Hmm, seems like Alex may have actually gone to sleep this time. Last night was a nightmare. Well, ok, it was like an unpleasant dream or maybe just a really lame one where mundane things are happening and you wonder why the heck you'd be dreaming about doing dishes, but you know. It was not fun staying up til the almost wee hours watching Spongebob with Alex, though we are great Spongebob fans and normally would encourage her love of our favorite yellow square. But she was just wired last night.
My only thought on why she was wired, besides the chocolate chip cookie sugar recirculating in her bloodstream for 8 hours.......would be that she has discovered that she can "read" books on her own and pretty much entertain herself while simultaneously practicing her words, letters and numbers. She's been real big on the whole learning thing lately, and by that I just mean that she's starving for learning new things, especially with the letters and numbers. I think she was just thinking about letters, numbers, animal noises, babies (she says baby now, but it sounds an awful lot like "beebee" and she always says it quietly) and all the other things she's learning about, like standing on one foot and pointing her toes. It's almost as exciting for us, but we don't stay up late thinking about toe-pointed like I bet she does. Anyway, I'm chalking last night up to "learning overstimulation".
I amused myself tonight by getting Alex to repeatedly say "gosh". It's fun not only because she says it so clearly, but because she says it loudly. Nothing is funnier than hearing her say gosh as loud as she can while she's running around the living room frantically looking for the next toy to play with or book to surf on/read.
Well, I've got to wrap this up and go upstairs to enjoy the silence.
Oh, and how the heck is overstimulating a word (according to this spellcheck) but overstimulation isn't? Seriously, does that make sense at all?
January 11, 2009
January 9, 2009
F is for Sag
Since Alex can't say "f" yet, f is for ""sag" not flag. She positively identified the letters M, O, X, and D today in her "aybuhcees" book. She can also say octopus. If you count "hopitus" as octopus. And umbrella if you count "umbla" or something like that. We're definitely getting into the realm of debatable words at this point, but even highchair has entered her vocabulary, though I won't even attempt to type what it sounds like when she says it.
On another happy note, she had a great day despite last night's lack of sleep. She snuggled very aggressively with the cats, but there were no errant pats today, which is major. But tomorrow is another day, and she's sure to remember patting by then. Her only bad moments today were when Daddy was on the phone, but that's to be expected. Phone = naughty unless you're talking on it. And she did talk on the phone to Daddy, extremely quietly counting for him. Then licking the phone. I'll call it a kiss.
Anyhoo, I should really get tucked in for bed, since Alex will undoubtedly be up many many times again tonight, but is currently asleep (after having a bedtime conversation with herself for about a half hour.) Oh yeah, we started tucking her in at night because there aren't enough fleecy pj's in the world to keep her warm without a blanket. She's getting used to it, so much so that I suspect that she wiggles her way out by accident - habit, since she's quite wiggly all the time - and then she cries for us to come in and re-tuck her. We just have to get bigger blankets with more permanent tucking capabilities, I think. Perhaps a sleeping bag that zips up around her neck.......yeah, that would be fun when she tries to get up in the morning. Oh, and she says zip every time we put her in a sleeper suit. Or wear something with a zipper.
On another happy note, she had a great day despite last night's lack of sleep. She snuggled very aggressively with the cats, but there were no errant pats today, which is major. But tomorrow is another day, and she's sure to remember patting by then. Her only bad moments today were when Daddy was on the phone, but that's to be expected. Phone = naughty unless you're talking on it. And she did talk on the phone to Daddy, extremely quietly counting for him. Then licking the phone. I'll call it a kiss.
Anyhoo, I should really get tucked in for bed, since Alex will undoubtedly be up many many times again tonight, but is currently asleep (after having a bedtime conversation with herself for about a half hour.) Oh yeah, we started tucking her in at night because there aren't enough fleecy pj's in the world to keep her warm without a blanket. She's getting used to it, so much so that I suspect that she wiggles her way out by accident - habit, since she's quite wiggly all the time - and then she cries for us to come in and re-tuck her. We just have to get bigger blankets with more permanent tucking capabilities, I think. Perhaps a sleeping bag that zips up around her neck.......yeah, that would be fun when she tries to get up in the morning. Oh, and she says zip every time we put her in a sleeper suit. Or wear something with a zipper.
