One of my kids wants a set of Playmobil that includes plastic dinosaur bones imbedded in ice. It's a paleontologist kit, and they get to move the people around with picks and ice transporters to dig out the frozen remains. Pretty cool for a girl who wants to be a scientist.

Her younger brother the preschooler was flipping through the Playmobil catalog and said, "You need to watch out, because your dinosaurs are gonna die and then they'll be bones. So you need to watch 'bout dat. You need to slow down."

"What do you mean she needs to slow down?" I asked.

"I mean (vowels stretched out for emphasis) that she needs to slow down. Otherwise (yes, he used the word "otherwise") they'll be bones. That's why I said she needs to slow down." He said this with a slight tone of "mom, you are so slow to catch on." Hmmm....I guess I really am slow to catch on. I have no idea what he means.

On the other hand, a conversation earlier this morning with my future paleontologist was very clear. We were picking up toys in the basement and I asked her, "Would you help your brother clean up those toys?"

"Sure," she agreed.

"Too bad you can't just magically wave that wand and have it all cleaned up," I said, gesturing to the pencil she held in her hand that doubled as a pretend wand. "In real life, we have to pitch in with our own strength and just do it."

"Yep," she agreed. She was on her hands and knees helping her brother with the cleanup. As she continued working, she pointed out, "But when you pitch in and lend a hand, it's almost like magic because it goes so much faster."