Abigail's expanding vocabulary

Abigail's vocabulary has been growing. As most babies who are raised in a bilingual setting (in her case multilingual), Abigail gets bombarded with different words and sounds that signify the same thing and refer to the same objects. She's picking up a lot of different words, and is able to make general associations between words and objects (in each language), but has been perhaps a little slower in pronouncing the words that she knows, though she is indeed very chatty.

As of late, these are Abbie's favorite and most used words, just as she pronounces them in her own special way.

Arbo (Arbol - tree in Spanish)
BaBoo (belly button)
Babby/Abbie (for, well, Abbie)
Ball
Beby (baby)
Boo-Boo (one of the characters in her Gossie books)
Boo-k (book)
Bye/Bye-Bye
Da-dee (Daddy)
Dee (that - a.k.a. "I want that")
Ea (ear)
Go (and she means it, too!)
Ki-ki (kitty)
Kye (sky)
Mammy (Mamy)
Mamma (Mom)
Mano (hand in Italian and Spanish)
Math/Moth (Mouth)
Nana (Grandma)
Nose
Oh-oh! (ops!)
Shay/Sheby (Shelby)
Twee (tree)

Her Da-dee and I are amazed at how much she is understanding, and I am not talking about the most common used phrases, like "come here" or "please don't do that". I never had any real experience with babies, and I guess I thought that they didn't understand a word until they turn three, or something. Instead, Abbie proves to me every day how much young toddlers do indeed know and understand, even if they are unable to communicate clearly... Thank goodness I'm learning something, too! Anyway, we were bathing her with her new Aqua Baby. Abbie was trying to get out of the tub, and Christopher said to her: "Abbie, wash your baby". Abigail got her floating doll, picked up her own washcloth, and started wiping the doll with it. Twice she was told to "wash her baby", and twice she did. I was rather amazed at this, because I didn't expect that she would understand that command.

She knows the meaning of many phrases, for example "put it away", which we often use to enlist her help in getting her own chaos under control. She knows what I mean when I tell her to come here, to bring me (or someone else) something, to change her diaper or wash her bum-bum, change her clothes, put her shoes on, go outside, give me a kiss, go take a nap, pet Shelby gently or when it's time to eat.

I think about Abigail a year ago, and I marvel at how fast things have changed... I know I will be saying this a year from now, too!

Merry Xmas to all... And to all a Goodnight!

Abigail had a great Christmas this year. Last year's was fun too, mainly for Christopher and I, because at only 4 months I doubt that Abbie had any concept that something special was going on! I could be wrong, but I am willing to bet on it...

This year, with all the flurried animation and activity going on, Abbie had a definite sense that something out of the ordinary was taking place. When she thought we weren't looking, she furtively kept on going over to the Xmas tree to check it out... She got ornaments off of it, inspecting them closely while blabbing on, and then stealthily put them back on the branches... I found several Santas laying upside down between the branches of the tree, and other ornaments stuffed inside its lower offshoots. There is also a snowman who is now missing a leg (*sigh*), while others have gone AWOL... We hope to find them some time next year. Abbie was also curious about the colorful gifts underneath, and approached them with circumspection and a question mark hanging over her head in the imaginary cloud of her inner thoughts. Some of the wrapping paper had Santa Clause on it, and she'd go "Ho, ho, ho!" every time she'd see him.

Well, it all finally revealed itself to her! We gave Abbie her gifts: the curly, shiny strings came undone, and the brightly colored paper was torn off to reveal a new world of toys, books, and clothes! Abbie had blast unwrapping her gifts once she got the hint that it was ok to do so. Oh, the possibilities!!! The happy and surprised look in her eyes, her squeals of joy and delight, her sweeping laughter, made this the most wonderful Xmas of all. She was the cutest, happiest little girl in the world to us, and, just as much, we felt as the happiest and luckiest of parents. She kept on going from one toy to the other, unsure about which one she wanted to play with first. She danced and she jumped up excitedly. She made us laugh so much!

Here are several pictures of Abigail's Christmas :)

Here she is opening her first gift:



Goodness me! It's a book, her favorite gifts of all!!



With her Da-dee and her new book:



Checking out the Doll that her friend William gave her!



With another book:



With her new soft PJs!



Tearing open her Aquadoodle...



... and trying it out!



Might as well taste the pen, too. Thank goodness it's only water!



Feeding her new Baby (we were surprised: she never had a toy bottle, but as soon as I gave her her new Aqua Baby and the Bottle, she started feeding the doll!)



As any good mother would do, she's checking to see if the product is still good... After all, who knows how long it's been sitting on the shelves...



