…because I need to post about this instead:
My child really likes to use the F word.
Seriously.
I blame her dad. He blames himself too. So at least we’re all clear on that one.
It wouldn’t be so bad if she just randomly shouted it out every once and a while. It does sound an awful lot like ‘truck’ after all. But she only says it in a sentence, with her own name in it. And she only says it in somewhat appropriate situations.
Yesterday, she was getting on to her little plastic horse with wheels and lost her balance a little. She started chanting, “Oh, f**k, Avi. Oh, f**k, Avi. Oh, f**k, Avi.”
I convinced her to replace f**k with “drat” and hoped it would stick.
It didn’t.
Today, I was strapping her into her f-ing car seat and was a little frustrated. I didn’t swear. I didn’t have to. She swore for me. “Oh, f**k, Avi.”
I reminded her to say “drat.” She just stared at me blankly.
I can’t wait to be at a playgroup and have her bust out with this one in ear shot of all the other parroting toddlers. I’m sure all their moms will just adore me for that one.
HA! Jarod learned he had to change his language too!!! Especially after Preston broke out in a F**k screaming fit in the middle of a store… you’re not alone :0)!
Son picked up that word as well! Luckily he’s dropped it. He’s also picked up many other swear words–both from me and his dad. Whenever he parrots me after I say a swear word, I try not to make a big deal out of it, and mostly just ignore. So far, it’s working. He says it a few times right then, but then forgets about it.
Don’t worry, she will always be welcome to hang out with our little f-bomb dropper.
My dad says that when I was a little kid, I started yelling “shit shit shit” in the middle of the grocery store at top volume. He said he ignored it and I eventually stopped, but apparently it was embarrassing enough that he remembers it to this day.
A related, interesting essay: http://www.paulgraham.com/say.html
(Recommend entire essay. Or skip to directly related content about 2/3 of the way down, under the heading “Prigs.”)
I did NOT leave a smiley winkey face in my previous comment!
Kevin – I guess I neglected to say that I don’t actually care if she says fuck. I just care who she says it around, and that she knows what it means. We swing the word around like it’s nothing, but it’s actually a pretty foul and ugly word for something that should be fun and lovely. So until she can look it up in the almighty dictionary and then be smart enough to understand connotation, and to know not to say it around someone who would take offense, then I’d rather she not say it at all. She clearly understands that it can be an explative (I can’t spell that). In fact, the very first time she used it was not until 20 minutes AFTER she heard it. She was trying to get her boot on and got frustrated and shouted ‘fuck fuck fuck fuck’ in irritation. What she doesn’t know is that it can also be an insult. I have yet to call someone a ‘fucker’ around her, but I did take the liberty of teaching her how to call bad driver’s ‘assholes.’
Maybe I should start yelling “sex sex sex” when I’m frustrated, instead.
(Hey, you, creepy-googlers, go away. This is a nice site about a nice kid and a nice mommy. Nothing for you here. Move along.)
One time my step-mother hit the brakes too hard and E. in the backseat yelled “shit!” Dad was in trouble that day.