Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Bad behaviour... genetic or learned??

I think my older son may take after me behaviour-wise.  Everyone always compares him to his father and says that he is a mirror image (which in many ways he is).  What they don't see is some of the inside stuff.  Of course, I'm the one home with the kids so you would expect that they are picking up on my mannerisms.

A few weeks ago my older son casually dropped an F-bomb during polite conversation.  "It's fucking cold out, eh mom?"  No question where this comes from since I've been known to drop an F-bomb now and again (I'm a recovering swear-aholic).  You should be proud of me since I neither burst out laughing nor yelled at him.  I calmly explained that that word was not polite and perhaps a better way of saying that would be to say "its really cold out".  Yeah I know sucked all the fun out of it, but he's 3 and I really don't want him swearing like a sailor or railroad Engineer.  (No offense to railway workers, but my dad worked for the railway and they really do swear a lot!)

But I think some things go deeper than just mimicking things that they saw me do or heard me say.  The other day we had some friends over and had snacks out.  After people had left my husband and I and the younger boy were in the playroom downstairs deciding what to have for dinner.   The older boy had gone upstairs and we assumed that he had been into some of the leftover snacks, which was okay since they were mostly healthy things.  As we headed up the stairs to the kitchen the older one streaked across our view (much like the bad guys in Alien or Predator where you don't really see them they move so fast).  Of course to us seasoned parents this indicates guilt.  Somebody was up to something they shouldn't be.  Sure enough on the floor was the bottle of Nestle Quick syrup.  My boy had been chugging straight out of the bottle.  He was pretty embarrassed to be caught and that in itself was a bit of a scene.

As my husband and I controlled our fits of laughing, I couldn't help feel just a little proud!  That's my boy!  I would like to say that I haven't done that in a few years or even months, but I'm not going to lie.  However, I am pretty sure that my son has never seen me do this.  This is something that he thought up all on his own.  I didn't even know that he knew the syrup was there (I should have, since that kid doesn't miss anything).  Is it wrong to be so proud of a kid picking up on your bad habits?  After all I have two boys and everyone always compares them to their dad.  Ha!  I'm the one who has  the stretch marks, the c-section scars, and saggy boobs to show for having these kids and he's the one who get's all the credit for their cute looks!

For now I'm just going to have to take credit for what I can!  Even if it is the less desirable behaviour!

3 comments:

  1. So cute...at dinner a few months ago, ZKalista decided not to use her fork and the all of a sudden said, oh fuck, I have shit on my hands"...took everything I had not to burst into laughter!

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  2. You know people always say that my son looks like his dad. Hardly ever do they comment on his physical appearance and say he looks like me (I've heard this has to do with the fact that it shows the father that their first born is really theirs?).

    Anyway...too cute about the chocolate syrup. Maybe with time they'll change to look even more like you - beyond swearing like a railway worker or chugging the syrup ;)

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