We don't really know or care how well other children Norah's age speak, but we do know that with each day we are more astounded (and terrified) by how much she understands and says.
Norah is pretty independent, but she is not afraid of asking for or demanding help. Throughout the day she can regularly be heard pleading for help "Helping Norah!" whenever something is not going her way. She also gives Justin commands such as "No Justin, sit. Good boy." We're afraid she's going to try to teach him fetch and roll over next. On the bright side, when Justin gets frustrated, she always manages to pat him gently and say "It's okay, you're fine."
Norah likes to establish a certain kind of procedure to things. If she recognizes that a couple of our mannerisms suggest we are preparing to leave the house she will launch into a checklist of sorts. She first asks "Daddy go to train?" Then she inquires about each approved item on her official equipment check, waiting for an affirmative reply to each question, making sure I am adequately prepared. "Daddy! Shoes? Keys? Phone? Glasses? Purse?" I've tried to explain that I carry a satchel, but she will have none of it. She knows a purse when she sees it. I still have to answer yes to all checklist items regardless of terminology differences.
Our car trip protocol has changed very little lately. She still giggles as she tries to open the door with her foot (thank God for child locks), and she shouts to identify every tractor and truck we pass. Her new material involves stoplights. She has observed our behavior and knows that we should be moving if the cars beside us have started moving. When this fails to happen she shouts "GO! GO! GO!" at the top of her lungs. We realized this was heading in an undesirable direction, but last weekend she upgraded to a very enthusiastic cry of "DUDE! GO!" We really need to watch what we say or things could get really colorful.
Despite our best attempts to correct bad behavior we sometimes set bad examples. There is no more obvious evidence or your mistakes than hearing them mimicked by your children. Recently Norah and Justin were repeatedly opening and closing the french doors in our house. The sound was awful as the door clanged closed into the frame, then crashed open into the walls. After 30 minutes or more of this game I had told them not play with the doors so often that I honestly thought I was hearing an echo. I finally lost my patience and raised my voice. Immediately afterward I heard Norah repeat "Don't close the doors!" in the most tone-filled, gravelly, deep, Gollumesque voice she could muster. That definitely made me re-evaluate my communication skills and put me a mile further down the road to self censorship.
Norah is pretty independent, but she is not afraid of asking for or demanding help. Throughout the day she can regularly be heard pleading for help "Helping Norah!" whenever something is not going her way. She also gives Justin commands such as "No Justin, sit. Good boy." We're afraid she's going to try to teach him fetch and roll over next. On the bright side, when Justin gets frustrated, she always manages to pat him gently and say "It's okay, you're fine."
Norah likes to establish a certain kind of procedure to things. If she recognizes that a couple of our mannerisms suggest we are preparing to leave the house she will launch into a checklist of sorts. She first asks "Daddy go to train?" Then she inquires about each approved item on her official equipment check, waiting for an affirmative reply to each question, making sure I am adequately prepared. "Daddy! Shoes? Keys? Phone? Glasses? Purse?" I've tried to explain that I carry a satchel, but she will have none of it. She knows a purse when she sees it. I still have to answer yes to all checklist items regardless of terminology differences.
Our car trip protocol has changed very little lately. She still giggles as she tries to open the door with her foot (thank God for child locks), and she shouts to identify every tractor and truck we pass. Her new material involves stoplights. She has observed our behavior and knows that we should be moving if the cars beside us have started moving. When this fails to happen she shouts "GO! GO! GO!" at the top of her lungs. We realized this was heading in an undesirable direction, but last weekend she upgraded to a very enthusiastic cry of "DUDE! GO!" We really need to watch what we say or things could get really colorful.
Despite our best attempts to correct bad behavior we sometimes set bad examples. There is no more obvious evidence or your mistakes than hearing them mimicked by your children. Recently Norah and Justin were repeatedly opening and closing the french doors in our house. The sound was awful as the door clanged closed into the frame, then crashed open into the walls. After 30 minutes or more of this game I had told them not play with the doors so often that I honestly thought I was hearing an echo. I finally lost my patience and raised my voice. Immediately afterward I heard Norah repeat "Don't close the doors!" in the most tone-filled, gravelly, deep, Gollumesque voice she could muster. That definitely made me re-evaluate my communication skills and put me a mile further down the road to self censorship.
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