Whoops.

[rivka]

Alex asks for milk by sippy cup color. And she's started asking for a different color of milk (i.e., a different-colored cup) halfway through a meal.

Tonight at dinner, she had selected the yellow sippy cup. When she finished her milk, I asked her if she'd like more.

"Alex have more milk! Alex have pink milk!" she suggested brightly.

"No, only one color at a meal," I said. (I hate washing sippy cups.) "But I will get you some more yellow milk."

I took her cup and went into the kitchen. At which point I heard her say, very clearly, "Damn it, a pink milk!"

"Did she say what I think she said?" I asked Michael. He confirmed it, glumly.

I brought her refilled cup back in and gave it to her. "Damn it," she said in a disappointed voice. "Alex have a yellow milk."

We are such horrible examples to our child. If only she had already started preschool, so that I could've blamed it on her poorly-raised classmates.

Comments

[casperflea.livejournal.com]

Hee. My father and stepmother used to blame the baby's swearing on my brother (aged 7), until the day the words, "What the hell are you doing, shit-for-brains?" came from the high chair. My father did have the grace to look sheepish.

[rivka.livejournal.com]

I just gave her a bath. Afterward, I said, "Mama needs a dry shirt."

"Damn it!" Alex said. "Mama needs a dry shirt. Damn it, Mama's shirt is wet."

I suppose that I should be happy that she's using it correctly?

[kightp.livejournal.com]

*laugh*

Soon it will be time for the "things we say in front of other people and things we only say at home" talk.

[janetmiles.livejournal.com]

*giggles madly*

Oh, dear. I think this is even better than "buttcrack".

What a smart girl she is! This is a clear example of developing language skills and grasping of abstract concepts. And, Dale notes, tonal inflection.

You are so doomed. Doom, doom, doomity doom.

[klwalton.livejournal.com]

My younger daughter, Mary, was very verbal very young. One day when she was about 18 months old, we were driving on the infamous 880 and some asshole idiot cut me off. I hit the horn, and from the carseat in back came the lilting tones of "Asshole!" Okay, yes, I laughed. And, for awhile, really started watching my language :).

[melebeth]

I remember the first time I swore in front of my mother. She started to complain, I pointed out that I'd heard the word from her not 5 minutes earlier, and that was that. (I think I was about 12, and I KNOW we were in the car.)

[chargirlgenius.livejournal.com]

*giggles* It's always funnier when it's somebody else's child.

We're in so much trouble when Henry becomes more verbal. We've been better lately, but you know they catch on to things younger than we'd sometimes wish...

[malibrarian.livejournal.com]

I was just red when Sarah went around the local Borders running away from me screaming "Damn it, damn it, damn it" at the top of her lungs. Then I realized that I was only person nearby who could understand what she was saying. Luckily we were able to break her of the habit fairly easily.

[pbrim.livejournal.com]

At least she's using it right. When my oldest brother was about her age, he got frustrated at something and exclaimed, "Ah,damngod it!". On hearing this my father turned supiously to my mother (whom I have never heard use profanity in 50 years) and ask, "Damn it, where the hell has he been hearing language like that?"

[ratphooey.livejournal.com]

Mom Phooey took The Toddler with her to the post office the other day to collect a package. The postman came out from the back with bad news. "I can't find your package."

"Oh, shit!" said The Toddler.

Mea culpa. Mea maxima culpa.

[kcobweb.livejournal.com]

So far, whenever Elena has echoed our curses, we've managed not to make a Big Deal of it, and we all let the moment pass. But as her speech progresses, I know we will be facing this too. As someone above said, then will come the time for the discussion of private and public, and what things you can do (and say) in private and in public.

I need to start working on those concepts now, so she might understand them when I *need* her to.

[rivka.livejournal.com]

So far, whenever Elena has echoed our curses, we've managed not to make a Big Deal of it, and we all let the moment pass. But as her speech progresses, I know we will be facing this too.

Yep. There were previous times when we swore and she echoed us, but the word never actually made it into her vocabulary. Now, unfortunately, it's clear that she understands exactly the useful purpose that the phrase "damn it" serves in conversation.

