Exploding Vocabulary

June is learning to say new words every day. It's amazing, sometimes funny, and really cool to see her experiment with trying to say words, and then make the transition from just parroting what we say to actually putting the word to use.  Today I sat down and started to make a list of the words June can use.  There are more that she will imitate, but these are the words she uses on her own.

People Words	Food/Drink Words	Object Words	Other Words
Mama	milk	ball	more
Dada	coffee	block	please
Nana	cracker	clock	all done
Grampa	pasta	rock	bye bye
Baby	nana	sock	hi
Garfunkel		shoes	ouch
Bert		bubbles	hot
		brush	yum yum
		bird	up
		bees	down
		book	no
			diaper

She knows the animals sounds for dog, cat, pig, duck, sheep, snake, chicken, cow and monkey.  

She can point to her eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, tongue, hair, eyebrows, belly, belly-button, hands, fingernails, knees, feet, and toes.  

She can sign: mama, dada, more, milk, all done, drink, eat, please

I of course don't want to rush through her toddler years but I am excited for her to use more complex language.  Based on her demeanor I feel like she will be a pretty funny kid.  I will definitely be keeping track of the funny, wacky, smarty-pants things she says :)

Big Shoes to Fill

June, like most toddlers, is obsessed with footwear.  Sandals, slippers, tennis shoes, and work boots all catch her eye.  Justin brings his work boots to the living room and sits in the same chair to put them on each morning before work.  June likes to touch each boot and then says "booo!"  With smaller, lighter shoes she tries to put them on her own feet but she can't quite accomplish that on her own with his boots, so Justin has taken to lifting her into them each morning.

Looking at this picture of my husband and our daughter brought the phrase "big shoes to fill" to mind. Of course as June grows I want her develop her own personality and feel comfortable being herself.  But there are also things I hope June will learn from her daddy, things that I respect and that have made me love him.

Justin is an incredibly hard worker.  He has had to work to support himself from a young age and he doesn't quit.  He has held many jobs over the years, some I'm sure he didn't enjoy, because he knew it was up to him to pay his bills and put food in his mouth.  There wasn't anyone else that was going to do that for him.  He worked for five years to become a Journeyman Electrician and is a respected and dedicated employee at his company.  Justin has one speed--turbo.  He works hard and fast and doesn't stop until the job is done.  That is true at work and at home when there are projects to be done.  And so I hope June learns the value of hard work and dedication to a job well done.

Justin is really funny.  He makes me laugh daily and manages to find the humor in most situations in life, even during times when laughter can be hard to muster.  Now I get to watch him make June laugh, too. I love watching them play together. I hope June learns to approach life with a sense of humor and ability to not take herself too seriously.

Justin is dedicated to the people he cares about.  I consider myself lucky to be one of those people. Now June is on the short-list, too.  Pretty much everything Justin does illustrates his dedication to his family.  I cherish our family time each evening after work.  Most nights we eat dinner at home and both use our best tactics to try to get June to eat (she's becoming a picky toddler.)  Then we usually go out to play in the yard.  When we come back inside we read books. Well, I usually read the books as June is very particular about that, but Justin sits with us anyway while I read to her.  Then it's diaper change time. Justin reads June books while she gets her diaper changed so that she will stay still.  At bedtime Justin reads her bedtime story and carries her to bed after I've given her kisses.  I appreciate so much the consistency and his presence.  I hope June learns to be a consistent presence in the lives of people she cares about.

This is by no means an all-inclusive list, but it's a start. I'm thankful daily for my little family and my partner in parenting.

Family Pictures