A few nights ago, we tried to teach Clara how to say "please."
She'd asked for another piece of cheese. I held it back, saying, "Can you say 'please'?"
"Say 'please,'" Simon chorused.
She smiled and pointed at the cheese.
"Tizz," she said.
Finally we gave up and gave her the cheese. She smiled again, said, "please," and gave it back to us.
When I thought about it, it made sense. For a few weeks I'd intermittently been asking her to say "please." But I'd always give up after a few tries and give her the thing she desired. So to her, a person said, "Please," before they gave another person something. The giver, not the asker, was the one who said, "Please."
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When Clara wants another piece of something, a strawberry or a clump of pre-masticated almonds or a piece of chocolate, she often says, "Done!" or "Nai nanew!" ("I want to," or "I want another"). Today in the car, when she wanted another Cheerio, she said, "Thank-you!" with a certain amount of urgency.
"We say 'thank-you' after we get the Cheerio," I explained.
"Hes," she agreed.
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Clara has selective hearing. Today I told her, "No, no more Winnie the Pooh today."
"Hes," she said, nodding her head vigorously. She wasn't arguing, she was agreeing because she chose not to hear the "No," part.
"No," I repeated.
"Poop! Poop!" she said, pointing at the TV.
"No! We already watched 'Poop' once today!"
"Hes! Hes!" She agreed enthusiastically. I would love to watch "Poop" again. Thank-you for asking!
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