He Told Them All Like For Like

(My parents, husband, and I are baby-sitting for my brother since he is about to leave for a concert. My nephew is showing my dad and my husband a series of videos on YouTube. He is barely three years old.)

Nephew: “After Daddy leaves, let’s watch the one I like.”

Dad: “Okay.”

Nephew: *sternly* “But not the one I don’t like.”

Dad: “Okay.”

Nephew: *more sternly* “I don’t want to watch the one I don’t like.”

Dad: “Okay…”

Nephew: “But I do want to watch the one I do like.”

Dad: *chuckling* “Okay, we won’t watch the one you don’t like, and we will watch the one you do like.”

Nephew: *goes to his dad, who has been listening* “Dad? We’re not going to watch the one I don’t like.”

Brother: *laughing* “Okay.”

Nephew: “But we are going to watch the one I do like.”

(Everyone can see where this is going and is starting to laugh despite my nephew’s serious face. He proceeds to go around and say the exact same thing to me, my mom, my husband, my brother’s friend, and again to my dad.)

Brother: *joking to my dad* “He’s making sure, just in case you try to play the one he doesn’t like, that everyone knows that he told you not to.”

(After my brother and his friend leave, my dad and nephew go to watch the videos he has given very firm instructions on.)

Nephew: *to my mom, after the video* “Grandma? Grandpa played the one I don’t like.”

Mom: *shocked* “What?!”

Dad: *indignant* “Now, wait a minute. He failed to tell you that he told me to play the one he doesn’t like, and about 10 seconds in I asked him if it was the one he didn’t like, and he said yes and to change it to the one he did like.”

(We all laugh.)

Nephew: *points at my dad* “Now, don’t do it again!”

Dad: “What?!”

(He’s a stubborn little guy!)