For the Child Who Talks With the Brush In

Four lines you can say out loud tonight. Word for word. Free to save.

What to say

1. The brush stays in your mouth until the timer stops. Talking can wait.

2. I know you’ve got a lot to tell me and it’s all coming out right now.

3. I’ll hold up two fingers when you start talking, and you keep brushing.

4. Then you tell me the whole story and I sit and listen to all of it.

When to use it

This is for the moment it actually goes wrong — not the calm version you rehearse in the car. Pick one line. Say it once. Then stop talking and wait three seconds. If they push back, repeat the same line, not a new one. Say the same thing for five nights before you decide it doesn't work.