Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Tiny Talk Tuesday


Esmé (23 months old today!) has figured out the word "NOT." Here's a recent conversation, accompanied with the "pretty" sign in sign language:

Mommy: "Is Pappa pretty?"
Esmé: "Not Pappa pretty!"
Mommy: "Is Mommy pretty?"
Esmé: "Not Mommy pretty!"
Mommy: "Is Dolly pretty?"
Esmé: "Not Dolly pretty!"
Mommy: "Is Esmé pretty?"
Esmé: "Not Esmé pretty!"
Mommy: "Say, 'I am pretty.'"
Esmé" "Not am pretty!"

OK, OK, I get the message!

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She's also been playing the Nose game - I'm not sure where she picked it up from. She grabs at my nose, holds up her thumb, and says "Mommy's nose!" Then she puts her thumb on my nose and says, "Put back!"

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Esmé has bathtub alphabet letters. Along with stacker cups and plastic boats. And occasionally she decides it's time to dump them over the edge.

Of course she prophetically announces it BEFORE she dumps them: "X fall down!" "Boat fall down!" And then down indeed they go.

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It's sad to think she's outgrown the tickle game already. Pappa was tickling her at bedtime last night. Amidst tortured giggles, she shouted, "Not Pappa tickle!"

So I decided to join in the fun. "But Mommy can tickle, right?"

So she clarified: "Not Esmé tickle!" No confusion there. She doesn't want to be tickled, period!

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Pappa's first language is Afrikaans, so he makes sure to speak to her in Afrikaans regularly. She understands and may say a few words back to him, but for the most part, English is her spoken language. Except for "Maak toe." (Translation: close)

So it's "Maak toe fridge," Maak toe pen," Maak toe Mommy's jacket," and "Maak toe computer" when I've been on it too long... Now we just need to make sure the rest of the country can understand what she is saying.

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Sometimes you wonder if your kid is bright or just lucky. Like when I set up her glass rocks with numbers beside them. One rock by the number 1, two by the number 2, etc. I started naming the numbers: "One, two..."

"No, Mommy! Three!" as she moves the single rock to the two rocks to make three.

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Speaking of counting, "One, two, three, weeeee!" has been a staple in her vocabulary since swinging between her cousins in Mozambique.

Now she's added "One, two, three, four, roooaaarr!" I have no idea where that comes from.

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And speaking of bright, not only is Esmé ambidextrous, she's actually quadridextrous. Exhibit A below:

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7 comments:

ShEiLa said...

Smart little one isn't she...
and exhibit A is delightful.

ToOdLeS.ShEiLa

Unknown said...

Aww, Happy 23!

Winks & Smiles,
Wifey

Putting the FUN in DysFUNctional said...

I so miss that age! It's so much fun.

Damselfly said...

Quadridextrous! Ha! I love it. She's so cute.

Elizabeth Byler Younts said...

such sweet developments Esme is making! love hearing about them.

Rachel said...

I love the picture!!!

And we have the "pretty" discussion a lot too - we were using it to help differentiate between boys and girls. Boys are handsome and Girls are beautiful. But she usually ends up saying "Hey handsome Mommy!! Hey beautiful Daddy!"

I think she just does it to make us laugh.

Anonymous said...

LOL! I absolutely love the last picture! Multi-talented indeed! I see your little one is coming up on their 2nd birthday??