Gee, Thanks Playskool.

"Yes! I've been waiting to get this toy! I can't wait to play with it!

This is awesome! The best birthday ever!"

William received a cool new toy called a Busy Ball Popper (BBP) for his birthday. Note from these pictures how excited he was to open this, almost as if it's something he has always wanted and finally received. (I expect a reaction like this when he gets a bike.)

So, you can imagine our enthusiasm to pull the thing out of the box and start playing. Yeah, new toy! When it came out of the box we realized that it needed a size of battery that we didn't have on hand, so we had to manually use the toy by dropping the balls in the hole and then turning it over and dumping it out. Obviously not what Playskool intended, but William LOVED it!

Yesterday Grandma B, the giver of this exciting new toy, inserted the innocent batteries into this sweet and fun toy. When we got home from work she warned us that William no longer likes the BBP and it made him cry. So, while William finished dinner we went into the other room where he could still hear and see us. We turned on the toy and he completely flipped out. Screamed hysterically. Heart pounding, hands shaking freak out. Why? Because this fun, colorful toy with smiley faces suddenly turns into a loud, crazy disco. I was overwhelmed and this is a toy intended for kids 9+ months. Seriously, Playskool, what are you thinking?

This morning William kept an eye on the BBP, which had been demoted to the fireplace. I carried him close to it and he hung onto me for dear life. I don't want him to be that afraid of anything, so I poured out all the balls to remind him what a fun toy it was at the beginning. After a bit, he warmed up and started to have a good time, yelling "Woo" everytime he dropped a ball into the slot. I thought for a moment that we should consider keeping the crazy BBP and ease him into it. Unfortunately I forgot to warn Grandma H who came today to play with William. She turned on the BBP when I happened to be outside and asked if I heard him shriek. I came in to find a whimpering and shaking William.

Final Score: Busy Ball Popper - 3, William - 0

I think it's time for the BBP to return home where some other sucker will buy it and terrorize their children. Sometimes batteries really aren't necessary.