September words

Last month I kept a notepad in the kitchen and jotted down some of Laurel's more interesting words and phrases. I can't possibly keep track of everything she says, but I got many of the highlights.

If you ask Laurel any question with a "How" in it (like "How are you?" or "How was the store?"), she answers "Good." She can also say "nice." She will say "Funny!" although what she thinks is funny is sometimes inexplicable. She also likes to say "Surprise!" complete with fake wide-open eyes and startled gasp. She doesn't have any negative words yet -- except for "no" of course!

She also uses the word "good" to comment on her favorite foods: "Pear good. Cheese good. Milk good." The other day I was eating a bowl of granola and she pointed at it and told me, "Share, Mama." Hard to argue with that.

Some of her longest phrases to date: "More milk in sippy cup; empty" and "Big fish swimming in water," which she said when viewing the koi pond of some friends. (The first time she saw fish swimming in a small tank, however, she said, "Flying.")

A very common phrase: "Read book, Mama." She has a title for every book she likes, even if is a title she made up herself, so she can ask for specific books by name.

Modified nouns include: dog food, rocking horse, hobby horse, library books. Adjectives include: clean, dirty, dark, light, wet, dry, asleep, awake, naked.

She likes to talk about Walt. "Dog barking," she will say, and if you ask why, she replies, "Deer." Sometimes she has other theories, though, like "Could be a squirrel." She can also say "Couch!" to Walt, which is where he is required to sit while we eat our meals.

Perhaps her favorite topic of conversation is her family. She likes to say our names over and over, sometimes saying where everyone is: "Dad work. Isaac school. Mama here." The other day when Isaac was at school, she said, "Bye-bye Isaac. Bye-bye brother." She absolutely loves to say "Happy birthday, Isaac!"

When she plays with a broken camera she pretends to look at pictures of us: "Laurel pushing buttons," she says as she peers at the back of the camera. "Pictures. Mama, Dad, Isaac, Laurel!"

She also told me, "Daddy a man. Isaac a woman."

Well, at least she's learning to catalog her world!