"Mommy, Dadd'ys Teasing Me Again!"

Is there a special gene that every father carries that makes him want to tease and torment his children? Not that I don’t enjoy my husband’s teasing sessions (or my daughter’s indignant reactions),  but it seems like my husband, my father, my brother – and nearly every dad I know – has made picking on their kids an art form. Just the other day, my daughter innocently asked my husband to sing Frosty the Snowman and, of course, he made up his own lyrics. He called Frosty anything but a snowman and our daughter yowled in frustration.  I was certainly laughing because I can't always win an argument with her (yep, my view of success has been reduced to winning disputes against a pre-schooler but I'm ok with that).

This morning she was “talking” on the telephone to her pretend friend and Daddy took the phone and asked for Plonky. “That’s not her name!” our daughter screamed. I was thoroughly entertained but I had to ask him why he does it. He said, “I like to force her way of thinking to my way of thinking.” I guess his technique worked because a few minutes later she began referring to her pretend friend as Plonky.

I have to admit my husband was probably reinforcing her memory skills as she kept correcting him with the Frosty lyrics although his approach might blow up in his face down the road. I hope he remembers his confession to messing with her head for sheer pleasure because I’m sure it’s going to come up in her future therapy sessions. Until then, I guess I’ll be the enabler because it’s just too darn funny.

Originally published By Sandra K. Lee December 4, 2009 on the New Jersey Mom's Blog.

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