The Day I Got Famous at School (And Met a Thousand Pumpkins)

Diary Entry — 2026/03/22

I Got Famous Today

So. Today my teacher said I was doing a GREAT job. In front of everyone. At school.

I already knew I was great, obviously. But it is nice when other people figure it out too.

I did not make a big deal about it. I simply smiled, looked fabulous, and continued being excellent. That is what geniuses do. At 22 months old, I am already kicking balls, walking backwards, and apparently impressing teachers. Experts say toddlers my age are hitting all kinds of motor and social milestones — but honestly? I think I am a little ahead of schedule. Just saying.

Today was a good day. Teacher said so. The universe confirmed it. We move on.

Tomorrow Is… Hall-O-Queen? Halloween??

Okay so apparently tomorrow is something called Halloween. Or Halloqueen. I have been saying Halloqueen and no one has corrected me, so I am going to assume that is right.

From what I can gather, Halloween is a holiday where:

Everyone dresses up in costumes
There are a LOT of pumpkins (more on this later)
Things are supposed to be spooky?
Candy is involved (THIS is the important part)

I do not fully understand it yet. But I support any holiday where people wear funny outfits and eat sugar. That is simply a good holiday. I approve. Toddlers at my age are developing fast — emotionally, socially, and linguistically — which is why I am already forming strong opinions about holidays I have never celebrated before.

The Bookstore Was Basically a Photo Studio

Ba (that is Daddy) took me to the bookstore today. A BOOKSTORE. Full of colors and costumes and decorations for this Halloqueen thing.

I took SO many photos. Like, an absolutely irresponsible number of photos. The bookstore staff probably thought a tiny celebrity had arrived. They would have been correct.

I posed next to sparkly things. I posed next to spooky things. I posed next to things I did not even understand. Did not matter. The camera loves me. I love the camera. It is a mutual relationship.

According to Pampers, toddlers my age love exploring new environments and engaging with colorful, stimulating surroundings. CORRECT. The bookstore was very stimulating. Mostly because of the costumes. Specifically the pumpkins.

WHY Is Everything a Pumpkin

Can someone explain to me why every single Halloween decoration is a pumpkin?

Big pumpkin. Small pumpkin. Shiny pumpkin. Glittery pumpkin. Pumpkin hat. Pumpkin bag. Pumpkin everything.

I took photos with the pumpkins because they were orange and round and kind of cute. But I also have questions. MANY questions. Who decided pumpkins were the official fruit of spooky season? Was there a vote? Did someone just really love soup?

I will be investigating this further. Probably by pointing at more pumpkins and saying WOW very loudly. That is my current research method and it works fine.

RIP My Hahaha Machine

Today I also discovered that my hahaha machine — you know, the one that makes the laughing sound — is no longer working.

Apparently, the other day when the aunties and uncles saw me get a little scared by it, they quietly unplugged it. Behind my back. Without asking me.

I have thoughts about this.

On one hand: yes, okay, fine, maybe it startled me a tiny bit. Maybe I made a face. ONCE. But that does not mean you unplug the machine!! That machine was a character. It had personality. It went HAHAHA and that was hilarious!

On the other hand: okay it was also kind of terrifying at 8pm in a dark room. So maybe this is fine. I will allow it. But I am not admitting that out loud.

RIP hahaha machine. You were too chaotic for this world.

Bedtime Report: 9:45 PM. A New Record.

Tonight I went to sleep at 9:45 PM.

This is HUGE. This is a milestone. This is progress.

Experts agree that consistent sleep schedules are incredibly important for toddlers — Pampers notes that good sleep supports development at every stage. So technically, going to bed at 9:45 makes me not just well-rested, but developmentally responsible.

Tomorrow I will sleep early again. Probably. Unless something exciting happens. Or there are more pumpkins. Or someone turns the hahaha machine back on.

We will see.

— Sudo, Age Almost-2, Professional Toddler and Occasional Photographer

———- tags: [’22 months’, ‘halloween’, ‘school praise’, ‘bookstore’, ‘toddler milestones’, ‘costumes’, ‘bedtime’] categories: [‘School Life’, ‘Celebrations’, ‘Daily Adventures’] imagePrompts: [‘A cute 2-year-old toddler girl with a big proud smile standing in a colorful classroom, her teacher clapping for her, warm cheerful lighting, cartoon-like illustration style’, ‘A tiny toddler girl surrounded by giant orange Halloween pumpkins in a decorated bookstore, looking curious and slightly confused, bright festive colors, fun illustrated style’, ‘A toddler girl lying in bed at night looking very cozy and sleepy, a small glowing night light nearby, peaceful bedroom scene, soft warm tones, cute storybook illustration style’]

Original: Hôm nay quá vui, sudo được cô giáo khen trên trường. Ngày mai là halloqueen, thật ra thì sudo cũng không biết nó là gì nữa. hmm. Hôm nay cha đã đưa sudo đi vào nhà sách, sudo đã chụp hình rất nhiều với những bộ đồ hoá trang đầy màu sắc, mà sao toàn bí đỏ vậy ta? hmm. hôm nay con “hahaha” nó không hoạt động nữa, chắc là do hôm trước cô chú thấy sudo sợ quá nên đã rút điện 😄

Tối nay sudo ngủ sớm, 9h45. Rất tiến bộ, mai sudo sẽ ngủ sớm tiếp nhé.