A nasty new habit...

Much to our dismay, Audrey has started experimenting with lying. Luckily she is not very good at it.

Yesterday she was upstairs playing alone in her room and I heard her go into the bathroom and start messing around in there. She knows that washing her hands by herself is not allowed--she makes a huge mess and either uses no water at all (just soap) or so much water that she looks like she took a bath. So I headed upstairs to investigate.

She heard me coming and ran downstairs. When she saw me she said, "It's not soap, Momma, it's cereal on my hands," showing me her hands coated in a clear, soap-smelling goo.

I said, "Are you sure? It looks and smells like soap. Before you answer me, tell me, what happens when you tell a lie?"

She stuck her bottom lip out and recited, "Big trouble."

"And what happens when you tell the truth?"

"Mercy." (I stole this from an Angela Thomas video I saw this summer--works great!)

"So, do you want to tell me again what's on your hands?"

She blurted out, "it IS soap, Momma! Will you 'give me Momma?" Translation: Will you forgive me?

Of course I melted on the spot. Josh and I have discussed this and we have decided that it's scientifically impossible not to melt when she says this.