From Creepy to Friend

A coupla weeks ago Zo was regaling us with stories of life in first grade at dinner. In the midst of her continuous talking she referred to someone as The Creepy Girl. I said, "Wait, what?"

"Dere is this Cweepy Gahl, Savannah calls huuh Cweepy. So I call huh Cweepy." (Zo talks with a slightly Swedish accent, it is adorable but we should really work on her "rrrr" sounds. Cweepy=Creepy, Dere=There, Gahl=Girl)

"Why would you call her that? What is her real name?" I was incensed.

"I don't know." She looked embarrassed.

"What makes you think she is creepy?" I demanded.

"I don't know, Savannah said she was and we shouldn't play with huh." (Huh=her)

Oh no she didn't! Not my child. I gently but firmly gave her a what we call in the South as a "talking to".

"We don't go along with others who are mean bla bla bla...we don't make fun of someone bla bla bla...we don't call people names bla bla bla...You need to find out that girls name. You need to find something you like about her. You need to stand up to kids who are mean to others. What if someone called you...called you...Stinky Feet?" I came to a grasping finish.

"Buuuttt Moommm, you call me Stinky Feet!"

Touche. But it is a term of endearment. And it was the first thing that popped into my head for an example. I had to think fast. Uh, uh, uh...Bella came to my rescue (she is a defender of the meek), "Remember Zo when that boy at the pool was making fun of you?"

A ha! Zo finally got it.

So, last week Zo was talking about some girl she was friends with now (can't remember her name). I said, "Oh, who is that? You haven't mentioned her before."

"That is the Cweepy Gahl! We are friends now." (gahl=girl)

Aaah, lesson learned. Don't you love it when that happens?