Kish!

That's Rachel's name for "kiss!" which she is distributing quite liberally. Last night as we were exchanging cars (Drew left Seattle in the afternoon just in time to pick her up from daycare and for me to head to chorus rehearsal), Rachel leaned toward me and said, "kish," then placed her lips on mine. Then, without any prompting, she did the same to Drew while he was holding her in his arms.

Then I left and she got very upset. Drew said that when they were reading books together last night and she heard a noise, she'd point toward the door and say, "mama?" "mama?"

Drew also reported that she also said "hug" for the first time, then burrowed into him.

Kish! I love it. I could kiss her for hours, she is so sweet.

cookie!

I have no idea how Rachel figured out this word because we don't give her cookies at home. But sure enough, when I pointed to a picture of cookies in one of her books, she took her pacifier out of her mouth and exclaimed, "cookie!" delightedly.

"Cookie" was Drew's first word, his mom says.

Other than that, I think she's teething. She looked so uncomfortable tonight at dinner, and went completely silent while she bit down on two of her fingers, as if trying to stop some pain in her mouth. I was really concerned and finally gave her a pacifier. She hasn't been eating much the past few days and has been drinking a lot of milk. Maybe the pain of teething explains it. Oh, I feel so bad for her! I just want to (gently) cover her face with kisses and tell her it will be OK.

She knows her name!

Today when I asked her who I was, Rachel pointed to me and said, "Mommy!"

"And who is this?" I asked, pointing to her chest.

"Ra-chel," she answered. It was slighly garbled but definitely recognizable.

"Who is that?" I pointed to Drew.

"Daddy!" she said.

It's a relief that she knows who we all are, since in a couple of years she'll start identifying us silently as, "those hopelessly old drips who waited WAY too long to have me."

Rachel's evaluation

We had an appointment today for Rachel with Portland Public Schools' early intervention program. Our pediatrician, Dr. Rappaport, was concerned that she didn't have a lot of words when we went for her January checkup. Since then she has acquired about 15 of them -- good, basic words such as apple, car, mommy, ball, etc. -- and seems well on track to have 20 by 20 months.

The two women who evaluated Rachel said she seems completely normal. I asked if that means she'll get into Stanford and they laughed and said, "of course!" They said she seems quite bright, and indeed after some initial hesitation she warmed right up -- pushed a plastic play shopping cart and started chattering away while Drew held her. The only thing she wouldn't allow them to to do was test her hearing. Poor little thing screamed and screamed until they gave up. But she always responds when we call her name, so we think her hearing is fine! Now, LISTENING is another matter...

Tonight she was in quite a mischievous mood -- wouldn't put ducky into the bath and grabbed the washcloth and ran away into the bedroom before I could get it into the bath, too. She has learned a new word, "MINE" and she says it annoyingly frequently. This is why I think it would be great to give her a sibling since that will force her to share.

Helpful Rachel, part 6

The other night while I was at chorus rehearsal, Drew asked Rachel to close the kitchen door. Instead, she toddled over to the refrigerator, bottle in hand. He opened the fridge. She put her bottle on the floor. Then he took a couple of things out to make room for more food and she put her bottle on the middle shelf!

I was annoyed when I opened the fridge and found the bottle with a tiny bit of milk in it. WHY does Drew insist on saving every last drop of everything? I thought.

Well, now I know why the bottle was there. So impressive!

Rachel masters the stairs

Drew has been taking Rachel into daycare and picking her up this past week because I've been tied up with covering a murder trial. The other day she put her hand on the rail above the stairs and went down all by herself!

Drew said a big grin spread across her face as if she was trying to say, "this is SO COOL!"

I can already tell I'll miss the days when she grasps my finger as we walk from the car into daycare. Someday she'll just let go and race ahead of me, eager to leave childhood behind. And I'll trail behind, all teary-eyed.

It's time for school, Rachel!

that's what Drew told Rachel yesterday morning before taking her in to daycare. They were in the kitchen, and she raced off. "I guess I've lost her," he said, thinking she was trying to avoid leaving the house.

Oh, not at all. It turns out she had raced to her bedroom, opened the closet door (most of our doors don't shut completely because the wood is warped), and pointed upward to the hanger at her coat. It was like she was saying, "Daddy! Here's my coat! Put it on!"

I told Drew we should hang a clothes bar or a little hook at "Rachel height" so she can take her coat on and off the hook or hanger. He thought that was an excellent idea.

GO!!!!

