GI Joe Day!

According to one website with unique and silly holidays, today is officially GI Joe Day. I couldn't find anything else about it online though. GI Joe action figures have been sold since 1964. It wasn't until 1982 that they introduced the newest version of GI Joe, "The Real American Hero" figures. If you look at their website here, you'll see the changes GI Joe has gone through over the years. I never had a GI Joe when I was little, though I had more Barbies than I could count. I remember feeling envious because GI Joes could move so much better than Barbie. All Barbie could do was raise her arms and snap her knees back and forth. GI Joes moved in all sorts of directions. My husband had GI Joes and he and his brother used to have pretty serious wars in the backyard, which included real fire bombs and other things they'd come up with. I'm surprised they didn't burn the house down with their antics. I still don't think their parents know what went on.

Nathan and Neil have quite a few GI Joes. They're always cruising through the house in their Jeep or having battles somewhere. One thing the boys like to do is take a GI Joe when we go kayaking. We have tandem kayaks, so I usually have one boy in my boat and Rick has the other in his. The boys love bringing GI Joe along. I bet you didn't know GI Joe screams like a little girl when he gets dragged through the icy waters. Yep, he does. Last summer we were kayaking in Swan Lake. We paddled all the way across the lake and spent some time in a secluded little spot. The boys had fun playing with their GI Joes in the lake ...

The picture below is of Nathan and his GI Joe named Eddie. Eddie didn't seem to mind being naked, or getting dirty, especially when there were trees to climb and mud to crawl through. He did have his gloves on, afterall ...

However, this was sadly GI Joe Eddie's last day with us. As we were kayaking back across the lake, Eddie was acting really stupid. He was pretending to be a dolphin and was bouncing off the waves, screaming like a little girl the entire time. One wave was just too much for him and he slipped from Nathan's grip. I turned that kayak around as fast as I could, but Eddie was gone. Who knew GI Joes sunk that fast. So, our beloved Eddie now rests at the bottom of Swan Lake. It was a pretty traumatic day, but at least he had his gloves on. GI Joe now travels in the kayak with bungee cords wrapped around his waist. Live & learn! The boys want to take scuba diving lessons and go look for Eddie. Rest in peace, Eddie. You are missed.

And finally, if you haven't checked out my kid's GI Joe's Christmas video, please do. I laugh my head off every time I watch the silly thing. Who needs the Super Bowl when you have GI Joe. Happy GI Joe Day!