Liar, Liar. Pants on Fire.

The conversation:

Me to Finleigh after she's walked upstairs with her diaper off and poo smeared down her leg and after I've given her a piece of my mind as to what I think about her taking her diaper off.

Me: Did you go poop?

Finn: Ya.

Me:  Did you take your diaper off?

Finn: (Looks wide eyed and shakes her head).

Now, I know that as parents we're supposed to be mortified when our children lie to us, but I was dancing inside.  Is it possible?  Could it be?  Has Finleigh met that milestone where she understands how to lie to get out of trouble???

I mean, this is a big deal.  Here, read this:

Indeed, bright kids—those who do better on other academic indicators—are able to start lying at 2 or 3. “Lying is related to intelligence,” explains Dr. Victoria Talwar, an assistant professor at Montreal’s McGill University and a leading expert on children’s lying behavior.

Although we think of truthfulness as a young child’s paramount virtue, it turns out that lying is the more advanced skill. A child who is going to lie must recognize the truth, intellectually conceive of an alternate reality, and be able to convincingly sell that new reality to someone else. Therefore, lying demands both advanced cognitive development and social skills that honesty simply doesn’t require. “It’s a developmental milestone,” Talwar has concluded.

To read more on this topic, go here.

Now, of course I did the responsible parent thing and told her that she did indeed take off her diaper and dealt with it as best I could.  But my friends, my daughter can lie.

There's not a prouder parent out there right now than I.

* Thanks to Sharolyn for the picture.