That's Rachel's latest trick -- when she wants to be chased, she'll yell "GO!" in that high sweet voice of hers, then race down the hall. If we're in another room, she'll toddle back, yell "GO!" again and race down the hall.

When she first did this, on Sunday, it was so cute to watch her that Drew collapsed face first on the bed, laughing.

She also apparently likes riding bikes at daycare. Perhaps she's old enough to work the pedals on a Big Wheel?

Thinkin' Drew

Drew was alone with Rachel for a while yesterday and she started tugging at the front door, indicating she wanted to leave. He said, "Rachel, you can't go out without shoes, honey!"

She went straight to her bedroom, reached into the drawer for her shoes and socks, then came back to the living room with them where Drew put them on.

Then, instead of just putting on his shoes, he said, "Rachel, what does DADDY need to go outside?" She walked to the shoe box, reached in and handed him his shoe. Then she reached in and handed him the other one.

It shows that a lot is going on in that brain of hers, even if she's not sharing a lot of it with us right now.

Valentine's Day

Drew had to work a weekend shift on Valentine's Day -- the second year in a row he's had to work the holiday. So, to prevent myself from feeling too lonely, I loaded Rachel in the car and we went to Eugene to visit Molly, Calvin, Camilla and Marigold.

We had a good time as usual. Rachel was quite well-behaved even when I had to take care of Calvin and Camilla while Molly gave Marigold her bath. At one point she sat on the couch with a bottle, watching T.V. with Calvin and Camilla, and at dinner time I had her loading up the dishwasher with knives, forks and spoons and throwing garbage into the garbage can. She kept trying to close the dishwasher, even before I was finished loading it!

I got to tell Camilla a scary story (her request) and a happy story (also her request, and in desperation I started telling the "Lord of the Rings" saga, going by the movie not the book, and got stuck after Frodo gets to the Kingdom of the Elves and the Fellowship of the Ring is formed). We were sitting in the dark in front of the cozy fire Molly had built, when Rachel came toddling over and wanted to sit in my lap. I think the combination of the darkness, the warm fire and my storytime voice lulled her to sleep, because all of a sudden I looked down and her eyes were closed! She looked so comfortable snuggled up in my arms, I could've sat there most of the night.

The next day, as I was finishing dressing myself, I brought her into the bedroom to get her dressed. As soon as she saw I had laid out the diaper mat, she obligingly lay down and I changed her diaper. Then she helped dress herself, and PICKED UP THE DIRTY DIAPER I HAD FOLDED UP AND IMMEDIATELY STARTED LOOKING FOR A GARBAGE CAN TO THROW IT IN. We finally ended up going downstairs and throwing it into the can under the kitchen sink.

Drew thinks she has inherited his method and order gene. He is right.

Readin' Rachel, part 4

As we were headed down to Eugene to visit our friend Molly and the kids on Sunday, Rachel plopped down on the kitchen floor with the Sunday New York Times Magazine and started leafing through it.

No, I am not kidding.

Then, last night, Drew was unloading groceries when Rachel marched into her room, got a book, brought it back, sat down on the kitchen floor and "read" it, got up, went back to her room, got another book, then came back into the kitchen, plunked down on the floor and "read" that one.

I'll say it again: Where did she come from??

New addition

...to Rachel's repertoire: "Oh no!" which she says with her palms on her chin. It's from a children's book called "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" about letters trying to climb up a coconut tree, but then they fall down and, "Oh no!" Drew says. So last night, Rachel repeated it. It was the cutest thing!

She also said "thank you" as Drew was feeding her before I got home.

I strongly wanted to play hooky from work and daycare today and just keep Rachel at home to cuddle and play.

You know the rules, Daddy

Drew picked up Rachel from daycare last night, and as usual, she carried her shoes into her bedroom, opened the drawer, deposited her shoes inside and closed it.

As she and Drew were leaving the room, she pointed at his shoes and gave a little yelp: "aaah!" As in, "you know the rules, Daddy! Take your shoes off inside the house!"

He immediately complied, sitting down and taking them off. He wears big, clunky shoes that are kind of heavy.

As soon as he had them off, Rachel PICKED THEM UP AND HANDED THEM TO HIM.

"Thank you, honey!" he exclaimed.

I think it's great that she senses there are house rules and that she expects all of us -- including herself -- to follow them.

19 months today

Oh, our Rachel is rapidly leaving babyhood behind! She is:

--saying "thank you" occasionally. Drew and I always thank her when she's being helpful and thank each other when we've done something nice. Hopefully she is just imitating our behavior and that will stick. We are aiming for "please," next.

