Nyeao

My daughter is incredibly articulate. She has a tiny voice, but uses it clearly and distinctly... Most of the time. The child seems entirely unwilling to say 'YES' and 'NO'. Both words come out sounding the same. The following is a frequently recurring conversation:

Us: [Some question requiring a yes or no answer, such as,] "Do you want a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?"
Lila: "Nyeao."
Us: "Was that 'Yes' or 'No'?"
Lila: "Nyeao."
Us: "Yes?"
Lila: "NO!"
Us: [gently prompting] "No, thank you?"
Lila: [grudgingly] "No, thank you."

She gets very irritated when we ask her to repeat herself, but we have not been able to convince her that she would not need to repeat herself if she'd just respond to questions with 'Yes, please.' or 'No, thank you.'

There are two other times when we can't understand her. The first is when she's using her tiny voice from the back seat of the car. The other is when she's talking with one of those confounded pacifiers in her mouth. (which only happens just before and after bedtime, i feel the need to explain.) I'll complain about those another time though. Right now I need to go give my sweet girl some goodnight kisses and hugs.