Fire, Birthday Parties and Space

(Recent stencil art by Little D)

These 3 things are much talked about by Little D lately. Well, space has been this child's number one obsession for a couple of years now. But fire and birthday parties are more recent topics of conversation. And such wonderful conversations we are enjoying with this almost 5 year old lately.

Catch phrases at the moment, things we hear a gazillion times a day are:

"Of course I can/you can/we can". This is in relation to anything requiring a Yes, such as can you put your shoes on now? Of course I can. Or me suggesting a trip to the museum. Of course we should. Or Little H asking for help with some lego construction - of course I can build it.

"Will you remember this please mum/dad?" (followed by some strange dance move or a made up word). He has been saying this with such frequency it is almost driving me crazy.

Knock knock jokes that ALWAYS end in someone "...with his pants on fire"! HILarious I'm telling you.

(Another robot)

And a good deal of rhyming wherever possible and when not possible made up words do the trick. Such as when pushing him on the swing today at the playground he told me it was "perfect smerfic". Or when expressing joy about eating scrambled eggs, "yum, eggs [big pause] with legs". Ha, ha, rolling about with laughter, eggs with legs. Too much.

(There's been some accessorising lately and this wrist cuff along with a little badge he made out of cardboard, sticky tape and a safety pin have been worn every day for the past 2 weeks!)

Then, there are those conversations when you can almost see the dots connecting, those neurones firing. Like tonight when he comprehended for the first time that just as we humans need oxygen to survive fire needs oxygen to survive.

Looking at the candles on the dinner table D asked:

D: What would happen if you put a blanket over the flames?

Me: The candles would go out.

D: Why?

Me: Because the blanket would cut off the oxygen. And fire needs oxygen to survive.

D: Yeah yeah, and you can't light a candle in space can you mum, because there's no oxygen?

Me: Yep. A candle wouldn't light in space.

D: But you could light one inside a space ship couldn't you mum? Because the astronauts have oxygen inside so they can breath.

Me: Yes, that's right.

D: Good, cause someone might be having a birthday party and they could light their birthday cake candles. [Long pause, thinking thinking...] What would happen if you were having a birthday party on Pluto? You couldn't light the candles.

Me: That's true, no oxygen on Pluto.

D: Yeah but mum, [practically rolling his eyes at me] you wouldn't even want to have a birthday party on Pluto because it's so far from the sun, it would be freezing.

Look at this little boy. When did he get to be almost five?