Violet and the Jurassic Land Exhibit

Violet and the Jurassic Land Exhibit — page 7 — was what Mom called an intrusive or unwanted thought Violet didn't want people to get hurt But she couldn't help imagining that they did When Violet imagined bad things happening to her family and friends she told herself that the bad things hadn't actually happened And they weren't more likely to happen just because she thought about them either Dad had said she shouldn't try to stop the thoughts because that could make them even worse She didn't want to let her obsessive compulsive disorder take over For Violet OCD made her anxious or scary thoughts get stuck in her head and she would repeatedly carry out rituals like making lists of seven or checking for mistakes Violet wasn't going to let a fall on the hillside stop her The fossil she had found with Nick had been waiting at least 110 million years for them to discover it Mom and Dr. Hart would know what kind of dinosaur it was Once Violet got to the top of the hill she took seven deep breaths She had made it Violet scanned the crowd on the other side of the dig site Mom's cranberry fleece jacket stood out in the distance The kid with the chocolate brown baseball cap hunched over the ground next to Mom was Violet's younger brother Bo 6

Violet and the Jurassic Land Exhibit — page 8 — And not too far from them was Dad He was hard to miss with his waterproof rainforest ready pants and jacket Violet walked toward them like she was on a mission But she didn't run The rule was to always walk so you didn't break the fossils Mom come quick yelled Violet while walking across the gentle slope of clay Mom Dad and Bo met her halfway on large chunks of ironstone Nick and I found something said Violet Oh great Mom's bronze hair stuck out of the gray bucket hat like ironstone poking out of the clay on the ground What did you find I found something too Bo put a piece of ironstone as big as his palm between Violet and Mom The rusty color shined in the sun That's great Bo Violet was happy for Bo But she didn't have time for his fossil right now Lao Lao and Nick were waiting for her And Violet didn't want anything bad to happen to the dinosaur bone she had found with Nick You didn't really look at it said Bo Don't you want to see the fossil He held the piece of ironstone up higher so it was between Violet's and Mom's faces Dad says it's a ginkgo leaf Dad would've known since he was a botanist The leaf impression was shaped like a fan 7

Violet and the Jurassic Land Exhibit — page 9 — It's cool said Violet But I need Mom's help You can show everyone your fossil later Bo said Dad Violet needs to talk to Mom We found bone said Violet The piece above ground is about -Violet cupped her hands like she was holding them around a football- this big Too big to be anything other than a dinosaur bone Bo's mouth dropped open Dad's eyebrows raised up creating wrinkles on his forehead It's that big Even Mom was impressed And she was a paleontologist who worked at a natural history museum in Pittsburgh The Infinity Rainbow Club and their families gathered on the hillside to see the dinosaur bone Attention brilliant buzzing brains and families said Ms. Daisy That was what she always called the kids in the club Kids who had different brains like Violet As long as you stay in Paleo Park you can leave the hillside anytime to continue looking for more fossils With a bone this big it will probably take a long time for Violet and Nick to unearth it 8

Violet and the Jurassic Land Exhibit — page 10 — Violet and Nick sat on opposite sides of the fossil surrounded by paintbrushes trowels scalpels a roll of paper towels a bucket of water and plaster bandages Violet couldn't stop smiling Every time she looked at the fossil her smile got bigger Nick's smile was frozen on his face too And his body shook with excitement Dr. Hart squatted down to the ground to look at the fossil He was an expert on Maryland's dinosaurs and led field trips to Paleo Park Like Mom Dr. Hart was a paleontologist but at a natural history museum in Washington DC It could be an Astrodon johnstoni femur Dr. Hart rubbed his grayish white beard That means thigh bone Astro what Connor sat at the front of the crowd on the hillside popping his Triceratops fidget Violet knew that Connor focused best when he used his fidget Astrodon johnstoni said Violet Before they came to Paleo Park Mom had told her all about the fossils that had been found in Maryland It's the Maryland state dinosaur It was a huge sauropod Violet couldn't believe that the fossil they found might be from Astrodon johnstoni What's a sauropod Ruby tapped her pencil on her field notebook 9

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