Archive for March, 2007

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Slowly, very slowly but she knows her colours

Thursday, March 22nd, 2007

Wednesday evenings have passed in a blur since September because Reid has had swimming lessons at 6:00. The final night was no exception, was even more rushed, in fact since I had to pick the car up from the garage before getting Reid. (Darn those DriveClean requirements) Luckily, Ken had rode with Paul and so was home to start supper. We walked in to a yummy-smelling house. Reid was slow, like the maple sap on a cold day, but finally made it to the table to eat. Of course, she was as reluctant to stop eating as she had been to start and we dragged her from the table before she was ready. For once we were poolside before Emily led the others to the water. After only three and a half months! We were the last from our class to leave the change room. I usually lay our suits on the towel and then roll it up before putting it in the bag. Reid sometimes helps. Last night, she insisted on unrolling everything and starting over. Beach towels are very large when you are a two-and-a-half. It takes a lot of effort to get the towel flattened for rolling but Reid can demonstrate great patience when she wants to. . There was a woman there with a girl about 10. She watched Reid working so intently and had a bit of a smile on her lips. I suspect I look like that when I see a mother with a baby who is feeling a bit rushed; I love the memories and wish the mother could enjoy the time because it goes so fast. I slowed my thinking and noticed how precise and focused Reid was on her task. She can be impatient as all get out and become frustrated sometimes in a nanosecond. But often, she works quietly at a task (maybe because she set it for herself?). My thanks to the other mother for reminding me that the time goes so fast and I should appreciate the “now”.

As we walked down the hallway to the lobby where Ken was waiting, Reid touched and called out the colours of the tile on the wall. There’s a pattern of red, yellow, blue and white tiles. Ken was grinning and walking towards us as we got to the lobby. He could hear Reid’s colour identification, apparently. Reid knows many colours but not a lot about stealth.

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Giggles from the basement

Wednesday, March 21st, 2007

You may have noticed that I am a wee bit nosy at times. The rest of the time, I am just interested in what others are doing, where and when. This behaviour has been sustained, maybe intensified, since Reid was born. On Sunday night, while I was getting supper ready, Ken and Reid were playing in the basement. At one point, I could hear both of them laughing deep, belly laughs. I walked to the end of the hallway to hear them better. I didn’t go down because it wasn’t for me to interfere but I did listen. I love them and I love their laughter.

I did wonder what was happening but when I mentioned it to Ken, he couldn’t remember anything in particular. Just a little Daddy-Reidie time that was going well.

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Read my hands – I want more curry

Wednesday, March 21st, 2007

I rarely see Reid using any of sign language any more, I can’t remember the last time she signed “milk”. That makes me sad since it was her first word in either English or American Sign Language (other than Mama and Dada). When she feels strongly about something not ending and argues, I sometimes will sign “all done” to emphasize my point. Reid is most likely to sign, “more”. She uses it for emphasis to a fully-formed verbal sentence. I was reminded of this at supper Sunday when we were eating curry. Reid ate quite a big serving and asked for, “More durry mama” as she signed madly. Like there was a chance that she wouldn’t be getting seconds. In fact, she asked for and received a third helping.  Curry is yummy in many languages, I guess. I’ll have to find out what the sign is for curry, I guess.

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‘cept P.

Wednesday, March 21st, 2007

Each night when we pick Reid up from daycare, we read aloud the sheet that tells us what the Juniors did, ate and how they slept. It turns out that Reid actually does listen. On Monday, Ken read out, “Everyone slept.” Reid added, “‘cept P.” Ken told her that even P. slept. Reid refused to believe him. It happens sometimes, usually only on Mondays but apparently Reid hasn’t noticed.

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Let me help with that

Wednesday, March 21st, 2007

We’d been discussing my upcoming birthday over the last few weeks – mostly in the context of when it was in relation to Reid’s – and so when Reid woke up yesterday, we talked about how it was a daycare day and when I fished a bit she recalled it was my birthday. Well, at first Reid suggested that it was a little guy from her class’ birthday but she picked mine second, though she wouldn’t say, “Happy Birthday!” Ken convinced Reid to give me a nice birthday kiss, though.

Reid handed me a card as soon as I was finished in the bathroom. She had “written” quite an extensive birthday message inside. Ken next coaxed Reid to abandon Toopy and Binoo on the computer to watch me open presents. Well, Reid isn’t much of a “watcher” and she began opening the bag for me. Ken tried to stop her but I didn’t mind. She was so excited to pull the present that she (they) made for me out of the bag and to show it to me. Ken, who hates crafts, helped Reid colour a background and then make a flower out of playdough shapes. He then framed it and I have it at my desk already. While I opened the card from Ken, Reid dug into the second bag, encountered a box and started shaking it. How cool! A box! Mama look!

After a supper lovingly prepared by my fabulous husband, I was presented with a cake with a candle on it. Reid was entranced by the flame. Ken sang, Happy Birthday, Reid mouthed the words while staring at the candle without blinking even once. My request for assistance in blowing out the candle broke through the trance and she helped with a grin. Nearly an hour later, Reid told me that my birthday was over and I said it wasn’t over until bedtime. She started to sing Happy Birthday all by herself. We knew she could but the candle was too distracting.

