Three Little Words, and then some

2-22-08

Dear Diary,

I can’t believe it! He said he loved me! I mean, he’s said it back to me before after I said it first, but that just seemed like parroting. Tonight, he came up with it all on his own! That means he must really mean it, right?

Okay so it sounds a little seventh grade, but it’s quite a kick to hear those three little words from your son for the first time. When John takes him up to bed, I usually blow him a kiss and say and sign, “Good night. I love you. Sleep well.” Elliott always blows me a kiss and says something like “night” or usually just “bye-bye,” sometimes with an endearing “(comma), Mama” tacked on. Well, tonight, all I did was start to point to myself and begin to mouth the capital vowel, when he up and said, “Ah yuv oo” followed, after I thanked him, by “Guh-night, Mommy.” Pitter-pat, pitter-pat! And tears!

Okay, it’s now a week later and I’m just getting around to posting this…

Tonight (2/29) he had just finished having his before bed snack and I picked him up to take him to the couch to nurse. He gave me a gleeful hug and said, “I yuv you, Mama.” Wow.

We are just amazed at the things he puts together now. Lately he’s been requesting “picture Elliott driving car?” I know he’s probably asking to watch video of himself in the driver’s seat listening to music, but he used to ask for that (“used to” = five days ago) by saying “see Elliott singing?” Now not only is there one bad habit – letting him sit behind the steering wheel to listen to music and play with the controls – but also of letting him play a video over and over on the camera. He knows all sorts of fun words, like “chamomile” and “special drink” (what I call cod liver oil; he now requests it!), “grapefruit,” “frozen” for whatever fruit or vegetable I don’t have fresh, “kale,” “cauliflower,” and, our current favorite, “coolmama” for cucumber.

Now that a week has passed since I started writing, it seems kind of silly to even write down words unless they’re especially funny. For example, I think it’s funny that he said, “Hi, Penis.” He says hi and bye to most anything. “Bye-bye music. Bye-bye book. Bye-bye downstairs.” And after we’ve said goodbye to a friend, for the next half hour a few times and the next day or two once or twice, he’ll just up and say “Bye-Bye, Lisa” or whomever.

Elliott is getting very aware of some people’s presence in his life. He frequently wants to see his friend Joey and suggests to me, “Call Katie” (Joey’s mom). The neighbor boy Preston is requested often, too, especially if we happen to be sitting in the car listening to music and Elliott looks over to Preston’s house two doors down. Preston has lots of trains and trucks and loud toys, so it’s kind of like going to Vegas for Elliott (and for me).

Lately he’s taken a liking to rice tortillas and has gotten good at saying “tortilla” – and requesting it often. He also, I’m sorry to say, inserts “uh” into a lot of his sentences, clearly thinking that if I do it, it must be, uh, something cool to do. Oh, and we think it’s funny how he measures things, asking for “some blueberries?” “some tea” alternately with “some tea bag?” Elliott now has at least three ways to answer in the affirmative. There’s the excited to go along with the idea and claim it like it’s his “Yeah!” There’s the casual, don’t bother to ask again “Yep.” And now he is fondest of drawing out a very clear “Yes.”

Elliott is becoming more aware of his bodily functions, which is helpful. It’s always nice not have to soak a poopy diaper! And he gets a kick out of peeing in his little potty and carrying the bowl over to the big one. We are still in the getting comfortable phase and don’t feel like any of us are ready yet to full-on get him to use the potty all the time. We also aren’t quite ready to fully night-wean but we’re getting close, becoming less and less enamored of “Nurse!” and other demands in the night/early morning.

Elliott is singing along a lot, both in words and just in humming along, sometimes to songs he hasn’t heard in weeks or months. John and I keep looking at each other in disbelief. He even sings along with my goodnight song, my own words to the tune of the Music Together goodbye song. So I guess it’s not that soporific anymore.

Speaking of sleep, it’s time I got some. Will try to post a few photos soon.