Sometimes I worry that I’m brainwashing Georgia. I know that as this age (four, for any new readers), she can’t be expected to have too many of her own values, and that what she is learning comes from us. But she does have a mind of her own, and I wonder what’s actually going in. So I asked.

Momster: May I ask you a few questions for my Green-eyed Momster blog?
Georgia: Oh, okay. But only if it’s easy questions, like “Do mermaids have a fish tail?”
Momster: Do mermaids have a fish tail?
Georgia: Yes.
Momster: How do you know?
Georgia: Because I’ve played little mermaid!
Momster: Is the real ocean clean or dirty?
Georgia: Dirty or clean, it depends what ocean it is.
Momster: What makes the ocean dirty?
Georgia: Boats sailing across it, making lots of ugly looking things.
Momster: When we flush the toilet where does the stuff go?
Georgia: Of course, somewhere!
Momster: Why don’t we just throw everything away? How come we recycle some stuff?
Georgia: Cause, plastic does NOT go in the dump!
Momster: Why not?
Georgia: Oh, that’s a hard one to answer, “Why not?”
Momster: OK, then, what sorts of things pollute the air?
Georgia: SMOKE! [0] …and perfume. That’s a joke!
Momster: What about cars?
Georgia: Yes! Yes yes! At least, I think so.
Momster: Tell me, what do you think people need in their lives?
Georgia: Water and food. And a place to live. Cause every person doesn’t want to be an orphan, even grownups. Cause there could be orphan grownups.
Momster: Do people need lots of cars?
Georgia: NO! Only one. Or two.
Momster: Do people need lots of toys?
Georgia: No, not toys. They don’t need toys, but they want them.
Hova chiming in: How do we choose the foods that we eat?
Georgia: Mostly healthy greens! And healthy other stuff, like blueberries, and ice cream. Ha ha! That’s a funny one!
Hova: What does organic [0] mean?
Georgia: Ripe and ready to buy [0].
Momster: Why shouldn’t we use the car sometimes?
Georgia: Because some places are not the driving places.
Momster: And what can we do when we don’t want to take the car, so we don’t pollute the air?
Georgia: Walk, or skip, or run. Or gallop!
Momster: What about taking the bus, do you like taking the bus?
Georgia: Yeah, except that it pollutes the air.
Momster: Yeah, you’re right, but it’s better for a bunch of people to take the bus than for all those people to drive.
Georgia: …
Momster: Do you think we should take care of the earth?
Georgia: Yes, very much.
Momster: Why?
Georgia: Because the earth needs love! Lots of people don’t give it very much love.
Momster: What happens if we don’t love the earth?
Georgia: Pobrably die out.
Momster: So we should take care of the earth?
Georgia: Yeah!
Momster: How should we treat the earth?
Georgia: Very nice, and not wasting more trees.
Momster: What can we do to not waste trees?
Georgia: Only use a little toilet paper… [0]

So there you have it folks, some words of wisdom from my four-year-old. After Hova helped her brush her teeth and they left the bathroom she said, “Would you turn the light off please?” Hova asked, “Why should we do that?” And in her most exasperated, pre-school sardonic way she shot back, “To save electricity!” I swear I heard her mutter, “Parents, sheesh!”