The Alcatraz of the Sculimbrene household is the lower most step on the stair case, the so-called Naughty Step.  About two months ago, when Isaac was, hopefully, at the zenith of his terrible twos, he was sentenced to the Naughty Step sometimes as much as once a day.  Since then he has been much, much better.  Like with all things related to kids, this was a phase. 

The ritual of the Naughty Step is pretty consistent.  We'd sit him down for two minutes, get the timer, and tell him we loved him, but we didn't approve of his behavior.  At the end of the two minutes we'd give him a hug and let him off.  It seemed to have an impact on his behavior pretty quickly.

Recently Isaac has taken to sending his Schleich T-Rex to the Naughty Step.  He would have the dino bite his finger and then, with a scolding voice, tell him: "You go to the Naughty Step."  The game has become more elaborate now.  He also tells T-Rex: "No biting.  No clawing.  No growling.  I still luff you."  Its "luff" and not "love" because the v sound is pretty hard to make.  In all, it is absolutely, positively the funniest thing I have ever seen. 

No growling...and I still luff you. 

Isaac: Daddy, what you thinking about?
ME: You Isaac Anthony.
Isaac: What else?
ME: How proud I am of you that you can go to the potty by yourself.
Isaac: What else?
ME: How fun it is to give you a bath every night.  Isaac if you are finished on the potty, let's get in the tub.
Isaac: What else you thinking about?
ME: How I think you will like all of the squirt bottles I have set up for you.
Isaac: Why you do that?
ME: Because they make you happy and I love you and I love see you happy.
Isaac: Why?
ME: Because you are my only son and because you are so adorable when you are happy.
Isaac: Why Daddy?
ME: Because your cute and you have a nice smile and you laugh funny laugh when you are happy.
Isaac: What else you thinking about?
ME: How I hope the water isn't too cold by now.
Isaac: Why?
ME: Well, it seems like you have been done with the potty for a while, but you are trying to distract me from putting you in the tub and so in that time the water might have gotten cold.
Isaac: Why?
ME: It has something to do with the molecules slowing down, but buddy, I am sure you are distracting me now.
Isaac: What else you thinking about?
ME: How in three seconds I am going to pick you up, clean you off, and put you in the tub.
Isaac: No Daddy.  I do myself.

Small children make you appreciate spring and summer like nothing else.  Its not just that you want them to be out from under your feet (though any honest parent who steps on a Lego for the third time in a day will admit that to be true), it is also because there is something special about watching your kid run free.  Unfortunately this is New England and so winter drags on through February and well into March.  Its only when April hits do we cautiously put away the snow shovels.

In these cold gray days though nothing brightens a kid's spirits like a dino and a road trip.  Two weekends ago we took a trip to Amherst, Massachusetts.  This is, frankly, a gem among gems.  As a classic a New England town as you can find, it is also a classic Massachusetts town in that it has a college, and not just any college, but one of the best in the world--Amherst College.  At the College museum, the Beneski Museum of Natural History, is one of the largest (if not THE largest) ichnology collections in the world.  Ichnology?  Oh, yes, the study of ancient tracks and impressions.  The museum has a mastodon, a mammoth, a dinotherium, a few other ancient mammals, some dino bones, and the aforementioned prints and tracks.  The museum itself is pretty small, three stories and about 5,000 square feet, but it is PACKED.

Here are Dad and Isaac perusing the small dino display:

The dino is one of our favorites, the mighty Compsognathus.  It is part of a series of videos Isaac loves to watch on YouTube, entitled "I'm A Dinosaur".  They are cartoons of dinos and many of them are funny, but the Compsognathus is the funniest.  Seeing one in person was pretty cool.  In the picture Isaac was actually looking over to make sure Mom saw the Compsognathus too.  

Here is Isaac stalking his prey, literally walking in the footprints of a dino dead for a hundred million years:


This is a GREAT museum for kids.  It is free.  There are plenty of bathrooms.  There is enough to see, but not enough to overwhelm them, and its small footprint (pun half intended) makes it less of chore to slog around with them.  You can basically pick a floor and let them run wild, which is good in the doldrums of winter.  Plus, the town is great for food and parent things.  Here is Isaac with his new (third) Brachiosaurus, a souvenir from a local toy store:

And finally, here is a Maple Glazed BACON Donut from a local gourmet donut place:

We are waiting for spring, but we have dinos, roadtrips, and bacon donuts to hold us over until then.