Of course, part of my love for this stage in Elizabeth's development must also have something to do with the great sleep we are all (at long last) getting consistantly each night! It's amazing how much more you are able (physically/mentally/etc.) to enjoy your children when you are well rested... I'm so envious of those parents whose LOs slept through the night early on. I'm saying prayers each night that this next baby will be a better sleeper!
At any rate, one of the funnest parts of this stage of development is Elizabeth's vocabulary. As previously mentioned, it is growing by leaps and bounds each day... she surprises each of us with the big words she seems to pull out of no where, and is starting to speak in little sentences pretty much all day. As mentioned, the doctor described her several times as quite the Chatty Cathy, and if you are around her for even a short time, you know that to be true! At the same time, however, her vocabulary is still a work in progress... there's still lots of made up words, lots of mispronouncing of words, and lots of plain old jibber.
For example, one of the funniest things she mispronounces, is her own name. Mind you, she can name all of her friends (Katherine, Wyatt, Leeenee, Caleb, Luke, Maddie, etc.) with ease... but Elizabeth is just a tad harder. At first, she would say Ebbaba, then Ebbabet. Apparently, though, that has gotten to be just too tricky, so she's taken it upon herself to shorten her own name. Now, she's just plain Eva. It's hilarious! If I say I'm going outside, and she wants to go too, she will point to herself and say "Eva, outside, too!" Or if I ask who has a poopy diaper, she will chime right in with a big "Eva!" And of course, the phrase "Eva's turn!" or "Eva have it!" is heard round the clock... especially on days when Wyatt is with us (as she proceeds to snatch a toy out of his hand). Anyway, it's gotten to the point that both mommy and daddy call her "Eva" from time to time... and considering she really is quite the little Diva, it seems to be a very fitting nickname, dontcha think?!
She also mispronounces lots of other things around the house, tickling her dear parents in the process. One of the funniest has been the way she pronounces her Peter Rabbit pull-toy... wheeling it around the house, I often hear her say "Peter Robert." And as a result, mom and dad have also taken to calling him the same. I also can't help but crack up when she pronounces "George" (to her curious George stuffed animal) with a Boston/New England accent... I mean, where did that come from?!? And she LOVES to cheer us on... when daddy is working outside, she shouts "Job, daddy! YAAAAAAY!!!" Meaning, good job! And around the house, she will often tell me, "Go mommy go!"
One of my favorite things is to listen to the things she says when she doesn't know anyone else is listening. Like when she goes off to read a book... I will peek in, and she will be reading the book! Seriously! Reading the book... using some of the same words/phrases on the correct pages and all! Also fun is to listen to her through the baby monitor when she first wakes up from a nap. Today it went something like... "jibber, jibber... Munkie, Munkie... Ahhhhh... George (Boston accent)! Eva nap! George nap! Daddy! Where daddy go? Daddy work. Job daddy! Yay! [pause] 1, 2, 3, 4, 5... 17, 18, 19! YAY! [pause] Toot! Toot! Eva Toot! [pause] Mommy toot! Mommy poop! Diaper. George. Jumping, jumping, jumping... oooh-oooh-ohhh.. monkey jumping!" Too Funny!
Also adorable is her love of fashion. After bringing home a few bags of clothes from a consignment sale, Elizabeth enjoyed pulling out each garmet, saying in a high pitched, approving voice "CuUuute!" to each piece she inspected. She literally did this for an hour! And if I do say so myself... she sure is "CuuuuuUuuutE!" As is this fun time in our lives!
