Right On Time

It's funny the way you seem to be right on time with all your milestones. For instance, at almost exactly one year decided your white blanket was what you needed for sleep and when you were upset. Now you have begun saying words, and it started at almost exactly 17 months. And now that you've started saying words you practice all the time. You copy what we say for a lot of words and you're getting pretty good at it. And, at 18 months, you want baby dolls and want to put them to sleep and hold them and feed them. At Good Will, I tried to get you interested in trucks and purses and books, but you would not let go of the baby doll. In the store, you put her to sleep on a set of drawers and carried her around upside down through the store. When I was holding you, you kept putting the doll into the car seat in the cart ahead of us. I couldn't make you stop, even though the little 5 year old with the cart kept (loudly) pointing it out. Fortunately her mother and grandmother thought it was cute. They talking in Spanish, but I got the gist from their expressions.

You still have times where you babble and look at me like I should be understanding what you're saying. Sometimes I can guess and sometimes I can't.

It's funny to be so attached to such a little being.

Fine Mexican Dining

My student from the ESL class, Sergio, had invited me and my family to come and have Mexican food at his house. He is from the state of Chuahua in Mexico and is very proud of the food from there, and rightly so I found out last night. Sergio and his wife, Yolanda, made us two types of chili rellenos (one with cheese from Chuahua), one with meat), soup made from white dried corn, and quesadilla's made from a special type of cheese they make in Chuahua from the whey left over from making other cheese. We also had 4 different types of salsa.

The meal was amazing. It was delicious. I was sooooo full.

And Sergio showed me right way to drink tequila, with lime and salt. Now I can fit right in down in South America :-)

You were a bit of a hellion, running around and grabbing anything that looked breakable. I ran around after you for part of the time, taking all the cute ceramic sculptures out of your hands and putting them on high tables you couldn't reach. You had a few small tantrums, kicking and screaming and making it hard for us to eat. Other than that, you were good. And you were the center of attention for part of the night, with everyone saying how beautiful you eyes and eye lashes were. Sergio did note that you were a lot like a wind-up toy, running around in circles. It's a pretty apt description. They tried to distract you with candy and playing ball and dolls with Victoria, their 8 year old daughter, but you ignored the dolls got tired of playing ball. And you wouldn't sit still and watch cartoons with her.

Yolanda was a lot of fun to talk to, and her English is very, very good. When a friend of hers came over to eat some of the food, she translated anything that was said in Spanish so Robert and I wouldn't feel left out. I actually found it nice to hear Spanish again and to see if I could follow some of it. I really need to do another Spanish lesson with our Rosetta Stone.

Time To Talk

About 3 weeks ago you started to talk. I knew you were going to be a late starter, but hadn't started to worry. I figured that because you were such a physical child you might start speaking later, but you were doing so well at signing that I knew you were going to be fine. You were associating things with the signs and almost every day gained more understanding about what the signs meant. In fact, it's been awesome to watch you begin to understand the world around you.

Your words aren't really clear yet, they don't sound like the words as an adult would say them, but your dad and I know what you mean.

You say

1. Isbre (Isbe)
2. dog (woof woof)
3. mama
4. dada (sometimes daddy)
5. belly button (beba)
6. bubble (bubu)
7. shoe (doo)
8. more (moe)
9. bike (buk)
10. thank you (dadoo)
11. hot (ha)
12. cold (brrr)
13. blah (for yucky stuff)

You sign

1. water
2. dog
3. cat
4. play
5. milk
6. tree
7. sheep
8. baby
9. dance
10. more
11. done
12. no more
13. wait
14. please
15. thank you
16. bird
17. duck
18. horse
19. owl
20. bug
21. bee
22. tree
23. hot
24. cold
25. help
26. flower
27. smelly
28. squirrel
29. yes
30. no
31. up
32. down

Bicuspids and scabes

Your upper bicuspids are fully in and the lower ones are almost there. You've been amazingly even-tempered through these coming in, and in most babies these are the more achy ones so I'm surprised.

Weekend before last we went to the Wilson Ranch Retreat in Fossil, Oregon. Mostly we played in the yard, fed and petted the horses, and went on short hikes. Dad was motorcycling up to Hell's Canyon, but I didn't want to drive that far with you. You screamed enough on the shorter trip to Fossil (4 hrs). Not that you were bad, but after you woke up from your nap you got tired of just sitting. I had tried having you watch a toy story movie, but you weren't interested. You are so not a TV girl.

Bicuspids Are Coming

Your top front bicuspids are coming in. Right after I decided that you weren't going to get in any new teeth for a while, that you felt 8 teeth were enough for you and I could just get used to cutting up your food forever. Why go through the painful process of growing teeth when Mom is there to cut up your food for you?? It doesn't make sense.

Then, the last couple of days you have been pointing to your jaw and running your hand along the jaw line. I must admit that I am not the brightest bulb in the pack, as it took me almost a week to get the hint. "Hello!!" you were saying, "Do I need to make you a sign and hang it around my neck with an arrow that says "New Teeth Coming In Here"??!!".

More than 10 Signs

You now know a bunch of signs. You know:

• flower (these are all over)
• dog (you can spot these anywhere)
• cat
• food
• water
• cheese
• hello
• diaper change
• potty
• duck
• bird
• sheep
• quiet

The sign for quiet is what you do right after you scream. It started when we were at a poker party and you began to scream. I wanted to finish drinking my Irish coffee, so I tried desperately to shush you. You saw a lot of "QUIET!". And it always was right after you screamed.

Fabulous Baptism

Your baptism was wonderful. It was on Sunday and you acted about like I expected. You squirmed and wiggled in my arms the whole time we were up at the baptismal font. You would have thought you had a burr in your underwear. Grandma Hash stayed with you in the nursery until soon before the baptism because you could tell there something different going on and you were not going to be left on your own in there. I went to get you about 15 minutes before the sermon was finished and the baptism was to begin.

Tonight You Told Me You Wanted to Sleep!!

You are learning signs crazy fast now, like you can't wait to be understood. I showed you the sign for sleep about a week ago at nap time, and now you use it for your bed and when you just wake up. (Your version of "sleep" has your open palm under your face, like your jaw hurts.) Then, tonight, at about 8pm, you showed me the sleep sign a few times, then rubbed your eyes. I'm ecstatic.

Major Shifts

When you were one year old, almost to the day, you began to get interested in your stuffed animals and you fell in love with the baby blanket I took with me down to Guatemala in July (thank you again Tina for the blanket). You love that blanket. When you throw yourself into it you act like an addict who has finally gotten a hit. It's pure extacy. You drag it around the house and it gets yucky and still you adore it.

Right before we went to California you started making signs and understanding what they meant.

About 3 weeks ago you noticed the frog statues in the yard and started pointing to them. You then noticed the dancing couple statue and pointed it out. You understood that they were something different than what was around them.

About 4 weeks ago you begain pointing to the paintings of the girraffe and elephant in your room.

About 2 weeks ago you made the leap from seeing the flowers outside to the flowers on your pajamas, and made the sign for flowers.

When you were 11 months old we got you a toy truck with duplos and a doll we named Lucie that makes kissing noises and says "I love you." Today you were kissing the doll by saying "Mmmm".

How Many Dogs..?

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