January-February 2003

Dalia--current words and phrases--This is by no means a full list, but just an idea of what she's doing.....

happen? (what happened?)
dance, lap, game, puter (computer)
hi, bye, day (have a nice day), dive kefuly (drive carefully) (we sign and say these to Noel when he leaves for work)
poopy, gas (whispered)
'side (outside), oh one (other one--Sophie said that, too!)), a-side (other side)
Tigger, Pooh, Piglet, Dowa (Dora the Explorer, Latina cartoon character), "oh, man" (expression from same show)
Elmo (from Sesame Street), TV, 'cary (scary) movie 
Why?  and 'Cause (when someone asks her "why?")
dwink
read it, want it, like it, want to (also means "don't want it, don't like it, don't want to," depending on her intonation)
hold you, help you, push you, change you (this means, of course, hold, push... *me*)
kiwi, apple, 'nola (granola), broccoli, pasta, tempeh, kini (zucchini), eggplant, mato (tomato), bean
Morning ritual: "milk, please... morning, breakfast, hungry"
nursing, blanket, dolly, sweepy (she actually asks to be put to bed!), tired, quiet, night night, sweet dreams
booboo, finger, kiss it
too (me, too)
nuff (enough)
done! or all done! (when finished eating--and we really need to be paying attention, because she'll start playing with her food, smearing it, and sometimes even throwing her plates, cutlery, etc., down if we don't take her out right away)
baby (and pretends to cry like a baby, wah, wah)--this is typical after a bath.  Sophie still does this!
please, thank you (sometimes needs prompting, sometimes not!)
walky, walky (when she prefers to walk instead of be carried)
cold, 'cared (scared), 'prise (surprised), worried, puzzled, friend(s), elephant, monkey, bear, fish:  all with ASL signs
Numbers 1-11, attempts at more
ABC song, Row Your Boat, Twinkle Twinkle, Eensy Weensy Spider, Baby Beluga, Robin Redbreast, Bubble songs from Gymtime (we sing these to distract her when brushing her teeth)
keenex, garbage (and can actually blow her nose and put the tissue in the garbage, which is nice!)
Here you go! (when handing something to us)

One of the cutest things Daila does is add -y or -ia to words.  Like milky-milkia, daddy-daddia, Sophie-Sophia, mommy-mommia... you get the idea.  I was wondering why she was doing this, and then it dawned on me:  she's applying the rules of her own name to other words.  So funny!

Typical interaction:  I'll hear crying from the room where the girls are, and I'll come to see what the matter is.  Sophie usually has a very innocent expression, while Dalia is upset or crying.  So I ask, "What happened?"  And Dalia will say, in a very sad voice, "Sophie." I'll say, "Oh, Sophie did something to you?" "Yeah." (same intonation throughout dialogue) "What did she do?" "Push you."  "Oh, she pushed you and you fell down?" "Yeah."  "Where does it hurt?  Point and show Mommy."  (She will point to the spot, usually the same one each time.)  "Do you want me to kiss it?" "Yeah."  "Do you want Sophie to come kiss it, too?"  "Yeah."  And then Sophie will come and kiss her and apologize.  

Late Jan:  Dalia put her hands in the pockets of her overalls, saying "pocket." Then she said, "Money."  I asked her, "Do you have money in your pockets?" She answered, "Nope."  I asked,  "Why not?"  She answered, "Cause."

Dalia is starting to identify colors, mostly the word with the ASL sign instead of the actual color.  That is, we'll point to a color, sign the color, and she'll identify it correctly.  Without the sign, she defaults to "green."  (Sophie did this, too!)

Dalia is still so much fun to be with.  She's very easygoing and definitely exceeds the legal limit on cuteness.  She loves to dance, sing, and tickle.  She's also surprisingly independent, going into Sophie's room to color or her own room to "read," insisting on feeding herself.  She has a funny new smile, which you can see in some of the pictures above, where she shows all of her teeth.  

Sophie

Sophie has really taken to writing her name:  the letters are starting to get to look "right," all the same size and on one line.  If she doesn't do it for a while, she forgets, and the letters get sort of odd again.  We really haven't been practicing with her, mostly because she doesn't ask for help with it.  Probably we should, but there's no real urgency!  She also likes to print the word "zoo," and she can recognize many other short words like "yes."  She likes to draw abstract pictures of animals and people. 

Regarding behavior, Sophie is testing, testing, and testing the limits constantly.  I've (this is Judy) have been reading books on parenting and discipline, and I think that it's because I've unconsciously been too inconsistent with the "messages" I send her, regarding what is allowed or not.  Sometimes I'll insist on something, and then get angry and yell if she doesn't do it or ignores me; sometimes I'll just let it slide if I'm holding Dalia at the time, or just too busy or distracted or tired to deal with it, or if I change my mind and decide that it's not important enough to get all upset over.  I can see that this has been giving her the message that it's okay to test, and that Mommy will just give up eventually.  Not that this isn't normal behavior for a three-year old, but it's making me nuts!  So I'm going to work on giving a clear, calm, confident message the first time, followed by logical consequences if it's not done.  Without all the upset and angst.  Wish me luck!!!

Family activities in January and February

Celebrating Sylvia Sussman's 80-something birthday in Croton (first two pictures in the row) with many friends from our folk dance community
Attending the annual Zlatne Uste "Golden Festival" in NYC over MLK weekend
Hanging with our friends Martie and George (and many others) at the Saratoga Springs Dance Flurry over Presidents' Weekend (the last three pictures are of Noel and Sophie dancing during a family dance at the Flurry)
Visiting grandmas and other relatives in Florida, more details to follow in March