Oy gevalt

Unfortunately Thomas's new habit is constant blasphemy. I made too big a deal of telling him not to do this when he first started, and it cemented the idea in his mind that blasphemy equals fun and games with Mom and Dad.

Strangers tend not to expect toddlers to swear, and we've gotten double takes from a number of waiters and store clerks as questions like "What's your name, cutie pie?" have been met with a choice phrase out of Thomas.

Our latest tactic has been trying to replace the offending phrase with substitutes: "Oy gevalt!" (hilarious in his toddler accent and only 3/4 offensive since he is 1/4 Jewish), "Suffering cats!" (a little too twee) and "Stone the crows!" (same problem). Not much success yet, though he does like to use all these phrases in a row...after kicking things off with a little blasphemy.