When your child does something he is not supposed to do, laughing definitely sends the wrong message. But sometimes it's just so funny I can't help it. So I laugh. And then he laughs. And then the jig is up, so to speak. For example:
Alex spits out his food. He has a cold, so his nose is stuffed up. That makes eating a bit of a challenge for him. He knows he can't breathe through his mouth and swallow at the same time, so he holds his breath and then opens his mouth for a bite (smart boy!). I put a spoonful of delicious sweet potatoes in his mouth. Then he decides he has held his breath for long enough, exhales sharply, and sweet potatoes go flying. The first time I thought, "heh." By the tenth time, I was giggling uncontrollably.
Alex falls down. It is not funny when Alex really hurts himself. And I don't want him to think I am laughing at his pain. But sometimes when he falls it is so slapstick I am sure he has a bright future in physical comedy.
Alex does something silly when he's supposed to be going to sleep. Bedtime has been going like clockwork for us lately. We bathe, we put on PJs, we read stories, we sing a song, and then in the crib and he's asleep in minutes. The morning nap is pretty smooth as well. So most of his antics occur when I'm trying to put him down for his afternoon nap. It has been taking anywhere between 30 and 90 minutes for him to go to sleep. Between the 20th and 30th minutes I start to get somewhat put out. Nonetheless, he can still crack me up with his inventive anti-sleep tactics. For one thing, he stands at the rail chewing the paint off the crib. So, in order to save the finish and prevent too much ingestion of paint chips, I go to lay him back down. On the way down, he manages to get a vise-like grip on the rail. As I tug to get him to let go, he laughs and laughs. There is something so knowing, so mischievous about this, and I can't help it -- I laugh. And then he thinks, "Mommy's laughing! I KNEW it was play time and not sleep time!"
I really need to work on my poker face. He already thinks it's funny when I try to use my serious voice (e.g., "no biting, Alex!"). Any attempts at discipline are going to be for naught if the first thing I do when he misbehaves is laugh.
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