"Go 'way!"

"Go 'way!" That's Max's favorite new phrase. Guess what? It's not mine. He started using it a few weeks ago. I sternly explained to him that I don't like those words and offered up some suggestions for other words he might use. The reaction to this phrase has escalated over the past few weeks to the point that last night he was in time out for saying it to his sister with a shove. Not cool.

As with everything, it's now always so straightforward. Yesterday in the driveway Max and I were blowing bubbles and he was chasing them down to pop them. He was giggling saying, "go 'way." Sigh. In this instance he's not saying it in a mean spirited way so I let it go.

Today Alex is golfing and it's the wee ones and me. I was changing Max's diaper this morning and he started chanting "go 'way" and bucking his legs. Oh he thought he was hilarious with his big ol' grin. I decided the game is over, became perfectly still and stared him down until the smile came off his face. He wasn't sure what to do. It was the funniest thing. His little eyes darted back and forth and you could tell he was thinking, "Oh crud, she's mad. This isn't what I expected. What do I do now? Is she still staring at me? Yep. This is really uncomfortable." After he stopped I finished changing his diaper. He did try "go 'way" later today and he received the same stare down. Then I just strated talking over him. This seems to be the most effective response.

Hopefully "go 'way" will go away soon.