Stella, we do not say that word, okay? It is not a nice word, and it is not okay for kids to say that word, do you understand me?
It is 8am, and I have just heard a pretty shocking word come out of my child’s mouth. My husband has been harping on me for years to not swear in front of her, and though I’ve stopped swearing for the most part, the occasional word does slip out – like when Harvey face planted off our deck on Wednesday and started gushing blood! We also have a few friends who let 4-letter words drop from time to time in front of the kids, so I refuse to take full responsibility for it! 🙂 That being said, I’m usually of the opinion that she’s going to hear words that are inappropriate from time to time, and she needs to learn context and when it is and is not okay for her to use those words. My husband prefers to keep her in a bubble. So far, we aren’t sure who is right. Ha!
*****
Stella: Mamaaaa, I puked all over my jammies!
[I come around the corner, and sure enough, the combo of cottage cheese + milk for breakfast was not a good idea. Dammit, I know better than to feed her that.]
Me: It’s okay hon, let’s get you cleaned up. You’re okay.
[I strip her down, clean her up, and turn to clean up the chair and floor.]
Stella: But Mama, I have PUKE on my foot. FUCK!
[Points for context?]
*****
The day before the puke incident, this was the text conversation between my husband and I…
C: Your daughter is making cookies [with her Nana – Charlie’s mom] and said oh shit. Wonder who she heard that from?
Me: Definitely Ryan
[Ryan is our good buddy who spends a lot of time at our house and whose first kid is due in June, thus he has no swear filter yet. I truly don’t care that he swears in front of the kids on accident from time to time, and Charlie knows it. Two minutes later I haven’t gotten a response from Charlie…]
Me: No laugh? 🙂
C: Was on the phone. Pretty funny, but def you.
*****
I’m not going to lie, I definitely don’t want my kids to have potty mouths and I don’t think it’s okay for kids to swear, but I still think it’s just another thing we need to teach them, and they will have slip ups, just like us. What do you think? Are you someone who uses the occasional swear word? Do you think it should never happen in front of kids? Or do you think we should be teaching them that there are some words that aren’t okay for kids to use, just like there are drinks they can’t have and activities they can’t do until they’re grown ups?
To be clear, I try really hard to never swear in front of other people’s kids. This is in regards to my own kids in my own home. No hard feelings either way. I have IRL friends who feel both ways on this – I’m just curious how you all feel!
