I'm so fascinated with how my daughter is learning language. As a person who loves languages and words, seeing how a child's language develops first hand is really eye opening to me. I remember when I lived in Italy and spoke italian almost fluently, I was get so mad at myself when I mixed up pronouns or tenses. But watching my child go through those same things, I'm realizing that it is a natural part of learning any language.
We don't expect children to get even their native language correct from the get go. We know that they will say some words wrong, misuse phrases, mix up pronouns and verb tenses, and generally not understand some things that we usually take for granted. We generally aren't unreasonable in our expectations of children. We correct them or let it go when they don't say things right. It takes years and years and YEARS for them to learn their native language fluently, with higher and higher levels of vocabularly and grammar rules and goodness knows what else!
We tell them to "use their words" when they are frustrated/mad/sad, and it's up to us to teach them those words. Teaching them the words for their emotions, their needs and their wants not only helps us understand them and cuts down on their tantrums, but it also allows them to begin to understand their emotions, needs and wants. If you have a "spirited" child like I do, the book Raising Your Spirited Child has really helped me come up with phrases and ways to say things that I am teaching my daughter so that she will understand herself and be able to help other people understand her.
Recently, we've been working on helping her learn how to go to sleep by herself. It's a long process (no Baby Sleep Boot Camp for this child!), and I will post about my methods soon. Part of my strategy is teaching her the words she needs to know to understand what is going on and what she needs to learn. In the last few nights, I've heard her tell me the following:
-I'm having trouble going to sleep.
-It's hard [to go to sleep].
-I'm going to lay down and try to sleep. (I'm still working on lay versus lie with her)
-I just need to cuddle a little in your lap. (She gets back in bed after I cuddle with her a little.)
-I'm ready for you to go now. (She wasn't, but it was still good to hear the words.)
I believe it is because I'm teaching her the words that truly reflect what's going on that I'm hearing less of the follow at bedtime:
-There's a shark in the anchor (pointed to the cords of the window). It's going to eat me!
-I'm scared to lay down.
-Nooooo! Lay down with me!
-Go away! (and a second later) Don't leave!
And apparently, I'm also teaching her how to say some things simply because I say them all the time. These include:
-Hey--as in, "Hey, everybody!", "Hey, that's not right!", and "Hey! Hey! Hey!" (to get attention).
-Cannot--as in, "No, you cannot do that." I'd heard Londo say to her, "Embrace the use of the contraction," and I couldn't figure out why she was always using cannot instead of can't. Until I heard myself tell her, "No, you cannot do that!" one day. Aha!
-Actually--as in, "Actually, it does fit you." Actually, I have realized I use this word a ton. Actually, it's really cute when she says it, too. Actually, I have no plans to stop saying it.
-Oh my gosh--as in, "Oh my gosh! Those are so cute!" which she said about the clothes I picked out for her this morning, even though she "actually" didn't want to wear the shirt I had picked out. She has always loved to make the surprised face and sound, and now she's added oh my gosh.
But some cute phrases she has either picked up somewhere else or developed on her own. My favorite one lately is:
-By my own. As in, she came up with that one by her own. Not on her own or by herself. She wants to do things by her own. And I love it!
All my observations about how her speech and language develops is making me want to re-learn italian or maybe even another language too. I think I will feel less inhibited about speaking now that I realize that making mistakes and not speaking perfectly is a natural part of learning a language. And maybe I'll come up with some cute little phrases in italian all by my own!
Friday, April 9, 2010
Monday, April 5, 2010
Question of the Week - Adventuring
It's spring time, and that's when I want to start getting out and doing things. Having adventures, taking trips, doing stuff. Historically, I simply can't do much in the winter, and I don't even really want to. But when the spring rolls around, I feel like I've been hibernating for months and it's time to get out and do things! Maybe it will change after a few years of medicating correctly, but because I have Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), I tend to feel like I have only half a year to do everything I want to do. So mentally, physically and emotionally, I want to DO EVERYTHING from about April on.
However, poor Londo is usually pretty exhausted by the spring time, since he does so much in the winter. I tend to plan too much and want him to be included too soon. So I'm working on not planning things for him until he is ready.
