a child's view

I learn a lot being the mum mom in the front seat.  At a playdate today June who is 2 and a half made  an apple tree by sticking stickers on it. She chose: lots of red apples, 2 bees, 2 cardinals then flipped it over and covered it with squirrels.

On the way home from the park June and Marie got into a discussion about her tree.  First June generously fed Marie many apples. But then Marie wanted meat.

She said," Now we're going to eat the bees and the cardinals."  "
"no, " protested a June just starting to get teary eyed, " you don't eat bees and cardinals".
"Yes you do" suavely assured Marie.  " you just kill them first, then they are meat".   June protested.
"It's ok. " said persuasive Marie," they were killed a long time ago. Now its ok to eat them".
June disagrees and raised her tree high out of Marie's reach protectively.

Marie quietly and firmly said " kill." and made a poking motion at the cardinal and bees.  June got very upset.
"no Huree! if you kill the squirrel it makes it cry!"
"Squirrels don't cry" said Marie, " they just run away",

In my defense of sad Junie I interrupted this discussion to say there was a protective wall around the tree and Marie couldn't kill them, plus offered to hold the tree in a safe place in the front seat -but those options weren't viable to June.  Wrapped up in her argument. And,  though she was slightly crying at one point, by the time we got home( 10 minutes?) somehow the conversation had shifted to the point where Junie had pulled off a bee sticker and broken the wing and was saying "It's dead the wing came off" and said " cook, cook cook" and they were happily killing all the bees and cardinals on the tree.  ( but not the squirrels...).

(I think talking about how good hot dogs taste might have been the transitioning point. Oh yes! - I just remembered - when denied her bees and cardinals Marie noted that there was a dead mommy pig on the sidewalk (right by the bus stop) and lets make it into hotdogs. Then they were debating how it died.  ( "That car killed it" june said as a minivan pulled away.  ) Marie agreed.

Happy Tuesday Mom and Eve!! the kids are about 20 min. in bed and I am knackered!!