Language Development = L.O.V.E.

I L.O.V.E. language development. I find it incredibly interesting and now that my own child is giving me such good material and becoming bilingual, I love it even more!

Today we pretended that I was a mama lion, Henry was a baby lion, and Claire was the "Tierpflegerin" (zookeeper). She decided that she needed to feed me, so she took "fuettern," (to feed) a verb she knows, and called herself a "Futterin." Technically it's not a word, but she was calling herself a "feeder" and she even added the -in because she's a girl! This was the first time she's done this and she also did it with a couple other words later in the day...she knows "bestellen" (to order) and changed it to Bestellerin (orderer) which IS actually a word. Changing verbs into nouns - exciting!! :)

Henrah

Henry, or Henrah as Claire affectionately calls him sometimes, is up to no good these days! Just kidding. He is showing us all his new tricks lately...

• The past couple of weeks, he's REALLY started talking and smiling and interacting. He did this before, but now he's doing it anytime someone will give him the time of day!
• He's trying to roll over. He can get himself from his back to his side, but then that darn arm gets in the way. Usually he's not exactly how we put him down though, he wiggles himself around a bit now. EDIT: Wouldn't you know it happens the day after I post?!? Henry was on his stomach while Claire and I were 'taking care' of the bathroom, he rolled! Unfortunately I missed it, but there he was laying on his back off of his play mat. Now, we'll see if it was a fluke or if he can do it again soon. :)
• He holds his head up at a 90 degree angle when he wants to. He also like to 'stand' now with his legs stretched out while I'm holding his hands.
• Toys now interest him more and he likes to look at them or hold them and put them in his mouth - the best place and way to discover them! He also likes to just reach for them and make them swing.
• He's still getting his "last" nursing at night (11ish), but now he's usually just asleep or almost asleep during it and doesn't have the last awake time anymore. That means his bedtime is usually around nine. It does not mean that I don't hold him for at least an hour or that he doesn't still wake up and nurse throughout the night, however I call it his "last" one because it's the last one before I go to bed. :)

Little Blue Truck

Claire has a set of books called Little Blue Truck and Little Blue Truck Leads the Way. They were gifts from Grandma and Grandpa and are really fun books. Yesterday she, Henry, and I read them while Daddy was at work. We read them in English and discussed them in German (FYI). Some books I translate on the go, but others I like to read in whatever is written. I don't want the author's style, rhyme, rhythm, etc. to be lost in translation. After we read them, Claire read the latter again to herself. I was impressed! Then I encouraged her to read it to Daddy when he got home. (This time I was ready to transcribe from the kitchen!) Here's Claire's telling of Little Blue Truck Leads the Way (which we've read several times, but really not that many in comparison to some others).

Claire:

Little Blue Truck (LBT) rolls into the city. (New line = new page)

The city is high, said the LBT rolls away.

The city is high said the LBT rolls away. Next Paaaage.

Faster, faster! The city is fast. Next Paaaage.

LBT rolls into the city.

LBT is faster, faster!

Beep!

LBT rolls away. LBT rolls into the city.

Oh a big...

Daddy:

What is that?

Claire:

ein Strassenkehrmaschine

Daddy:

Oh, a street sweeper?! (I had to mouth this one to him, folks. He's good, but he didn't happen to know this translation!)

Claire:

...street sweeper rolls into the city. Next Paaaage.

Daddy:

What is this? (Wait time) A limousine.

And so it went! Good thing I have that semester of Remedial Reading under my belt and all those years of running records. In my mama-opinion, this was an excellent retelling from a 2 1/2 year old. Either way, it was pretty cute! :)

Happy 3 Months Henry! Happy 2 1/2 Years Claire!

Henry and Claire have just hit some milestones that I want to be sure to record! It's late and I'm tired, so I'll start here and add some more things as I think of them. ;) There are no pictures, sorry. We did just get professional family pictures taken this morning though, so you'll see those within the week! :)

HENRY MATTHEW - 3 months on 2.11.12

• At 3 months, Henry is starting to show his personality more!
• He's smiling when Mami or Daddy talk to him and just him, making good eye contact. We have yet to capture this on film.
• Mami was doing squats with Henry last week and discovered that this makes him giggle! This was a good workout motivator for her - she did at least double the squats she was planning on doing and her legs felt it the next day. Thank you Henry! :)
• Henry is a laid back baby boy! He's happy doing pretty much whatever.
• Sometimes he gets this look of contemplation on his face...I think he's going to be a little more serious than his goofy sister.
• Usually Henry takes a shorter morning nap or two, and longer afternoon nap, and then an hour or so catnap in the evening and another catnap in the 'early night' as we'll call it, between nursing. He falls asleep for good between 11:30 and midnight. Luckily, Mami is a night owl and as long as she gets her afternoon nap in with the kiddos, she's fine with this routine he's set!
• We love Henry so much and I know I'm trying to enjoy 3 months as much as possible because he's already getting big so fast! At the same time, I can't wait to see what personality he'll have as a little person. :)

CLAIRE ELIZABETH - 2 1/2 on 2.1.12

• Claire pretty much rules this household. I think that's pretty typical of a two and a half year old. It's amazing how cooperative and easygoing she can be at times, and then how sassy and non-compliant she can be at other times. There are definitely things that make this more predictable, like Claire being well-rested or tired or satisfied or hungry, but sometimes it's anyone's guess. I do think that for a two year old though, she does a really great job of listening...usually!
• She's got spunk! She's goofy and energetic, but will usually sit down with you to play or read a book and pay close attention.
• She likes to act like she knows what's going on. Sometimes, when asked, she'll say "ich verstehe, Mama" (I understand, Mama.) even though it's clear that she couldn't possibly know.
• Claire is so stinkin' smart! Seriously. She talks like a four year old. She remembers everything. Yesterday she was talking about 'her' party. She was able to tell me that Henry, Mami, Daddy, and Claire were there, there were fish there, but they weren't real and we didn't eat them, there was a Christmas tree there, there were other people there too but she didn't know them, she had a snack there. Finalllllly, after racking my brain as to what she could be talking about, I remembered. We went to a Christmas party for my German Stammtisch Club. Everything she said was exactly right. The fish, if you're wondering, were decorative pillows...wierd I know. So. stinkin'. smart.

