In the land of the dinosaurs...

Sometimes I forget we live in the year 2011 because my house is full of triceratops, apatosauruses, metriacanthosauruses (yes, I know what these are!), and of course T-rexes. Steven loves dinosaurs and we play, talk, and watch dinosaur shows, games, and stories all day long. To make this prehistoric adventure even more exciting, Steven uses his incredible imagination and quotes from his favorite movies. While I really love playing with my kids, occasionally I get tired of dinosaurs. Shocking, right?


Anyway, today I lucked out and was able to use the prehistoric twist to my advantage. Steven, Grant, and I were eating lunch and I really wanted to get Steven to try some broccoli. Suddenly, it dawned on me: broccoli looks like trees! Ah ha!

I looked at Steven and said, "Hi! I'm an apatosaurus. What are you?"

Steven's reply: "I'm a brachiosaurus."

      (I knew he'd pick that one - it is his favorite "long neck.")

Me: "Hi, brachiosaurs! It is nice to meet you. I am very strong and very tall. I love to eat trees!" With that, I took a big bite of my broccoli.

Steven: "Hey! I am a brachiosaurs and I'm bigger than you. I need some trees, too!"

      (Yes! He is taking the bait...)

Me: "Okay, I'll give you a few trees, but you have to make sure to eat them or I'll come over and steal them. I LOVE trees!"

Steven: "Okay, apatosaurus." He took a bite of the first piece of broccoli.

      (I waited for him to spit it out... he chewed... swallowed... and then...)

Steven: "I need more trees!"

Me: "Okay, brachiosaurs. I'll give you more because you need to get a LOOOOONG neck."

Steven ate two more pieces of broccoli. Then, he gave me a funny look, changed his facial expression and said, "Grrrrrrrrrrrrr!"

Me: "What? Why are you growling at me?"

Steven: "I'm not a brachiosaurs! I am a T-rex! I don't eat trees! No more trees! I am a meat eater, so I will only eat chicken!"

Me: "But you liked the broccoli. Do you want a few more bites?"

Steven: "I didn't like the broccoli! I won't eat it! I'm a T-rex and if you try to make me eat the trees, I'll eat you! ROAR!"

      Sigh.

I should have known it would end like this, but I'll take what I can get. Three bites is three bites and I did have him going for a while. Hopefully I can come up with a new dinosaur-driven method for squash or green beans later this week!