Thursday, July 3, 2008

Case of Literal Misinterpretation

Case of Literal Misinterpretation: noun. A situation in which a child misunderstands a word or phrase do to its confusing literal meaning.

Some words and phrases totally baffle Monkey Son #1. For instance, a few months ago when Husband and I went to vote, we brought Monkey Sons with us. When we went back to the car to leave, we saw our neighbor just arriving.

Husband: We should have car pooled.

Monkey Son #1: Car pool?

Mommy (to Monkey Son #1): What's a car pool?

Monkey Son #1: A pool for cars?

Yesterday, we went to the zoo to celebrate Monkey Son #2's first birthday, even though he's not quite one yet. They had a great time watching the animals, especially the ones that interacted with people, such as the otters that tried to play with the people through the glass, and a parrot that constantly said, "Back to work! Ha ha ha!" But then we got to the bobcat. In another case of literal misinterpretation, he asked, "Is his name Bob?"

Ah, the wonders of a child's mind.

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