Everyday Lunasea

A. and Ben were running around the house with sand toys, saying they were catching butterflies. Awww. Then A said,

A: Yeah! We're catching butterflies to cook and eat for dinner!

Me: Oh...I'm not sure I know how to cook butterflies.

A: It's easy. You put them in a pan, put some roast beef on top and cook it for 15 hours.

Well. OK then. I think I'll still take charge of dinner, OK?

Later, playing "Jungle," in which he hides in a bush outside, and I watch the leaves move and wonder what animal could be hiding in the bush; then he pops up, announces what animal he is and we have a conversation:

A: I'm a tiger!

Me: Oh dear, I'm a little scared of tigers.

A: Well, tigers are scared of moms, dads, boys and babies but they're not scared of humans.

Me: Oh, OK. Tiger, you don't have to be afraid of me, even though I'm a mom. I won't hurt you. But watch out for the red-headed boy around here.

A: Well, A and Benjamin are already my friends. They give me food.

Me: Really? What kind of food?

A: Carrots. And skunks. And rocks.

Me: Rocks? Are you sure you can eat rocks?

A: Yes, I have very sharp teeth and I take the rock and I just crunch it like that! And then it comes out my front.

Me: And skunks too?

A: Yes, I plunge the tail and then it doesn't smell anymore.

Me: You plunge the tail? Into what?

A: (looking a little uncertain) I plunge it into the smell. Goodbye! (ducks back into the bush)

He was also a zebra who ate lions, a turtle who ate hippos (maybe I should have given him a bigger lunch because eating to be on his mind), and a giraffe who hid behind mountains when it rained.