The funniest thing of all: after we opened all her gifts, Abbie started to put her books and most of her new toys away, in one of the xmas bags...! She's such a tidy baby :)



It was a great, heartwarming day. We are forever grateful that we are able to provide these special moments for our little girl. We know that not everyone is as fortunate... As always, we keep a prayer in our hearts for our families and friends, for those who are no longer here with us, for everyone. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a Goodnight.

Ho, ho, ho!

This is Abbie's latest thing, which I find soooo cute:

Mom or Dad: "Abbie, what does Santa say?"

Abbie: "Ho, ho, ho!"

Monkey Abbie

A few days ago I had the opportunity to admire the primate in Abigail. I took her to At Play Cafe for one of our play dates, and while there -- after a few minutes of shyness -- she let her wild side shine through.

She climbed, she jumped, she run, she hopped, she grabbed, she explored, she built, she destroyed, she flirted, she talked and laughed, and she just plain wore herself out with so much fun! I got a little winded, too, due to my constant running behind her to ensure she wouldn't crack her skull. It was tough to keep up with the little monkey! Beware: she's is always lively and on-the-go. I've had to practically re-arrange the whole house and get rid of some of our furniture because she was climbing all over it, tipping it, crawling under it, and pushing it around with all her might. The kid is a dynamo, and can effortlessly wear out an entire platoon.

Also, while at At Play, Abigail apparently decided that anyone could hold her and she'd be totally fine with it. At one point, my friend Christine picked her up (no doubt because she was causing a ruckus), and once back down, Abigail kept on going back to her and lifting her arms as if saying: "Here I am! Up, up!" I don't mind my friends holding Abbie, but I noticed that she went up to a couple of strangers (other moms and dads with their kids), and after engaging them in an animated preliminary conversation, hug their legs and raised her arms to them. I'm so proud of my little girl: at least she introduces herself to strangers before soliciting their services.

Abbie looooves William, Christine's gorgeous little boy. Their reciprocal love story is the cutest thing to witness. Wee-yam (as she calls him -- though not to his face) was always a step behind her, she a step behind him. It makes me smile. She also played with her little buddies, Charlotte, Arnav, Camilla, and other random kids.

On our way home, stuck in traffic, I peeked at Abbie, quietly slumped in her car-seat, looking ahead with a worn out stare, mouth slightly parted. I turned to her, and she immediately responded with the sweetest of all weary smiles. One that said: "I'm so happily exhausted". I was too. Happy.

Quiet Reading Time

It's funny how time-tested, tried-and-true routines can still evolve, especially with Abbie.

For a long time, our evening routine after Abbie's bath was for me to change her into her "night-night" clothes while she lay on her comfy changing pillow on the floor. In order to distract her and give her something to do, I'd give her a book or two (usually small board books from her Dick and Jane Collection - she loves the Daddy book!) After dressing her, I'd sidle up next to her and read to her whichever book she was looking at. As most parents know, especially with a child's favorite book, you can almost recite word-for-word each page.

Well, last week, this little routine turned into "Abbie and Daddy's Quiet Time of Reading and Reflection." I lay down next to her as usual, getting ready to read to her, when I noticed how engrossed in "Spot" from the Dick and Jane Collection she was. She was studying each picture and "tapping" the occasional object on the page, just to emphasise a point known only to her.

Not wanting to interrupt this internal intellectual discovery of hers, I decided to grab another book, and read to myself. Now most times, if I had a book, she'd put down hers and look at or grab mine. Or, she'd shove her's in my direction, indicating "read this one to me!" But this time, and each night since, she continued studying her book - slowly turning the pages and "tapping" the seemingly random objects. Occasionally, she'd mumble something to her herself.

So now, the new routine is to just let her keep reading her own book. I'll pick up another and read quietly myself - occasionally tapping an object, or mumbling something about what is happening in the picture. Abbie will sometimes turn my way, glance at the item of interest, then look at me in a show of approval or modest acknowledgement, then return to her own study. Occasionally we'll swap books - after all we both want to be well-rounded!

I'll still read to her, surely. But little Miss Independent Study is certainly excelling in her newfound Intellectuality. I hope she continues it for a long time to come.

Abbie's new play buddy

Sometimes I have the impression that Christopher and I are not enough for Abigail... When it comes to playing, that is!

Sunday she grabbed "Babby", her big doll, and took him with her to read her big puzzle book. She sat him right next to her, put an arm around him, and showed him the pieces of the puzzle and where they went. She talked and babbled to him while waving the pieces in front of his face. It was such a cute scene! At the end of the long playing session, she plopped a sloppy kiss on his forehead, put him across from her before laying him down. Finally, she walked away.

Long gone are the days when Abbie abused her dolls. She loves them now! She takes them for walks, and dances with them before throwing them on the floor and walking away. She pets them, kisses them, hugs them.. she's definitely changed her tune!!

