Jack just told his first "lie"

He was sitting on the potty "reading". This often takes awhile so I went to get a cup of coffee.

Suddenly he comes running through the living room.

"Wait," I cry, "I thought you were using the potty."

Jack said, "All done. All done."

M: Not all done. You have to go flush.

J: All done. All done.

M: (kind of incredulous) Did you flush?

J: Yes.

M: You did? Did you flush? (Really incredulous thinking he may have)

J: Yes I did. All done.

Turns out he didn't flush and of course he needed to wash his hands.

I never knew that I would be so excited about my child's first lie! BUT it is such a typical behavior. It's the most natural thing in the world for a five year old to give the "correct" answer (the one they know you want to hear) even if it is not the most factually accurate.

For Jack, this represents so much development. There's the plain old speech aspect of using the language to answer me and the fact that he answered a yes/no question.

But it also shows an awareness of what another person wants and a desire to please. While those characteristics needed to be molded so that it does not result in lying, this is a great sign of desiring to be in relationship with another person! That is HUGE for social development.
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