Telafoammm

LS has been making incredible progress lately. It's just amazing to see what little sponges children are.

A few weeks ago LS said her first real word conversationally that wasn't referring to someone (Mãe, Pai, Avó, Grandpa, Memére, Tia, etc.) - "mais", which means "more". She was sitting having her dinner with us and friends. And when we were a little too long getting her that next bite of food - there it was: "Mais?"

Since then, it just seems like a snowball of new words coming every day. She sure is trying! Most are Portguese, but she's getting English in there too. We made a list a couple nights ago, but we're not going to be able to keep up.

A couple days ago while on the changing table being tended to by Mamãe LS says: "Fome. mer?" Fome = hungry, and "mer" was an attempt at "comer" which means "eat" (she doesn't have the "C" sound down yet).

Yesterday was a good one. After getting her up from her afternoon nap and getting her on the changing table I called Mãe to let her know LS was up. A few minutes later LS pointed up toward the window, saying "Telafoam!" Yep, I had left the cell phone up on the window sill. She draws the "m" out, and had fun saying it over and over - "Telafoammmmm... Telafoammmmm..." The pronunciation actually isn't that far off because the Portguese pronunciation is more like "Telefun" anyway.

She had yet another surprise in store for us last night though. We've been letting her try her ability with spoons and forks. Generally the spoon for things that we can stick to it for her (like some mashed veggie) and the fork for things that we'll stick for her.

Suddenly she decides to put it all together; she harpoons herself some stuffing with her fork (she was having pork chops, stuffing, and broccolli with us) and puts it in her mouth!

She was so excited that when going to do it again she got a big chunk of stuffing on the fork, and just before getting it to her mouth shook the fork in excitement with a shriek of glee and the stuffing went flying several feet.

Oh how you make us smile LS.

renniD

At LS's age, life is full of firsts. Some better than others of course.

Last night at dinner, LS had a look that said "Um, I think I just saw dinner again". This, of course, as dinner streamed out of her mouth for what seemed like a really. long. time.

We were eating over at our friends house, and luckily the feeding seat that she uses there has a tray. With a lip. A big one.

Our friends have kids of their own, and they immediately sprang into action into what seemed like a well-rehearsed protocol for a disaster recovery plan.

This came as we were pretty close to heading home anyway. Just after we adults got to have some dessert. LS, if you were holding out until the end - thanks, you're a trooper.

So, thus went LS's first vomiting. Yay.

After a quick cleanup and pack-up, we headed out for the 10 minute drive home.

About 5 minutes into the drive, I was looking in the rearview at LS and she gave me a look that said "Um, I think I just saw lunch again". Yep, another first. First vomit during a car ride. We didn't think there could have been much left after the first
eruption. We were wrong. Mamãe was able to clean her up some with the napkins from the glove compartment (and the hat LS had been wearing), but the poor thing had to ride the rest of the 5 minutes sitting in her newly discovered 6 hour-old lunch.

We got her in, took off her clothes in the tub, and decided to give her a quick bath, check her temperature, etc. Her temp was good, and the quick bath got the sticky inside-outs cleaned off.

An abbreviated night-time bed routine and she was tucked happily into bed.

For a half hour anyway. We heard her crying, and Mamãe got there first. And there was LS, on all fours, staring down and imploring her breakfast how it could have betrayed her like this - as it sat there where she had been laying moments earlier.

"The third time is a charm" is a saying that's supposed to mean something. Happily in this case it meant "LS is done vomiting".

Mamãe was well prepared for this final time. LS had been put in two-piece pajamas instead of one piece, and had been put to bed with a changing pad under where she lays her head.

Cleaned, changed, and put in bed a final time, LS then slept the rest of the night. Although she would moan from time to time, and she was checked on a half-dozen times or so (Papai stays up later at night anyway).

Thus ended LS's episode. For us there was laundry; airing the car out in windy 15 degree weather; taking the car seat out, cleaning it off, taking off it's cover, and washing that.

LS slept late, and her "morning" nap went until about 1:30pm (and only because we went in to get her and make sure her eating schedule didn't get too far off). She seems in fine spirits now.

She's not even complaining about the bland meals of oat cereal, crackers, bananas, and water. She probably, like us, is just happy that it stay on the inside where it belongs.

New Year, New Seat

LS decided that she wanted to ring in the new year with a new car seat. And who could blame her given how big she's gotten.

She's still rear-facing, since the seat has a minimum height recommendation for forward-facing of 34 inches. 5 inches to go! (We'll get official stats next week when LS has her next Doctor appointment.)

We got a picture of one last time in the old seat here, but it's hard to appreciate how tight a fit it is when she's wearing a winter coat!

To serve as a bookend, here's a picture of LS's very first time in the original car seat. Ready to go home for the first time from the hospital!

In other exciting news, we've booked our first trip to FL to visit Memére next month. I'm sure it'll be a great mid-winter getaway, and everyone's looking forward to it.

Merry Christmas!

A handful of days before Christmas we managed to catch Santa out on a snowy day, doing some advanced scouting.

Although posted a day late - Merry Christmas from LS and family!

Bird - Bonus Clip!

We did have a clip of LS on her first day (Dec 7) of saying "bird" after all.

And here it is:



Moments later, about half way through this next clip she apparently says her second English word: "burger".



It is unclear whether she was actually asking for a "bird burger".

Bird is the Word

Last week LS said her first English word. Bird. It (Pássaro) was one of the first Portuguese words she recognized. We decided to start mixing in some English, especially the words that she already knows well in Portuguese. She's now on to "foot" and "knee" and a couple other things.

Of course, now learning words also means she can try to say them. Soon after recognizing the word, she was saying it. "Burrrd" We tried to get it on camera, but the camera draws her interest when it's near (we need a spy-cam!).

Papai immediately thought of this song when she was saying it. She'll even sing along a little if you sing it with her (alternating verses)!

Here's where I actually heard the song for the first time. Funny stuff.


(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WNrx2jq184)

Tough Girl

The day after Thanksgiving, LS had a tussle with a chair. It seems the chair didn't hold up its end of the bargain that it would serve as a support for LS standing.

The chair in question is a lightweight aluminum dining chair. LS tried to use it for help, but instead ended up falling backward, still holding onto it, and pulling it down on top of her. Afterward, she was laying there flat on her back holding the grill of the back of the chair like she was in jail.

This was LS's first major fall, so she was none too pleased. She got some good crying going. We were afraid she hit the back of her head, but there was nothing apparent there. But the swelling under the left eye started immediately.

She was back in fine spirits mere minutes later, which is when the first picture here was taken. The pictures don't really give justice to the swelling. On the second and third days the swelling under the eye was enough that LS's eyelashes were nowhere to be found - stuck beneath the folds of the swollen cheek.

The third day looked the worst, as the slight scrape along the area became scabbed and looked like it was a mean cut. But by the next day (4th picture) the scab was already gone.

The 5th picture is from 5 days after the fall - almost back to normal.

The final picture is an additional week later (and less than two weeks after the fall), long since doing fine.

The lesson in all this - when you are going to take down an opponent, better to fall down on top of them, than pull them down onto you!

You have much to learn young grasshopper.