1.08.2010

liar

 i faced the music a LONG time ago.

my 5 year old is a professional liar!

i'm trying not to make a big fuss about it so he doesn't lie for attention.

we read the story about the boy that cried wolf.


i try giving him the benefit of the doubt. {which is VERY hard sometimes.} 

we nonchalantly read louder when in the scriptures we read about where liars go.

i lied to him and told him that when he lies, a small red dot appears on his forhead.(and for some reason, lying to teach someone not to lie just rubs me wrong.) and plus, that only produces mediocre results....

whatever.


i'm a bit a lot worried about this skill he has developed.

do you blame me???

just look at that cute little face!


the main reason it bugs me:
I CAN NOT TELL when he is lying.


it's not good! 


let me take that back....
it's USUALLY not good!


let me explain:

tonight the family piled into the good old minivan for a night of FUN!

first stop: Costco of course!

 and it WAS fun, even if the only samples available were from the HUMMUS man, whom we are very fond of.
after trying all 31 types of fresh hummus, towards the end of our venture, we walked past an "interesting" looking older woman.

even in my shopping imposed trance like state i noticed her....and her hair.

let's just say that she looked "peculiar." (bless her heart)

only problem is, justin NOTICED her peculiarity too.

well, that wasn't the only problem.

the other problem was that she noticed him noticing her for a way too long period of time.

and she didn't like it!

from behind us she snapped in a very bold tone,
"Why are you staring at me???
Do i have something black on my face??? 
Do i look funny or something???? 
I'm starting to get a complex!"

oh boy. 

with a white face, justin reluctantly chimed in when she actually took a breath, "no, you don't look funny."

i interjected to soften the tension in the air something like...."oh, i'm sorry mam....we're working on the whole staring thing..."

but it didn't help, so we walked away, hoping our paths wouldn't cross again.

and they didn't ....phew!

i know i have told him not to stare before....but what do i know!?

(i think he got to learn that lesson the hard way this time.:) )

5 minutes later while at the checkout he piped up,

"mom, i lied to that old lady."

"i didn't want to tell her that SHE DID LOOK FUNNY! 
her hair was all big and crazy.  
it would have made her feel even more bad! "

"you know, that is probably right," i agreed.

and for once, i greatly appreciated his well executed skills of deception.
he next informed me, "mom, the government lies all of the time too!"

and when he spoke that...it was the truth.

even our checker agreed.

and knowing that DOESN'T make me feel better either!



hmmm. the mother of a politician???

i think i'll need to take a few etiquette classes.

any tips?

17 comments:

Larae Taylor Merritt said...

Don't worry, Julie. I think it is a phase, or I'm in trouble too! All three older kids have tested the waters here. Ryan is starting to come out of it, Aaron too. Grace is still trying to figure it out adn Kate is now starting. Never ends until the last child. Thank goodness she's VERY honest. She would've told that old lady she did look funny. Cute stories, cute memories!

Mythreesons said...

OK, that had me laughing out loud. I love that he realizes how important it is to lie to save face. That's a good trait... kind of. Oh, and that he realizes that politicians lie.

That one's wise beyond his years... I'm dealing with a little liar, too. Except I'm not allowed to call him that. To his face.

Melissa said...

My oldest did this for a long time... still does from time to time. And you're right... we walk a fine line sometimes with our "white lies". I wish I had some great advice for you... my oldest grew out of it for the most part. But now, when he does lie ("Yeah I got my homework done...") there are pretty specific consequences. Starting with an apology. Good luck!!

Amanda Warren said...

Julie, I seriously was a compulsive liar as a child. I would lie about things that didn't need to be lied about. It was stupid. I eventually grew out of it. Now I am the honesty queen. I have to be honest even down to the tiniest details. No white lies for me. He will eventually grow out of it with gentle proding and persuasion.

Amy said...

We are starting that phase and we are trying to nip it. Good idea with the Boy who cried wolf story.


Also, where did you take that picture of him? Where is that old truck?

Kim said...

Oh man Julie, I was seriously laughing out loud. He is kind to others though, so no worries, he's just a kid and a cute one at that!

i said...

i took that pc on an old train at the train place in boulder city. great rust huh!? i also like the place because is is lightly shaded. :0)

Amy Joy said...

I laughed the whole time I read that. Thanks!
He will learn as he gets older just the way we have. I have gotten to where I hate to lie even about Santa, so I don't. I just say it is fun to pretend and send them on their way.

Theresa said...

wow. :) he's very bright. hows that for a kick in the pants though about teaching him not to lie. lol!

Tara said...

What a character. I have a couple of little liars myself. You are SO lucky he gets it and didn't want to hurt that old lady's feelings. My Audrey just blurts things out ALL THE TIME. It is humiliating!

Audrey Taylor said...

Oh my goodness, always a pleasure to read about these great experiences you have, especially with Justin. Think about how dull life would be without him. He's so smart. He diffused the situation himself. It could have been a lot worse. Like I could have been the one standing infront of her and then slapped her when she got all crazy on my kid! Justin is a genius!

* said...

I'm convinced that most kids go through a lying stage. My nieces & nephews have, as well as my 3 older kids.

I like the red dot on the forehead warning, though. And that pic of him is oh, so cute! (that old train is cool, is it from the Clark County Museum off Blder Highway by chance?)

Michelle said...

That's a great story! Yeah, sounds like you have a little politician on your hands.

Anonymous said...

Cute, isn't being a parent a great job. You never know what each day will bring. It's never boring. You're doing a great job... keep up the good work!!! Love, MOM

Mary said...

Funny!

He would make a great actor....

That's a great job....

cynphil6 said...

SO FUNNY!
I think we all go through this with the kids. When one of mine would say something crazy like,
"There was a martian from outer space at school today." I would just say, "Wow, wouldn't that be fun if it really happened."
Just to let them know I didn't believe them. I think it came from a "love and logic" cd. I KNOW how Justin loves those! lol

MelTheo said...

Ah Jules. He is tenderhearted, way down deep. As most of us (maybe not you, you are too nice), but as the REST of us have discovered, lying doesn't pay.

But, sadly, we have to discover it for ourselves. Maybe at age 15, maybe at age 30, maybe even older. Just make sure he knows you love him, no matter what, and someday - he'll lose his taste for it.

Someday.