A few months back, the wife and I were looking to buy some toys for the boy. We wanted something interactive and not too loud. I came across this:

LeapFrog Hug & Learn Baby Tad. Great! It's cute, he can be hugged, and he helps the boy to learn. I read some reviews on Amazon about it, and while they were generally positive, there were a few people who commented about how Baby Tad was "possessed." By this, they mean that he occasionally talked when he wasn't prompted to do so. After reading some more about this and a few other toys, we decided to pick up something else.

Coincidentally, a few weeks later, we had an out of town visitor who came by with a present for the boy. The present was none other than Baby Tad. For a month or so, I really thought Baby Tad was quite charming. I saw no evidence of the problems mentioned on Amazon.

Last weekend, I started to notice that something was different with Baby Tad. I can't think of the words to explain it, but he was just different. He was still talking and singing with the same pep, but he was acting a little... defiant? Bold? Yeah, bold is a good word for it.

For example, one day I walked into the kitchen for a snack. As I rounded the corner, I saw this:

Shocked, I was like, "Baby Tad, what are you doing in the cupboard?"

His response was a smug, "I'm Baby Tad. Let's sing! Baa baa black sheep have you any wool..."

Blinded by his charm, I sang along through the end of the song and went on about my business. By itself, I probably wouldn't think that much of this incident. Then a few days later, I came downstairs and found this:

"Baby Tad! Get away from my computer, that's not a toy!"

"I'm Baby Tad. (smooch) I love you." Again with the smug tone.

When I took the computer away, I was even more shocked to find what web page was up on the screen. "What the hell were you doing looking at my checking account online?"

His reply, "Peek-a-boo, I see you!"

The last straw, however, was this morning. I went out to take a jog. As I passed between our cars on the driveway, I saw this:

I can think of no legitimate reason why Baby Tad would be doing something underneath my car. I didn't even talk to him this time, I didn't want to hear anything he had to say. I picked him up and threw him inside.

"I'm Baby Tad. That's the purple triangle... Let's play!"

"You little... The only thing we're playing is 'lock you up in the cabinet until I can figure out what we're going to do with you'."

So if anyone needs a gift for a kid that's 6 months and up, let me know. (Also, if any of you know about cars, I'm looking for someone to check mine out to figure out what the hell he did.)