Background: 1. When the phone is ringing, we might say, "The phone is ringing!" and then someone answers it. This has led Francis to believe that to ring a phone is to answer it. 2. Francis is three years old and calls himself Mr. Fran Fran. 3. Francis (and Anthony) often instruct me to say something, as in, "I want a cookie. You say, 'Fair enough!'" 4. We get a lot of pre-recorded advertising calls on our home phone. Rather than calling them robocalls like a normal person, when asked who was on the phone, I just say, "It was a robot."
Scene: Sitting in the living room, any day (it happens multiple times a week right now). The house phone rings.
Francis: You say, "You ring it, Mr. Fran Fran!"
Me: You ring it, Mr. Fran Fran!
Francis (answers the phone): Hello! Are you a robot?