Can I just tear my hair out now and scream? It takes me back to the endless "I know you are but what am I?" battles of elementary school. I want to encourage his curiosity, but sometimes there are only so many answers I can give. And sometimes his "why" doesn't even make sense. Example:
David: "Where are we going, Mommy?"
Me: "We're going to the bank."
David: "Why are we going to the bank, Mommy?"
Me: "[blah blah blah abc xyz]..."
David: "Is the bank really far away?"
Me: "No, the bank is close."
David: "Why is the bank close?"
Me: "...Ummm. Because it's not far away." (within a mile, in fact)
David: "Why is it not far away?"
Me: "Ummm..."
How do you answer that? I know! Let's say "Because it is less than 5,280 feet away" and blow his little 4-year-old mind. I actually tried that once and got another "why?"
One day in frustration (I think it was a headache day) I said, "David, I've given you enough Why's. Don't ask any more!" And even as the words came out, I realized that
WHY'S = WISE
OK, it's corny, but it was a moment for me. The other day David and I had another "why?" marathon. After my recent epiphany, I wanted to answer him as best I could. The outcome was pretty funny, so indulge me on a play-by-play.
David: "Mommy, are my teeth white?" (he recently had his first visit to the dentist)
Me: "Yep, your teeth are white."
David: "Why are my teeth white?"
Me: "Because they're clean, and [realizing an opportunity to teach a gospel principle] because Heavenly Father made them that way."
David: "Why did Heavenly Father make them that way? Why, Mom? Why?"
Me: "Because he made us to look like Him, and He has white teeth."
David: "Why did He make us to look like Him?"
Me: "Because we're His children."
David: "Why are we His children?"
Me: "Because He made us."
David: "Why did He make us?"
Me: "Because He loves us."
David: "Why does He love us?"
Me: "Because we're His children."
David: "Why are we His children?"
Me: "Because he made us."
David: "Mo-o-om! Stop saying that!"
Mua-Hahaha! Cyclical Logic wins! Should I be ashamed that I felt a little smug after that?
Another teaching opportunity arose when David got a few dollars in birthday cards, and we decided to teach David about paying tithing and earning money by being Mommy's Special Helper. We made a chart with the days of the week heading the columns and his simple jobs heading the rows.
We told him at the end of the week we'd give him a dollar for each day he did his special jobs (pick up toys, empty diaper pails, or set the table. In case you're wondering, the "clean the bathroom" sticker is actually for going poop in the potty. We don't pay him for that but we're hoping the sticker chart will offer a little more incentive to that battle). We started the chart mid-week, so pay day came quickly. I gave David three dollars, which he was very excited to hold and stuff into his little bank with "treats" on it.
Time out to tell about the bank! I remember as a kid getting Tootsie Rolls in a little tin with a slot in the lid to serve as piggy bank when the candy got eaten. When I saw similar tins of candy in the bargain bins at Target many months ago, I couldn't resist getting one. They didn't have Tootsie Roll tins, so I ended up getting a Now & Later one. I thought the title was somewhat appropriate for a coin bank. Anyway, back to David...
Shortly after receiving his dollars, he asked to play with pennies, too. He LOVES to play with coins. I told him I'd give him ten dimes if he gave me one dollar, and then he could give three dimes to Jesus (not my preferred way to phrase it, but that was how he was understanding it, so we'll ride that wave for now) and put seven dimes in his bank. He watched me fill out the tithing slip and then helped seal his three dimes in the envelope. Then he put his other seven dimes one by one in the slot of his bank, pointed the the treats painted on the side, and said something to the effect of "I give three dimes to Jesus and then He'll give me candy!"
