Toddlers Against NPR

The other day when I picked up Kate from school and loaded her into the car, she asked who was on the radio. It being 1:00, I was tuned into NPR for the early broadcast of Fresh Air–a program I listen to with relish.

“Who that lady on radio, Mama?” Kate asked.

“Her name is Terry Gross.”

“I no like Terry Gross, Mama.”

“Really? Why is that?” I asked, half-expecting her to bust out Mark’s comment about Terry Gross–which I disagree with–that she uses her interviews as a platform for showing off her own knowledge of a person or topic.

But no. Not so insightful. “I like Grandma Peggy,” she said.

Who knew about this link between Terry Gross and my mother-in-law? Here I’d been liking both of them and thinking that was okay. Clearly, in Kate’s world that’s not kosher.

Since her initial proclamation of dislike for Terry Gross, Kate has repeated this several times. While brushing her teeth: “I no like Terry Gross.” While making a Lego tower: “I no like Terry Gross, Mama.” And oddly the other day when walking with Mark, “I no like Grandma Terry Gross.” Hmmm. The plot thickens…

Of course, my greatest fear is that I’ll stumble across Rush Limbaugh on the radio some day and Kate will mutter a “Right on!” from her car seat. Oy.