Ms. Abigail, The Intellectual

My little girl is an obstinate intellectual. Nothing will keep her away from reading. And, as many adults do when they go potty, Abbie likes to read when her diaper's being changed. That's her private time to catch up on her important reading, though not the *only* time she devotes to it, by all means!

When I tell her, "Come on. Let's refresh your diapey", that's her cue: she goes to her bookshelf and picks up the books that she intends to peruse while I perform my duties. Or, she will go to my basket and find an interesting gossip magazine to read, she's not completely stuffy! She knows the latest tittle-tattles and scandals, as well as who's who in Hollywood better than I do. She also knows the content of each of her books: after all, her diapers get changed often throughout the day! At times, when everything has gotten old and trite, Abigail considers other alternatives, such as my and Christopher's books. The other day she got changed to the tune of "My War" by Andy Rooney... to each its own, as I like to say.

Selecting what to read is no easy task, and it's even tougher when there are so many options! It does take a few minutes, during which Abbie usually deliberates out loud over each book expressing acceptance or rejection. After picking up her reading of choice for the moment, she goes to her changing pad, and, in her own time -- eventually --, she'll lay on it and immerse herself in the wonderful world of erudition. At times she will laugh to herself about something funny she's reading; or she will read out loud (definitely hooked-on-phonics).

I often tease her by not telling her that "I am done". She continues her reading until my silence and the fact that I'm just sitting there idle, awakens her back to reality. At that point she says something to me like, "Oh, so you are done?", gets up, and gets on with life.

Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes... knees and toes!

Abbie loves to dance, she really does! She goes absolutely crazy for a few minutes nearly every day, prancing about and dancing to whatever music is playing: classical, pop, rock, opera, muzak and, of course, her favorite toy, Learning Puppy (a.k.a Elliot). If there is no music, she will go and get Elliot, and start pressing its buttons to her favorite tunes, lately "Head Shoulder Knees and Toes" and "One Two Three Four - Count to ten"...

I love to look at her do "her thing" and get her groove on, and she gets to burn a lot of her pent-up energy this way! It's a win-win situation no matter how you look at it :)

Anyway, here she is in some videos I took today, unfortunately the last one is very short because my camera's memory card was full.

Head. Shoulders. Knees. Toes... 'Nough said!!

Kissy-Monster

Abigail loves to give kisses, and... finally loves getting them too! I have showered her with kisses from the very first moment I saw her: I would probably have tried to kiss her while in the belly, if I could have. Though when I was pregnant I would kiss the palm of my hands and place a little kiss on her that way.

Anyway, up until a few months ago, she didn't seem to care about being smooched all the time (I wonder why...). She seems to have changed her tune since she has learned to kiss back, and to blow kisses with her little soft hand. So now Abigail will pucker her lips, emit a loud "mwah!!", and laugh joyously to top it all off. Sometimes she will also suck in her cheeks to give it an extra something special.

I have been trying to film her blowing kisses, but she gets shy (??). Sooner or later I will catch her at it and post the video! In the meantime, here are a couple of kisses caught on camera :)

Swapping clothes... Wait! Already?!?

Abigail loves wearing my stuff. She tries to wear my coat, my sweaters, my socks, and though she has never been able to actually put them on correctly, she has succeeded at wearing my house slippers! In fact, I have not been able to wear them at all in the last few days: no matter what she is engaged in, as soon as she sees me wearing them she drops everything and makes a beeline to come get them off my feet. She'll pull and push and grunt, and finally (I indulge her!) she takes them off my feet and runs aways with them. The fact that I am left barefoot doesn't seem to bother her in the least.




Here she is walking all over the house, with one of my slippers, having a grand ole time. I was aware that having a little girl would mean sharing clothes, jewelry, purses... But honestly, I thought I had more time!

Catching the Sun

Abbie has been fascinated by the sun, lately. Normally, she loves basking in the sun, she never seems to get enough. And in the last few days... she has been trying to catch it!

I am changing Abigail's diaper, and as she lies in her changing pad, a ray of sunshine floats above her head. She smiles, and extends a hand waiving it in the air as if to grab that sunlit gleam that kisses her soft skin. She laughs, and looks at me as if saying: "Mammy, this is rather amusing, I don't get it! Why can't I hold it?". She gracefully opens and closes her little fingers around the weightless spark of light in a calculated fashion. It's just so sweet. Inevitably, as with most things, Abbie sees the humor in it, and laughs heartedly as she clutches both hands together around the flecks of dust that dance around in the sun light.

I don't know why, but I love it. It's endearing, to me, to see my little girl bathing her hands in the winter sunshine, trying to make it her own.