When toddlers and young children learn to master our language one of the more tricky and sometimes difficult aspects for them is with some of the common phrases and expressions we use that are not intended to translate literally.  It can be funny and challenging for parents! It's also important to remember for safety sake, that your toddlers and young children understand the meaning of what you say! 

One mom was trying to explain to her young son during a recent trip to the store that they don’t have money growing on trees like the neighbors. She was quite embarrassed when her son reported after a recent visit to the neighbors, several days later, that Frank's mom told him they don’t have money growing on trees either!

Another mom was in a store with her two-year-old who wanted to touch EVERYTHING and told him to "Look with his eyes, not with his hands." The youngster proceeded to try to put his eyeball on everything!

Along the same lines, a father declared at the dinner table that “his eyes are bigger than his stomach" intending to describe his overeating. When is young daughter looked at him perplexed, he remembered his father had to explain the exact same phrase to him as a young child.

One young aunt described that her 5-year-old nephew doesn't understand when she says something "doesn't ring a bell"; meaning that something doesn't sound familiar to her or doesn't know what someone is talking about. 

A young father said to his son "did you step on a frog?"  When the young boy passed gas (tooted), passing down a family favorite phrase to his son. Once the young boy was staying at a friend’s house for a sleepover and told his friend’s parents "I have a frog IN my butt!"

Another mom describes how when her 3-year-old son told her he needed to go potty and she told him to "hold it" he literally did as she asked! He didn’t understand that she just meant not to let the pee come flowing out until he reached the toilet!

"You're making a mountain out of a molehill" one step mom said to her teenage kids and next thing she knew, her four year old was bringing her a huge molehill made out of playdoh! He wanted her to know he could make one too!

One mom’s two children thought that it would be a pet free-for-all when it was "raining cats and dogs."  She remembered with amusement that she thought exactly the same when she was their age.

One mom told her son to go “draw his bath”.  Several minutes went by and then he came running in with a picture drawn of the bathtub!

Several years ago, one of the ladies I worked with was laughing because she had to explain the phrase "sound like a broken record" to one of her kids. They completely didn't understand what it meant, and it really made us all feel old!

As young children learn to master the language, it can be delightful and funny as we share with them the special meaning of our favorite phrases and expressions and also reminisce about our favorite expressions from childhood.

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