Dinosaur Wars

Thomas has been really into playing "Dinosaur Wars" lately. Yes, it's a game he made up. It's always (of course) the meat-eaters versus the plant-eaters. I'm always the meat-eaters, he's always the plant-eaters. (I certainly figured that one backwards. Definitely thought he would be the meat-eaters.) Also, (again of course), he always wins. Yeah, somehow those plant-eaters always take down the carnivores. Surprising....except that I'm playing with a four year-old!

There are five rules that are always stated prior to commencing the war. The first two have changed since our first few rounds of play. The fifth rule is a very recent addition. They are as follows:

1. "If you see a meat-eater and it's charging right at you, use your weapon." (Formerly, Rule 1, "Don't panic!" I like that one better!)
2. "Do not move unless the coaches flash you a signal." (Formerly, "No whining!") (Oh, there are four coaches. They are Dophiney (a toy Dolphin), Mr. Pteranodon, Tiny (a small glow-in-the-dark Pteranodon), and Mr. Tyrannosaurus (a wind-up robot T-Rex whose one leg is not working well. I was just informed we should pretend he's in a wheelchair. I agreed.)
3. "Try to use your weapons."
4. "If you get hungry or thirsty, we have snacks and drinks." (Thank goodness!)
5. "If you see a big meat-eater, use the weapon that you have." (I just told him that sounds a lot like Rule 1. He doesn't agree. Very long explanation. Not sure I can put it into words. I did just get a demonstration, followed by "See? See the difference?" Sure.

Oh, also important, there are games, practices, and replays. Not sure what the difference is. Can't help you there.

Okay, gotta run. There is a dinosaur war awaiting a worthy opponent.