My three nephews received a Bat Cave for Christmas and numerous other Bat accessories. Mason, who just turned 3, immersed himself in dynamic duo adventures and was particularly fond of the Bat Copter. Soon after Christmas Mason began to tell me “Want the yellow Batman.” I would politely respond that he was referring to Robin, Batman’s lesser partner. He remained adamant that he wanted the yellow batman, and would move on to the next family member with the same statement. This went on through New Years, and I remained gentle yet firm in my responses, even handing him Robin on occasion. Nothing changed his mind or his tenacity.

I was visiting in the new year when my sister-in-law heard Mason and I going through the usual Bat conversation. She interrupted and told me that there was indeed a yellow Batman. “What…” I responded confusedly, suspecting that she was simply padding Mason’s self-esteem. She left the room and quickly returned with a yellow Batman. Unknown to me, the boys had accumulated no less than three Batman’s with all their gifts, two of which wore the traditional costume, and one who wore yellow (not all yellow, but enough to qualify). I apologized to Mason and had certainly underestimated his perception.

Tags: batman, cubicle humor, kids, parenting, toys, yellow-batman