Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Because I Saw a Snail

I figured out a way to get around all of the "whys" of a two-year-old and I learned it first hand from my own two-year-old.

First of all, when we moved to California for the year snails were a novelty to us (they are not usually seen in the Midwest). What was even more fascinating was actually seeing a snail moving. Well, I think Jackson was frightened by one of those slimy little creatures once and it made him cry.

After that, every once in awhile if he was crying and didn't know why, his explanation would be, "because I saw a snail." Eventually that response was given for anything he couldn't explain rationally: "Why did you hit Mommy?" "Because I saw a snail." "Why don't you like that food?" "Because I saw a snail." You get the idea.

Well, now the tables have turned and when Jackson starts going down the two-year-old "why" path I bust out the "because I saw a snail" and that usually stops him from asking so many questions (usually the SAME question over and over and over again) and makes us both laugh.

So next time your kids get you going down the "why" path break out the Jackson "because I saw a snail" and see what they do.

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