For this post of Conversations with My Kids I’m reminded of how impressionable our children are. This is a conversation between my sweet mother-in-law (MIL) and my daughter in December 2009. She was four years old at the time. Here is how the conversation went:
CJ: Merry Christmas, Meemaw.
MIL: Merry Christmas to you [CJ].
CJ: That’s not good enough.
I was halfway listening to this conversation, but this really got my attention. I turn to watch my daughter.
MIL: Well, Merry, Merry Christmas, [CJ].
CJ: You’ve got to do better than that.
What did she just say? Surely I must have misunderstood her.
MIL: Well, what do you want me to do?
CJ: Get down on your knees and tell me you love me.
At this point, I’m slightly horrified. Who is this little diva who is demanding genuflection as if she were a queen? I’m also fighting the urge to laugh.
MIL: [laughing] If I get down on my knees, I might not be able to get back up. (But Meemaw is a good sport, and gets down on her knees). I love you, [CJ]!
CJ: [smiles] That’s good, Meemaw.
It was only later that I learned where she heard this. Check out the following clip of Home Alone2 at about 1:07.
Melissa Janda - A Time to Write 