Speaking “toddlerese”
November 30, 2009 by Shannon
Is there anything funnier than the language skills of a toddler? The mixed up phrases, the swapped out consonants, the mispronounced words…hearing this stuff is much-needed comic relief after a long day of meals, snacks, missed naps and a messy house.
Some of my favorite words/phrases right now:
1. Wag (Translation: wig)
This one cracks me up. Ever since Halloween, we’ve had several wigs around the house. Kellan often sees one and says, “That your wag, Mommy?” (Note: Michael put one of them on Kellan the other day and had him sneak up behind me. After I was done letting out a blood curdling scream at the frightening, impossibly small hairy goblin in front of me, I realized it was a pretty funny thing to do with a wag that’s just lying around. It’s tough to find it amusing until you’re done being terrified, though.)
2. Mac and Roni (Translation: Macaroni and cheese)
Every time we go to a restaurant, Kellan asks if he can have “Mac and Roni.” If I ever adopt two pets at the same time (and you’ll know I’ve gone certifiably nutzo if I do) I think I would name them Mac and Roni in honor of this adorable phrase.
3. Fairy Dawn (Translation: Prairie Dawn, the Sesame Street character)
Much like the way Kellan has dubbed the mythical, mysterious Pickup Fairy the “Fairy Hiccup,” he gets the words prairie and fairy a little mixed up too. I don’t correct him. It’s too cute.
4. “Me three.”
This isn’t really a screwy phrase, but it’s one of the funniest things I’ve heard Kellan say lately. At dinner the other night, I said something like, “I’m thirsty” to which Michael replied, “Me too.” Then Kellan chimed in with, “Me three.” We immediately burst into laughter and Kellan, surprised at the reaction and delighted at his apparently genius comedy, started giggling nonstop. I’m not sure where he heard this phrase, but for some reason it was hilarious to hear it come out of a two year-old’s mouth.
What funny phrases do your kids say that crack you up?
Comments (4)
Eowyn is learning to spell her name, and this is how she does it.
“Eeeeee, Ohhh, double Y, N, EOWYN!!”
or sometimes she does:
“Eeee, Ohhh, double Y, EOWYN!”
We laugh.. she loves that we think she’s funny. It’s a crack up.
You’re smart to write these down, because you forget them so fast once they start talking “correctly.” I was sure glad I did! Even now, my 3 y.o. says plenty of mixed up/funny things, like “pock-sicle” and “commershinnal” instead of “commercial.” The funniest, though, are his lyrics to Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star: “Up a-bup-a world so sky….” Close enough, right?
I love this post! I find the things that my own toddler says absolutely hilarious and try to write them down (or blog them down?) as often as possible. My favorites lately are:
“What’s that sound for?” whe she hears something she doesn’t recognize. Not sure why she adds the extra “for”.
And when we ask her what she wants for breakfast, lunch or dinner, the answer is always the same. “Cheetos”, accompanied by lots of giggles. She thinks she’s hilarious!
Ha! Those little sayings are so cute! I especially love your girl’s “what’s that sound for?” Julia, because it reminds me of something else my son says: “What’s that smell like?” He really means, “What’s that smell?” but tacks on the extra “like.” Cracks me up every time.