Talking the Talk

Well, Baby Girl has started talking.  I mean, really talking.  So far, like a character in a children's show, she does the kind of communication that only her daddy and I can understand, but she's currently able to give us a fairly clear understanding of what she's trying to convey.  We smell what she's stepping in.

About a week ago Mike kept her while I had my hair cut.  Upon returning, I asked her what she & Daddy did.  She responded with her version of "moo," which never makes it to the "ooooo" part - it's just a big, long, loud, "MMMMMMM!"  Somewhat shocked, Mike said they had just been reading a book with a cow in it.

This afternoon she insisted on taking one of her books to bed with her as she took a nap.  I watched on the video monitor as she read to herself.  Though I couldn't see the book, I knew which page she was "reading" from the sequence of moos, quacks, snorts (that she literally makes through her nose), barks (oof oof! She has a little stuffed dog that she named Oof Oof.), meows, squeaks, etc.  Our current favorite books are Little Blue Truck, Goodnight Gorilla, and I am a Bunny.

So we know the kiddo CAN communicate.  And perhaps more importantly, she can understand.  Her pediatrician asked if she would retrieve a book from her room if we asked her to do so.  I said yes, but the rest of the story is that her action depended completely upon whether or not that activity agreed with her current agenda.  Like an old dog, she tends to have selective hearing.  At 20 pounds, 10 ounces and 32 inches long, she's still in the 25th percentile for weight and 75th for height, so I suppose she's taller & skinnier than 75% of her peers.

Oh, the teeth.  Her canines have given us worlds more troubles than the 1 year molars ever did.  Her pediatrician took one look at her and prescribed Tylenol with Codeine.  Yikes.  But I have to admit to resorting to its use once in a while, and only at night, when there are no distractions from the pain.

You know, like helping Mama work out....

The kiddo is into everything.

And really enjoying her new wardrobe from her Auntie Asher.  Apparently she inherited the dancing-on-the-table gene from her mama.

Though she has no set bedtime, our nightly ritual is to brush teeth, wash face, put on a clean diaper & onesie, and read a few books.  Then I turn out the lights, and we rock, cuddle, and nurse while I sing our lullaby, Till There Was You, say the Lord's Prayer and Now I Lay You and put her to bed.  But is that when she goes to sleep?  Oh no.  After that Mike and I turn on the video monitor and sit back to watch the Avery Show, in which she rolls around, flails around the bed, makes her nest, and snuggles and settles in, a process that often takes up to an hour.  For instance, I put her to bed at 8:30 tonight after she rubbed her eyes for the second time.  It's 10:13 as I type, and she just settled in for a late summer's nap.

Maybe I should put her to bed with books more often.....