Ethan is learning new words almost daily, and for those of you who wish to communicate with our 19 month old, here is a handy sample dictionary that will make things a little easier.
"AAAH" - an exclamation meaning "Hey, look at me!", "Hey! I need food!", "Hey! get off my foot!"
"Bah!" - Typically shouted, which is why there is the exclamation point. Normally means "Ball", but can also mean "orange", "apple", or other round thing.
"Ball!" - Ball. Sometimes he actually pronounces the "L" sound.
"BEAR!" = Teddy Bear, with capitals and exclamation point. This word is only used with extreme excitement.
"Buzz" - Buzz lightyear.
"Car"- Anything with 4 or more wheels. He points out every car when we are on the highway. Can get really old really fast.
"Coo-coo" - Cookie.
"Coo!" - Cookie.
"Cook!" - Cookie.
"Cookie!" - Cookie.
"Cow" - Cow. However, can also mean pig, sheep, horse, or woman wearing a black and white fur coat. That was hilarious. We were in Wal-Mart and he pointed at this woman and said, quite loudly, "MOOO! Cow!"
"Daddy" - Me. This is one of my favorite words.
"Doggy" - pronounced "goggy". Means dog. Duh.
"Drink" - cup of water, juice, or milk. Doesn't matter, they are all interchangeble.
"Elmo" - The one word EVERY kid knows.
"Funt" - Elephant. Or Rhino. Or dinosaur. Or semi. Size is the key defining factor in this word. Elephantness doesn't seem to factor in.
"Fire" - Chicago Fire. Or Pacifier. He is a pacifier connoisseur, using different colors and sizes for different needs. Sometimes he carries two or three at a time, switching between them every few minutes.
"Gangyou" - Thank you. Adorable.
"Go!" - This is an invitation to run either by himself or with others.
"Hi" - Hi.
"Juice" - orange juice.
"Kitty" - Kitty. Or dog. Or bear. Whatever happens to be nearby and furry.
"Mine" - This is a recent addition, one that is quickly becoming his favorite.
"Mommy" - Mom. There are times he wants mom and times he wants dad...it is nice that he can let us know these things.
"No!" - He knows how to say this word, but doesn't seem to want to listen when we say it.
"Peas!" - Please. He only uses this when he really wants something. Normally it is "Peas! Cookie! Peas! Coo-coo!"
"Roar!" - Roar. He says this whenever he sees a dinosaur. Lots of fun while we were in the Evolving Planet exhibit at the Field Museum. Basically a solid hour of "Roar!"
"Sorry" - Sorry.
"Teef!" - Teeth. He loves playing with his toothbrush, and several times a day he will yell "Teef!" and run to the bathroom.
I am sure that tehrare others, but they are escaping me now. I'll update as he adds words.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Don't worry...you'll be safe.
Children are natures way of reminding you that there is a 6am, even on Sunday.
They are also a good way to remember what it was like to be a big brother or sister. Ryan and Ethan are now playing "together" a little more than they used to, throwing airplanes, pushing cars around, and kicking a soccer ball, but normally they just run from the kitchen to the living room and back again, screaming. They do have a little plastic tube that they like to play in, but this is normally reserved for special occasions, like when Ryan wants to torture his little brother. This tube comes in two forms - the rolled up, hula-hoop shaped form which takes up no space and sits in the corner of the room (my favorite form), and the 6 foot long, 2 foot wide form that seems to expand to take up the entirety of whatever room it happens to be located in.
The first time they played in it together, Ryan and Ethan had a lot of fun in the tube and there were only a few incidents requiring dad's attention. Ethan would climb in and Ryan would shake the tube until Ethan either laughed or cried. Either one seemed to be an acceptable outcome. After that though, Ethan became a little more wary of his big brother's motives and at times refused to get into the tube. Ryan had to coax him in using toys, bears, food, and whatever means he could so as to inflict the shaking torture. Eventually nothing worked, and Ryan resorted to flat out lying, using the phrase that big brothers/sisters have used for ages to entice their little siblings into situations which will most likely end in an injury: "Get in the tube, Ethan," he said, followed by a pause. Then, "Don't worry, you'll be safe."