--especially clingy/cuddly. When she doesn't want to do something like take off her shoes or put on her coat, she starts crying and crawls into my lap for a little cuddle. It usually takes about 5 minutes before she rights herself, gets up off my lap and does what I want her to do, so I don't make an issue of it.

--enjoying art (making prints of her hand), music and reading at daycare. And going on the slide, of course!

--still stuck on the same couple of foods. I am trying not to be dismayed that she's not a good eater (and trying not to be jealous of her cousin, Valerie, who eats EVERYTHING, including pate). At least she's not eating junk food -- we are still avoiding juice and sugary treats. She continues to love Gardenburgers and apples. Can't wait until summer when we can expand her food repertoire!

--saying "uh-oh," all the time: When she gets up in the morning and her binkies are on the floor; when the phone rings; when Mommy or Daddy drop things. I can't even describe how cute it sounds.

--running! She loves being chased. The last couple of times I've picked her up at daycare, she's run away from me, giggling, because she loves being caught and swooped up in the air!

--giving kisses when I ask (most of the time, anyway). Her version is to stick her wet lips on my mouth or cheek. It's so sweet...

--playing with crayons. She usually dumps them on the floor, will color (i.e., draw lines on a page) for a bit, then put them back in the box.

--obsessed with neatness. She will pick real and imaginary crumbs off her booster seat before I sit her down and hand them to me. And if I put a piece of plastic or paper on her high chair, she will bend down to the garbage, open it, stick the offending item inside and then close it. She seems delighted when we ask her to throw things in the garbage and does so quite willingly (for now, at least...)

--obsessed with books. She carries them around and "reads" whenever we give her a chance. Last night at the grocery store, she said, "car!" when she noticed a copy of "Car and Driver" on the newsstand. I handed it to her and SHE STARTED LEAFING THROUGH IT QUITE SERIOUSLY. Future boyfriends, watch out -- Rachel will be able to talk you under the table when it comes to cars!

--saying a few words: "car," "bye-bye," "apple," "hi," "bee," "baby," "wow." We're hoping she starts adding more at a rapid pace.

--"choosing" clothes. If she shakes her head violently at an outfit I've chosen, I usually substitute another one. In this way she has decided what sleepsuits she wants to wear for the past two nights.

--appears to have a disdain for ruffle-edged sleeves, or sleeves that don't end plainly, with simple stitching. She fussed so much over a cute onesie I put on the other day that I said, "OK, sweetie, I guess we're not wearing this anymore," and changed her in to something else.

--is finally fitting into the pink flowered raincoat that Grandma Sylvie and Grandpa Oliver bought her months ago. For a while she looked as if she was drowning in it; now it looks almost perfect!

--likes being around older kids. She just takes in all the action around her and does her own thing. I think she likes the controlled chaos!

--still looking mostly like Drew, although at least one of his friends has kindly said that he thinks she looks like both of us. I don't really believe him.

--very attached to Ducky and Spot. She continues to show no interest in dolls.

--eating perfectly with a spoon. She's remarkably neat with squash and carrots.

--at a delightful age. She really is the light of our lives!

Crayon on Drew's butt

Ha! Knew that entry would get your attention.

Last night, Drew was bending down next to the refrigerator when I noticed his khakis were covered in blue ink.

"Do you know there's blue ink on your butt?" I said.

"That's not ink, that's crayon," he explained. Turns out that he was lying on his stomach on the floor and Rachel was on his back, with a blue crayon in her hand, and decided to color on his butt. It looked vaguely artistic, sort of like a rudimentary Picasso.

"That's why I bought washable crayons," Drew said.
He added, "I'm DAD. I pretty much exist to have things like this done to me. It's my role in life."

Worrisome trend?

For the past two nights, Rachel has been waking up at 2 or 3 a.m., really crying. When one of us goes in to soothe her, she's fine, but when we leave she screams. Absolutely SCREAMS. It seems so long now since that was a common occurrence, we hate to think it's repeating itself.

The first time, I hauled her into bed with me and we managed to cuddle and fall back asleep until 8:30 or so. Last night, Drew let her cry it out, which lasted about 10 minutes. Then she slept until 8:45.

Do we really have to re-Ferberize her? I hope not.

Reading, reading, reading...

I was changing Rachel's diaper this morning when she grabbed a book on the changing table and started "reading" it while I was wiping her down and fastening a new diaper.

Here's how I know she was getting something out of it: She pointed to a picture of a Granny Smith apple and said, "apple!" Then she pointed to a car and said, "cah!" (for "car").

