Three Syllables

"To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is spelled out is a spark."

-Victor Hugo No, the little genius isn't reading yet.  But she said her very first three-syllable word yesterday. Dinosaur. Oh, but she's a girl after her Daddy's heart, and mine!  We were both so interested in, maybe obsessed, with dinosaurs when we were young.  We loved the long names, the different shapes and sizes, the crunchy-sounding names of the epochs.  It was a world more marvelous and exciting than Once Upon a Time, because it was real!  Of course, it didn't hurt that my dad's area of expertise is the Ice Age, so I was pretty obsessed with Ice Age mammals, too.  I mean, how cute is a Mastodon?  But I digress. Here's what really gets to me about her coming up with that word.  I haven't even remotely been trying to teach it to her.  When I point to her various dinosaur-related items, I usually say dino.  I figured dinosaur was a mouthful, so we might as well start small.  But my little Oxford-bound bean started with dinosaur.  I can't help but be amazed. We got started early.