Elephants

So my son, whom I will refer to as B, is almost 3 years old. These last few months have been a trying time for our relationship. Of course, my daughter, whom I will refer to as C, complicated my relationship with B. And then there is the potty training bit... I won't even go there.

But one of the fun things about this age is my son's new found ability to introduce imaginative play. Just today, right after breakfast, B comes running into the family room saying, "Mommy, look! An elephant! He's not scary. Come and see!" At which point he gleefully grabs my hand and pulls me along to the hallway. I, of course, play along with this ruse, "Oh, no! An elephant? Oh, I'm scared." B reassures me there is nothing to fear--after all, it is only a baby elephant.

At the end of the hall, we come face to face with the baby elephant, say our hellos, and then B scoops him up (evidently this baby elephant came palm sized). I suggest the baby elephant would enjoy being outside. B agrees and off we go to the backyard. B has a certain fascination with all things tractor related so his first order of business is to introduce the elephant to B's backhoe. The elephant rides inside the scoop of the backhoe while B pushes.

I then suggest the elephant may want to check out one of the slides. B hands the palm-sized fellow off to me and we walk over to one of the small slides. We watch as our little elephant slides down and then B picks him up to take him to another slide. At this point I suggest that the elephant may want B to slide down with him. So B climbs up the slide and down they go!

We had a few other adventures before the baby elephant bid us good-bye, but it was fun being pulled into my son's imaginative world for a short while. It is a wonder to watch my son continue to grow and learn. He amazes me.