My only hope now, I think, is to try to switch her over to more innocuous, yet equally colorful and fun to say, options. She already thinks "Oh, for Pete's sake!" is hilarious (it's in one of our books), so I might be able to substitute that.

[huladavid.livejournal.com]

Koko, the gorilla that was taught ASL, will make the sign for "shit" (the two largest fingers of the dominant hand under the chin, and brushed along the bottom of the chin outward a couple of times. Maybe you can teach her that, along with the phrase "Dirty word, Dirty word!!" (To be cackled manically while signing)

Knowing the occasional dirty sign often saved my bacon when I worked customer service, but it also lead the the choreographing of the "Fuck You" Dance.

[tea-dragon.livejournal.com]

My favorite Mom-approved swear word as a child was "fudge". It's satisfying to say, and mmm, chocolate! This is a good reminder that I'd better start using it again!

[erbie.livejournal.com]

Hey, at least she's using it appropriately. (Says the mother of the five year old who lectured her father in the proper times to use the word shit.)

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

Like everyone else, I'm just amazed that she understands that "damn it" is what you say when you are disappointed, and something doesn't go the way you'd hoped.

I mean, besides the amount of sophistication that it takes to make that situational connection to language, it ALSO implies a comprehension of the idea that there ARE times when things don't go your way -- you have a ritual and way to deal with the world not going as you hoped, which gives you a measure of control and safety as you come to grips with the fact that the world isn't always friendly and predictable.

I mean, isn't that what swearing is FOR? A way to re-establish control over yourself and come to grips with a world that isn't going the way you want it to?

Alex didn't get what she wanted. And she swore about it. Which means that she accepted the reality that she didn't get what she wanted, and found the more-or-less appropriate way to come to terms with that reality.

[wcg.livejournal.com]

Shall I teach her Barrett's Privateers?

[adrian-turtle.livejournal.com]

I think it would be best. My sweetie sang it to his daughter when she was brand new, but the presence of NICU nurses inhibited him. Thus:
"Gosh darn them all, I was told,
We'd cruise the seas for American gold..."

Kids today. *shakes head* Alex is a fine example for toddlers everywhere.

[hobbitbabe.livejournal.com]

Barrett's Privateers sung by a child is actually much cuter than the angry Alanis Morissette song with the lines "does she go down on you in a theatre?" and "are you thinking of me when you fuck her?"

[akicif.livejournal.com]

With atropinesulfate it was the Frank Heyes tape I brought back from Conspiracy (ghu, nearly twenty years ago!) and singing "Get those little fuzzy buggers before they get you!" We had to bring the tape in to show the teacher. Now, if only tapes like "Look what followed me home" had been around then....

[micheinnz.livejournal.com]

The day before she turned one, Agent Weasel swore at me. I caught her about to stick her fingers into a wall socket (the one I hadn't yet put a guard on, straight to Mummy Hell for me). So I picked her up, put a guard in the wall socket and put her back down. She poked at the guard for a bit then turned to me and said "Bitch!" I told her that wasn't a word for little girls to use, then went into the next room and cracked up laughing.

But I was more moderate in my language around the Agent after that.

[baldanders.livejournal.com]

Alex updates are my favorite thing on livejournal right now, I am not kidding. I would be very distressed to miss an Alex story.

[rivka.livejournal.com]

You guys should come down for the weekend sometime. It's not that far on the train or Chinatown bus, and Baltimore's an interesting place to visit.

[gtrout.livejournal.com]

I wish I had some words of wisdom to share on the topic, but what do I know? I'm just some 'mo in New York City with no kids of his own, whose beloved niece and nephew live a thousand miles away. So all I can say is:

1. I have never met Alex. I have no idea if I ever will. Perhaps at a con someday. (I've never met you, either, come to think of it.) But I love her dearly nonetheless, because of these stories.

2. Bwah ha ha ha ha!

[mjlayman.livejournal.com]

Alex was still a babe-in-arms when I met her. I'd like to see her now that she's more interesting!

[thette.livejournal.com]

One of my earliest memories is of my father dropping something heavy on his foot, and bursting out in a harangue of curses. I was, of course, afraid, so my mother told me that's what one says when one is really upset or hurt. Most of my life, I lived with that as a guideline. I've been saving curses for when I really need them, and they have been more effective as a result.

