The funniest thing of all time.

A frequent perception of autistic kids is that they lack a sense of humor. Joey is not that way, though he has trouble with jokes; understanding them and telling them so that they're funny to others is extremely challenging for him.

So when I arrived back at the homestead after the day's work, I was greeted with, 'Does a snowman zerzer wiener? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA', accompanied by several Andy cackles.

Wha? Can he possibly have said what I thought I heard him say? Oh yes. 'Daddy, hahahaha, does a snowman, ka-ha-ha, have a WIEEEEENERR?' I lost it. Bad daddy, I know.  Apparently this had been a frequent refrain today on the less-than-stressfree outing to the Christmas store in Ashland. My bad. 

Oh, the hilarity. But now, I had to put this particular horse back in the barn. Because things that Joey finds funny can get said at any time, in any situation, in front of any one. I like it that he's developing a sense of humor, even if it is potty humor. It IS age-appropriate, after all. It's the lack of contextual use that is the problem. If he wants to talk like this around his peers and his brother (and me), I'm all about that. It's a vital social skill that will help him make friends and fit in when/if that's what he wants.

But what about if he says it to a girl in his class? Or his grandmother? (which of course he has done!) Or a teacher? People are hyper-sensitive about this kind of thing as it is, and he just doesn't need any more social hurdles to climb.

But no, Joey. Most snowmen definitely do not have wieners. Now we get to ask him why he thinks that is. Good times.