Sigh
Today Alex has been up since 5:30 after getting us (mostly Jeff, I admit it) up about 6 times last night. She has already gotten cat poop stuck under a fingernail and ran into the kitchen doorway with her head. And repeatedly slapped me in the face while we read her ABC's. Which she says now. The ABC part. Really fast. Anyway, looks like it's going to be a killer day today. Oh, she just fell off a book too. Good times.
January 8, 2009
Counting and the Letter M
Alex has several toys that count out loud when she plays with them. She was playing with her kitchen last night and the slow counting came up. After four I heard, "shive, shix, sheven, eight....ten." Holy cow, did she really just do that? Yes she did. No repeat performance yet, but she doesn't exactly do that stuff on demand, or rather, I really wanted her to, she knew it, and ignored me. I'm sure I never did that.
She also surprised me yesterday when we played with her alphabet blocks. I was picking out the next block to talk about (they have both letters and tiny things inside to represent the letters - lots to discuss) and she had a block already. She said M and I thought, "Yeah right, like that's really the M block. That would be....." Crazy, it was the M block. She did it again later, so I can only assume that she now knows two letters. X, which Mom says every kid learns rather quickly, and M. Must be the monkey inside that's gotten that one stuck in her mind. She's also working on H. At least she likes to say H.
She's still asleep, and the lazy part of me wants to let her sleep as long as she wants, but I guess I'm going to (shudder) actually wake her up soon so she goes to bed at a decent hour tonight. Jeff and I find our sanity to be much more intact when she goes to bed early.
She also surprised me yesterday when we played with her alphabet blocks. I was picking out the next block to talk about (they have both letters and tiny things inside to represent the letters - lots to discuss) and she had a block already. She said M and I thought, "Yeah right, like that's really the M block. That would be....." Crazy, it was the M block. She did it again later, so I can only assume that she now knows two letters. X, which Mom says every kid learns rather quickly, and M. Must be the monkey inside that's gotten that one stuck in her mind. She's also working on H. At least she likes to say H.
She's still asleep, and the lazy part of me wants to let her sleep as long as she wants, but I guess I'm going to (shudder) actually wake her up soon so she goes to bed at a decent hour tonight. Jeff and I find our sanity to be much more intact when she goes to bed early.
January 7, 2009
Alex's Words
milk - This is the word for all drinks. She knows "juice" but chooses to argue with us that everything is milk instead. More fun that way.
juice - Like I said, she knows it, but uses this word very infrequently. Why say it right when you can start a fight?
poop - Ummm, I won't elaborate.
cat - It took her a surprisingly long time to learn this one considering we have three of them...
Dies - Short-hand for Diesel. Not her favorite cat, that would be Custard since he talks and runs away ever so slowly.
Cust - Custard. Poor, poor Custard.
showowower - She likes taking showers. So much so that she adds extra syllables for emphasis. Never says Diesel or Custard's complete names though.
crotch - We're so proud of her for picking this one up. She has no idea what it means, but finds it fun to say. We don't say it much around her any more.
couch - She likes to jump on it/be thrown on it. It's a definite favorite.
cheese - She's an addict.
duck - One of her first words, and the word she often uses when she can't think of the right one or doesn't want to say it.
shoes - Her pronunciation has gotten much better - no more shoosh for her! Another first word, Daddy was a bit worried when she started using it with reckless abandon.
socks - Finally, the sock/shoe confusion has ended. Socks are her new favorite, and they're very different from shoes.
book - She's also a book addict. I hear this word all day long as I'm getting pummeled with them.
clock - She's got a picture of one in a puzzle, it's in books, she pays no attention to the time on the real ones.
hush - Thanks you quiet old lady whispering hush. Now she says it for you.
brush - She chews on them (tooth and hair) and brushed her own hair. Now if she could only put in her own pony tails...
