a little communication goes a long way

Adelaide's vocabulary is growing every day - and for every word that she learns to say, she understands at least 5 more. This has been pretty handy lately, because she is becoming increasingly communicative. We have ever more frequent little "conversations". Her communication goes both ways: she pretty clearly expresses her (usually strong) opinions, and she loves to demonstrate that she understands us by rushing to do what we ask. I say, "Let's brush your teeth," and she runs to the bathroom and reaches up towards the sink. "Are you hungry?" and she nods her head once and raises her hand in her characteristic little yes gesture. When she needs to use the potty, she looks at me expectantly and points at her diaper with a little grunt. If she sees us putting on our shoes or coats, she says "go, go" and stands by the door, hoping to come along. And when she falls down, she comes over to tell me about it, giving a pained expression and rubbing her head.

Perhaps because she's figured out that language has purpose, Adelaide has become a spectacular listener lately, tuning in to things I routinely ignore. She imitates every siren that goes by and notices every bird and airplane. We recently ate at a restaurant where an acoustic saxephone was playing in the background. She searched all over for the source of the music and tried repeatedly to mimic the sound (without much success!).

This is all certainly good timing. We have been busy lately, getting ready to move to our new house. And with this new vocabulary comes her excitement to be "helpful" - she loves to help sweep, "deliver" small objects between us (Adelaide, take this to Dad), put things in boxes, even let me know when something's out of place. I love watching her excitement about learning to participate in our world, and especially her realization that words make life easier. I know this is only the very beginning of the language explosion, but for right now, every word, sound, and gesture is such a treat - she has me laughing along with her all day long.