Ethan, of course, bought this and got into the tube. Ryan then laughed in what I would describe as a maniacal way and proceeded to shake him around in the tube until he fell out, laughing/crying.
I think Ethan learned a valuable lesson that day. First, I think that he learned whenever Ryan uses the word "safe", he should immediately begin thinking about the variety of ways in which he may not be safe. His thought process will probably be "Wait...no one was talking safety a few minutes ago. Why is he mentioning my safety now? Typically I am safe even when no one mentions my safety. It is only when my safety is mentioned explicitly that Ryan tends to injure me. Perhaps the word "safe" doesn't mean what I think it means. Wait! What if none of the words I know mean what I think they mean? What if everyone has been lying to me about ALL the words I use? Huh. This is wierd. I think I am experiencing an existential crisis. Of course, I am only 19 months old and until a few seconds ago I had never used the word "existential", or "crisis", or, come to think of it, "and", so possibly dad is just putting words into my mouth for the sake of this story. Whew. Ok...I feel better."
Most likely his thought process would be something like "Ryan = brother. Brother = cool. Ryan = tube? Tube = safe? Ok."
So until he gets a little older and can have a existential crisis, Ethan will continue to get duped into doing stupid stuff because his brother told him to. I dread the first time I hear from an 9 year old Ethan, as he lays on the ground after jumping from our roof, "But Ryan said if I tied these sheets together, they would act like a parachute!"
They are also a good way to remember what it was like to be a big brother or sister. Ryan and Ethan are now playing "together" a little more than they used to, throwing airplanes, pushing cars around, and kicking a soccer ball, but normally they just run from the kitchen to the living room and back again, screaming. They do have a little plastic tube that they like to play in, but this is normally reserved for special occasions, like when Ryan wants to torture his little brother. This tube comes in two forms - the rolled up, hula-hoop shaped form which takes up no space and sits in the corner of the room (my favorite form), and the 6 foot long, 2 foot wide form that seems to expand to take up the entirety of whatever room it happens to be located in.
The first time they played in it together, Ryan and Ethan had a lot of fun in the tube and there were only a few incidents requiring dad's attention. Ethan would climb in and Ryan would shake the tube until Ethan either laughed or cried. Either one seemed to be an acceptable outcome. After that though, Ethan became a little more wary of his big brother's motives and at times refused to get into the tube. Ryan had to coax him in using toys, bears, food, and whatever means he could so as to inflict the shaking torture. Eventually nothing worked, and Ryan resorted to flat out lying, using the phrase that big brothers/sisters have used for ages to entice their little siblings into situations which will most likely end in an injury: "Get in the tube, Ethan," he said, followed by a pause. Then, "Don't worry, you'll be safe."
Ethan, of course, bought this and got into the tube. Ryan then laughed in what I would describe as a maniacal way and proceeded to shake him around in the tube until he fell out, laughing/crying.
I think Ethan learned a valuable lesson that day. First, I think that he learned whenever Ryan uses the word "safe", he should immediately begin thinking about the variety of ways in which he may not be safe. His thought process will probably be "Wait...no one was talking safety a few minutes ago. Why is he mentioning my safety now? Typically I am safe even when no one mentions my safety. It is only when my safety is mentioned explicitly that Ryan tends to injure me. Perhaps the word "safe" doesn't mean what I think it means. Wait! What if none of the words I know mean what I think they mean? What if everyone has been lying to me about ALL the words I use? Huh. This is wierd. I think I am experiencing an existential crisis. Of course, I am only 19 months old and until a few seconds ago I had never used the word "existential", or "crisis", or, come to think of it, "and", so possibly dad is just putting words into my mouth for the sake of this story. Whew. Ok...I feel better."
Most likely his thought process would be something like "Ryan = brother. Brother = cool. Ryan = tube? Tube = safe? Ok."
So until he gets a little older and can have a existential crisis, Ethan will continue to get duped into doing stupid stuff because his brother told him to. I dread the first time I hear from an 9 year old Ethan, as he lays on the ground after jumping from our roof, "But Ryan said if I tied these sheets together, they would act like a parachute!"
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