to think ds does not need to say 'mum' and I say 'yes' each time he says something to me

[daphnesglasses]

bless him.

if I don't say yes he says mum again till I say yes and then says the thing

Martin Amis, at the beginning of The Information, wrote
'-Dad.
This was my older son, Louis, then aged eleven.
-Yes?
My dad would have said '....yes?' With a dip in it, to signal mild but invariable irritation. I once asked him why he did this and he said 'well, I'm already here, aren't I?'.For him, the Dad-yes?interlude was a clear redundancy, because we were in the same room together and established as having some kind of conversation, however desultory (and unenlivening from his point of view). I saw what he meant, but 5 minutes later I would find myself saying 'dad'. And then I would brace myself for an especially vehement affirmative. I was a teenager before I broke the habit. Children need a beat of time , to secure attention while the thought is framed.

I think that he hit the nail on the head there.

OMG - my 9 year old does this and it drives me (and my DH) bonkers.

For me it's the long pause that follows the "Mum.........." and the pause after I've said yes before she then says what was on her mind that drives her mad.

Not only that, carlajean, but I've seen children get told off for interrupting if they just start to speak without being given some kind of permission. That 'mum' isn't just what the very annoying Martin Amis has explained so well, it's them trying to follow instructions. My niece has always done it and it's annoying, but I find myself wondering what she's supposed to do when she's trying to get her mother's attention but basically being ignored? She says 'mum' - no answer, so she repeats, no answer and so on. If she just goes ahead and speaks, she gets told off for speaking without being spoken to. If she, in effect, asks for permission to speak, she gets ignored.

Hehe, I used to do this.

Both my dad and brother use my first name a LOT, though, and it can be annoying!

Yanbu :(
'i want mummy to do that' 'i want mummy to do this' 'im waiting for mummy' 'muuum?! watch Thomas with me' 'muuum?! i've done a wee on the floor' 'muuum?! im angry/my tummy hurts/ im hungy/im tired/i need this/ i want this/ give me this'
The torture never stops..

My DS (4) does this too, it can be a bit irritating at times.

YANBU, my dc do this mid-conversation too.

Hooray You have made3 me realise dd (11) has stopped doing this .

But, she is my 'little one'-no one will ever do it again.

DS1 ..."and Mum..."
DS2.."Dad...I mean Mum.."
Both of them,"M u u u um."

aww hugoagogo food for thought yes better enjoy it while it lasts - always helps to share on MN and know there are others bless them all (seems sweet now they're in bed )

I hate to say this, but my 17yo DS still does this!
An average Scabby:Ds phone call begins...
S: Hello?
DS: Hello?
S:Hello?
DS: Hello!.....
DS: Muum...
S: Son?

Every flipping phone call!

gullygirl yes I occasionally get 'dad.. I mean mum'
does seem to be more ds that dd doing it by very unreliable straw poll of this thread

scabby

My son is 15 and still does it, I lost a daughter 18yrs ago and never thought at the time I would here that word. Even now literally every time i hear it from him the novelty value never diminishes.

that's nice guiltypleasures I'm so sorry about your daughter. Thankyou it's a reminder just to enjoy these phases and be grateful

Motherhood is like that isn't it?

ds (15) was a late talker and I longed for him to call me 'mummy' of course when he finally did; the novelty quickly wore off and I just wished to listen to my own thoughts for a bit.

My son's fav is to make me feel guilty! (He's 4 and a bit so pretty sure it's not intentional). He'll shout to me when I'm getting his tea ready etc "muuuuummy?" and I snap back "yes??" (bearing in mind this has happened every minute for the last hour even though I have been sitting next to him lol) and then he replies "you are the best mum! love you!".
How rubbish do I feel? Totally agree, it's the boys and they are little monkeys!!

mum
yes
I want to cuddle you
but you are already cuddling me
but mum I want cuddle you!
ok

My ds prefixes most utterances with "Hang on, Mummy" or "But, Mummy?" Deeply irritating. I have taken to ignoring him until he just says what he wants to say.

I do think when they are very little it's just a way of making contact. The poster who said "you haven't thought what to say" yet was spot on. In fact when I think back DS rarely had anything to say, it was like a verbal hand hold.
Two teenagers now and they yell "mum" from their room. I usually answer very quietly " I am downstairs, come here if you wish to speak to me"

I have this not jut at home with DD, but also all day when I'm at work with Mrs .... Over and over too!