Big Stuff

Some time back Eric taught Elle how to close doors by grabbing and pulling the bottom of the door. So periodically she'll go down the hallway, fall prostrate and tuck her fingers under the doors pulling them closed one by one. Today she realized she was just tall enough to grab the doorknob and close it like Dada and Mama. She believes she has arrived!

Elle also enjoys typing on my laptop. I'll open a Word doc, super-size the font, turn it purple and then she'll hunt for the letter I ask for. Once she's found it, she'll hold it down till the page fills up with 'A's,'W's or whatever. This too gives her a great sense of accomplishment.

Feeling like 'big stuff' seems to be very important right now. From doors, laptop, panties, stairs, drinking from the cereal bowl (guess who taught her that?!), to cooking with Mama - forget about the toys, it's all about doing what Dada and Mama do.

She's jabbering, squealing and still doing a lot of signing, but she's pretty careful about what words she says out loud. I think she's going to do words like she did her walking - not until she was sure she wouldn't fail. While swinging the other day, she couldn't put her hands together to sign 'more' because she was holding on to the swing. I told her to say it with her mouth, but she shook her head 'no' while grunting to be pushed more. I told her I would push more when she said it with her mouth. This went on, back and forth, until she finally sighed and said, clear as day, 'MORE'! She's so stubborn! I wonder who she gets that from?!