But that's not going to stop me from going on my own adventures, both with and without the kids!
The question of the week is what adventure(s) have you been on recently or are planning to go on soon?
This weekend was a very busy weekend, and I was so happy to be doing all sorts of stuff. My big adventure this weekend was going down into DC to see the cherry blossoms with the Pumpkin, a friend of the Pumpkin's and the friend's mom (my new friend). When we met at the Metro station, we looked at the crazy long lines just to buy Metro cards and then looked at each other like, "Woah!" But I said to my friend, "It's going to be very crowded. There are going to be long lines. We are going to have to wait a lot. But we'll have fun!"
And we did. I brought a stroller and my friend brought a wagon with two seats facing each other. The girls spent a lot of time sitting in the wagon and playing together (while we used the stroller for the bags). My friend and I got to chat about everything, which made lines and waiting easier. We brought snacks, drinks and stickers. We let the girls run around the grassy area by the Washington Monument, where they met a boy about a year older and joined him in kicking the soccer ball around. We walked all around the tidal basin, through the busy, crowded streets and sidewalks. We searched all over for a Metro station to get back. We made our way all around and back out with no plan, no real schedule and no major worries.
It was wonderful! I had a fun adventure with my daughter and our friends! We were spontaneous! We winged it! I can't wait to do something like that again... but not next weekend. I promised Londo I would not plan anything next weekend so we can do spring cleaning. But soon after, we are going to plan a camping trip, and we go to the beach the first week of June! Adventure and excitement, new and different things to do for the whole family! I can hardly wait!
What about you? Have you been on any adventures recently? Are you going anywhere good soon? Are you bring the kiddos and partners on your adventures? What do you dream of doing that you would consider adventurous?
However, poor Londo is usually pretty exhausted by the spring time, since he does so much in the winter. I tend to plan too much and want him to be included too soon. So I'm working on not planning things for him until he is ready.
But that's not going to stop me from going on my own adventures, both with and without the kids!
The question of the week is what adventure(s) have you been on recently or are planning to go on soon?
This weekend was a very busy weekend, and I was so happy to be doing all sorts of stuff. My big adventure this weekend was going down into DC to see the cherry blossoms with the Pumpkin, a friend of the Pumpkin's and the friend's mom (my new friend). When we met at the Metro station, we looked at the crazy long lines just to buy Metro cards and then looked at each other like, "Woah!" But I said to my friend, "It's going to be very crowded. There are going to be long lines. We are going to have to wait a lot. But we'll have fun!"
And we did. I brought a stroller and my friend brought a wagon with two seats facing each other. The girls spent a lot of time sitting in the wagon and playing together (while we used the stroller for the bags). My friend and I got to chat about everything, which made lines and waiting easier. We brought snacks, drinks and stickers. We let the girls run around the grassy area by the Washington Monument, where they met a boy about a year older and joined him in kicking the soccer ball around. We walked all around the tidal basin, through the busy, crowded streets and sidewalks. We searched all over for a Metro station to get back. We made our way all around and back out with no plan, no real schedule and no major worries.
It was wonderful! I had a fun adventure with my daughter and our friends! We were spontaneous! We winged it! I can't wait to do something like that again... but not next weekend. I promised Londo I would not plan anything next weekend so we can do spring cleaning. But soon after, we are going to plan a camping trip, and we go to the beach the first week of June! Adventure and excitement, new and different things to do for the whole family! I can hardly wait!
What about you? Have you been on any adventures recently? Are you going anywhere good soon? Are you bring the kiddos and partners on your adventures? What do you dream of doing that you would consider adventurous?
Friday, April 2, 2010
My Son, the Puppy Boy
The Pookie loves to watch our dog. She is great entertainment for him, and I will often use her as a distraction when he's fussing during a diaper change or some other reason. But perhaps he's been watching the dog a little too much. I'm starting to see signs that he might think he's a canine, not a human.
After weeks of effort and being so close, the Pookie started really and truly crawling just a week or so before he turned nine months old. And now he is crawling all over the place, on all fours--just like the dog.