And then she started crying when I tried to put socks on her. She leaned against me and sobbed and sobbed, but five minutes later she was fine.

Rachel's "reading" on her own!

Last night while I was at chorus, Drew was reading to Rachel when she wriggled out of his lap, reached for a book on the floor -- one with kids making various hand and arm motions -- and started doing the same things all by herself! She was "reading" and following the directions in the book!

After a while she got tired of "reading" to herself and wanted Drew to take her on his lap again, which he did. But at least we know that she can engage herself in a book. I told Drew that this is a preview of our lives in a couple of years, when I'll want to play with or talk to her and she'll say, "no thanks, Mom, I'd prefer to read alone in my room if that's OK."

Sniff!

The letter of the day is...

B.

As in, Rachel took the magnetic letter "B" off the refrigerator today and I said to her, "Rachel, that's a B. Can you say "B?"

"B!" she said.

Then we ate dinner, which took about 45 minutes. She has quite the appetite these days -- she ate two jars of vegetables, half a Gardenburger, a bunch of challah, two little plates of pasta shells, a chunk of apple (she calls it "appy"), 7 oz. of milk and most of a sippy cup full of water. Hopefully she will start putting on some weight!

Afterward, I walked her over to the refrigerator and said, "where's the B, Rachel?" She went straight to it and said, "B!" A little thrill went up my spine -- she's beginning to recognize letters! WOW!

When we read a book about babies tonight, she pointed to a baby lying on its back and playing with its toes and said, "baby!"

And on the way home from daycare, she tried to put the car key in the driver's side door and turn it. But she was using the house key and got whiny when I took it from her and gave her the right one. I swear, she almost got it in the lock and turned. When I gave her some help and opened the door, she immediately tried to climb in!

I thought we had at least 14 years before we needed to worry about her driving, but perhaps I'm underestimating her.

An evening with Rachel

We had a very good one tonight. I was so tired after getting back from Molly's, and it was raining and depressing outside, but seeing Rachel at the end of the day in the lobby of St. James really lifted my spirits. (We had arrived at daycare just in time for lunch, which she actually ate, and she even napped, even though she slept for much of the two-hour trip home).

When I tucked her in her car seat, she pointed to her nose and said, "nose!" And when we were eating dinner and a car passed by, she said, "car!" And while we were reading books, she pointed to two dogs and said, "dog."

She also, after stepping into the little space between the garage and the kitchen, pointed downstairs and said, "Daddy." That means she understands that Drew works downstairs! (he was in Seattle today, of course). I was very impressed.

I have a feeling the floodgates are beginning to open and we'll hear a lot more from our little lady.

She put her shoes in her drawer, again, helped put the balls back in the bin when I announced it was time for dinner, and took her pacifier out of her mouth when I asked, so I could brush her teeth. She also lifted the drain in her little tub when I requested it, and when I unwrapped a package of stickers, she immediately took the wrapping off, went straight to the garbage can, lifted the lid and dropped it inside.

I always thank her profusely and tell her what a helpful little girl she is.

Rachel Razzle-Dazzle

The Little Girl and I had a GREAT time with Molly and the kids. Rachel definitely has a major crush on Camilla -- she actually holds her arms out for Camilla to carry her around like a dolly. Camilla went down the slide numerous times with Rachel, who whined every time Camilla went off to play with Marigold or Calvin. Camilla complained at one point that Rachel was too heavy, but kept coming back to take her on the slide. I was so impressed and complimented Camilla on how good she was with Rachel, and that she's probably ready to baby-sit her!

Rachel, who is very comfortable in Molly's arms, is beginning to think of her as a second mom, she sees her so much. She calls her "Ma!"

Molly recently got a video camera and shot some video of Rachel and Marigold going down the slide side by side. Marigold, remember, is about 25 days younger than Rachel. It's so great for Molly and I to have kids so close in age! The video has been uploaded to YouTube; search under Lady GoGo and Lady Razzle, and you'll see our girls together. There's also a video of both of them at the breakfast bar. They are ADORABLE, but I'm probably just biased.

Rachel Razzle-Dazzle, by the way, is the nickname that Molly's babysitter, Joana, gave her. Joana watched the kids while Molly and I had a women-only dinner at a great steak place in Eugene. I've been covering a trial about a baby who was shaken by a day-care operator so I was paranoid about leaving Rachel with a babysitter, but Joana is really great with the kids. I got back and Rachel was laughing and glad to see me. Joana said she had fun while we were gone.

I thanked Joana for coming up with Rachel's nickname, which I think is fantastic. I hope it sticks!