nose - She still can't/won't point her own out, but knows where ours are and pokes them mercilessly.
eyes - She's almost got her own figured out, but prefers to gouge ours out instead.
plant - She had better know this one. She's very good at cleaning up our plants, actually. She routinely pulls of dead flowers and leaves, much to my amazement. Apparently the love of deadheading runs in the family.
meow - Ok, meenow, really, but it's what cats say.
moo - A very short moo, usually, but still a moo.
cow - Emphasis on the "w"
sheep - "Ship". The ships in the field....
dog - Still working on that one.
hoot - Cant' say owl, but knows what they say. She surprised me with this one a while back. Very pronounced "t".
truck - All vehicles are trucks. Don't argue with her, she's always right.
ouch - Dunno why she knows that one............
pouch - Sounds like ouch with a "p". Extra fun to say. And yes, she probably learned it from the books with kangaroos and pelicans.
coat - She hates putting it on, but is willing to talk about it.
up - She loves going up. In the air, up the stairs, you name it.
pat - Everyone and everything is a target for pats (smacks) at any time.
pups - A favorite toy, and a favorite thing to recognize on posters, calendars etc. She once ran half way down the mall to return to the calendar kiosk to looks at pups. It's almost always plural.
no - She might not care what it means, but she says it anyway.
shapeesh - No idea what it means, but she uses it like a word, so...ok.
cookie - Minus the "ie". We're working on it.
chalk - Thanks to the easel at the library she's familiar with this. And stealing it from other kids.
bounce - You say it, she does it.
kiss - She's stingy with them but likes getting them.
banana - Well, ba, really. She lets us finish it for her.
baa - It's what the ships say.
chick - Took her a while to figure out that they're different from ducklings, but know she's got it down.
cheep - More like "chip", but we know what she means.
neigh - "Nah". It's what horses say. Sometimes ponies when they aren't saying "ducks".
keys - She'll do anything for keys. Mostly whine.
mom - Usually a series of "mom"s in fairly rapid succession. Applies to Mom and Dad.
dad - Less frequently heard, this one usually has to be prompted. Why call us our titles when we're always watching anyway?
diaper - This one's debatable. She knows it, tries to say it sometimes, but you really have to listen and pretend a bit to catch it.
flower - Sounds exactly like shower. You have to know what she's looking at. She'll have her f's someday.
bee - She's a big fan. We would not touch bees outside all the time. She still asks for them in the same spot in the garden now.
touch - She prefers it to "no touch".
prune - It's another word she almost says. She knows where they are and loves to try and swallow them whole. Bad baby.
crayons - Sounds like cairns. Oh well. So she draws with cairns.
down - Opposite of up, but she still likes it.
soap - Though opposed to it in theory, she says it anyway.
hot - The oven is hot. We stay away from hot. For now.
cold - The fridge is cold. We go toward cold.
mustard - "Must". Thank you Grammy Y. It's the very first condiment she knows thanks to having it in her shopping cart.
ball - She prefers throwing them to talking about them, but occasionally says their name.
outside - This is a recent development. She's always preferred outside, and now can fairly clearly tell us.
blanket - For throwing one's self upon.
belt - For wrapping around one's neck. Not all the way, of course, just around the back!
pig - Those pink things Mom keeps pointing at.
oink - What the pink things say. "Ink" is more like it, probably the lingering "i" sound from "pig".
bra - *sigh* She likes to carry them around, mostly like a scarf, but all too frequently tangling her feet in them.
chapped - Her cheeks and lips are forever chapped, and she knows when we're moisturizing them it's because she's chapped.
pink - She's pink.
toast - Another one she doesn't like to talk about much, but eats every day.
purse - It's where the keys are.
mess - It's what she makes every day.
boss - That's her.
rock - It's what she tries to eat every day.
block - It's also what she tries to eat every day.
x - She recognizes one letter. Go figure it's the one that sounds like her name.
six - Sounds a bit like Alex too, don't ya think?
eight/ate - Who can say which one she's thinking of....
two - She surprised me a while back by saying this as I was counting arms going into sleeves. She says it very slowly.
ten - Only when counting. Of course.
sleeves - This one is sporadic, but she knows it because she hates them.
shirt - No love for clothes, but she can say what they are.
clothes - Again, no love.
