Kubla comes back from a playdate.  His friend has a potty mouth.

Later that day, Kubla plays with his toy cars.  He pushes one off the cliff of our couch.  His hand guides its fall to the carpet in slow motion.  “Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit.”

He looks at me, expecting a reaction.

“That’s a new word,” I say. “Do you know what it means?”

Silence.  I tell him as dispassionately as possible. “It means poop.  And some people use it when they are angry or scared.  There’s nothing special about it, but it’s an ugly word.  But if I ever hear you say “Bobbledeegoo”, you’re in big trouble, kiddo.”

A minute later another car falls off the cliff. “Bobbledeegoo, bobbledeegoo, bobbledeegoo, bobbledeegoo, bobbledeegoo.”

(Thanks to the brilliant Lawrence Cohen and his book Playful Parenting for inspiring this post)

What do you do when you hear kids using inappropriate language?

In two weeks I’ll give a free Kidorable Umbrella to whoever makes my favorite comment and shares this post on the platform of their choice.