The alphabet is huge in our house. We sing the ABC song, in two different styles. We call out letters when we see them on the street. Many toys display the alphabet - including a set of flash cards. The N card represents a nutcracker on it.
Cora asked me, "what this, Mama? What this N?"
"That is a nutcracker. I have one that I will show you when Christmas is here."
She promptly stands up, puts one hand on her hip, and her other palm face up, questioning me, "Where Christmas go? Mama, Mommy, where Christmas go?" She looked left. She looked right. She turns all the way around and runs to the couch which is in our front window. "Where Christmas? I don't see it outside. No (looking left.) No, (looking right). She gets off the couch and runs back to Frank & I, who are just 6 feet away.
This all happened so fast, I couldn't understand what she was looking for until she came back and said, "Mama, I can't find Christmas."
I had to stifle a laugh. She genuinely thought Christmas was laying around the house or outside.
It's always a challenge to explain things that we take for granted we had to learn at some point. The kids are soaking up everything that we say and do. It's amazing to see and fascinating to realize that we all had to get these same concepts. We are proud of their development. They continue to amaze Frank & I everyday.
What a ride it's been since we've turned the corner on their second birthday. They are busy. They are talkative. They are emotional. They are funny. They are particular. They are wonderful. But whatever it is they want, they want it now!
I thought I would rewrite a children's song to exemplify our lives right now.
One, Two
Buckle my shoe...I can do it myself!
Three, Four
Open the door...No, Cora, NOOOO!!! I open door!
Five, Six
Pick up sticks...Mama, I need more sticks. No, I need more goldfish. Mama, I need pretzels
Seven, Eight
Lay them straight...OK, focus on you. Don't hit your sister. Sutter...no, NO!
Nine, Ten
Let's do it again...Mama has a good idea, show Mama how you can do it by yourself?!?! I've put together a host of favorites, from the last year and a little more! It's 18 minutes long, so sit back and enjoy it at your leisure.
Favorites in case you can't see the embedded video.
Oh the joys of learning to talk, and as a parent - listen. It's been wonderful to hear the Babes trying to talk. They are working on communicating with us, putting at least two or three words together. But not every letter is enunciated. I mean, they are only 21 months old. But, wow, is it funny to hear these mistakes. Let me give you a few examples, but let me warn you, there will be some profanity.
Clock - found in all the books as one of the first words you need to learn. In our house, it does not have an "L." We had a digital clock in the kids room. One morning, when we walked in, Cora exclaimed, "Cock, Daddy, Cock, Cock!" Frank and I looked at each other with the "what the heck" expression on our faces. We realized that she was saying clock, but wow, did that take us by surprise. That following weekend, we went to the zoo. After having lunch near the lions, Cora said, "Mama, Cock! Cock!" Thankfully there were other parents around with toddlers who gave us that knowing glance. We were all in the same boat. For the record, there was no clock.
Fork - the common utensil. We use these every day. But for Cora, this was announced to me as the other, very naughty four-letter, F-Word. "Mama! F*C%! F*C%!" Wide-eyed and smiling, I nodded and repeated, "Yes, Cora, FORK, FORK," with all the emphasis on the ORK.
Stick - we place with building blocks that are large lego blocks. To teach them how to build them, I began using the single block to stack on other single blocks. I said, "let's make a stick." We had been doing this for a few weeks, when Sutter looked at me with a smile on his face. "DICK, Mama, DICK!" Yes, honey, that is a STICK!
SIT - The kids love for us to sit in a very specific place. They call us over to read a book. They point to the chair in the living room when it's time to watch TV. Pointing to the remote, they say, "MOTE, Dada, MOTE. SHIT, Dada, SHIT." That's enough to make us laugh out loud.
KITTIES - Chelsey told us the other day that Cora saw some "titties" walking across the street. Wouldn't that be a site?!?
We love the learning. Sutter recognizes all of his letters. Cora is nearly there. They both love counting - 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 14, 6, 7....
