All I Ever Needed to Know About Passover I Learned from the Rugrats

Some dear friends gave us a book for the kids several days ago. This book, "Let My Babies Go," features the Rugrats and retells the Passover story using children and babies. Our friends, although disturbed by some elements of the story, gave it to us knowing we would undoubtedly change these things around as we read aloud to our munchkins.

The next day, however, I was gone for the morning & left them with a sitter, who ended up being asked to read this book so many times she could pretty much quote it verbatim (as could my darling little ones). Oops. Given Zeke & Rach's excitement at having a new book; given their love for repetition and the fact that I completely forgot to mention to our sitter that she might want to reword a few sentences; Rach & Zekers (& maybe even Kari) ended up learning a few things from the Rugrats about Passover.

I'll bet all you Bible scholars never knew that:

1. Pharaoh was an ugly blonde-haired girl.
2. Pharaoh spotted baby Moses (who could speak in full sentences) from his royal barge and took him to the palace.
3. The Egyptians chased Moses into the desert because they were so angry when they discovered he was a Hebrew.
4. Burning bushes can talk all by themselves (sans Divine Intervention!)
5. A few of the lesser-known plagues found in ancient manuscripts include the plague of lice and the plague of wild beasts.
6. The Israelites took 'matzo bread with them when they left Egypt because they had to make such a hasty exit, they didn't have time to add yeast.
7. Moses parted the Red Sea simply by gazing up to heaven and then down at the sea.
8. Moses must have had some pretty amazing powers, seeing that he loosed plague after plague without God's help.
9. Lucky Pharaoh & his army got to swim back to the shore instead of drowning in the sea.
10. The German word for children is "kinderlach."

Our friends astutely pointed out, as they handed us this book, that: Passover - God = amusing kids' story. They were so right. It makes for some pretty good family discussion when we change the wording and center the account around God (although, knowing the 'real' wording, R & Z never miss a chance to "correct" us). But without Him, the words & illustrations are cute - and empty.

Thank goodness burning bushes can't talk on their own (although I would've liked to see Pharaoh as an ugly blond-haired girl)!