The Im Family

i asked ozzy to draw a picture to hang up in his new classroom at preschool this school year.  it was a very sweet and ultimately fascinating process to sit by him as he drew.  i gave him paper and asked him what he would draw.  he said he wanted a dinosaur.  T Rex! he grabs a pencil ready to draw, then suddenly freezes, looks at me and says, pathetically, "but i dont know how to draw a T Rex." well, i say, you know it has a head, and big body, and a tail.  so let's start there.  just do an oval for the head. ozzy says, plaintively, "but i dont know how to draw an oval." yes, you do.  i said.  it's like making an O for Ozzy.  but you can draw it long the other way for the T Rex's head. so he draws a tiny oval.  i erased it and told him to make it bigger because T Rex is BIG. he made a bigger oval.  then what shape for the body, i asked?  how about another oval but much bigger for the body.  he complies and dr...

yesterday morning, while i'm getting ready for the day, ozzy says to me, 'mommy, guess which one of my stuffed animals is having a birthday today?" shaking my head (uhhh, i dont know!), i answer feebly, "ummm, pink puppy?" ozzy says, "noooooooo.  guess again!" geez.  i try another stab at it, "then is it Fire Dog?" the dog dressed like a fireman. ozzy says disgustedly, "no, mommy!  Fire Dog is the pizza man who delivers the pizza to the party!" after being chastized by a 4 year old for not knowing this basic fact, as if this were common knowledge, i decide not to engage further and to just give up, "well, i dont know who is having a party.  i give up.  which of your (80 million) stuffed animals is having a birthday party today?" ozzy says cheerfully, "it's baby monkey's birthday today!  he used to be four like me, but now he's turning 5, so he's going to start going to Monkey School to learn...