“Game over, man!” the video game hollers when Livia’s round is over. She is sitting next to me at the dueling computers on my desk. Old iMac versus Mac Mini with the iMac serving in its retirement years as Liv-typewriter-and-game-console.
“GAME OVER, MAN!” Liv is pretty good at this game. So far she’s clicking away silently until now. She picks up on the lingo and begins shooting it back to the screen:
“Sweet, man!” my little girl starts to exclaim.
“Whatcha doing, dude?!”
“I’m gonna getcha, man!”
And then the clencher: “You PISSED ME OFF, man!”
Uh. Wait a minute! Hello! A conversation takes place in front of paused screens. Apparently, Livia doesn’t know it was an, ahem, inappropriate phrase. She can’t even recall where she got it from—and considering her elephantine memory, I believe her.
Corrected, she goes back to the game and I return to my own screen, both cringing and laughing inside, knowing full well where she could have picked up the phrase.
Little pitchers, big ears, yada yada yada. Ah, the life of a mom.
9 Comments
Claudia Sep 14, 2009 9:20 AM
I want to comment, but “no comment”! Nana
Moriah @ Please Pass the Salt Sep 14, 2009 10:59 AM
I can’t believe I’m saying this out loud, but our kids have been known to say “you can say ‘shoot’ but we don’t say sh*t.” Yeah. EXCEPT YOU JUST SAID IT.
alina Sep 14, 2009 12:12 PM
Karis is in a stage of repeating whatever she hears. So far we’ve not heard her repeat any of the choice phrases we’ve uttered under our breath (in head-banging, stub-your-toe, fight in the car moments). But I know they are coming, and I am bracing myself…and formulating my response. :-)
Kerri Sep 15, 2009 10:12 AM
Awesome.
Evil Uncle Adam Sep 16, 2009 8:43 AM
Clearly lax parenting is at fault.
Marc, Sr. Sep 16, 2009 10:36 AM
LOL
Sarah B. Sep 16, 2009 12:24 PM
Ah, I remember the days of a certain little boy saying “dammit” and the corrections (of both his mouth and, well, mostly our mouths!) that took place. I’m not sure we stopped swearing as often, but rather, started “strategically swearing!”
Evil Uncle Adam Sep 16, 2009 3:54 PM
I believe it’s simply easier to teach them to swear efficiently and accurately, then mandate cursing is only appropriate in certain circumstances…
…like when your lunar patrol craft is being boarded by moon Nazis. Period. Yep, that’s the ticket. ONLY SWEAR WHEN FIGHTING MOON NAZIS.
Rebecca Sep 17, 2009 7:40 AM
LOL.