I've been bad about that lately, but I think it might be time to start over again, and try to set a good example.

[rivka.livejournal.com]

My father was once out in the middle of a lake in New Hampshire in a 16-foot sailboat, with my brother and my brother's friend, both of whom were 12 years old. The mast snapped.

Afterward, when the emergency had been dealt with and the boat and children returned safely to shore, my brother's friend reported with awe, all that my father had said when the mast snapped: "Oh dear."

[roadnotes.livejournal.com]

My sister's favorite Raven story is of riding on the subway with Raven and my nephew, in a conversation, used the phrase, "Be my bitch!" Raven looked up, then looked at the little boys sitting across the train car from her and brightly said, "Be my bitch!"

I, however, got her to answer the question "Who are you?" with "I am a demon-child from HELL!" I am ridiculously proud of myself.

The Alex stories are great.

[rivka.livejournal.com]

Hee! Michael's working on teaching Alex to answer the question "What are you doing?" with "Evil deeds!"

[huladavid.livejournal.com]

Did I ever tell you about my brother and I teaching Charlie (the oldest nephew) the following routine:

Evil Father or Uncle: Charlie, what sound do the dogs make

Charlie: Woof, woof, woof.

EFoU: Charlie, what sound do the cats make?

Charlie: Mew, mew, mew

EFoU: Charlie, what sound does C'thullu make?
Charlie: (Puts fingers in front of face, & waggles 'em while going "loogy, loogy, loogy".

[kip-w.livejournal.com]

One of Dad's cousins once told my sister that Dad had a reputation for colorful, imaginative, non-repeating swearing. By the time he was Dad, though, he mostly limited it to variations and subsets of "God-Damn-Son-of-a-Bitch-Crap" (I thought it was "some of a bitch" for a long time).

I managed to keep a lid on it myself for a long time. My best friend at the time told me years later that the first time he heard me swear, we were walking back from the prairie dog town and I said, "Damn it, I forgot to do my homework!" and he was shocked.

So far with Sarah, it's just been "damn" and "Jesus" that we've had to watch out for. We've kept a pretty tight lid on our own usage for a good long while now, though when I phoned in to a family gathering I'd missed, I was requested to sing "The Cursing Polka" several times. My big hit.

[ailbhe]

Have you heard the joke about "1 and 1, that son of a bitch is 2. 2 and 2, that son of a bitch is 4"?

As a toddler I invented the swear "curses, swears and blastie dammons." "Dammit" and "curses, swears and blast" were common in the household.

Linnea and Emer both swore before they were verbal; there's a *tone* in their pre-verbal communication that is clearly, clearly swearing. It's hilarious and v. useful.

So far, we've only had single-occasion usage of profane or obscene language from Linnea, all of which we've not reacted to, so she sticks to "oh dear," "oh no" etc. If she ever comes out with one it'll probably be "bloody." Or "what the hell" or similar.

My 2yo niece recently cheerily demanded of her mammy "say fa god sake mammy!"

When my sister said "For God's SAKE!" in the right tone, my niece stopped jumping on the bed.

[mjlayman.livejournal.com]

My family was Christian Fundamentalists so the worst I ever heard was "crap" from my father and my mother would scold him thoroughly for that. I almost never use obscenities and profanities -- they're just not in my main vocabulary -- so the cats haven't picked it up.

[ailbhe]

When we were all adults, my older sister said "crap" in front of my mother.

Everyone went very quiet and then we all pretended it hadn't happened.

[geekchick]

My sister related the story of how my youngest nephew would irritate his brother by rolling his walker over the Play-Doh that Preston was playing with. From the next room, she heard "Kyle, stop running over my Play-Doh, you little shit!"

[toadnae.livejournal.com]

Well, Alex is well on her way to meeting the requirements of Laura's mother. Laura's mother's one requirement for swearing around the house was that curse words must be used appropriately and in a grammatically correct way. Which is why when I went through a phase of saying "for fuck's sake!" it drove Laura crazy. :)