If you ever want to know what you sound like to someone else... just have kids. Our little echo is so clear that sometimes it is funny. David keeps trying to teach Alexis that fruit snacks, candy, cookies and other such sugar bombs are "treats". We want her to know that she can't just demand them and get them, but that they are for special occasions or have to be earned. The other day I made some cookies and as the cook... you have to taste them to make sure they turned out okay. When I had the cookie millimeters from my mouth I hear a little voice behind me saying, "Mom, don't eat that. That's a treat". Darn it! Now my two year old has caught on and is regulating all "treats" in the house. I've resorted to eating in the closet when I need a sugar boost.
Alexis has become quite the enforcer. Yesterday David threw a ball across the room and Alexis put him in his place. "No throwing in the house Daddy! You go to time-out!" She has also placed ever single stuffed animal and doll on time-out for various things. When she goes to talk to them she repeats almost exactly what I say to her when she is on time-out, followed by hugs and kisses. To see her imitation, I wonder if I really look and sound that silly.
When I talk to Alexis I wonder if she understands what I am saying to her. Over the past few weeks I no longer wonder, but know she definitely understands more than I originally thought. She will repeat things I say, but not just repeat, she'll use them in the same tone and in the correct way. Some mornings she wakes up with her hair a mess and I say she looks like a "rag-a-muffin". This morning she woke up and said, "Mom, I a rag-a-muffin".
As I am typing this I tossed something across the desk... and what do I hear... "That's enough... no throwing". I am definitely in trouble. So what have I learned from this? Watch what I say. Even if I think she can't hear me, chances are she just learned a new phrase to use in the future. I can only imagine what Timothy will pick up when he starts talking. So in the words of Thumper, "If you can't say something nice, don't say nothin at all".
