Butterfly Pavilion

Anna Louiza and I took the kids to the Butterfly Pavilion today.  I got to hold Rosie, a friendly tarantula, and the volunteer had it walk on the back of Linus' hand.  She wouldn't let him hold it because kids that age sometimes squeeze the critters.  I haven't the faintest idea where I pulled my courage from today, because before today I would not have held a tarantula.  It was obviously safe to do and I didn't want to teach Linus to fear spiders, so with little thought I just did it.  Wow!  It wasn't creepy at all.

We also got to touch a sea urchin and Linus told a bigger kid that the sea anemone was tickling the clown fish. She looked at him blankly, but I was impressed.  Linus had fun playing in the puddles of water in the butterfly area and he and Lucero ran around with butterflies flying above their heads.

On the potty training front:  this morning Linus asked me to help him sit on the toilet.  I got him out of his sleeper and diaper and held him on the seat.  He didn't go, but talked with me and seemed comfortable about being there.  Anna Louiza says I should go ahead with potty training instead of being so nonchalant.  He doesn't know how to take his pants down, so I don't think that he's ready for a full-scale training effort.  Maybe I'll let him run around the back yard this summer bare-bottomed and he'll figure it all out.