New Things

Greta is doing some new and funny things recently. The most interesting is that while she can only say Mama, Dada, and thank you - - she can understand so much of what we say to her. Last night we were all sitting in the dining room floor just kind of horsing around. I asked Greta to go get a book for me to read to her. The books are in a different room. She left and came back with a book! After we finished reading it, I asked her to go get "Brown Bear, Brown Bear". She left and came back with that exact book! I think that's kind of amazing. It just goes to show how much her little brain in comprehending even though her verbal isn't quite there yet.

As to the Christmas tree, she was doing pretty well with it. She only took down the ornaments at the bottom - - which I hung there because they are not breakable or fragile. She carries them around a bit and then I find them on the floor throughout the house. But recently, she has taken a shine to the lights. I didn't mind her touching them at first until I came in the room one day last week to find Greta chewing on a string of lights. I imagined her with her hair going from straight to curly in an instant! Now we try to dissuade her from pursuing the lights!

The week before Thanksgiving when my parents were here Greta started doing this thing where she stacks things up in my lap. Or my mom's lap. Or Paul's lap. First she puts all her toys in the person's lap, and then she tries to put herself in the lap, too. It's hilarious. In a variation of this game, she tries to put all her toys in her little rocking chair that Paul's parents gave her and then still sit in the chair with all the toys. She usually has to try this two or three times, but eventually she figures out just the right way to wedge herself in while still keeping the toys in there with her, too. She is determined when she sets her mind to something, and I love that about her.

Lately, Greta has been very interested in collecting things in bags. Any kind of "bag" will do. I bought her some shoes a few weeks ago, and they came in a little plastic bag with a zipper and a handle. Greta puts all sorts of things from around the house in that little zipper bag: a pig, her toothbrush, a tub toy, you name it! She'll collect things in any kind of bag - - whether it's one of her small diaper bags, an old kleenex box, a piece of tupperware, the list is endless.

I picked Greta up from daycare on Monday and I was told that she had a "biting incident". I was certain that Greta was the biter rather than the bitee. Turns out that another little girl - - who, by the way, has had her molars since she was about eight months old, I kid you not - - bit Greta on the back. But here's the whole story. Greta ran up to Lily and snatched her toy and turned to run away with it. Lily protested by grabbing Greta and biting into her shoulder. The bite didn't break the skin, but Goose had two little half-moon shaped bruises on her back. :( That sharing thing is proving difficult for Greta. Maybe she'll get it now. Or she'll learn to run faster.

I'll try to snap some photos of Greta doing all these funny things. Stay tuned!