Errors of comedy

I wonder if anyone can tell me what to do with children when they are going through that rather spastic phase in which they find "comedy" in exaggerated pratfalls, extremely loud silly voices, strange facial expressions, and the telling of bizarre stories (usually told in the aforementioned loud silly voice) that have no decipherable plot, and in which the characters tend to be annoying, in a way that is eerily similar to the storyteller.

I do not enjoy this phase. I want this phase to end, and end quickly.

And yet, I understand that some (is it most? It isn't all, I don't think) kids need this phase, and that they are just learning independence and figuring out their personalities, and that this can be a little messy and noisy.  So I try to let them run and play outside, where they should be allowed to be as boisterous as they need to be, and I can sit at a distance and not be bothered. I try to give gentle reminders about self-control and appropriate behaviors in certain places, and being able to figure that out by themselves without needing a stern look or word from an adult.

I dislike the phrase, "kids will be kids" and its variations. Because people seem to use it when kids are being the kinds of kids that are loud and rambunctious and shrill. When did that become acceptable kid behavior? Are we supposed to let it go as long as no one (or nothing) gets hurt?

I'm mostly trying redirection when I have reached the end of my ability to tolerate (which, because of our frequent togetherness, happens pretty quickly), but I do wonder if I'm stifling something that needs to be allowed. Feel free to tell me that your own kids outgrew this phase in 1-2 weeks, and emerged from it with a fully formed wit, with just the right touch of sophisticated irony, and perhaps even the ability to incorporate a delightful pun on occasion.

On a more positive note, we are just home for a trip to visit the grandparents to celebrate my dad's birthday. My kids delight in Grandfather Pate, and he delights in them. One thing I noticed in particular on this trip was how much fun he has reading to them. He seems to find something new to enjoy even in books he's probably read at least 50 times. He's extremely patient, he answers all of their (mostly Helena) detailed questions about each picture, and he giggles and chuckles and adds commentary, so that even the shortest book ends up taking about half an hour to get through. Here he is, our very own Seventy-Sixer: