I went to the Stamford Museum and Nature Center today with a new friend from the Stamford Hospital Moms Group (the source of all good things). Inexplicably, on this gorgeous warm day, we were the ONLY ones there except for one other family. At 10 am, the Animal Embassy (house with rescued snakes, birds, chinchillas, turtles, etc.) was empty save for the two caretakers and "Big Red," a turtle who was wandering around and scaring the crap out of my almost 3 year old. To me, it looked like the turtle was just poking around, but to my son, the turtle's slow movements were terrifyingly predatorial. (I have to admit it was a little stalkerish how the turtle kept creeping up on us, especially when it poked its head around from behind a table. Very cinematic.) 
My new friend Hannah reassured Q, picking him up and then showing him how it was perfectly safe to pet the turtle. Hannah has a British accent, so everything she says sounds very sensible, and Q soon calmed down. She also called the turtle a "tortoise." I'm not sure if that's the British word for turtle, or if Hannah knows that the turtle is a tortoise and not a turtle. Are they the same thing? I have no idea. Anyway, this evening at dinner, I said, "Tell your dad about the turtle at the Nature Center!" Q paused and pronounced very seriously, "Hannah saved me." 
It was also cool to see how the caretaker was chopping veggies to prepare breakfast for all the various animals! I'm not sure which one was gonna drink the coffee.
Except I don't have the answers.
1 comment:
Love it! Hoping to join up in the mom's group one of these days :-)
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