the Growley Bear come out and she would go Grrrrrr!!!! And wiggle her fingers while coming at him, and Growley Bear did the same thing as Tickle Bee…he would growl all the while as he tickled Charlie until Charlie would laugh and squeal and then he wouldn’t be pouty anymore. If its’ Snorty Bear…he does the same thing only instead of growling, he just makes a snorting sound while coming at Charlie and tickling him.


One day when Charlie and Grandma went shopping…to Charlie it seemed like Grandma went shopping every day, and he sometimes just didn’t want to go along...but in the car he would hop and fasten himself into the car seat and off they would go. While they were shopping and Charlie was riding in the cart, he got bored and started asking questions like, “Where’s mommy?” to which grandma answered, “She’s at work honey”. Charlie said “Why?” and grandma explained that mommy had to work to buy him clothes and groceries and the toys that Charlie liked to play with. He thought, “Oh, that’s what mommy always says too”. Okay!!. Then he said, “Why don’t you work grandma”. Grandma explained that she did work, but then they couldn’t afford to keep some workers anymore so they had let her and others go. She had lost her job so now she stayed home and she babysat him and played and had fun with him. Charlie thought about it, and pondered that for a moment and then he said to grandma as he patted her arm “That’s why we have to be nice to people grandma”. Grandma burst out laughing with the biggest smile on her face. Charlie laughed too, but wasn’t sure why they were laughing. He wasn’t sure he liked her laughing at him. Then he started to pout, but grandma told him…”Oh honey, I’m not laughing at you, I’m just laughing because what you said was so grown up and so funny”. He liked the part that she called him grown up because he was a boy and not a baby anymore…he was 4 years old now..but he still wasn’t sure he liked that she had laughed when he had said that to her.


He decided though that he would not pout and then he said, “I love you grandma”. With that, she gave him a smile and said, “I love you too, baby” and gave him a big hug. “I’m not a baby!”, he told her. “I’m a boy and I’m 4 and my mommy goes to school and she teaches me things and I learn things and I’m NOT a little baby!” “Okay, okay” said grandma..and again she smiled. After that Charlie decided he just wouldn’t talk anymore, and just rode in the cart while grandma looked for the things she needed from the store

©copyright Peabea (all rights reserved January 2012)