Toren loves ladybugs. He tries to bring them into bed at nap time. A couple of times I've caught him licking them...

The conversation went like this:

M: Did you just try to eat that ladybug?

T: No.

M: Did you lick it?

T: Yes.

M: Ok, well don't do that. Why would you do that?

T: To get the poison off.

M: Just don't do that again.

T: Why?

M: Just don't. It's weird. It's gross.

But he did it again the next day. Of course he did.

The next night we were reading his ladybug book at bedtime (he loves insect books) and one page started off 'Ladybugs taste bad.' It was referring to this being a defense mechanism against predators...apparently it doesn't work for little boys though. The lightbulb went on!

M: Toren, is this why you lick ladybugs, because the book says they taste bad?

T: Yeah.

He looked at me like it was the most logical thing in the world and I was missing out.