From the Mixed Up World of Hallie...

It is so fun to watch Hallie learn and develop. I think it is just fascinating as a parent to watch her learn and absorb things. I am constantly amazed at the things that she comes up with. However, it is even funnier to watch the mix-ups she has as she is learning about the world around her. Here are a few of my favorites:

*Hallie calls both Devin and I "dada" most of the time. I think she thinks this is a general term like "parents". When I point to myself and ask who this is, she says "mama", but in general when she refers to us, it is both of us as "dada."
*As I mentioned earlier, Hallie LOVES to push strollers. She tries really hard to say stroller all the time because she wants us to get her little baby stroller out, but it comes out more like "yo yo." Then I will repeat "stroller" and she will repeat, more emphetically, "yooo yooo." I know she is trying, its just so funny.
*For a long time, all animals were "doggies" or "puppies". She would see any animal and say "woof woof." Now she is getting that there are differences and will identify other animals. She still only calls cats "meows". (If you haven't noticed, these are just random pictures that I haven't posted. This is Hallie and Grandpa and Brelynn and Kirston's marathon last Saturday. She finished and we are so proud of her!)

*One morning, I noticed that Devin had taken the garbage out in the bathroom but had not gotten a new liner. I really like bossing Hallie around to see what she will do, (haha) so I asked her to go to the kitchen to get a new bag for the garbage. She stood in the doorway trying to absorb the information for a second and then turned around and walked out. When she returned, she came with a bag alright- her diaper bag- which she started to empty into the garbage. For some reason I found this incredibly funny. She understood what I asked within the realms of what she knows and tried her hardest to obey.
*She is trying to say more compound words, but as she does, she often gets them backwards. Instead of "toothpaste" she sometimes says "paste tooth" or "sauce apple" for applesauce. It's like she remembers the end part to describe what she wants and then figures she needs to add the word she already knew (tooth or apple) to specify. Kind of funny.
*Her two new favorite things to say in response to anything are "I know" and "No way!" Even when they are used out of context, she thinks its great to carry on such a meaningful conversations. Examples:

Me: Hallie did you finish your dinner?
Hallie: I know. (she says this really empathetically usually while nodding her head)

Me:What do you want to wear today?
Hallie: No way!
*She is still a great helper, most of the time. She will bring dishes from the table to the sink, put dishes away in lower cupboards and drawers, put dirty clothes in the basket, etc. One day, as I was doing the dishes, I asked her to go get something from the table. I must have been really absorbed in the dishes because it took me quite a while to realize that she had not come back. When I went to the table, I found her on top having a grand old time dumping all the salt out. She was very proud of herself. Little does she know, that's not the type of help I need!

I just think it is so fascinating to see how her little mind works. She grasps more and more things every day and totally uses that to her advantage. She requests "treats" all the time now, probably after I mentioned a treat one time in her life. So awesome. Oh the fun of parenting!