Wednesday, February 06, 2008

Tarantulas

For the past couple days we've been getting quite the education about Tarantulas from Em. Last week, she had a reading book all about them and really absorbed a lot of information, which she obviously found fascinating. I happen to think it's fascinating that a first grader can gather so many facts in such a short, tiny reading book - 20 pages, 265 words! Oh, and the map.

T left last night for Florida and Em has been relentless in her concern for his safety, seeing as tarantulas live in that region! She has been warning him about them, their shape, their abilities and even the fact that they like to hide in plants much like the ones in the bedroom she assumed he'd be sleeping in at our friend's house. Every time we mention daddy and his trip, we learn one more thing about those scary, dangerous creatures.

This morning, Em crawled into bed with me and I assured her that daddy was safe in Florida AND having lots of fun. She very seriously said to me, "Well, at least he's not paralyzed!" Being 8 am and still a bit groggy, I asked her to explain to me what she meant by that. She then said, "That's what happens when tarantulas bite you!"

Never again will we be able to visit a tarantula region!

3 comments:

Kathryn said...

Too funny. I personally hate spiders, but...

It may ease Em's fears if she knows that there are different kinds of tarantulas--many being quite harmless...unless you are a small bird. Then, you need to worry about being paralyzed! ;-)

fmbillwatt said...

There was a good segment on Tarantulas last night on the Tonight Show... it should be on Hulu.com later tonight if you want to see it. ;-)

deanna said...

At this point, I don't believe anything will ease her fears, nor am I going to perpetuate them!! LOL I can't wait to hear what she comes up with tonight, though. What a goof!!