Mason Wilkerson curses and jokes around with mom

Wiseguy Mason Wilkerson, 17 months, has quite the mouth on him. MelissaJoan Hart says her son’s first words weren’t the traditional "mama" or"dada."

I think [his first words] were ‘oh, s–t!’

Mason has since learned the aforementioned pronouns for his parents, but doesn’t always use them correctly.

He calls me ‘Daddy,’ which really ticks me off, and every time he says it, he rolls his eyes, like, ‘Haha, I gotcha.’

The trickster, who loves sharks and to go "ow-sigh" to swim andplay with his bubble-blowing lawn mover, is a fan of Starbucks runs too.

If [husband Mark Wilkerson and I] go to Starbucks, the straw and lid keep him busy.

Source: Us Weekly, July 9 issue, pg 47 & 53

Comments

I can’t believe she’d tell the press this information. Is she kidding? I really don’t think a baby’s first words being “oh s–t’ is funny, and let me tell you, if its true, I sure as heck wouldn’t publicize it. I’d be embarassed and ashamed that my little toddler heard cursing enough out of the adults around him that he is going to come out with a swear as his first word. Yes, everyone slips around a child here and there – we are all human. But its got to be often for it to be a first word. Maybe she’s kidding and I just don’t have the same sense of humor to appreciate the “joke”.

- madison on June 29th, 2007

Where on Earth did a child his age hear words like s–t?? It really aggravates me when I hear little children curse, it makes me sad. I realise that tiny kids pick up words from all sorts of places, but they need to hear it more than once to be able to repeat it- I hate to think that Melissa or her husband use the word around their son, or that they let him watch television programmes where that word is used. If he picked it up from some of their friends or relatives, well I guess they can’t help that, but I personally believe that parents have every right to ask their friends and relatives not to curse around their children.
I was never permitted to use any bad language at all as a child, and now as a 21-year-old (with a foul mouth on occasion!) I still wouldn’t dream of cursing around any children or any of my relatives.

- Sabina on June 29th, 2007

I don’t see what the big deal is. I think it’s refreshing that Melissa isn’t pretending to be the perfect parent with the perfect child the way some people do. Reading the comments to some of these posts makes me laugh when I see how many people there are on here who act like they’re the perfect parents.

And, Sabina, getting relatives to stop swearing in front of children isn’t always as easy as it sounds. My relatives swore around me when I was a child and it took about five years of my mother arguing with them about it to get them to stop. Perhaps Melissa is having the same trouble.

Bottom line is that we shouldn’t judge people when we have no idea about the real circumstances of their lives. It’s easy to look down on someone when you only see a tiny glimpse of their lives – but I’m sure we’ve all done and said things that might look bad to other people if they just say or heard about that one little part of our lives.

- Angie on June 29th, 2007

This may be pedantic, but “mama” and “papa” are definitely not pronouns. “he, she, I, you, her, his…” – those are pronouns. Try “moniker” or just plain simple “name”. No offence meant, of course

- mousseauchocolat on June 29th, 2007

I agree w/Angie. Our daughter’s 1st word was not a swear word, however one day she was playing and we heard her say, “Oh s**t”. DH and I turned to ea. other and said, “I think its time we stop swearing near the baby”. She was only 1, and we had no idea she would learn that from us out of all of the other nice words we spoke. We were 1st time parents, so we learned our lesson. I assume the same of MJH.

- Doris on June 29th, 2007

I actually find it rather cute when babies/toddlers curse. They have no idea what it means; they’re just saying it innocently. Monkey see, monkey do. It’s inevitable that kids are going to be exposed to that kind of language. I think it’s best that they at least know the words, so they can be told “This is a bad word” and learn not to use it. Kids need to be aware.

- Nausicaa on June 29th, 2007

She has always been honest, he only picked it up from his parents, I really hope I’m not the only one that uses that word. I try not in front of my girls but it does slip sometimes. I think Melissa is a great mom & Mason sounds like a real QT

- Summer on June 29th, 2007

“I actually find it rather cute when babies/toddlers curse.”

I totally disagree…I don’t think there is anything trashier than a child that curses…it shows the parents could care less what they are teaching their child. Granted, eventually they will hear it, and a parent may slip up and say a curse word from time to time. Also, a child may pick it up somewhere and reapeat it, but to say it enough where the child is saying it, too…and then to brag about it like it’s funny?? Embarassing is more like it!

- Southern girl on June 29th, 2007

Honestly I don’t like to hear children curse. It does come back to the parents and the example they set. But children will inevitably pick these things up especially since cursing is not at all uncommon now. I have always tried not to curse in front of my son but it was when my 2 year old nephew said to me at McDonalds the other day “Give me a chip bitch” and I realised that I really don’t like it when kids curse, not because I was offended (I wasn’t), I just don’t like it.

On another note it IS nice to see a celeb mum who doesn’t think she has to seem perfect and pretend her child is an angel. I loved it when Gwenyth Paltrow talked about Moses being a night owl who woke up just to ‘chat’ with her when he was about nine months. It’s refreshing to find commonalities with celebs. MJH is just being honest and I don’t think less of her at all.

- Bella on June 30th, 2007

I would be utterly ashamed if my child said that… when we become parents, it is our job to watch our language around them when they begin copying what we say (aka… speaking)

when I’m around my kids, it would be… “oh – sugar!”

Now that they are older… and have heard the words on tv, we’ve talked about bad words… but it goes further… my sons come home with words like brat, twerp, stupid, idiot, etc…. and they all have to be explained.

I can’t stand name calling… and why children have learned to do this baffles me.

What parent could look at their child and say (what my son came home and said to me)… “Why you little brat!”… instead of… “Why did you do that?”

My nephew actually called my mother in law a “trump” the other day (I’m sure you know what word it was… he mispronounced it)

and I about died.

He also walks around telling everyone to “shut up”… he sticks his tongue out rudely, opens his mouth and goes “AHHHH” when he’s eating, and many other things I don’t find acceptable. It’s his father’s fault… too permissive.

My mil did not raise HER kids that way and I don’t raise mine that way, either.

We use good words only (bad words are not to be said to anyone… they are for adults to use by themselves when they are so angry that the word helps them calm down… like if they hear pappy say it when he’s trying to fix something and he’s getting angry at it… or if daddy goes to our room and starts cussing at the wall about someone at the store or something…. or for yelling at the television when football is on…) we don’t raise our middle finger (my 7yr old learned THAT at school… I had to tell him what bad word it meant and he immediately understood that we don’t do that), we use please, thank you, excuse me, etc.

We hold doors open for people (ALWAYS for people in wheelchairs, with strollers, lots of bags or things in their hands, sometimes for people right behind whoever you’re holding the door open for in the first place, depending on how far in you are, and it goes for women AND men), use our good elevator, stair manners, table manners, etc.

I just think it’s easier to raise them with good habits than to be constantly trying to break bad ones when they are older.

- Kat on July 2nd, 2007