No (Anna)

There is a "philosophy" of parenting whereby parents do everything they can to avoid saying "no". And there are many, many times as a parent when it is true that nos can be couched in more positive terms. e.g. "Mum, can I have another cookie?" "No, but if you're hungry, you can have a cracker." "Can we go to the playground?" "Not at the moment, but we'll go on the weekend." etc etc

But I do think there are some questions which deserve an adamant "no," even though I increasingly get the feeling that that might be an old-fashioned opinion. That might be because Emma has been overtly testing boundaries recently, and, honestly, I'm not sure that any other answer would work. (Sometimes, instead of no, when it's clear she already knows the answer, we'll say "Nice try, small fry, won't fly. But we all know that means no, too.)

- Mumma, is it ok if I climb onto the roof and jump off? (No. Next question?)
- Mumma, do you want to dip your finger in my poo? (No! Uuugh.)
- Mumma, can I lick the soy sauce bottle? (No, Emma. Next question?)
- Mumma, can I put my spoon up your nose? (Um. No.)
- Mumma, can I drive us home? (Nice try. Great idea! No.)
- Mumma, can I scribble on the wall? (No. You know that.)

I mean, really. Exactly how is one supposed to avoid no in these situations? Oh wait, here's one:

- Mumma, can I stay awake all night until the morning? (Yes, but you have to be in bed with your head on the pillow and your eyes closed.)

Clearly, we are traumatizing our daughter by constantly thwarting her ideas.