By Rick Kaempfer
I find that extracting information from the boys is one of the most difficult things to do. You can’t ask them generic questions (”How was school? Did you have fun?”) and expect anything more than generic answers (”Fine.” “Yup.”)
That’s why my wife and I challenge each other to come up with very specific questions to ask them instead. It’s amazing what comes out when you ask questions they aren’t expecting. The other day my wife hit a home run when she asked our five year old son Sean a question that I never would have asked.
(To understand the conversation, you need to know a few things. The boys call my mom “Oma.” That’s the German word for grandma. She watches Sean two afternoons a week.)
Bridget: Do you ever watch TV at Oma’s house?
Sean: All the time.
Bridget: What do you watch?
Sean: Oma’s stories.
Bridget: Do you know the names of the stories?
Sean: All My Children on ABC.
Bridget: Do people kiss on that show?
Sean: Uh huh. And they sleep a lot.
Bridget: You mean they’re in bed?
Sean: Uh huh.
Bridget: What are they wearing?
Sean: Nothing.
Bridget: Really?
Sean: But it just looks like nothing. They’re really wearing underpants.
Bridget: What kind of underpants?
Sean: Skin colored.
Bridget: What else do they do on that show?
Sean: One guy went to jail because he showed his butt to everyone in the world.
Bridget: Do you like that show?
Sean: No. But the butt was funny. (laughs)
This originally appeared on my blog at NWI Parent, "Father Knows Nothing." If you haven't yet checked out "Father Knows Nothing", there are several new columns there that I haven't shared here at Suburban Man headquarters.Click here to see them.
