Several people have asked me how much I think Audrey understands about the arrival of a new baby, and it's really hard to say. She talks a lot about babies, and wants to hug and pat my stomach, and is keenly interested in going to visit the "Baby Listens" with me-- i.e., our midwifery practice, where she asks to listen to the baby's heartbeat and loves to assist in measuring my stomach. (She also does this at home with a pretend measuring tape, always saying, "Hmmmm. Thirty-nine. Good.") But the future is such a hazy notion for her, and this baby we're always talking about is so invisible, I wonder if a lot of this isn't merely to humor us. You want to read me the book about big sisters again? Fine. Be my guest.
But more and more of her thoughts are becoming decipherable to us, at the same time. Language unfolds at an astonishing pace. A few months ago it was single words, then it was two-word phrases, and now almost everything is some kind of sentence. A constant stream of narrative, from the plainly imitative-- "Mommy, that is not a toy!" (spoken to me sternly while I was blow-drying my hair), to the exultant-- "Audrey like that!" (for her first taste of plums) to the absolutely inexplicable-- "Mommy need different underwear." (Uh... beg pardon?)
We are not just two adults and a baby anymore. There is now a third member of the household tribe, with her own opinions, and plenty of them.
2 comments:
This is the stage that I wish I were there to interact with. Enjoy it, especially this private time before you're a family of four!
Please, please take a camera with you next time you go to "Baby Listens," and take a picture of Audrey measuring you and listening to the baby! A video clip too, so I can hear her talking through it!
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