As I write this I am waiting for my parents to finally make it to my house. They left Kentucky AFTER they were scheduled to land in Massachusetts, never a good thing. But this afternoon was delightful as we prepared and played with Isaac. In the meantime, we were able to track their plane over the Internet. This is what happens when you combine the power of the computer age with a very Type A two and half year old. I would call it up on the iPad in between batches of Play Do cookies and show him where on the map they were and where we were. He knows he lives in a place called Massachusetts and I am beginning to think he know what Massachusetts looks like, in part because of a Santa message he received from Nanna about two weeks ago. He would get excited as I told him they were getting closer to Massachusetts. Then he started full blown chanting when I told them they had landed. He was marching around the house in his tiny underwear chanting Nanna P-Pa, Nanna P-Pa. I know they want to see him too, but this kid is pretty stoked. I am also thrilled that thus far Christmas has been most notable for going to see Colby and Myles and waiting for Nanna and P-Pa to arrive as opposed to any presents, though he liked those as well. Full Christmas updates coming. For now, we wait...
Literally everyday Isaac says something new and interesting. A linguist, following him for a week, would probably be stunned by the number of new words he learns on a daily basis. I am constantly shocked when he busts out a new word or phrase and it is delight to hear him talk. Here are some better ones:
Etee Batee=Everybody
When you are an only child this is a much easier way of focusing the attention on yourself, as in "Etee Batee watch me!"
Me Tis Mas=Merry Christmas
Works well with etee batee, as in "Me Tis Mas Etee Batee".
WeLAX=Relax
With a strong emphasis on the second syllable, Isaac loves telling people to do this when they are bothering him or making him mad. It must be something his teachers say to calm the kids down when they are wound up, but Isaac uses it like a swear word, which is hysterical. "WeLAX Daddy!" is essentially "FUCK OFF Daddy!" Really, really funny.
Sedan=Sedan
You know, when you are a beebeep addict, and you can distinguish between mixers and flatbeds, you need to be VERY precise when describing beebeeps. We are now at the point of distinguishing between race cars and sedans, which are an entirely other genus from things like trucks. You know how snow is so important to eskimos and as a result they have like thirty words for it, so to it is with Isaac and beebeeps. He also knows: SUV, truck, dump truck, and race car.
Levels of Superlatives:
Awesome=literal translation: that's pretty cool
Oh my goodness=literal translation: that's really cool
Oh. My. Goodness=literal translation: that's really really cool
Then there is the very rare and absolute superlative:
WHEEL ON DA BAS!=literal translation: wheel on the bus; actual meaning: "I AM SO EXCITED I CANNOT STAND IT."
Isaac uses this phrase the way people that win cars on game shows scream. WHEEL ON DA BAS is true, unadulterated joy. We pass a school bus depo: WHEEL ON DA BAS. He gets a car carrier for his potty chart: WHEEL ON DA BAS. This is a rare phrase, but when it comes out you know he is excited. There is even a nose crinkled up facial expression that goes with WHEEL ON DA BAS.
Retee; also retee retee=really; also really really
Isaac has a good understanding of comparative language and so this adverb has worked its way into his lexicon more frequently. The funniest part of this is that many of his go to retee phrases involve words said in a New York accent. For example, retee, retee lowng; which is really, really long.
I luff you=you get it...
This one melts your heart, especially when combined with retee, as in I retee luff you. There is no better thing to hear from your two and half year old than that.
Isaac's words are getting so good that he can weave sentences together, even whole stories (as opposed to his Tom Wolfe, stream of consciousness stories). He is also expanding his reservoir of pronouns, including me, you, and your. Mine, well he has had that word for a while. Overall, he has a ton of words and many that are easily understood. It is an amazing thing to watch and hear.
Etee Batee=Everybody
When you are an only child this is a much easier way of focusing the attention on yourself, as in "Etee Batee watch me!"
Me Tis Mas=Merry Christmas
Works well with etee batee, as in "Me Tis Mas Etee Batee".
WeLAX=Relax
With a strong emphasis on the second syllable, Isaac loves telling people to do this when they are bothering him or making him mad. It must be something his teachers say to calm the kids down when they are wound up, but Isaac uses it like a swear word, which is hysterical. "WeLAX Daddy!" is essentially "FUCK OFF Daddy!" Really, really funny.
