A patter

We were sitting at the kitchen table after FHE tonight when we hear A in the living room swatting something against the couch. We were working on a little craft project and had a bunch of sticks in the kitchen and I was sure he had grabbed one and was using that. Without looking at him I just raised my voice and said, "A, what are you doing?" His response was "patting, mommy." That caught my attention as it was a somewhat unexpected word to use. I turned around to see what was making such a noise against the couch. A had found a fly swatter and was "patting" the the couch. Perhaps only a two-year-old would use such a gentle word for such an activity.