Yes, No, Maybe So

I don't think that Ian has gotten a handle on how to answer yes and no questions yet.  I feel like he has learned the concept of yes and no but not so much where it comes to using them to respond to a question.

For example, I asked him if he had a poopy diaper tonight even though I knew the answer was a resounding, "Yes, and it's a stinker!"

"Ian, do you have a poopy diaper?"

Ian looks up to me with those innocent eyes and says confidently, "No! OK."

I am pretty sure that that he meant to say, "Yeah, I have a poopy diaper but I plan to sit in it the rest of the night.  Thank you for asking."

Another example of Ian's inability to answer a yes or no question is when I am trying to figure out what he wants as he begs at the cupboard and attempts to shear cliff climb up the cabinets.

"Ian do you want a cereal bar?"

"No. OK."

So I open the cereal bar and hand it to him.  Instantly he throws himself to the ground in a fit of despair because I am now "forcing" him to eat the cereal bar that he just said he didn't want.  All I can do is stand there, and wonder how something that seems to have meant "yes" 20 minutes ago now means "no," as I put the cereal bar in a baggy for later.

Moments like this remind me how empty and pure babies are.  We have to fill them up with everything: nutrients, love and knowledge.  So we are going to keep working on answering yes and no questions because someday Ian will be asked an important question and I want to be sure I will have filled him up with the right stuff to answer.