New Sayings

Ambree has a little tummy bug today. I remember when she was anywhere from 8-18months old, I hated for her to get sick, because it could slow down her development in the very short-run. Not that it could possibly matter, but as a first time mom, I wanted her to walk or say a new word when she was suppose to be able to, and not be limited by a cold. It was ridiculous. But today despite an absent appetite, diarrhea and vomiting, Ambree had all sorts of new things to say.

On our morning walk, she was in her stroller, and all of a sudden I heard, Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z... I said, "What did you say?" She repeated from the beginning, she skipped the letter E and it got a little hairy from L to O, but we've never tried to teach her how to sing the ABC's. I know she's heard it, but not from Mommy or Daddy. Then later, she asked, "Mommy, what are you saying?", like she didn't hear me only I know she did. It was just something new she wanted to try out.

With her tummy hurting, she had to find a new way to articulate that, too. She kept saying, "Mommy, my tummy is filling up." She said that right before she got sick. And to try to fix this pain, she kept saying, "I put on shoes, maybe I feel better," or "I go in living room, maybe I feel better." Bless her heart, she had no idea why she was hurting or how to fix it. When we were leaving GG's house, after the door was closed, she said, "See ya!" A new choice for saying good-bye.

It's so fun to hear her learn sayings that we use. We say them without thinking about it, but she's trying to figure out how she can work them into her vernacular. So, she says them over and over again, completely out of context, and then uses our reaction to gauge if she used it correctly or not. Last week, it was "Never again!" very emphatically with arms crossing her body at the same time. And since I returned from my weekend away at a women's retreat, she has been trying out "Mama." She knows I prefer Mommy, so its become a little game.

She's a sponge, so I'm trying to use this time to fill her up with God's word in addition to quirky jargon she is picking up. A memory I hope I never forget, is teaching her Psalms 31 in the kitchen as she "helped" me with dinner. She's taking a bite out of each strawberry I wash as quickly as I put them in front of her, and repeating, "My God is my Shepard, I will not want." What a sweet time for me with my little girl.