I had to tag on to Chad's QPM entry on Dec 30th. I am the queen of QPMs -- in fact Chad may have coined that phrase for me. And as "cute" as the question period is supposed to be in a young boy's life, it can make a parent totally nutty.
Z and I spent the majority of the drive to school in a simple banter:
Z: Why are you dropping me off at school?
MK: Because Daddy is picking you up.
Z: Why is Daddy picking me up?
MK: Because I am dropping you off.
Z: Why are you dropping me off at school?
MK: Because Daddy is picking you up.
Z: Why is Daddy picking me up?
MK: Because I am dropping you off.
Over and over and over
And it is the daily conversations like this that have lead to a HUGE QPM by Chad and me. We have turned this into a game. We have taken this precious time in our son's life and turned it into a competition. Call up CPS now...
Whoever can answer Zachary's question with something that keeps him from asking another or changes the subject gets a point. Whoever can simply stump our son into complete silence gets ten points. Yes we are evil. And after reading about Chad's elephant answer in the previous post, I am sure you know HE is winning.
Ask him, "Why do you think I'm taking you to School?" and or, "Why do you think Daddy is picking you up?"
ReplyDeleteA question with a question. That was my first line of defense when the Boy(s) were his age.
You can also try the non sequitur but be careful --- that can backfire and get you even more questions.
Stuart gets all the marbles in this game!
ReplyDeleteWith LittleG, I would ask questions back to her in response to her questions. If that didn't work, then I would answer her short little questions with increasingly long, detailed answers.
Mommy, why are you taking me to school today?
Because I have to work today and I have lots and lots of work to do. And today is sight word day in circle time for you and you don't want to miss it. And the dogs are at home asleep and daddy is at work and nana is out of town. And you're not old enough to drive a car yet. But you will be, someday when you turn 16. And don't worry, when you're 16, I will let you drive yourself to school. In fact, you might even be able to drive mommy to work.
If she interrupted me, I would just say something polite like, "excuse me one minute while I finish my thought." Between the verbal assault and the gentle correction, she usually lost interest!