Old Enough to Know - Too Young to Do Anything

Being three is very difficult for Wilson. Almost weekly he comes up with something he wants to do but can't because he's not old enough. It's frustrating for him. Several things he wants to do, but can't, have been brought to our attention. On his third birthday he cried because I told him he wasn't old enough to get a tattoo. Yes, that was what he really wanted - a tattoo. Can you imagine taking a three year old in to get a tattoo? I wondered what he'd get. Probably Spongebob Squarepants... Or maybe a nice "Mom". More likely than anything else is that he wanted a tattoo like Papa Jay's (my grandpa) that says "Wanda". Wilson thought "Wanda" was really neat over Christmas break. So, too young to get a tattoo that says "Wanda". Another thing that Wilson is too young to do is join the Marine Corps. They're not going to take a three year old, and this is hard for Wilson to understand. He'll have to wait until he's eighteen. (He'll like eighteen, he can get that "Wanda" tattoo while he's at boot camp.)

Today being three hit an all time low for Wilson. We had to drive Chris to report for Jury Duty this morning. The plan was that we would drop Chris off downtown at the courthouse and then head off to school. On the way down to the courthouse Chris explained to Wilson that he was going to Jury Duty. Wilson was interested in it, so Chris gave Wilson a run-down of how the judicial system works. By the time we dropped Chris off Jury Duty must have been sounding fascinating to Will. We told Chris goodbye and headed on to school. At a stoplight I heard Wilson sobbing in the backseat. I asked him what was wrong. He said "I want to go to Jury Duty!" I told him he couldn't because he's not old enough. He looked out the window and said "I hate being three!" Poor kid.