MMM - December 2014

Like some many grand plans I have, and then never follow through on, I was soooo going to blog about my monthly Maya mix CDs. And now it’s September and I’m planning Maya’s 6th birthday CD, and I’ve written how many posts? One.

M'kay, well, let’s make this two.

The good news is, I did manage to make a new 10-song CD for the girls every month since November (save for the month of June, when Maya spent most of the month at her grandparents). And slowly, I’ve converted her into a fan of some non-Disney-related songs.

Here’s the December 2014 mix:

Bohemian Rhapsody – Queen
Maya had previously shown some interest in this song after watching Mom and Dad's full Wayne’s World reenactment. And despite the nearly 6-minute length, this song continued to hold her attention after multiple listens. Her favorite line? “So you think you can stone me and spit in my eye?” Parents of the year, over here.

Happy (from Despicable Me 2) – Pharrell Williams
She already loved this song before I put it on the CD, so that was an easy win. Plus, I must admit I love it, too. So catchy!

Blackbird – The Beatles
My continual attempts to get the kiddos to like The Beatles. Once again, not all that interested. Maya mentioned that her teachers play this song during naptime at school, so I’m probably not winning any brownie points with any song associated with sleep.

Twelve Days of Christmas – John Denver & The Muppets
I immediately regretted putting this song on this CD. It got annoying and repetitive after about two plays. Fortunately, Maya agreed and didn’t really want to listen to this one much.

New – Paul McCartney
As previously mentioned, I have Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 to thank for the girls interest in this song. Whatever it takes.

(I’m Your) Hoochie Coohie Man – Muddy Waters
For my two little born-and-bred Chicagoans, I thought it was only appropriate to begin indoctrinating them into the blues culture. Maya, bless her, pretended to like this to humor Chris and me, but I know she’s not really a fan. But I hold out hope she’ll come around someday.

Daughter – Louden Wainwright III
Children under the age of, say 30, are in full ego, center-of-the-universe mode. It's not their fault; that's just part of growing up. And I'm not above using that to my advantage to get my kids to like different kinds of music. So this song was a hit simply because Maya feels like it's about her.

When I See An Elephant Fly - Jim Carmichael, Cliff Edwards & Hall Johnson Choir (Dumbo soundtrack)
Disney movie. Easy win. I like this song because of the grammatical puns in it ("I've heard a diamond ring, I've seen a front porch swing"). I think it's long overdue for a modern, and perhaps less offensive, makeover, don't you? I could totally see Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros covering this, right?! Or Billy Corgan.

Christmas Time Is Here - Vince Guaraldi (A Charlie Brown Christmas)
This is one of my favorite Christmas songs. Hearing it immediately makes me think of watching snow fall on a quiet, dark night, sitting at my parent's fireplace. All of which is a very strange thing to think about when it's 90 degrees out in early September. but back in December, it made sense of course. Maya liked it, although she really hasn't seen much Charlie Brown. We'll have to fix that this year.