life and death.

Willow casually mentioned in the car that she didn't want Ethan coming to her birthday. On further questioning, she explained that she "just didn't" and only wanted Amber and Xander there, but she was looking forward to sleeping over at Ethan's that night. Huh. Ok.

I mentioned it to ethan's mum, who replied that Ethan had mentioned not wanting Willow to come to his birthday (a trip to see monster trucks) because "Willow just doesn't get trucks." A fair enough statement, because when Monster trucks are on tv, Ethan tries to get her to watch. 

Willow, naturally, was all what are these cars doing?
"Willow, they're not cars! They're TRUCKS!" Ethan replied, scandalized. Then Willow got bored and wandered off, and Ethan was all "Willow, he's about to do a burnout! Come look! Why aren't you watching? You're missing out! Willow!"

I guess Willow and Ethan must have discussed their birthdays and reached a mature and mutual decision- Ethan doesn't want any part of a princess party or whatever Willow has planned, and Willow doesn't want any part of monster trucks. (Although after watching the V8 Supercars with M on tv, Willow came and asked me why do some people like car races and some do not?)

Willow is very much looking forward to turning 5. She's sick of being the shortest and slowest. When she turns 5, she believes she will then be bigger than Ethan and Dean, because they'll only be 4. I did point out that they'll be 5 in October and November, but she just looked at me funny. It reminds me of the night of her birthday, when Willow was playing with Amber and was all "you can be the baby and I'LL be the mummy cos I'm big now, I'm FOUR." Amber gave her a massive side eye and we fell about laughing, because Amber is a year and a half older.

Amber slept over a few weeks ago. I got solo kid duties, as M ended going out to a work dinner with Amber's mother, which isn't as weird as it sounds. As Amber and her mum said goodbyes and their "I love yous" Willow, standing to the side whispered "I'm going to kill you."

I blame Bambi. (Disney in general. They killed off Elsa's parents, Bambi's mum, Simba's dad, Nemo's mum and siblings, etc. Also Ever After, where the father dies of a heart attack, and Anastasia, which is by Fox Studios. I mean, in that one, Anastasia's entire family are quietly massacred off screen. ("mummy, where did her family go?" "Ah. They all died." "How did they die?" "....") Ever since watching Bambi Willow has been obsessed/ intensely curious about death.

With Ethan, they like playing "dead people" which involves one person being whacked by a ball with a string on it- this is the bullet, apparently. Then the other person drops down dead. If Ethan "kills" Willow, she lies there and yells orders at him- ok, now drag me down there! If Willow's "killing" Ethan she just whacks him repeatedly with the ball until they both fall about laughing. 

I can't decide if I should just let it go or get Willow into a psychologist. Death is a natural thing.... Right????

She suddenly thought one afternoon, when looking in the glass at her fairness, that there was yet another date, of greater importance to her than those; that of her own death, when all these charms would have disappeared; a day which lay sly and unseen among all the other days of the year, giving no sign or sound when she annually passed over it; but not the less surely there.

Thomas Hardy, Tess of the D'Ubervilles.