Why?

Eli has now entered the questioning stage; "Why?" is becoming his favorite phrase.  He also likes "what?" questions (particularly "What did you say?" even though he knows exactly what I said), but "why?" is definitely his favorite.  I can't get through a story now without him asking a bazillion questions.  In fact, as cute as it was in the beginning, it is now quite annoying.  Here's a typical exchange:

Me:  (reading from a story) "The man went to find his animals."

Eli:  "Why, Mommy, why?"

Me:  "Because he needed to take them back to his circus."

Eli:  "But why, Mommy?"

Me:  "Because they were lost."

Eli:  "Why?"

Me:  "Because that's how the story goes."

And so on and so on.  Many times I just have to say, "Let's read the story and find out." 

Of course, it's not just with stories, it's with everything.  Gone are the days of simply telling him something and having him be content with it.  He wants to know why for everything.  I know it's good because it shows his development, but it reminds me of when I was a young girl and my brothers would ask why after everything I said just to tease and annoy me.  In fact, though it's usually sincere, sometimes even Eli does it to tease me.  He'll ask why, and I'll respond, "I told you why."  Then he smiles that mischievous little grin at me and says, "Why, Mommy, why?"  Sometimes I respond with, "Why not?"  Unfortunately, that has now backfired on me and he uses that when I genuinely ask HIM a why question.  I think he's trying to prove he can outsmart his mom, and it's working.  I'm not sure how much smarter and more creative I can get, and he's only three (well, in a month anyway)!