"See him?"

Yesterday at a bookstore I read -or more accurately narrated- a children's book to Jonah about a mom expecting a second baby and preparing the older sibling for the change. I wasn't sure if it was too early to start the preparation, but thought I would see how he reacted. When I got done describing the pictures in simpler language than the book offered, Jonah asked me to read the book again. He was intrigued. I then took the next step and posed the question:

"Did you know mommy has a baby in her belly too?"

Jonah thought about it for a second, then repeated in Czeglish: "In the pupik (meaning belly)," pointing at my stomach. The most amazing thing was that he didn't seem surprised.

We didn't discuss it much at the bookstore, but when we got home, I brought it up again. This time Jonah got very excited. First he asked: "See him?" I told him we couldn't see the baby yet; that the baby was small and needed to grow and sleep inside until it was ready to come out and that then it would come out of my vagina and cry and we would hold it and feed it. He has, by the way, already known about male and female anatomy (as much as a two-year-old can grasp) for some time, so this simple explanation of birth was not a big surprise either.

Jonah then began to fantasize about all that would follow. His stream of consciousness went something like this: "Baby sleeping in there. Still growing. It's still growing."

I nodded. He went on like this for some time: "And then the baby come out and then baby cry and Jonah hold it. And then baby walk and open the door and Jonah walk and hold baby's hand. And mommy put baby in Jonah's stroller and baby eat something."

I couldn't believe how easily he grasped the whole concept. I actually expected him to be confused and was ready to instantly abandon the topic if he showed any signs of confusion. I guess I underestimated him. A friend of mine told me that she began to talk about her pregnancy with her two year old daughter too, and that her daughter was receptive. So I thought I'd try it.

Later in the day, Jonah brought up the topic again while I was at work, discussing the new baby with Tim. What a marvelous little two-year-old brain.