Dave and I were hanging out together the other night (On our official date night... though we don't actually go anywhere. It's the time that we dedicate to each other that also seems to single-handedly reveal that we are getting old and we've been together long enough to have to start scheduling time together. (Can life actually be this complicated?)) and we were cracking up over all the silly things Annabelle says. (We are getting old!)
My favorites, though definitely not the funniest, are how she flip flops certain compound words. Namely the words forgot and without. I've grown so used to hearing her say "outwith" and "gotfor" that it no longer even occurs to me that these aren't real words. Phrases like, "Don't gotfor your bag!" and "You gotfor my water?" are just as common as "I want my pita outwith butter only jam!" I realized that night, sitting there with Dave, that one day she'll correct herself and I'll never hear her say those words again... they are such a precious sign of her babyhood that continues to linger.
Annabelle :: Knock, Knock
Me :: Who's there?
Annabelle :: NO! Me tell the joke!
Me :: Okay.
Annabelle :: Knock! Knock! Who's! There!
(dramatic pause during which I hardly dared to breathe)
Annabelle :: Alleeboodee constalullee!!
(hysterical laughing)
Annabelle is adept at making up names for people, for herself, for her imaginary elemental friends, and for all her dolls. The names are often so complex and long that I can't repeat them, let alone remember them. But the reoccurring ones have started to become household names: Blueberry Man, Versti (her friend that she can only talk to on her cell phone), Alleeboodee, and some others. There are several others that leave me guessing at how to spell them. Leekolusiastee? Ballooteesulapila? Somehow she keeps track of all of them, and if one gets forgotten then another is quickly made up on the spot.
Of course, her true imaginary friend, Tiger, is still around and his presence grows stronger as her imagination and communication skills mature. We love Tiger. He seems to be maturing too, and is much less naughty than he used to be. The three of us (Annabelle, Tiger, and I) have had group meetings to talk about being nice to each other, not teasing the cats, indoor versus outdoor play, to stop waking Annabelle up at night to play, and to explain that if Tiger can't be quiet and calm during dinner then he'll be asked to leave. I have not yet had to set a place at the table for Tiger to join us for dinner, but he does join us almost every evening. He also rides with us to daycare two mornings a week, though apparently Mommy Tiger was driving him to daycare in the car ahead of ours the other day.
Annabelle :: Ask me my name.
Dave :: What's your name?
Annabelle :: Blueberry Man.
Dave :: Hello Blueberry Man.
Annabelle :: Ask me where I live.
Dave :: Where do you live, Blueberry Man?
Annabelle :: Cupertino.
Geographical places have also started to enter this realm, and Orange Vegas is now this fantasy place that you can only reach by taking an airplane (Gasp!) and according to Annabelle: "they have lots and lots of cool stuff there. Me want to go. You take me, Mom?" Her use of slang still surprises me, and the word cool is by far the most common. We also occasionally hear the word awesome... and unfortunately she already says OH. MY. GOD. just like it reads. Curbing this new habit of using slang is, well, something I'm not going to get into now.
Annabelle has also become extraordinarily attached and responsive to puppets, particularly her oversized jackrabbit hand puppet she calls Bunny. It's a really interesting experience, being the hand that makes Bunny come to life because Annabelle is fully cognitive of the fact that Bunny is only "alive" when our hand is inside. But once he's alive, the whole world ceases to exist. It is a very real experience for her. She is so focused on Bunny and their conversation that I've been able to slowly integrate Bunny into teaching Annabelle to do (or not do) certain things. Bunny's superpowers are incredible this way, and I really work (almost daily) to cultivate a strong relationship/friendship between Bunny and Annabelle. This probably sounds ridiculous, I know. But Bunny has really helped in ways I could never have imagined. Less surprisingly, Annabelle is able to speak more freely to Bunny and has explained things to him that she couldn't (or wouldn't) tell me - about whom she misses and wants to visit, or what she wants to do that afternoon, or even foods that she wants to eat. She's still processing her hospital experience from last Spring and so that occasionally comes up too. I love being in the background, seeing how sweet she is to this friend of hers...
Annabelle has always been young for her age. She still has a lot of baby left in her for being three and a half (!) and I'm careful to continue to protect her so that lasts as long as possible. Though any time I relish the baby in her too long, a new skill, new word, or a new demand quickly reminds me how big she really is. Three years of including her in my household work is beginning to pay off! Her "help" is truly starting to be helpful. For a long time it was more work to have her help me with laundry, or dishes, or whatnot. But now I can sweep the crumbs into a pile and she'll get the handbroom and sweep them into dustpan by herself and dump the crumbs into the trash! She'll throw her dirty clothes into the laundry (well, if she really wants to wear them again, she seems to know that they'll get cleaner faster if she puts them in the basket), and she is excellent help in the kitchen. We make bread together regularly now, and she loves to cut zucchini or mushrooms or butter when I am cooking dinner. She'll sit at the counter cutting (with her big girl knife!) for a whole hour... chatting away. She sometimes even asks to make certain recipes - I can't tell you how much I love that!
It seems like every stage that Annabelle grows into is my new favorite. Part of me keeps waiting for the time when I wish she was little again, but it hasn't happened yet. And three and a half is the best!
