16 Times When I Forgot How to Speak Like an Adult

By Denise Stirk

Updated on 5/16/2015 at 6:09 PM

I'm a stay-at-home mom. I'm with my children all day, every day. This means, dear readers, that my Big Ten, college-educated, English-majored (and French, by the way) brain is often a big, soupy mess that can't compute real words. This is generally not an issue because my kids prefer "kidspeak" anyway, but the part that baffles me the most is when I find myself talking to other adults and I can't seem to speak to them properly. See, my world is full of blankies, potties, doggies, and poopies (so much talk about poopies), and sometimes the words that I use with my kids (or rather, the words my kids use with me) slip out when I least expect them.

And it's kind of embarrassing. Such is the life of a mom, so here are just a few shining examples:

  1. Yesterday I asked the Starbucks barista where the "potty" was.
  2. When anyone drops something, I almost always say "uh-oh."
  3. I once (OK, twice) reminded my dad to say "please."
  4. Every once in a while when I am talking about my husband, I refer to him as "daddy" (and I'm not trying to be sexy).
  5. I caught myself saying "bye-bye" to our dry-cleaning guy.
  6. I asked a painter who was doing some work in my house if he wanted any "wa-wa."
  7. I told the nurse at my doctor's office that I had a "boo-boo."
  8. When needing to go to the restroom, I often announce to whomever is around that I "need to go pee-pee."
  9. After a night out with friends, I closed with a hug and said "nighty-night."
  10. My husband often gets questioned about what he wants for "din-din."
  11. After dinner, I often also ask him to pass me a "blankie."
  12. It's not unusual for me to say, "Look at that nice doggie [horsie, piggie, birdie] . . . "
  13. The other day I asked a friend if she wanted a "sammich."
  14. When someone told me something exciting the other day, instead of saying congratulations, I clapped my hands and squealed "yay!"
  15. I can't stop myself from asking other grown-ups if they need a sweater or are cold.
  16. I describe bugs (or anything gross, for that matter) as "icky."

What about you? Do you find yourself ever using "kidspeak" with nonkids? Source: Shutterstock