It's not simply the fact that he is on all fours the way the dog is, it's also the way he follows me and the Pumpkin around in the mornings, the way he comes bounding down the hall to me and the way he comes when I call his name--just like the dog.
Like his sister did at the same age/stage, he is constantly trying to crawl to the water bowls on the floors for the pets. He wants to go put his hands in the water bowls, but we always tell him no and put the bowls up before he can get them. As he goes over to them, he will pause and look back at Londo or me as if to check if we are going to stop him. He gives us this sly look with a cute smile, and then turn and start heading towards what he's not supposed to be doing--just like the dog.
It's so cute to watch him go from sitting, to crawling and back to sitting. He crawls over to some toy, sits down and picks up the toy to play with. I love this stage/phase of babyhood when they are mobile and interested in everything. He's also teething and putting everything in his mouth. All this is normal, and we've seen it before when the Pumpkin went through this phase. But the Pookie does something that either other kids don't typically do or that I simply didn't notice before. He puts a toy in his mouth and then starts crawling, while the toy hangs out the front of his mouth gripped by his teeth--just like the dog!
And another thing that I've not noticed other kids doing generally is that he will crawl up to me or the Pumpkin or Londo or even the dog, angle his head down, bump his head into us and nuzzle in a super sweet way--just like the dog!
Now, I'm sure that I didn't give birth to a dog, and he certainly looks like an adorable human baby boy. But perhaps when the Pookie went around asking "Are you my mother?" our beagle told him that she was his mother! At least he's not barking at the doorbell. Yet.
After weeks of effort and being so close, the Pookie started really and truly crawling just a week or so before he turned nine months old. And now he is crawling all over the place, on all fours--just like the dog.
It's not simply the fact that he is on all fours the way the dog is, it's also the way he follows me and the Pumpkin around in the mornings, the way he comes bounding down the hall to me and the way he comes when I call his name--just like the dog.
Like his sister did at the same age/stage, he is constantly trying to crawl to the water bowls on the floors for the pets. He wants to go put his hands in the water bowls, but we always tell him no and put the bowls up before he can get them. As he goes over to them, he will pause and look back at Londo or me as if to check if we are going to stop him. He gives us this sly look with a cute smile, and then turn and start heading towards what he's not supposed to be doing--just like the dog.
It's so cute to watch him go from sitting, to crawling and back to sitting. He crawls over to some toy, sits down and picks up the toy to play with. I love this stage/phase of babyhood when they are mobile and interested in everything. He's also teething and putting everything in his mouth. All this is normal, and we've seen it before when the Pumpkin went through this phase. But the Pookie does something that either other kids don't typically do or that I simply didn't notice before. He puts a toy in his mouth and then starts crawling, while the toy hangs out the front of his mouth gripped by his teeth--just like the dog!
And another thing that I've not noticed other kids doing generally is that he will crawl up to me or the Pumpkin or Londo or even the dog, angle his head down, bump his head into us and nuzzle in a super sweet way--just like the dog!
Now, I'm sure that I didn't give birth to a dog, and he certainly looks like an adorable human baby boy. But perhaps when the Pookie went around asking "Are you my mother?" our beagle told him that she was his mother! At least he's not barking at the doorbell. Yet.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
The Pumpkin's 3rd Birthday Celebrations
Birthdays are a big deal to me. To me, it's a special day just for the birthday girl(s)/boy(s). I like to make a big deal of them: I've always made a big deal out of my own, and now I'm making a big deal out of my kids' birthdays!
This year, the Pumpkin's birthday was on a Thursday. When she woke up, I was there with a "Happy Birthday" for her. She then said it was not her birthday. I tried to explain it was, but she insisted it was not. I let it go, figuring she'd get into it when she was more awake.
Which she totally did, especially when she found out I was going to make cupcakes and bring them into her school that afternoon!
I left work early on her birthday, bought her the birthday presents that Londo and I had talked about getting her, and went home to make the cupcakes using a mix I got from a nut-free facility. While I made the cupcakes, Londo put together the Pumpkin's dollhouse, which was her big birthday present. We went over to her pre-school with the Pookie and cupcakes.
