Monday, January 31, 2005

my multi-lingual child

I figured out why Girl Terror and I seem to have communication problems. We are speaking different languages! All along I thought she was speaking English, because her language contains the same words, but apparently they mean completely different things. No wonder she doesn't listen to me!! Our conversations often make no sense, and now I know why. For example, this is how it went this morning, while I was loading laundry into the washer:

Girl Terror: Oooh! Look, Mummy! Mine boots!
Me: Mmmhmm. Don't take those boots anywhere, okay?
GT: Boots!! 'member, in the snow? Walking? With mine boots?
Me: I remember. Put the boots down.
GT: Boots! I love boots. (she walks away with her boots)
Me: Hey! Come back here with those boots! DON"T put those on!
GT: Snow! Go snow! (she stomps around my bedroom carpet with her boots on)
Me: Get back here and take those off.
GT: I go upstairs now, 'kay? Outside. Get coat, hat.
Me: We are NOT going outside, so take off the boots.
GT: Play snow.
Me: Come back downstairs, and put those away. NOW!

Eventually, I went and got her, took away the boots, and was rewarded with a whole lot of yelling. Turns out what she heard was me saying that if she got her boots and put them on, I would go outside and frolick in the snow with her. Apparently I insisted that she put them on and stomp around the house. I am going to have to get a translating dictionary so we can understand each other.

2 comments:

Jessica said...

Just stumbled onto your blog from filegirl's...I enjoy reading you and will keep visiting.

Arethusa said...

Hahahahahaaha, that was funny. I'm sure my mother could still relate to this.