I was 14 years old when I discovered Tickle Me Elmo in a toy store in August 1996.
You squeezed him and he let out his signature giggle. Elmo’s laugh is so contagious, I just
knew he would make me feel better on crummy days. I begged my Mom to buy him
for me for Christmas. “What does a girl entering high school need with a Sesame
Street toy?” she retorted.
Fall came, and the colder the weather got, the more popular
Tickle Me Elmo became. There were
stampedes of people whenever a retail store got a shipment. It became pretty
clear that no matter how badly I wanted Tickle Me Elmo, he was not going to be
under the tree. Christmas Eve came
and along with it, the tradition of our parents allowing us to open our “biggie”
(aka most expensive) present. My box was roughly the shape of the one Tickle Me
Elmo came in. It couldn’t be him….could it?
Unbeknownst to me, my Mom had returned to the toy store that
day in August. My very own Tickle Me Elmo had been hiding
in our hall closet all those months I openly pined (and whined) for him, my Mom holding her breath that he would stay silent in the box, preserving the
surprise.
Ladies and gentleman, Big Hugs Elmo is the hot toy of 2013,
and I’m so happy (and a little relived) that my daughter already has him before
the holiday rush.