The Pumpkin was so excited that we were there and had birthday cupcakes. She kept saying that she was going to "give cupcakes to evah-ree-one!" They were all excited, enjoyed the cupcakes and loved to look at the Pookie.
When we brought her home, she walked into the house and I pointed out her present was in the family room. She made her excited/surprised face and ran to it! She immediately started playing with it, and we gave her a few more toys. It was a good birthday.
The next day, I took off of work and kept the Pumpkin out of pre-school. We were having mommy-daughter day! When she turned 1, I had taken the day off and we went to the zoo together. Last year, I wasn't able to do anything special with her. But this year, we were having another special day.
First stop was the doctor's for her 3-year well visit. She's doing great. She's still in the 95ish percentile for height and 75% for weight, which shows that all those months of living on mostly air and sunlight did not adversely affect her growth at all. Her communication skills and physical capabilities are great, as always. Her sleeping problems, scary dreams, coming into our bed at night and all that? Apparently completely normal at this age/stage of development for all kids, even those without a history of sleep issues! All in all, a great doctor's visit, although she did need one vaccination shot to get caught up with the schedule (which she handled like a champ!).
After our sucessful trip to the doctor, I brought the Pumpkin into my office! She hears so much about me going to work and my coworkers hear so much about her, so I thought I'd bring the two together. She was a delight! She is so friendly and outgoing. She went right up to everyone and said hi, told them her name and sometimes quacked (she was being a duck). I let her sit at my desk and even answer my phone when my dad called! We had lunch at the deli across the street where I eat all the time. It was a really good visit.
Next, we went to the National Zoo! It is a favorite place of mine, and the Pumpkin has always enjoyed it. It was a cool, rainy Friday afternoon--which was perfect for us! We bundled in rain coats, used the stroller for her, bought a special umbrella at the zoo and enjoyed the almost empty (of visitors, not animals) zoo. We saw the pandas, the gorillas, the orangutans, the tigers, the lioness, some ponies, an emu, and a bunch of birds in the Bird House.
Probably my favorite thing and the Pumpkin's favorite thing (I think) was seeing the baby gorilla with his mommy. She's about a year old now, but she looked to be smaller than my 9 month old! She hung on her mommy, climbing up her back, just like my daughter does to me. We also saw the mommy gorilla using a computer that was in the trainers' area, which the Pumpkin has talked about a lot since. Believe her when she says that the mommy gorilla used a computers!
The next day was her birthday party, and on Sunday, she opened all her presents from the birthday party. We didn't open the presents at the party because there was too much else going on with all the arts and crafts, and we find it easier to open presents when there aren't a bunch of kids around who want to "help."
It was four days of birthday fun, with great memories and gifts that will last even longer. Now THAT'S a birthday celebration fit for a 3 year old!
This year, the Pumpkin's birthday was on a Thursday. When she woke up, I was there with a "Happy Birthday" for her. She then said it was not her birthday. I tried to explain it was, but she insisted it was not. I let it go, figuring she'd get into it when she was more awake.
Which she totally did, especially when she found out I was going to make cupcakes and bring them into her school that afternoon!
I left work early on her birthday, bought her the birthday presents that Londo and I had talked about getting her, and went home to make the cupcakes using a mix I got from a nut-free facility. While I made the cupcakes, Londo put together the Pumpkin's dollhouse, which was her big birthday present. We went over to her pre-school with the Pookie and cupcakes.
The Pumpkin was so excited that we were there and had birthday cupcakes. She kept saying that she was going to "give cupcakes to evah-ree-one!" They were all excited, enjoyed the cupcakes and loved to look at the Pookie.
When we brought her home, she walked into the house and I pointed out her present was in the family room. She made her excited/surprised face and ran to it! She immediately started playing with it, and we gave her a few more toys. It was a good birthday.
The next day, I took off of work and kept the Pumpkin out of pre-school. We were having mommy-daughter day! When she turned 1, I had taken the day off and we went to the zoo together. Last year, I wasn't able to do anything special with her. But this year, we were having another special day.