MAMI ELIZABETH & DADDY MATTHEW (as we affectionately joke with Claire sometimes...)

• Mami and Daddy TRY to keep the house picked up. HA!
• Mami has started to go to the YMCA 3-4 times a week. Sometimes the kids go with and go to ChildWatch for an hour, sometimes they stay home with Daddy. She's really enjoyed taking this time to do something beneficial for herself. Swimming laps and yoga are her favorites!
• Daddy enjoys taking 10 minutes here and there (or more time if he can get away) to work on his hobbies. We often have them strewn out on the kitchen counter or table so that he can work on them and still be upstairs to help out a bit!
• Matt and Lauren try to take time with each other, but often times we're just in the 'don't want to think or put forth effort on anything' mode when we finally get a break. I do have something up my sleeve for us though...can't say anything else, it's a surprise! :)

Such a BIG boy!

Henry has been having a lot of tummy time lately! Basically because Mami and Daddy didn't think about doing it much at all for the first six weeks of his life. Things are a little busier with two and I have about ZERO time to read 'parenting' books to remind me what to be doing - like tummy time - on a day to day basis. All you Henry lovers out there, don't you worry, he was still getting lots of love and attention the whole time! :) And as you can see, I don't think it hurt him too much...he's now holding his head up like a champ!

Naked?

Claire had a great time Friday to Saturday at Grandma and Grandpa's house for her first sleepover there! Tonight, after Claire used the potty, she disappeared into her room. Upon coming out, here was our conversation...

Mami: Du hast neue Hose angezogen! (You put on new pants!)

Claire: Ja. (Yes.)

Mami: Willst du auch ein neues Hemd anziehen? (Do you want to put on a new shirt too?)

Claire: Na, ich werde mein Bauch nackt. (Nope, I will my belly naked.)

Mami: Du wirst dein Bauch nackt lassen? (You will leave your belly naked?)

Claire: Ich werde mein Bauch wie Grandpa nackt lassen. (I will leave my belly naked like Grandpa.)

Mami: Okay.

Hmmm, not sure if we will send her to Grandma and Grandpa's house again! ;)

2012 - A New Year!

"God is clear: we must exercise self-discipline in all matters. Self-discipline is not simply a proven way to get ahead; it's also an integral part of God's plan for our lives. If we genuinely seek to be faithful stewards of our time, our talents, and our resources, we must adopt a disciplined approach to life."

Did this quote ring a bell with you? It did with me! I've started spending a few minutes a day reading this devotional book and in specific prayer for God to better me...more of Him and less of my selfish ways.

So, I'm a total time WASTER...you name it, I can waste time doing it. I rarely finish projects at home, can spend way too much time checking my email and on facebook, and can make 30 minutes of what could have been productive time totally useless. So the 'faithful steward of time' part really spoke to me. God calls me to be better about this and I have to be disciplined and intentional to break this bad habit. I'm sharing this with you so you can hold me accountable...if you know my goals, maybe I'll do a better job meeting them! You can also pray for me if you want! :)

My goals for 2012...cheesy I know, I don't generally like New Year's resolutions, but this just happened to be "Day 3" in my devotionals, and why not go for it! ;)

• Read to Claire and Henry every day! (We do this mostly, but I want to spend more time with books.)
• PLAY with Claire and Henry every day! (I'm already good at talking to them a lot and interacting with them, but I want to be the fun mama who actually sits down to spend quality FUN time with her kids often...doing a puzzle, playing kitchen or dress up, pretending to be a customer, etc. This may mean that the house is always a mess, but I'm okay with that as long as it's not unbearable.)
• Laugh with Matt every day! (We did this a lot tonight. I need to lighten up and see the humorous side of everything.)
• Spend MUCH less time dinking around on the computer! (My biggest time waster! Today I only checked facebook three times and it was quick log in and log out a few minutes later...seriously that's not much for me! I have people in my life whom I love and who are RIGHT HERE...I don't need to have superficial relationships with my hundreds of friends!)
• Eat right and exercise! I know, I know, EVERYONE has this as their resolution...guess I'll join the bandwagon! These last two weeks (after my unplanned detox...thank you, flu!) I have been eating more fruits and vegetables and MUCH fewer sugars and refined flour foods and I already feel better...I want to continue that. (And I was eating A LOT before, just for the record!) I also want to make time to work out and/or stay active several times a week. This is something I'm going to have to gradually work into my schedule...go figure I'm already pretty busy...but it's my goal to start this month, less frequent at first, then more frequently. You can hold me accountable on this too...when you see me go for the fourth cookie (which of course won't be happening now, but happened almost daily in the past) you can stop me and chew me out!

So, that wraps up my personal goals for 2012...if I can be disciplined enough (I'll need your help on that, God) for 365 days, I'd say they'd develop into habits and a lifestyle change by then! If I can pray for you about anything specifically, please tell me...I already thank God for you daily! :)