It is shocking, really. We discover more of the truth every day. Every little piece is another surpise.

First, it was the announcement of a fiancee. The next week we found there was another girlfriend on the side.

Now we have discovered there are about five girls, all told. None know about the others.

Yes, our five year old is a Lothario-in-training, some kind of babe magnet.

One day at dinner he calmly announced that he had asked a girl at preschool to marry him, and she had said yes. Hubby and I tried to not choke on our pizza as we turned towards our youngest son. Apparently, these two had liked one another for a while, so he decided to “make it official”. Now, we have no objections to the girl. Actually, she is ideal - cute, sweet, from a wonderful family. It was just the suddeness of it all. So unexpected.

The following week I watched the two “betrothed” play together, sharing secret smiles. Later, my son came up to me. He sweetly whispered in my ear, “There is my other girlfriend”, pointing to yet another preschool vixen.

“What about C?” I asked him. “Aren’t  you going to be married?” (and does she know about the other girl, I thought)

“Yes,” he replied, looking at me as if I were crazy to think one girl cancelled out the other.

A few days later, I took him to his swimming lesson. The five children in the class are all preschoolers. For 30 minutes, they must listen to Mr. Justin and practice the skills they learn. When class was done, I took my son to the family locker room, where he showered and dressed. As we left through the lobby, one of the little girls from class waved at my son.

“She is my girlfriend now, too,” he said, with a smile I suspected contained a touch of smugness. “I asked her during class.”

Girlfriend! I witnessed the whole class. There was no time for hanky-panky there. Boy, this kid not only racks them up, but he works fast, too!

Somehow, I have given birth to Romeo, romantic and swoon-able. He seems pleased by all the women in his life. I have no idea how he comes by it. His father and I were neither one big daters in our day. I knew boys like my son, though. I always wondered how they could have so many girls strung along.

Nor could he have picked it up on television, because he never sees anything like that. His two brothers have had no more than friendships with girls. He is homeschooled, so school is not an issue.

That leaves me to believe he was just born that way. Scary. My five-year-old is collecting girls the other boys collect rocks or dinosaurs.

One positive thing - he does believe he is too young to get married. He will wait until he is 18.