Hmm, maybe I should stop here at 81 words and a "shapeesh". In any case, her vocabulary grows daily, and she repeats everything we say, much to our chagrin. But it's fun seeing what she'll say and how she says it, and we can't wait for her to start putting all these words together. oh yeah, she did also say "queen bee" a few times. How appropriate
juice - Like I said, she knows it, but uses this word very infrequently. Why say it right when you can start a fight?
poop - Ummm, I won't elaborate.
cat - It took her a surprisingly long time to learn this one considering we have three of them...
Dies - Short-hand for Diesel. Not her favorite cat, that would be Custard since he talks and runs away ever so slowly.
Cust - Custard. Poor, poor Custard.
showowower - She likes taking showers. So much so that she adds extra syllables for emphasis. Never says Diesel or Custard's complete names though.
crotch - We're so proud of her for picking this one up. She has no idea what it means, but finds it fun to say. We don't say it much around her any more.
couch - She likes to jump on it/be thrown on it. It's a definite favorite.
cheese - She's an addict.
duck - One of her first words, and the word she often uses when she can't think of the right one or doesn't want to say it.
shoes - Her pronunciation has gotten much better - no more shoosh for her! Another first word, Daddy was a bit worried when she started using it with reckless abandon.
socks - Finally, the sock/shoe confusion has ended. Socks are her new favorite, and they're very different from shoes.
book - She's also a book addict. I hear this word all day long as I'm getting pummeled with them.
clock - She's got a picture of one in a puzzle, it's in books, she pays no attention to the time on the real ones.
hush - Thanks you quiet old lady whispering hush. Now she says it for you.
brush - She chews on them (tooth and hair) and brushed her own hair. Now if she could only put in her own pony tails...
nose - She still can't/won't point her own out, but knows where ours are and pokes them mercilessly.
eyes - She's almost got her own figured out, but prefers to gouge ours out instead.
plant - She had better know this one. She's very good at cleaning up our plants, actually. She routinely pulls of dead flowers and leaves, much to my amazement. Apparently the love of deadheading runs in the family.
meow - Ok, meenow, really, but it's what cats say.
moo - A very short moo, usually, but still a moo.
cow - Emphasis on the "w"
sheep - "Ship". The ships in the field....
dog - Still working on that one.
hoot - Cant' say owl, but knows what they say. She surprised me with this one a while back. Very pronounced "t".
truck - All vehicles are trucks. Don't argue with her, she's always right.
ouch - Dunno why she knows that one............
pouch - Sounds like ouch with a "p". Extra fun to say. And yes, she probably learned it from the books with kangaroos and pelicans.
coat - She hates putting it on, but is willing to talk about it.
up - She loves going up. In the air, up the stairs, you name it.
pat - Everyone and everything is a target for pats (smacks) at any time.
pups - A favorite toy, and a favorite thing to recognize on posters, calendars etc. She once ran half way down the mall to return to the calendar kiosk to looks at pups. It's almost always plural.
no - She might not care what it means, but she says it anyway.
shapeesh - No idea what it means, but she uses it like a word, so...ok.
cookie - Minus the "ie". We're working on it.
chalk - Thanks to the easel at the library she's familiar with this. And stealing it from other kids.
bounce - You say it, she does it.
kiss - She's stingy with them but likes getting them.
banana - Well, ba, really. She lets us finish it for her.
baa - It's what the ships say.
chick - Took her a while to figure out that they're different from ducklings, but know she's got it down.
cheep - More like "chip", but we know what she means.
neigh - "Nah". It's what horses say. Sometimes ponies when they aren't saying "ducks".
keys - She'll do anything for keys. Mostly whine.
mom - Usually a series of "mom"s in fairly rapid succession. Applies to Mom and Dad.
dad - Less frequently heard, this one usually has to be prompted. Why call us our titles when we're always watching anyway?
