how do you deal with the why mummy? but why? why? why?

[fragglerocker]

DS is 2.8 and he started this today. I suppose I should be grateful he didn't start earlier but it is driving me mad already! I picked him from nursery today and there is a pair of slippers there that nobody knows who they belong to, so before we left i had this:
ds - mummy take slippers home?
me - no ds they are not yours
ds - why mummy?
m - because they are someone elses
ds - but why?
m - because they are
ds - but WHY mummy?
m - erm...
ds - why? why? why?
Then we went on a bus:
ds - we're on the bus mummy
m - i know
ds - a pink bus mummy?
m - no, a red bus
ds - why?
m - because it's not pink
ds - why?
m - becuse it's red
ds - why?
m - you don't get pink buses
ds - why? but WHY mumy?
Then i ran out of answers. There must be an answer that stops the WHYs!!!!! What is it???

I just say 'stop saying why!' and he laughs at me

turn it back to them.

ds - mummy take slippers home?
YOU - no ds they are not yours
ds - why mummy?
YOU- ARE THEY YOUR SLIPPERS?

..and so on.

I saw on here someone suggested
"why?"
"z"
So I adopted that as my own and it became
"why?"
"x"
"why?"
"z"
"wh....a..b...c.d.e.f.g...." *wanders off singing"

I turned it around when my DS started this and asked "why do you think" and most of the time he came out with the answer.

Firstly - never answer a question which just says 'why'

For example.

Mum: Don't play with yellow snow dd
DD: Why?
Mum: Why what dear?
dd: Why Can't I play with the yellow snow?
Mum: Because it's dirty.
dd: Why?
Mum: Why what dear?
dd: Why is playing with yellow snow dirty?

So - basically don't give them an answer unless they ask you a question using a complete sentence. Otherwise just keep saying 'why what dear' or the like.

If they are genuinely curious - they will ask you properly, if not then it's far too much effort to go through to keep asking long long loooong sentences over and over again.

I also like the 'why do you think' idea.

motherpanda Genius!

flutters eyelids

I have my moments

I read a good tip on MN that "why?" doesn't necessarily mean "why?", it can just mean, "I want to keep the conversation going."
so I answer the first why properly, and after that assume we are just having a conversation about buses/ slippers/ snow/ whatever, and just whiffle on about who chooses bus colours or why little Johnny has blue slippers or whatever. In other words, to interpret the "why" as "anything else we could talk about on this subject which I am keen to learn all about". DD seems perfectly happy with that approach and it stops me clawing my own ears off.

thanks everyone! Had another moment when we got up this morning. Is daddy getting up? No ds. Why mummy?.......Oh the joy at 5.30am. Will give your approach a go helium. I know he is just interested and learning but is a little annoying!