Westley has been saying "please" and "thank you" for so long that I don't remember exactly when he started saying them. Of course, he still struggles with the letter L, so what actually comes out of his mouth is "pwease." Strangers sometimes remark on Westley's politeness, and I take a moment to pat myself on the back for a job well done.
I can't take credit for the most recent addition to Westley's politeness vocabulary, however. I'm pretty sure it was my mom who taught Westley "may." As in, "May I?"
Westley was more than happy to start using "may." Rob and I make it very clear that Westley is more likely to have his requests granted if he asks nicely. (You should hear us be all positive-reinforcey around the house: "Wow, buddy! I love how you asked me so nicely! Thank you!" It borders on disgusting.)
But Westley still hasn't really grasped the proper usage of "may." He somehow decided that it goes with "will." Resulting in the adorable:
"Will I may pwease have annudder cookie?"
Maybe this doesn't kick your ass with cute the way it does mine. After all, I'm his mother and an English major and a former copy editor, and I do swell a bit with pride when someone calls my son polite. But whatever the reason, "will I may (pwease)" is, apparently, my Kryptonite. How do I say no to another cookie (or whatever) when Westley is busting his little toddler ass to learn this crazy English language, with all its wacky rules of grammar and politeness?
I can't do it. When Westley's putting in all that effort, refusing "will I may" just seems, well, rude. Not to mention grammatically challenging. ("No you may won't," perhaps?)
