Fayette-Mom: It's just a phase - right??

Like any mother, I think every little thing that comes out of my precious babies’ mouths is the most adorable thing ever.

Until it's not.

When they were younger, I remember lamenting to my friends that while I loved hearing the cute questions and the endearing phrases, I also noticed that little kids never.stop.talking.

In the car, at the dinner table, during the bedtime routine — it is an endless monologue, detailing what it is they are thinking about every second of their awake hours. And while it’s nice to have an inside peek at what is going on inside their little brains, the non-stop chatter, even when delivered by my most favorite people on Earth, can be grating.

Mommy needs her quiet time.

Lately, my son has added an annoying endcap to his constant declarations.

“If I eat all my grapes, I’ll have lots of muscles, right?”

“Bumble bees won’t sting me if I don’t hit them, RIGHT?”

“If Anakin and Harry Potter got into a fight, Anakin would win because he’s the Chosen One, right Mommy? RIGHT? RIGHT?”

This pretty much goes on all day, every day — to the point that for my own sanity, I’ve taken to tuning out Eli’s actual question and simply saying “Right” when he stops talking. I can’t possibly be the first mother to do this, right?????

That strategy blew up in my face when I apparently agreed, through my generic response, to buy him three balloons and take him to Chuck E. Cheese. Imagine his face when I was forced to admit that I hadn’t actually heard the question when I answered in the affirmative.

Lesson learned. No matter how grating they can be, I am now paying attention to every little sentence Eli offers. And I keep telling myself, it’s just a phase.

RIGHT??????