When they see a bunch of letters together on a sign, Cora calls it the ABC. ABC puzzle. ABC picture.
It's so exciting. We just want to continue to educate them as much as we possibly can.
fun at Sunset in February in downtown SF.
Sutter created a valentine with the help of Dada at the San Francisco Parent of Multiples Valentine's Party.
The new year always brings on a time of reflection. What did we accomplish this year and what do we have to look forward to next year. Let's take a look back!
Well the City Babes accomplished so many things this year - from first steps, first teeth, first cupcake, first trip to Hawaii, first tantrums, first words...I could go on, boasting about all of these amazing milestones. At the end of this year, I'm very proud of how much they've grown and how lucky we are to be so instrumental in their development. At 19 months old now, they are full of energy, curiosity and a love for Elmo.
Cora is working on her jumping. She gets to practice once a week in the bounce house at tot time, which is hosted at our local Parks and Rec Department playground. She nearly has it. In the meantime, she says a version of JUMP-AH! Over the holidays, she referred to snowmen as "no-man" and Santa was "oh-ho-ho." She loves asking about her cousin Avery "A-whee", Davin (Di-Da) and Bup (Bup-AH), on a regular basis. She loves to look at the family photos we have in the hall and name everyone she knows. She loves sleeping with a kangaroo, "roo" and her blanket. She and Sutter enjoy playing with doors, or hiding in their closet. On the playground, she will climb the play structures to reach the tallest slide. She will go down those slides, controlling herself with her shoes, if it is too fast. She loves to say, No, although it doesn't always mean no. She does know how to nod yes, although her whole body tends to agree with that nod. She loves to eat, and will often clean up her brother's plate if he doesn't finish his food. She loves to laugh, be tickled, and chased.
Sutter loves Elmo. They both love Elmo, but something about that Elmo voice makes Sutter smile and put his fingers in his mouth as a sign of excitement. When Elmo appears on the TV, his whole body goes stiff as he points to the screen and says, "EH-MO! EH-MO!" It all seemed very innocent that we would allow the babes to watch a little TV here and there. After realizing that Thomas the Train was a non-listening train and should be sent to the scrap yard, I decided to turn on Sesame Street. One episode later, it was all Elmo, all the time. The show left a positive impression on me, so I hope it does for them, too. Elmo has even been our babysitter for a few desperate minutes, occupying them while we get something done in the other room.
In other Sutter news, he has expanded his vocabulary, too. Mama, Dada, CoCo (for Cora on occasion), ap-ah (apple), mana (banana), prezl (pretzel), mil (milk), wa (walk), Ge-Ge (Curious George) and GaGa (Granny). He loves to throw kisses. He still gets shy around some adults. He loves to wrestle with Frank. He loves to run and kick a ball. When playing with toys, he is content to take things apart and put them back together. He just learned how to put things in a row. And then promptly mess them up. At Christmas, I was checking out at a store, and a few boxes fell off a display. He stacked them back up, looked at his fine work, then knocked all of them down. He was smiling, proud of his fine work.
The holidays were very special this year because we were able to be with most of the family. We traveled down to the OC, staying with Bup and Granny. We drove at night, while they slept. That was great. However, when we arrived, they were so excited to be there, dancing around the house, that they did not fall back asleep. Granny Judy (aka Granny Gaga), arrived a day later, just in time for the Babes first gingerbread house decorating. We put strawberry cream cheese as the base and cranberries on top. They ate all of the cranberries and then chomped away on the house. They had a sugar high. It was a joy to watch them. Overall, the babes are loved so much, and it was fun to have them interact with the whole family.
As we enter 2015, I'm excited to see what's next for us as a family. I've added to my list to blog at least once a month. It's on the interwebs, so I have you to hold me to it.
Thank you for all your love and support.
xoxo
Annual new year's day walk on the beach. We love you!
