Tinkerbell

Imagine my delight to accompany my daughter to a "Princess" themed birthday party last weekend. Actually, it made sense. The girl turning six was named Ariel. She's an absolute angel. When Rachel gets upset in school, Ariel rubs her back until she feels better. So we were going to this party. And since mom was teaching Sunday school, dad was delivering Rachel.

It was a fun party. I enjoyed hanging with the adults and there were yummy fresh veggies and watermelon. I was hungry, since I had just gotten off work, so it was much appreciated.

At some point, word began to spread like wildfire that Tinkerbell was on her way. There was high-pitched screaming. Somewhere, dogs turned in unison, trying to figure out who was calling them and why. Little girls and the two boys who were there stood vigilant by the second floor window, waiting for the first glimpse.

And then, the big moment! Tinkerbell drove up in a PT Cruiser. The kids were still excited, but they had questions. Why hadn't Tinkerbell arrived via air?
Tinkerbell explained she flew into town and then transferred into a car. Apparently, fairies don't come equipped with GPS.

Then out of nowhere, my own daughter, who had never shared this information with us, exclaimed, "The tooth fairy's not real. It's your parents!" The rest of the girls and boys straightened her out and Rachel dropped the subject. Thankfully.

Tinkerbell began making balloon animals. Kids jostled to get in front of one another. They asked what it was like to be a fairy. Rachel apparently was pondering being a fairy as a career choice when she asked Tinkerbell, "How many parties do you go to a day, Tinkerbell?"

A bit later, Tinkerbell was painting faces and hands and some child blurted, "Tinkerbell, I hear your name is really Julie!" All these kids needed were cameras. It was like they were pint-sized paparazzi working for TMZ.com. Tinkerbell managed to divert the conversation by insisting she was Tinkerbell, period. Like Madonna and Cher, some gals need just one name.

Tinkerbell left after an hour and a half, a hard-earned eighty dollars tucked away inside her purse inside her PT Cruiser, no doubt muttering, "I gotta find another line of work!"