Adults giggling at anything your child says

[irinam]

OK, may be I am weirdly sensitive here, but it increasingly drives me up the wall!

DD at the restaurant: "May I please have mac and cheese"
Waitress - <giggle giggle giggle giggle> "Sure honey!"

DD at the store (talking to *me* nontheless, not people around): "This says 12 for $2. It does not seem right." (looking at me for an explanation)
Store clerk - "Ha ha ha!" "Of course not! It's 2 for $12!" <giggle giggle giggle>

And so on and so forth. I would go berserk if people laughed or giggled at every word I say.

Why? What's so funny? The fact that they heard the child SPEAK? Make a mistake?




OK. Vent over. I am sure they mean nice, they see kids as "cute replicas of adults", etc., etc., etc., I guess I am not in a very gentle mood today

[lurable]

I am sooooo guilty of this : It is definitely the cute factor. I giggle at everything the kids in my babies music class do, I can't help myself--I adore them and, for me, that's the way it comes out. I never thought about it until now but I can see how it would be annoying. I also do it to dd when she does something amazing--which is everyday For example, if she points to something green and says "green" I always giggle: and say :that's right, it's green! *giggle giggle*
Wow, I hope I'm not annoying people--more than I already KNOW I do anyway

[BonMaman]

I am sensitive to this too because when I was a child I often felt as though I were being laughed at in a being-made-fun-of sort of way. I keep this in mind with my DS, so when I feel compelled to laugh at something he says or does because it is cute or funny, I try to do so in a manner that conveys my delight at what he is doing or saying. We do have a few close family members who seem to almost snicker at things he says or does, and while I know they do not mean to be mean or anything like that (quite the opposite, actually), it really bothers me. : I don't know how effective it is, but I try to register my displeasure with such laughing by not laughing along with them, or by somehow otherwise giving nonverbal cues that their laughter is not appropriate. I don't want DS to feel like he's being made fun of -- that's not a good feeling at all.

Sometimes I think people laugh because they are amazed at what the child is doing ... the child somehow exceeds the adult's expectations for what the child is capable of, and the adult's response is laughter. It doesn't justify the adult's behavior, but I think that is often the cause...

I'm speaking mainly of the kind of laughter that seems condescending in nature like I've written above of experiencing and witnessing. There *are* times when our children do or say things that are truly funny just like their adult counterparts, and then I think it's a natural response to laugh in a loving, delighted way to show them how they've positively affected us.

[gaialice]

I sooo understand. My dd2 grew so tired of this that now whenever she makes us laugh, not because we are making fun of her because we do NOT and we sure do take her seriously, but because she says something funny she will cry... she is now confused and does not understand the difference anymore... well, how can I blame her?

[nextcommercial]

I'm guilty of this too. I love a cute kid, and they are sometimes just so adorable, it's either giggle at them, or scoop them up and hug them.

O.K, a bit off topic, but I had a VERY little kid (22 months) say to me..

"That's a Big a$$ Pancake!!" While I was surprised, it tickled the heck out of me! I couldn't have disciplined him for the life of me cuz it was kinda cute!

[irinam]

Originally Posted by BonMaman

I am sensitive to this too because when I was a child I often felt as though I were being laughed at in a being-made-fun-of sort of way.

Yes! That's what I feel (on her behalf!) as I see that she does not like not being taken seriously

[LynnS6]

Originally Posted by lurable

I am sooooo guilty of this : It is definitely the cute factor. I giggle at everything the kids in my babies music class do, I can't help myself--I adore them and, for me, that's the way it comes out.

Well, there's a difference between laughing when babies talk and giggling when a 6 yo talks! That's simply condescending. I think adults giggle (notice it's not laughter but giggling) out of discomfort -- why a child speaking would cause them discomfort is a whole different question.

I think I'd call them on it -- "Oh Mac 'n Cheese is funny today, huh?" "Gosh, that was a silly mistake your store made, wasn't it." "Are you laughing with us or at us?"

[irinam]

Originally Posted by LynnS6

I think I'd call them on it -- "Oh Mac 'n Cheese is funny today, huh?" "Gosh, that was a silly mistake your store made, wasn't it." "Are you laughing with us or at us?"

Good ideas! I often caught myself just "seeing red" and yk, nothing good comes out of it