First stop was the doctor's for her 3-year well visit. She's doing great. She's still in the 95ish percentile for height and 75% for weight, which shows that all those months of living on mostly air and sunlight did not adversely affect her growth at all. Her communication skills and physical capabilities are great, as always. Her sleeping problems, scary dreams, coming into our bed at night and all that? Apparently completely normal at this age/stage of development for all kids, even those without a history of sleep issues! All in all, a great doctor's visit, although she did need one vaccination shot to get caught up with the schedule (which she handled like a champ!).
After our sucessful trip to the doctor, I brought the Pumpkin into my office! She hears so much about me going to work and my coworkers hear so much about her, so I thought I'd bring the two together. She was a delight! She is so friendly and outgoing. She went right up to everyone and said hi, told them her name and sometimes quacked (she was being a duck). I let her sit at my desk and even answer my phone when my dad called! We had lunch at the deli across the street where I eat all the time. It was a really good visit.
Next, we went to the National Zoo! It is a favorite place of mine, and the Pumpkin has always enjoyed it. It was a cool, rainy Friday afternoon--which was perfect for us! We bundled in rain coats, used the stroller for her, bought a special umbrella at the zoo and enjoyed the almost empty (of visitors, not animals) zoo. We saw the pandas, the gorillas, the orangutans, the tigers, the lioness, some ponies, an emu, and a bunch of birds in the Bird House.
Probably my favorite thing and the Pumpkin's favorite thing (I think) was seeing the baby gorilla with his mommy. She's about a year old now, but she looked to be smaller than my 9 month old! She hung on her mommy, climbing up her back, just like my daughter does to me. We also saw the mommy gorilla using a computer that was in the trainers' area, which the Pumpkin has talked about a lot since. Believe her when she says that the mommy gorilla used a computers!
The next day was her birthday party, and on Sunday, she opened all her presents from the birthday party. We didn't open the presents at the party because there was too much else going on with all the arts and crafts, and we find it easier to open presents when there aren't a bunch of kids around who want to "help."
It was four days of birthday fun, with great memories and gifts that will last even longer. Now THAT'S a birthday celebration fit for a 3 year old!
Monday, March 29, 2010
Question of the Week - Pets
Today, I and my dog are featured on Coffee with a Canine! There are pictures of my lovely beagle dog, and even one of me (sort of). It's a great blog, full of interesting people and their dogs. You should go check it out.
When you get back, you can answer this week's Question of the Week:
Do you have any pets? If so, what kind(s)?
We have a dog and a cat. I've written about the Beagle recently, and I've written about both of the pets here and there over the years. And although I am usually complaining about the cat peeing on stuff, he's pretty sweet and very fluffy in general and I plan to write about him specifically soon.
I love our pets. They were our furbabies before we had real babies. They are part of our family, and have been for a long time. We got the cat when we first moved in together back in 1999, and we got the dog in the fall of 2001. Although they can both be frustrating for different reasons at different times, overall they are very good pets and have made our lives more wonderful by being in it.
What about you? Do you have a dog, cat or turtle? Did you have any pets growing up? Do you have any good stories about your pets? There are many of you who write about your pets on your blogs, but surely there is something you want to share here, isn't there?
When you get back, you can answer this week's Question of the Week:
Do you have any pets? If so, what kind(s)?
We have a dog and a cat. I've written about the Beagle recently, and I've written about both of the pets here and there over the years. And although I am usually complaining about the cat peeing on stuff, he's pretty sweet and very fluffy in general and I plan to write about him specifically soon.
I love our pets. They were our furbabies before we had real babies. They are part of our family, and have been for a long time. We got the cat when we first moved in together back in 1999, and we got the dog in the fall of 2001. Although they can both be frustrating for different reasons at different times, overall they are very good pets and have made our lives more wonderful by being in it.
What about you? Do you have a dog, cat or turtle? Did you have any pets growing up? Do you have any good stories about your pets? There are many of you who write about your pets on your blogs, but surely there is something you want to share here, isn't there?
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