1) "Heyyyyy!"
How awesome is it that I have a child who greets others like she's been hanging out with Jerry Garcia? No childlike wrangling with "Hello" for her, thank you. No attempts at "Hi." Just a loud, throaty, full-on stoner saluation complete with waving and a face-cracking grin. We get this every single time we go and get her out of her crib, and often when we enter the room.
2) "Ohhhhh."
This is, as you might expect, an exclamation of surprise. It happens when she figures something out, such as that hitting a pot with a spoon makes a metallic clanging noise. It also indicates extreme interest, as when she had a magazine subscription card in each hand and amused herself forthwith for six solid minutes.
3) "Dada!" (pronounced more like Deh-da)
This was her first word, happened somewhere around eight months, and is her perennial favorite. For a long time, it was clear that she used it for Mr. Milkweed, me, and the cat... as well as anything she pointed to. A tree on our walk? Dada. Fire hydrant? Dada. Fallen Cheerios on the floor? Dada, Dada, Dada. Now, however, she's directing it more and more at Mr. Milkweed, and today on a walk with him actually pointed to him and said it.
4) "Bottle." (New just today!)
I mixed up just two ounces of formula after her second nap because we're trying to teach her to hold the bottle herself, and she's been a little annoyed and has been holding out for nursing. Well, today she held the bottle herself and sucked it all down, making the sign for "more" as soon as she was done.
I carried her into the kitchen, repeating that we were going to get her some more bottle, and this is how we make the bottle, etc. etc. She stayed in my arms the whole time I was making it, and then drank it down with a very focused look on her face. And then, she said it. "Dah-tle." She even said it for Mr. Milkweed when he came home today.
5) "Bye-bye."
This is the maybe. I was actually praising her today for waving bye-bye to our friend American Family and her kids at the park, when she looked at me and said "Buh-buh." She didn't repeat it, so I can't be sure...but the seeds are definitely there.
And there you have it. Clearly, my daughter is as clever as they come. I will stop worrying that she isn't interested in pulling up or cruising around the furniture, because she is obviously busy writing a novel in her head. It has a clear, relaxed beginning, some intrigue, a dashing main character, and an archetypal symbol. True, the ending isn't clear just yet...but I don't want to rush her.
2 comments:
Isn't it miraculous when they begin to speak? And the great thing is that, even the second time around with Henry, it seemed just as miraculous. Although I'm sure Eva is extra articulate and gifted, of course.
That is awesome. She's so beautiful!
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