Being the designated "Pottymouth" of StrollerDerby, it probably goes without saying that I have been known to cuss. More than I should. Yes, I really, really try to censor myself around my kids, but I'm not so good at it. I've always - to my own detriment - been the kind of person who reacts (verbally, emotionally) first, and thinks later.
And yeah... the kids pick up on that.
I'm not proud of it... but sometimes is kind of funny. Oh, come on. It is! Hearing "oh, shit!" come out of a helium-voiced, baby-talkin' little sweetheart whose marker has just hit the deck can be giggle-inducing. Hearing that Rebecca Woolf's two year old feels "like ass," might be similarly smile-making. The juxtaposition of the cuteness and the the potty talk can crack even the steeliest of faces (hidden behind shirt sleeves, backs turned, of course).
The trickiest part of having toddlers who swear is that we can't make too big a deal out of the little buggers borrowing our more colorful vocabulary word. We can't ignore them - that's not cool. But we can't harp on them too much, because then they'll use the choice words all the time, or we'll have a power struggle on our hands, or both. I have been unbelievably lucky - my kids have never sworn in public. I don't know why, but they seem to instinctively know that if they drop an s-bomb in public, I'll feel like major ass. (No cuss therapy for us, thanks).
C'mon - confess. Has your kid ever cussed? How did you handle it? Have you ever had to deal with it in public?
