The Paw Patrol Has Passed
And why all you parents can just relax now
This past weekend I attended the Women in Toys Wonder Women Awards annual gala in NYC. That’s right— gala. Now you might be wondering how a middle-aged lady mom like me wrangled an invite to a GALA and the answer is quite unbelievable. I was invited as a nominee for Wonder Woman of the Year. I have been shouting from the rooftops for years how D&D can make the world—or at least the people who play it— better and that goes double for kids. My nomination was in recognition of my work in bringing Dungeons & Dragons into more schools through D&D-inspired curriculum, clubs, and educating the educators about one of the most innovative learning tools in the world1.
You might think being invited to a GALA, hobnobbing with some of the most influential and badass women in the toy and games business, and my $70 pantsuit WITH POCKETS was where this fabulous night ended, but nope. Haven’t told you the best part: I met two enormous celebrities! I literally squealed when I saw them and flung myself straight into their arms. Fortunately they were padded.
Guys, that’s Chase and Skye from the Paw Patrol!
Paw Patrol!
GO!
GO!
GO!
I love and hate the Paw Patrol.
Hate them because that damn theme song was in my head for 42 months straight and here we go again.
Love them because for 42 months they were as much a part of our family as the grandparents and our actual, living dog.
Hate them because I had to pay $3 more to get gummy snacks and graham crackers with their faces plastered all over the box.
Love them because they are dogs and it’s against every fiber in my moral being to not like a dog.
Hate them because they’re annoying little do-gooders full of false humility who report to a cocky 13 year-old and clean up adult messes (think less orderly at the assisted living home and more Olivia Pope at the White House but still…)
Love them because my son used to look so cute in those Marshall the firefighter pup pajamas, falling asleep with a stuffed Rubble and stuffed Zuma tucked into each armpit.
There was about a million dollars worth of Paw Patrol candy and toys hidden in our backyard. Some of its probably still out there.
I was so excited to show my son! When I sent the above photo to him, he wrote back, “Who’s that?”
Who’s that?
Who the eff is that?
How about who’s this because no way a child who slept on Paw Patrol sheets and ate Paw Patrol graham crackers on Paw Patrol plates would not know who Chase and Skye from the Paw Patrol were!
After I got over my shock and disappointment, it got me thinking about all of the phases we’ve gone through in a decade of parenthood and this old adage popped into my head and momentarily interrupted the Paw Patrol theme song:
This too shall pass.
Even something as all-consuming as the Paw Patrol runs its course. I mean, I never expected my son to go to college with his Paw Patrol underwear packed in his Paw Patrol suitcase, but I thought Chase’s paw print would have left a mark on his long term memory.
It doesn’t occur to you when you’re in the throes of some of the worst parenting phases that this too shall pass. You will 100% believe THIS IS MY LIFE NOW! My kid can’t sleep a full night in their bed, will only wear the bottom half of their Winnie the Pooh costume in public, and won’t answer unless we address him as John Cena! There is no forest in potty training land. Just those big scary apple trees from The Wizard of Oz lobbing one exhausting, demoralizing, and obsessively engrossing stage after another at unsuspecting and ill-prepared moms and dads. There was a time when I thought our kid would always hate being in a car seat because he cried the first time we strapped him into one. He was 38 hours old and starving. He got over it.
So remember this the next time you hear your kid getting out of their bed at 4:03 in the morning: This too shall pass. Isn’t that a relief? Another goody-goody lesson brought to you by the goody-goody Paw Patrol. Sigh. I can’t quit you, Paw Patrol!
The tricky part is that some of those phases are actually pretty good. (Personally I loved the “only answers to John Cena” chapter.) I forget block out lots of things, but the indelible comfort of a squishy, sweaty, foam-pawed embrace from two highly trained and FEMA-certified canines will last a lifetime.
XO,
Shelly
An actual teacher said that and teachers do not lie.