that's what HE said.

• benny's command of the english language is getting more solid all the time. his vocabulary is increasing and, though it breaks my heart, he is slowly learning to properly pronounce words. thankfully, he is not quite there yet, and even his pint-sized defiance is still kind of precious. 
• that said, his little declarations tend to have a certain rhythm to them these days. for mommy, this serves as a very convenient what-just-happened-leading-up-to-this-statement decoding mechanism. thanks to benny's go-to responses, here's how i know what you (or, perhaps more accurately, i) just did...
• if he tells you YOU BOKE IT!...you have thrown away something that he did not consider trash
• if he insists NO, I'M TUFF!...you have paid him a compliment
• should he state I'MMA FRUDDAH WADED... he is irritated. likely with you. likely because you told him no. or supported a household rule. or, heaven forbid, informed him that, in fact, no, he can not have candy for breakfast/lunch/dinner. 
• if he looks at you, indignant, and shouts NO, I'MMA DEDDO MAYO!...you have started to head down the driveway to the mailbox without him
• if he retorts NO, I NOT A FART!...you have told him he is smart. for some reason, this is highly insulting to him. 
• • if he declares, NO, I BIG!... you have reminded him he is little. 
  • if he declares, NO, I LITTLE...you have suggested he is a big boy.
  • and, if he comes back with no YOU (insert verb/action phrase here)...you have asked him to do...anything.    (ie, "no, YOU take a bath, momma. no YOU wash yo' hands, daddy. no, YOU stop pokin' me, Antony.)