Tilly tried to take a piece of toast from Squiffany a week or so ago. “Naughty girl” said Squiffany, pulling her hand away.

When her mother came home, I told her. “I’ve never called her naughty girl, have you?” said Dilly. I denied it – we agreed, we know well the maxim ‘blame the behaviour, not the chid.’ “My friend says ‘naughty boy’ to Bodger (her two and a half year old); since the baby was born he’s been really difficult. And I say ‘good girl’ quite often,” Dilly said. I agreed, so do I, both to Squiffany and Tilly.

So she constructed a whole phrase from scratch. One never remembers this sort of thing unless it is written down – so now I have.