Modeling desired behavior

[marydell]

Mike: Charlie got really mad at me earlier and totally started hitting me.
Me: Wow, what happened?
Mike: He was riding his trike, but then he wanted to go for a walk. I couldn't just leave the trike out in front of the house so I went and put it in the back yard while he followed me and got all fussy. I don't think he understood why I was going the wrong direction.  When I tried to take his hand to go for a walk, he just,  [*makes punching motion*]
Charlie:  kssshh!  [*makes punching motion*] hee hee hee!

Comments

[rikibeth.livejournal.com]

*headdesk*

It's funny 'cause it's not my kid!

[txanne.livejournal.com]

Yeah. Some days I'm awful glad to be merely an aunt.

[marydell.livejournal.com]

My favorite thing is that he makes the little punch noise without prompting.

[unhappytriad.livejournal.com]

It's hard for me to guess whether he's laughing because he thought hitting Mike was fun, or because for once he actually knows what the grownup conversation is about--and it's about him!

[marydell.livejournal.com]

He thinks all punching is funny. If we say "punch punch punch" he will laugh. He doesn't actually punch anyone; he's a slapper. But when he was little and needed to be encouraged to move his arms we would sing a little song about punching and teach him to wave his arms around and push his fist against us (he started off mostly unaware of having a hand, because of not having another hand to bang it into).

Fisticuffs are part of my & Mike's cultural heritage (we're each half Irish-American), so all this seems perfectly normal to us, of course.