2009-07-25 - 10:58 a.m.
... Dictionary of Susi-Speak...
I�ve been rather quiet here of late, and mostly because of lots of activity. I went on my first business trip without Susi last week � to Oregon. Afterwards, K and Susi took the bus and met me in Seattle for a wonderful relaxing weekend. This week, I�ve had another high school student working in my lab � our chair�s daughter. She�s a joy � but again, it is time-consuming. So many things going on � fortunately, many things are also moving forward, so I just feel busy. I don�t feel frustrated.
Rather than recount my trips at the moment, I�d rather jot down a few words about Susi�s development, so that I can recall some of these rapid changes later. This past week brought the first of the temper tantrums. They aren�t bad � just surprising. So far, Susi can be calmed out of them.
Language has become really fun in the teranika household. We�re beginning to see little Susi�s vocabulary take off, and we�ve just seen the appearance of her first two word combo (uh-oh! Stuck!) in the last two weeks. The words are coming in rapidly now, so I thought I�d write down her pioneer words. In doing so, I�ve discovered that Susi has two forms of communication: question and interjection. As such these vocabulary words just weren�t complete with the accompanying �!� or �?�. So here it is � the language of Susi.
ACTION
UH OH! � something dropped or fell over, usually with assistance. � this word always accompanied by upward facing palms and eyes wide open.
UH OH! STUCK! �see above - occasionally applies to a situation when something is stuck.
MMMMMEH? (accompanied by sign language for �more�) � 1. more milk? 2. More water? 3. this is fun! Can we do it again?
VATT-EH! � 1. noun (when she points to the water in the Sound) 2. verb (when she imitates Papa watering the plants)
UP? � 1. I�m going up or down the stairs. 2. please turn the light on. 3. please let me out of the high chair/stroller/crib now.
CUCK? - I think this must mean Look? (her pronunciation approximates the German word for Look anyway). But this word applies especially to watching Baby Einstein in the evening.
DAH-DOOH! � bye bye! � this is my all time favorite Susi-ism. It�s accompanied by a hand wave, and the �Dooh� is said with a perfectly round, drawn out �O.� Although all pedagogy recommends that parents repeat the proper word back to the child, it�s really hard with this one. DAH-DOOH! is so adorable.
BOOO! Doesn't every child love to play peekaboo?
ACHOO!! Actually, this is more of an imitation of US when we sneeze. I guess we must sneeze alot.
PEOPLE, CHARACTERS and SPECIAL OBJECTS
MAMA!
PAPA!
OMA! - grandma
ABU! � for some reason, she recognizes and really likes the little monkey in the Disney Aladdin book that was given to her.
PUP? � her puppy security blanket. Technically, this is Puppy 2. Puppy 1 � who went through the dryer and accidentally developed cataracts (ahem) � seems to have run away. :-(.
BEBE! � any baby any where.
FORMS OF TRANSPORTATION
OTTO! � Auto, car, truck, and occasionally vacuum cleaner. She points and announces ALL of them.
BUS! � bus! I think this word stuck after her trip to Seattle in the Greyhound with Papa
CHOO CHOO! � yep, a train
THE ANIMAL KINGDOM
BUDD! � Bird!
KITT-EE! � felines. She still says �titty� sometimes
VOW! VOW! � dogs, bears, and sometimes Kangaroos
MMMMMMM! � cows. And occasionally hippos.
ROOAR! - Lions and sometimes hippos (although hippos also mooo � see above)
SSSSS! � snake
OOOO! OOOO! - owl
OO OO AH AH! � all monkeys except Abu.
PUFFIN! � not that we see Puffins in Funcouver regularly � one of her favorite books has a puffin in it.
TEDDI! � not the slinky negligee. She means the bear.
FOOD
CADO! � Avocado
APPLE/APFEL! � apple and many many other fruits
OBJECTS
CUP? - She likes to hold the cup in the stroller
MOHN! - Moon! Pronunciation is halfway between the German and English.
BALL! � ball � this was her first word
BALLON! � Balloon.
HAT! � can�t go out without one..
WORDS INDICATED BY GESTURES
FAN � she waves at all fans and ceiling fans
RIBBIT/FROG � she picked up a little bouncy gesture that I use when I read about a frog in one of her books
THUMP! � she slaps her thigh (or mine) when I say THUMP! Or point to Thumper in her Bambi book.