"Shut up Daddy."

I would very much love to know who taught my daughter to say shut up.

You know, it's funny, when our children are first born we get so excited when thinking about all the firsts they're going to have. Their first smile, the first time they sit-up on their own, their first steps and, of course, their first words. You just can't wait for the first time they mutter mumma and dadda to you.

As Tim McGraw wrote "Sometimes you're asleep I whisper "I love you!" in the moonlight at your door. As I walk away, I hear you say, "Daddy love you more!". These words always brought a tear to my eye just thinking about my little girl saying them to me.1

And now she says them, along with a lot of other things. She has quite the vocabulary for a two year old. I will admit, it was a little funny the first time she swore. Both my wife and I found it hard not to laugh at times, especially when she uses them in the correct context. But now she's taken to telling us to shut up and we have no idea where she learned it from.

So lets face it. Talking is the "gateway drug" of all the bad behaviours children have. Once they start talking then they can started telling you "no" and, of course, "shut up". They talk back, yell and scream. And then, oh God, it leads to dating. And not just dating anyone, but she's going to bring home the worse kind of guy because she knows you won't approve.

The teenage years I'm absolutely dreading. "I love you Daddy," is going to be replaced with "you're so embarrassing" and "I hate you". My heart breaks just thinking of it.

Well, no matter what little demons our angels grow into, we'll love them to death and eventually they will grow out of it.

They will grow out of it? Right?

1. Lyrics taken from My little Girl by Tim McGraw