Dang it!

Ok, so I don't use profanity (except for extreme moments, and then it's only in my head), but I have some substitutes that I'm finding don't really sound right coming out of my son's mouth. I abandoned "crap" some time ago (for the most part), in an effort to avoid hearing my little parrot run around repeating that one. Laura managed to convince me to stop before Nathan ever picked up on it. But, you've probably read in previous notes about the whole "C'mon, Lady!" thing in the car. Well, now there's a new one.

Recently, after repeated spills of his drink (most intentional), I'd had enough! As I've mentioned before, Nathan likes to experiment with various cause and effect situations. He was very enthused on a particular day recently with pouring out his milk or water into various items. Another cup, a strainer, a styrofoam plate on a kitchen chair, his booster seat tray, and of course, the floor. It was not enough to pour it out on the kitchen floor - he wanted to see how fluid reacts with the living room rug, too! Now, I know some of you are wondering why we don't just use those "spill-proof" sippy-cups. When your child figures out how to shake them upside down and press the straw/mouthpiece on a hard surface to make the liquid come out, it really doesn't matter anymore. And, since Nathan is very determined (like his mother ;) he persists even after repeated correction applied to his little hands and/or legs. Anyway, as milk was spilling over the styrofoam plate onto the chair and all over the floor and Nathan was saying, "uh-oh milk," I said, "DANG-IT, SON! QUIT POURING OUT ALL YOUR DRINKS!" I then spanked him again, and proceeded to clean up the mess. Nathan grabbed the spanking stick (paint stick - thanks, Home Depot!), walked over to the milk-covered chair and "spanked" the chair as he said, "NO-NO, MILK!" And then he added an emphatic, "DANG-IT!" My heart sank. I realized, in light of the longevity of "C'mon, Lady", that it may be a long journey to de-program this new term from his vocabulary.

Just a couple of days ago, we were waiting in the line at Hell (aka: Cingular Wireless store). It had been close to an hour wait, and both of us were getting tired. I informed my increasingly impatient son that a particular lady was going to help us as soon as she finished with the man in front of us. The man completed his transaction and walked away. I told Nathan we were next, and that the lady would be calling us any minute, so we needed to be quiet and listen. Then, we both watched in shock as she completely ignored us and walked through a door behind the desk into the back. Nathan looked at me, I looked at him and sighed, and he turned toward that door and said loudly, "C'MON, LADY!" The song in my head at that instant sang, "nowhere to run to, baby, nowhere to hide". A man next to me laughed and said, "just wait 'til he starts repeating the 'other stuff'!" I wanted to say, "You mean stuff like 'dang-it'?" Of course, I didn't want to encourage the boy.

I guess, if there's anything positive about his new expressions, at least he's using them in the right context! I mean, he doesn't say "c'mon, lady" if there isn't a lady holding things up. The other day, we were at a red light - first in line, and there was no 'lady' holding us up so he just said, "c'mon, road!" And he only seems to use "dang-it" in stressful situations (ie: knocked his head on the table, couldn't reach a toy under the couch, etc.). Don't worry, we are working on correcting this - by correcting him and by refraining from further use ourselves (I mean, myself).