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Early morning revelation – a little late

Tuesday, March 20th, 2007

When Reid woke up on Saturday, she wanted to play in her room instead of going straight to the bathroom. In this she is like her father. I can never do anything before heading to the bathroom but Reid can wait a long, long time, especially if you try to prompt her to go. In any case, she wanted to stay and play and I had already gone and so we could stay. I sat in the rocking chair and as Reid walked over toward me, Reid stopped and asked, “Where my tradle?” The mixed up hard c threw me a bit, as did the use of cradle since we have never used the word. When I asked if she was asking about her crib, she nodded. Ken took it down weeks ago. I am not sure how it escaped her notice except that she seems to have inherited my observational skills. When I told her that “we” had taken it down (the royal we seemed a good idea so that Ken wasn’t the bad guy), since she didn’t use it anymore – okay never really used it – and that we would give it to a baby that needs it. Reid was sad to hear this. When I protested that she slept in her big girl bed anyway, she told me that she wanted to play in it. And it is true, she did like to play in there every once in a while, which was good since she barely slept there.

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Is there anything nicer?

Tuesday, March 20th, 2007

Is there anything nicer than unprompted mannerly word? Reid sometimes, even often, needs to be prompted to say “please”. She has a beautiful smile that she often puts on when she says it. We refer to it as the “Stepford smile”. But my favourite is the unprompted “sank you!” Last night, Reid noticed Winnie-Pooh sitting on the dryer and grabbed him close for a big hug. I pointed out that Daddy had given Winnie-Pooh a bath and wasn’t he clean? Reid immediately said, “Sank you, Daddy!” She followed me into the closet, cataloguing the changes in Winnie-Pooh: “This ear clean. ‘Nother ear clean.” The ears were *really* dirty. The belly didn’t have a tide line where the shirt stopped. Reid’s smile grew bigger and bigger. She walked out of the closet and said again, “Sank you!” with such a big smile and sincere gratitude, I loved her more than ever.

We live to serve, of course, but being thanked is nice.

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Books we read, March 19th

Monday, March 19th, 2007

 

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Shopping with a two-year old

Monday, March 19th, 2007

I thought about calling this “what in the world was I thinking?”

On Saturday, I took Reid with me to pick up some clothes that Ken needed for his trip. In my mind, it was going to be a lark – Reid and I giggling and having fun while choosing shirts, pants, socks, etc. Okay, now you have all wondered what I was drinking when I imagined this scenario but I must tell you, when Reid was little (read unable to move about on her own), we shopped all of the time and had fun doing so. Now, however, she is two and definitely able to walk, run, hop, and so on. Not once in the 13 days, no 13 hours, okay, not-quite-two-hours that we were shopping was she “bad”. Bored, yes. In possession of far too much energy, most definitely. Never bad. Reid had a grand time trying on hats, even a straw safari hat a la Toopy’s butterfly chasing hat, and also bras. (I don’t know why but she can’t walk by them without stopping to touch and even try them on.) She amused herself very well for quite a while in the change room, looking in the mirror and climbing on the chair, while I hunted for the right size pants and the right pattern pants but then a man selfishly wanted to try on some clothes and so that ended. By the end I felt like one of those people who wins a contest where they win whatever they can get out of the store in a set amount of time. I decided it would be better to grab lots of shirts for Ken to choose from and return the rejects, without Reid of course, than try to keep her with me while narrowing the choices. I think Ken thought I was a but nutty with some my shirt selections but he doesn’t take Reid with him to shop – he already doesn’t enjoy shopping ;+) All in all, Ken has fewer, “what was I thinking?” moments that I do.

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Five Little Monkeys

Monday, March 19th, 2007

Reid’s new favourite song is “Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed.” She can sing all of the words, or at least the words that make up her normal grammatical repertoire – the prepositions and articles are mostly  missing – but she certainly has the tune and the message down. One of the little girls at Kindermusik requested it a few times during the “favourites” portion of the class and it has caught on for Reid. It’s such a great song when you think about it, there is:
* counting on your fingers;
* jumping to be done with the singing;
* calling from the best telephone of all, your thumb and pinky extended;
* finger wagging – that know-it-all doctor who has probably never spent time caring for five little monkeys;
* danger – heads are being bumped; and
* rule-breaking – at the heart of it, you can live vicariously through those naughty monkeys.

Of course, Reid has been, on occasion, known to jump on the bed to better understand the motivations of the monkeys she is singing about. I think that is called “method acting” – many of Hollywood’s greatest follow this technique. I *think* Reid had tried jumping on the bed before she learned the song but since the jumping is now accompanied by singing, I know for sure she is doing it.

Reid’s fingers cause her some grief during the song, though. We start by holding up the appropriate number of fingers. Five is easy and so is four, though Reid always conducts a visual inspection to be sure the right number of digits are raised. Three, though, starts the challenge. I hold out my thumb and the two closest fingers in accordance with American Sign Language. Reid stares at me a bit but instead forms a sort of “ok” sign as she stares intently at her fingers, willing them to comply. Two requires a great deal of concentration and involves Reid’s pinky sticking out at an unusual angle and her ring finger standing up in a tentative way. For one, Reid triumphantly holds out her pinky or  her index finger.

As you can imagine, Reid waggles her finger enthusiastically while giving voice to the doctor’s words.  There is no hesitation to her finger selection for that part.

Have a great day and remember, no jumping on the bed.

Posted in Language skills, Uncategorized | 9 Comments »

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