Sedan=Sedan
You know, when you are a beebeep addict, and you can distinguish between mixers and flatbeds, you need to be VERY precise when describing beebeeps. We are now at the point of distinguishing between race cars and sedans, which are an entirely other genus from things like trucks. You know how snow is so important to eskimos and as a result they have like thirty words for it, so to it is with Isaac and beebeeps. He also knows: SUV, truck, dump truck, and race car.
Levels of Superlatives:
Awesome=literal translation: that's pretty cool
Oh my goodness=literal translation: that's really cool
Oh. My. Goodness=literal translation: that's really really cool
Then there is the very rare and absolute superlative:
WHEEL ON DA BAS!=literal translation: wheel on the bus; actual meaning: "I AM SO EXCITED I CANNOT STAND IT."
Isaac uses this phrase the way people that win cars on game shows scream. WHEEL ON DA BAS is true, unadulterated joy. We pass a school bus depo: WHEEL ON DA BAS. He gets a car carrier for his potty chart: WHEEL ON DA BAS. This is a rare phrase, but when it comes out you know he is excited. There is even a nose crinkled up facial expression that goes with WHEEL ON DA BAS.
Retee; also retee retee=really; also really really
Isaac has a good understanding of comparative language and so this adverb has worked its way into his lexicon more frequently. The funniest part of this is that many of his go to retee phrases involve words said in a New York accent. For example, retee, retee lowng; which is really, really long.
I luff you=you get it...
This one melts your heart, especially when combined with retee, as in I retee luff you. There is no better thing to hear from your two and half year old than that.
Isaac's words are getting so good that he can weave sentences together, even whole stories (as opposed to his Tom Wolfe, stream of consciousness stories). He is also expanding his reservoir of pronouns, including me, you, and your. Mine, well he has had that word for a while. Overall, he has a ton of words and many that are easily understood. It is an amazing thing to watch and hear.
Having kids is a life changing experience. Its like a dam of emotions bursts when you see them the first time. All sorts of random things become hugely significant because your little person likes them. But it is the time away from them that makes you realize just how fundamentally different your life is. Here is an example of what I mean.
I invented a rap song for Isaac to help encourage him to go to the potty. It goes something like this:
Pee on your potty
Pee on your potty
Isaac
Loves to
Pee on his potty
Its not complicated, but it has, as hip hop artists would say, an infectious hook. You repeat it and dance around and it all helps get Isaac in the right frame of mind to use the potty.
One day Isaac had a good potty in the morning and he and I were dancing around the house singing the Potty Rap. It got stuck in my head because, well, a two year old rapping about peeing on the potty is probably the funniest and cutest thing you can imagine. It was stuck in my head so much so that I carried it with me to work.
My work requires me to go to the prison in Concord, NH pretty often. So that day, like many others, I went to the prison to visit clients. The visiting room was bustling and I was waiting for an attorney room with a few inmates who were waiting for visits. We were all sitting at tables waiting when, subconsciously, I started singing the Potty Rap under my breath. I didn't even notice I was doing it, so I certainly wasn't aware anyone could hear me. Then one of the inmates leaned over and said: "I love that song too."
I am fairly certain we had different songs in mind.
I invented a rap song for Isaac to help encourage him to go to the potty. It goes something like this:
Pee on your potty
Pee on your potty
Isaac
Loves to
Pee on his potty
Its not complicated, but it has, as hip hop artists would say, an infectious hook. You repeat it and dance around and it all helps get Isaac in the right frame of mind to use the potty.
One day Isaac had a good potty in the morning and he and I were dancing around the house singing the Potty Rap. It got stuck in my head because, well, a two year old rapping about peeing on the potty is probably the funniest and cutest thing you can imagine. It was stuck in my head so much so that I carried it with me to work.
My work requires me to go to the prison in Concord, NH pretty often. So that day, like many others, I went to the prison to visit clients. The visiting room was bustling and I was waiting for an attorney room with a few inmates who were waiting for visits. We were all sitting at tables waiting when, subconsciously, I started singing the Potty Rap under my breath. I didn't even notice I was doing it, so I certainly wasn't aware anyone could hear me. Then one of the inmates leaned over and said: "I love that song too."
I am fairly certain we had different songs in mind.