CTP in Five Chapters

Chapter One: Dinotopia

Have you heard of this book? It's incredible. Beautiful illustrations and a really fun concept of a father and son discovering, after being washed ashore an island following a shipwreck, a society where dinosaurs and humans have lived in harmony for generations. About five years ago a made-for-tv movie came out based on the book, but updated to a modern pair of brothers who also washed ashore following a plane wreck. We've rented this movie from the library a couple of times and we've checked out the book several times as well, pretty regularly over the past 3 years. I don't know what clicked for C about 2 months ago, but Dinotopia suddenly became his main topic of thought, conversation and play. Just ask his cousins, especially Hannah. I think if C asks her one more time to play Dinotopia she's going to run away screaming and pulling out her hair. I have actually now offered to PAY her to come play Dinotopia with C because he loves it so much. I finally decided to just buy the dang DVD, thinking that he could watch it occasionally instead of always asking us all to play it with him. You're wondering what I was thinking, right? Me too. His efforts have doubled. He has a stuffed dinosaur that used to be named Topsy-Turvy the Triceratops. However, there's a chasmasaurus (similar to a triceratops) in the movie named "26" (don't ask) and now poor Topsy will forevermore be called 26. Here's C grinning from ear to ear on the day his DVD arrived in the mail.

Chapter Two: First Summer Vacation

Here's CTP at his last-day-of-school water party last Thursday. Let it be known that we have ADORED Miss Patti - she is the neatest teacher. We found her through our friend Marianne, and although she lives far away from us in the Canyon Rim area, about 15 minutes away, she was so worth the drive. Next year we're going to attend a pre-K class closer to home, and I'm just so sorry that we're not going to Miss Patti. Luckily the school at Bennion Elementary was recommended by several friends, so I'm sure we'll do great. But it's hard to leave Patti. Also, I've only just started to get to know the other moms. I guess all winter long at drop-off and pick-up times we just sat in our cars and watched our kids come and go. With the warming weather, we're actually getting out of our cars and talking. I've gotten to know two moms in particular and we've had some really fun play dates. I'm just about the only person not returning next year. It would have been so fun actually knowing the other people. I even considered taking C there again next year despite the addition of one more day a week, but then we thought that at Bennion, C might be in a class with kids he'll go to kindergarten with, which is certainly not the case now.

Chapter Three: Prepositionally Challenged

Picture this. I'm sitting at the computer, which is next to the bathroom door. C comes running up in a panic, announcing that he has to go to the bathroom. He likes to keep me informed. He runs into the bathroom, yanks down his pants, and has at it. Then he says, "Ooops! I think I tinkled ON the potty, not IN the potty!" I look over. Indeed, the lid remains closed, though the deed has been done. Thank heavens for antibacterial bathroom cleaner.

Chapter Four: The Rematch

S came to town. You know, S, C's cousin, son of Adam & Whitley, sibling to L (the disappointingly non-Flash sister), the one child who seems to raise C's sense of competition more than any other. They had a showdown at my folks' house. Guess what. They did great! They played dress-up ("We're being GIRLS!!!"), played Twister, ran around the yard and played in the hammock. I don't think they had a single duel. They probably just didn't have enough time to really get going. My dad got really creative with the Twister game, what with C and S not really knowing left and right just yet. "Put your belly button on yellow!" "Put your armpit on green!"

Chapter Five: I didn't quite catch that

Today. Five p.m. I'm fixing dinner while C is sitting on the kitchen table with a giant green glob of playdough we just made and he's stuffing little dinosaurs into it and pretending to dig them out. He says, "Look Mom! I'm exhibating dinosaurs!" What? The award for creative combination of two words into one goes to my son, CTP.