Chalk Therapy

My four-year-old, "Pie," is a man of few words, so at times like these when he opens up, it's precious.

He still has a fierce attachment to his lovey, "Baby," ("Bubbles," the orange, expanding Angry Bird) who has become like a member of the family.

Pie and Baby were happily playing out in the backyard the other morning when I went out to check on them. The stone wall at the edge of the patio had been filled from end to end with chalk drawings. "These are all Baby's thoughts," Pie proudly explained.

It was cute--he had drawn his beloved Angry Bird as a crude circle with a big triangle inside for a beak, but I could definitely tell who it was supposed to be. I asked Pie to tell me what was happening in the pictures.

"This is Baby flying fast," he began. "This is Baby exploding [my brother's lovey]."

Hmmm.

There were a few more before the coup de grace: "This is Baby putting [my brother's lovey] in jail." It was an awesome drawing...but that's when it hit me that we seemed to be having an impromptu art therapy session.

Note to self: do more art and pretend play with Pie, and read up on sibling rivalry. And keep tabs on that Baby. I think he might know more than he's letting on.