When Your Vocabulary Outpaces Your Comprehension

That word, it does not mean what you think it means...

I have great kids. They are funny, smart, mostly well behaved, and they read like crazy. Anytime we go out, my kids have books with them, and I almost always get comments from others about their love of reading. I encourage the reading - I let them read in bed up to an hour before lights out, and I (hardly ever) say no new books.

All of this reading does great things for their vocabulary.

Sometimes, though it backfires. Take today as an example.

I stopped at 7-11 this morning to get some breath mints, and when I came back into the car, my children were – big surprise – arguing. My kids argue as if it's their life's mission, their reason for breathing, to validate that their existence on the face of this earth is not all in vain.

In short - they argue over everything.

"Mom, tell her I'm right! Tell her she doesn't know what she's talking about!"

Well, I don't even know what you are talking about, so how can I tell her that you're right?

Shoplifters will be prosecuted. That's what the sign said. I told her it means you'll be killed if you steal stuff."

No, I'm pretty sure you mean executed. That's the word you were thinking of.

"Yes, like Lincoln was executed."

I am pretty sure you mean assassinated.

"Well, it all ends the same way. With a dead person. So don't steal."

Comments

[Tara]

That is a bloody riot. I just read this out loud to my family. Thank you for sharing! lololol......

[addy]

I Love your kids! They are some pretty amazing peoples right there. The last line needs to be your phrase for your office wall. Really!

[Anne]

This is hilarious! I just found this blog via a Yahoo page my husband shared with me. I'll be back. :)

And I'm so glad that your kids argue over everything . . . so do mine . . . and there are 7 of them . . . it just makes me feel more normal that your kids argue, too.

[Sharilyn]

Love it. Made me laugh. Probably would be a lot less shoplifting if this were the case.