Playing Shadow!!!

I remember almost 4 years ago; Saturday evenings at my place were houseful! My husband’s friends with girlfriends or spouses (whichever applicable then) would spend Saturday evenings at our place for the weekly dose of fun and laughter!  At that time there was just one kid in the group, Ryan! Being the first and only child he was of course tagged along for these parties and it never occurred to us to arrange for separate games or toys for him. He would thus invariably spend his time sitting with us. And then came, the shocker…..

One fine day Ryan used an expletive, quite confidently and with a smug smile on his face! His mum was needless to say mortified! She mentioned the incident to me, voicing her concern that maybe, Ryan would have most definitely picked up the word from one of our Saturday Nights. Scandalized though, I was not so sure that a kid that small could have picked up the word from casual conversations between his dad and friends. Little did I know then *eye rolls*

Today, Adi is 17 months old:

1. If he sees a mobile phone, he picks it up and puts it to his ear and paces around the house as if in earnest conversation
2. If he can lay his hands on a charger, he roams around the house trying to find a plug point he can reach. He finally settles for banging it on my phone or iPad as if plugging them
3.  If he can lay his hands on a nail cutter he pretends to cut his toe nails
4. If he can lay his hands on a broom or dusting cloth, he sweeps and swabs. Believe you me, he tries to reach under the bed to clean that area too with the broom
5. If given a kite he tries to fly it!! Boo Katta…..
6. If he finds the camera, he picks it and imitates us taking pictures. It is funny cause he points the lens to himself
7. He kicks the football, screams “Gooooooo” and raises his hands above his head to clap, just like the kids in the society
8. If I cough he coughs and grins too
9. He can imitate his dad driving the car
10. If he sees headphones lying around, he picks it and places the ear plugs in his ear

Now I realize that having kids around is like Playing Shadow each minute, each hour of each day! You never know what he is catching on to…. and that makes you so conscious!

I now spend each day trying to think before I act or say something or better still rebuking my husband for his language around Adi.

It is actually quite scary! God help me in these growing years of Adi!

So here is a tip for all you people out there who don’t believe that kids pick up your words and actions, I am experiencing this right now!! And Adi is just 17 months old