Use Your Accent

An update and answer to the question, “Do the kids have accents?” Oh, do they ever!

The kids and their accents are a frequent topic of discussion, as well as the inspiration for our blog name! As I originally predicted, T2 has taken to the lingo with aplomb! Her Bri’ish intonation is a steady fixture in the house now, so much so that I don’t even notice the difference until someone else points it out! Only when she says certain words or phases do I have a chuckle at her cuteness. At the playground she asked me, “Are there any dead worms ‘bout here?” (insert Bri’ish accent, which I do not know how to spell.) Don’t want to know what she was going to do with any dead worms, if there were some “about here”, but she certainly sounded like a native while asking!

T2 is a little more sly with his accent. I believe he turns it on and off, most likely flipping the switch in the pick-up/drop-off area of school. But he has a dozen or so words, when said without an accent, just give me pause….then a laugh! Like, “Whoops, I need a rubber Mom.” Any mom being asked by her son for a “rubber” has to raise an eyebrow! 😉 In this case, he made a mistake on his homework and needed an eraser.  Get your head out of the gutter.

And don’t even get me started on Harry Pot’tah!

Me: It’s demenTOR. (Or, when I use my Chicago accent: demenTER).

T1: No, it’s demenTAH. That’s how Harry says it.

Me: Fair.

I have been trying to capture as much of their accents on video as I can, but one has to be sneaky about it. The minute they know they’re being put on the spot, they clam up. I have to plead, “please use your accent when you say it!” It rarely works!