4yo talks ALL the time

[USAmma]

I know this is a normal stage of development. Abi just turned 4 and suddenly she's talking, talking, talking all the time. Her mouth is just constantly going. She wants me to listen to her all the time, and I'm happy to listen most of the time but I have to concentrate on other things too.

Today I went to the store and she chattered non-stop, asking me questions: what if, why, what is that? etc. and then took each topic and went a mile with it. I was trying to concentrate and asked her a few times to think things in her head to herself because mommy needs to think about something privately. That lasted oh, 30 seconds.

At home she has a few favorite vidoes that the whole family knows inside and out. She demands that I "look mommy look at the mouse, look!" and I say "yes I see it" and then 2 seconds later, "Watch mommy, see what it's doing? What is it doing."

So you get the point.

What's going on here, and how do I handle it? I'd love to spend all my waking hours listening to Abi, but sometimes I need to drive, cook, and focus on the baby.

Darshani

[poppywise]

oooh boy - that sounds like our house! oh, the questions! will they ever stop!?
i am not sure if i have any advice for you, really, just know that you are definitely not alone. our ds has had to learn the meaning of patience the hard way when i am paying attention to our 18mo old and he needs to wait. it's not easy for either of us! the way i figure, i would rather have a bright, inquisitive, non-stop talker than someone i would have trouble engaging. that's what i tell myself whenever i get frustrated. and i have also tried the 'can we be quiet for just a few minutes so momma can think?'...and it doesn't last but it gives me a breather and shows ds how to be thoughtful and [hopefully] patient.
anyway - wishing us both some luck!

[sarahmae1]

No advice but my 4yr. old is the same way and has been for over a year! It is constant! He now has imaginary friends that he will talk to sometimes when I'm not able to listen.

[proud mama of 2]

Sounds familiar her too.

My son LOVES Shrek 2 -- he say's

"mama, i'm just like donkey, I can;t stop talking either"

TRACY

[darkstar]

DD also has an imaginary friend. Her name is Lilo. She talks to her on the phone, all the time. When not talking to Lilo, she talk, talk, talks. Everywhere we go everyone says "My your dd talks so well" and my response is"Yes she gets alot of practice as she never stops" I dont have any advice, other than I am right there with you.

darkstar

[teachma]

A 4 year old constant talker here, too. But he has been this way for 2.5 years now. Lately, he is asking the same question over and over 100 times! I hope THAT's just a phas. He follows me around talking all day long!

[mama ganoush]

my now five year old is still a nonstop chatter box. and every single sentence begins as a question with "mommy?" so i have to respond twice to each thing she has to say.

like this:

Mommy?

yes?

that house still has it's christmas lights on.

yes, it does.

Mommy?

yes?

why does that house still have it's christmas lights on?

I don't know honey, i guess they haven't taken them down yet.

Mommy?

yes?

Maybe they will take them down tonight.

yes, honey, maybe they will.

Mommy?

yes?

Don't you think they should take them down tonight?

sure, i guess so.

Mommy?

yes?

what if they don't?



and on and on and on and on all day long.

the kid evens talks in her sleep.

[poppywise]

Originally Posted by mama ganoush

Mommy?

yes?

what if they don't?

:LOL

yes! despite that your entire post looks exactly like conversations with my 4 yr old, i have to say specifically that almost EVERYthing is followed up with 'But what if...' and stating the opposite of whatever we were talking about. -sigh-
serenity now!

[The Lucky One]

My ds1, who just turned 3, is also a non-stop talker. He never stops talking. Seriously. There are times when it grates on my nerves to the point that I have to go somewhere and close the door for a few minutes. I'm not kidding, the boy never stops talking, even when I ask him to. I never thought I would feel aggitated about him talking because he actually had a speech delay, but man oh man, sometimes I have to bite my tongue to keep from getting angry at him.

I love him dearly, but I so look forward to the day when he can, as you say Darshani, think thoughts in his head and not say out loud every blooming thing that crosses his mind.

[Irishmommy]

I have one too. And I've had the same conversations as MamaG.

[LoveBeads]

Look at my signature!!!

I totally relate!!! My DD is such a chatterbox!

DD: mommy, who invented words?
Me: Uh, I'm not sure honey. It happened a long time ago.
DD: Well who decided that "dog" means "dog"?
Me: Hmmmm...good question. Let's ask daddy!

And on, and on, and on....well, you get the point.

DH thinks it's just her, I know that it's lots of kids. I really think it's kind of wonderful - it always makes me smile when she chatters away because I love listening to the way her little mind works.

[mamalisa]

My ds does the same thing, talks in his sleep too. I sometimes ask him to go talk to Maddie (our dog) or to be quiet for a little bit so my "brain can rest". We do have quiet time in the car though. I can't concentrate on driving with him yapping so he reads and I drive. It gives me a little break

[trimomma]

Sounds just like my almost 5yo ds!! On one 40 minute car ride to visit one of his buddies, he actually said "Gosh, I haven't stopped talking this whole time!! There mustn't be anyone else in the whole world that likes to talk as much as I do!"

While I do try to engage in the back and forth with him as much as possible, there are times when I put the question back on him. "I don't know why our neighbors chose to paint their house that color, ds. Why do you think they chose that color?' "

Sometimes he's on to me and tells me he asked me first. Other times he actually sits and thinks quietly about it for a minute or two. Then, he may begin giving silly answers and stories and the questions have stopped for a brief time!

Mary-Jo

[Marsupialmom]

I established a quite time. LOL Went from 5 minutes to 30 building up with my first child.

This is were mommy gets left alone and gets quietness. :

[sunnmama]

Oh, yes, I can relate! Another one that talks ALL day, and then in her sleep as well. And mama g's conversation sounds very familiar!

My dd has learned what "concentrate" means, and--over time--has learned that when I am driving and say "I need to concentrate now", that I can not (and, thus, will not) talk to her at that time. Unless she is feeling meltdown-y, she handles this well and will sing to herself or talk to herself, lol, or her toys for a few minutes. Very occasionally she will actually be quiet

Of course, this means that sometimes when she is lost in play, and I interrupt her to ask something, I am informed that she is concentrating and can not talk to me right now :LOL

[Sofiamomma]

My older dd was *exactly* the same way! What helped with her was that she learned to read!! I changed her smilie from the blah blah one to the book one, hee hee.