"Dease?"

Adam and I have discovered why "please" is indeed the magic word. It's the magic word for kids because it gets them what they want with alacrity. It's the magic word for parents because it replaces those loud, annoying, "uh! uh! uh!" sounds with a sweet little "dease?"

Thanks largely to her father, Brigid has mastered "please". It's brought much harmony to the household. The only problem, I'm discovering, is that sometimes I don't know what she's saying "please" about.

That happened this morning, but it led to an interesting discovery.

Today I was finishing my breakfast, when Brigid came and stood in front of me, looking rather hangdog, and said, "Dease? dease?"

"What?" I asked. "What are you saying 'please' about?"

"Dease?" repeated my poor daughter, unhappily. "Die-da? Die-da?"

But I didn't know what "die-da" meant. So Brigid climbed up on the couch next to me, and pulled at her pants. "Dease? Die-da?"

Then the light dawned. "Diaper?" I asked. "Do you want your diaper changed?"

Brie smiled. She threw back her head and she giggled.

So I took her into the bedroom, got out the changing stuff, and undid her diaper. And there, lo and behold, was a small pebble of a poop. The Princess and the Pea indeed.


So now, thanks to the magic word, I know that my daughter is beginning to be aware of her bowel movements. If this leads to early potty training, it really WOULD be magic. But of course we'll wait and see if there's any consistancy to her awareness before we go potty-shopping.

Still, I think this learning to talk thing is JUST as cool as I thought it would be.

-Jess