diaper - This one's debatable. She knows it, tries to say it sometimes, but you really have to listen and pretend a bit to catch it.
flower - Sounds exactly like shower. You have to know what she's looking at. She'll have her f's someday.
bee - She's a big fan. We would not touch bees outside all the time. She still asks for them in the same spot in the garden now.
touch - She prefers it to "no touch".
prune - It's another word she almost says. She knows where they are and loves to try and swallow them whole. Bad baby.
crayons - Sounds like cairns. Oh well. So she draws with cairns.
down - Opposite of up, but she still likes it.
soap - Though opposed to it in theory, she says it anyway.
hot - The oven is hot. We stay away from hot. For now.
cold - The fridge is cold. We go toward cold.
mustard - "Must". Thank you Grammy Y. It's the very first condiment she knows thanks to having it in her shopping cart.
ball - She prefers throwing them to talking about them, but occasionally says their name.
outside - This is a recent development. She's always preferred outside, and now can fairly clearly tell us.
blanket - For throwing one's self upon.
belt - For wrapping around one's neck. Not all the way, of course, just around the back!
pig - Those pink things Mom keeps pointing at.
oink - What the pink things say. "Ink" is more like it, probably the lingering "i" sound from "pig".
bra - *sigh* She likes to carry them around, mostly like a scarf, but all too frequently tangling her feet in them.
chapped - Her cheeks and lips are forever chapped, and she knows when we're moisturizing them it's because she's chapped.
pink - She's pink.
toast - Another one she doesn't like to talk about much, but eats every day.
purse - It's where the keys are.
mess - It's what she makes every day.
boss - That's her.
rock - It's what she tries to eat every day.
block - It's also what she tries to eat every day.
x - She recognizes one letter. Go figure it's the one that sounds like her name.
six - Sounds a bit like Alex too, don't ya think?
eight/ate - Who can say which one she's thinking of....
two - She surprised me a while back by saying this as I was counting arms going into sleeves. She says it very slowly.
ten - Only when counting. Of course.
sleeves - This one is sporadic, but she knows it because she hates them.
shirt - No love for clothes, but she can say what they are.
clothes - Again, no love.
Hmm, maybe I should stop here at 81 words and a "shapeesh". In any case, her vocabulary grows daily, and she repeats everything we say, much to our chagrin. But it's fun seeing what she'll say and how she says it, and we can't wait for her to start putting all these words together. oh yeah, she did also say "queen bee" a few times. How appropriate
January 6, 2009
Minor Misunderstanding
I decided, recklessly, to clean out the upstairs litter box with Alex helping. The cats now use this one almost exclusively, and filled it to capacity over Jeff's vacation, so it needed a complete overhaul. Anyway, I dumped the festering contents of said litter box into a trash bag, as there was no litter left unsaturated. I also dumped a bit on the floor, because I can never get it all in the bag. Alex wanted to help, as she is as helpful as they come, and I instructed her on the things she could touch and the things not to touch.
Instructed perfectly as always, Alex chose her (my old) Bert doll as her grab-and-pat of choice. Better than a cat pee paper towel, so I was pleased. I further instructed her, "Don't put Bert in the litter box.". Seconds later I realized my folly, for in fact, what I said was not what she heard. With "Put Bert in the litter box." ringing in her ears, she waited until I whipped back around to watch and tossed Bert ceremoniously into the litter box. Not the middle where it was fairly clean, but in the end where there was the accumulation of two weeks worth of pee-ie cat litter. Not that it matters where, really. Bert was doomed to visit the washer anyway.
So, points to you, Alex, for putting something in something else. It was a heck of a time to "listen" to me, but I appreciate the idea. You're really learning to put stuff where I tell you to, and that's great. What's not so great? Besides the obvious, Bert has had his bath, and I'm sad to say that his unibrow paid the price. I found it at the bottom of the washer and now have to make the decision whether to draw a new one or glue the old one on. But he's fresh and clean (and sans pants, but I can fix that a bit more quickly) so he should be mostly ready to go by the time Her Heineyness has woken from her "map".
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