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Community Corner

Life With a Pint-Sized Comedian

How a goofy face or silly song can save a toddler.

Sometimes, a funny face is all it takes.

While sitting around the kitchen island last week eating dinner, the kids and I were discussing books they needed to read, chores to do and overall behavior that needed to improve. Just as I was about to bring the hammer down on the 10- and 6-year-old, the giggling started.

With my blood about to boil for not being taken seriously, I realized just what was so funny. “Sorry, Mom,” Ben said, “but he’s HILARIOUS!”

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I looked over at Quinn who, while sitting in his high chair, had his index fingers in each side of his mouth pulling it open and was doing his very best to get a reaction. It worked.

My baby boy will be turning 2 next month. Although life with a toddler is tiring to say the least, he has become so fun to be around in the past few months and I wonder if he’ll wind up giving his older sister a run for her money for the title of “Family Ham.”

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Not only is he cute (I say this completely unbiased, of course) but his comic timing is impeccable. Mind you, I can only understand about two-thirds of what he is saying, but I’m pretty sure that the unintelligible words are part of punch lines I’ll have to wait to appreciated.

One of his favorite routines is this: when I pick him up, he’ll whack me in the head, happy smile beaming across his face. As I grab his little hand and firmly tell him, “No, Quinn, we do NOT hit!” He’ll soften his smile, open his blue eyes wide and say, “Hi, Mommeeee!”

How can I compete with that?

He has also taken to entertaining the troops with his singing. What starts off as “ABC” quickly morphs into “Twinkle Twinkle.” EVERY TIME. Ever the song-and-dance man, he does a mean rendition of “Bingo,” “Elmo’s World” and “Old MacDonald” while spinning in circles (his signature move). Needless to say, we encourage said routines on a thick rug, as he usually winds up twirling his dizzy little self right onto his giant head.

As any mother of a toddler will tell you, those pint-sized comedians will run you ragged. You are constantly running after them instead of watching their older sibling’s soccer game, the words “take that out of your mouth” are a crucial part of your everyday vernacular and a steep set of stairs can cause you ulcers. But when they put their little arms around your neck and say “I yuv you mommeeeee,” you just melt. That’s precisely what saves them the next time they decide to sit down next to the cat food dish and help themselves to a snack.

A little smirk, a funny face, and a hug. Works every time.

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