New babies and nipples.
I babysat for two new boys last night-- Aiden (3) and Dylan (5). I brought Spiderman and X-Man stickers and we had a good old time making sticker-stories with crayons and paper. Aiden was coloring Wolverine with a purple crayon (which is the color of X-man blood, apparently) when he turned to me with a worried expression on his face.
"Do you have nipples?" he asked.
He was completely serious. It seemed like he was asking his question with genuine curiosity.... and possibly some concern. Just to be sure I understood him, I repeated the question back to him. "Are you asking me if I have nipples?"
He nodded and asked again innocently, "Do you have nipples?"
It has been my experience that the best way to deal with such questions is in an honest and straightforward way. Besides, what were my options? Lie to him and tell him I don't have nipples? And so...
"Yes," I told him, " I do have nipples." I paused. "And so do you. "
"No I don't!" he began to say, but his brother Dylan interrupted.
"Yes you do! And I have nipples, too! And so do Mommy and Daddy!"
"That's right," I continued,"All people have nipples-- that's because we're mammals, a special type of animal, and all mammals have nipples. Do you guys know any other mammals? Can you tell me who else has nipples?"
"Who?" they asked, excited.
"Well... your dog, Gypsy, has nipples, so she's a mammal."
He and his brother both laughed.
"And cats have nipples, too. And bunnies have nipples....who else?"
And we continued on for quite some time listing all the animals we could think of that had nipples. I never learned why Aiden was asking about nipples, but at least he now knows a bit more about mammals.
<3
"Do you have nipples?" he asked.
He was completely serious. It seemed like he was asking his question with genuine curiosity.... and possibly some concern. Just to be sure I understood him, I repeated the question back to him. "Are you asking me if I have nipples?"
He nodded and asked again innocently, "Do you have nipples?"
It has been my experience that the best way to deal with such questions is in an honest and straightforward way. Besides, what were my options? Lie to him and tell him I don't have nipples? And so...
"Yes," I told him, " I do have nipples." I paused. "And so do you. "
"No I don't!" he began to say, but his brother Dylan interrupted.
"Yes you do! And I have nipples, too! And so do Mommy and Daddy!"
"That's right," I continued,"All people have nipples-- that's because we're mammals, a special type of animal, and all mammals have nipples. Do you guys know any other mammals? Can you tell me who else has nipples?"
"Who?" they asked, excited.
"Well... your dog, Gypsy, has nipples, so she's a mammal."
He and his brother both laughed.
"And cats have nipples, too. And bunnies have nipples....who else?"
And we continued on for quite some time listing all the animals we could think of that had nipples. I never learned why Aiden was asking about nipples, but at least he now knows a bit more about mammals.
<3