Tender: Talia can be so cuddly, loving, and sweet. She showers us with "uhwuvuhs" (I love you), hugs, and kisses, and she loves to be held. Recently, I was at the store shopping the meat aisle when Talia reached over and gave me a big hug! It was quite out of the blue and so special! Her tender embraces melt our hearts and bring us such joy.
Moody: Everything written above is dependant on mood! Sometimes we ask for or offer said hugs, kisses, and cuddles. Reaction: "NO!" and run away. Sometimes it's a game and she wants us to work for her loving, other times she would rather be doing something else!
A Peek-A-Boo Fanatic: Talia could play Peek-A-Boo all day. She uses her hands, blankets, hats, doors, stuffed animals, and anything else at her disposal. Before long all three of us are busting up! She even plays Peek-A-Boo with our borrowed cat, Tiki.
Goofy: Talia loves to entertain us. She loves to see the world from a different angle (upside down, in a box, through her fingers, etc.). The other day Daddy was resting on the carpet. Talia came along and placed her potties (unused, we are allowing her to become comfortable with them before beginning training) along his back and legs. Talia likes to put things on her head or on ours and declare it a "hatah." Items include boxes, doilies, bags (we put a quick end to that one), headbands, glasses, toys, and even underwear.
Talkative: She loves to talk to us and her stuffed animals. She knows and uses many nouns and verbs. She is learning adjectives (such as colors, other as in "other foot," this, that, yummy, yuck, stinky, good, etc.). She listens to everything. Jon and I will be talking on our walks while Talia "looks" like she is paying no attention. Suddenly she will repeat or react to something we say. For example, we can't say park, Grandma or Grandpa, food, drink, walk, store, and more without a reaction. She has even learned the spelling of a couple words (E-L-M-O and D-R-I-N-K). She loves to have us sing to her and calls singing "La La La." Sometimes she has a sing-songy voice or hums. She calls animals by their sounds rather than their names, "bah", "moo", "neow", "ha ha" (aka hee haw), "whoo whoo", "woof woof", guttural sound (oink), scratchy "ahh ahh" (quack quack), "hee hee hee" (monkey), etc.
A Dancer: One of Talia's favorite activities is dancing in the arms of Mommy or Daddy. She asks us to turn on music then says, "dih dih." She loves waltzes and songs with a strong or fast beat.
Observant: Talia notices everything! She can spot a balloon, animal, or character from far away. She likes clothes. I recently put on a dress Talia had never seen. She looked at it and said, "uhwuvah." Seemingly out of the blue Talia will say "dih dih whoo whoo." Sure enough, we hear the very distant rumble of the train. Talia notices items out of place or on the floor. Sometimes she puts them back or says, "uh oh" to let us know something fell. At home and elsewhere she notices little pieces of dirt or crumbs on the floor and says, "bluah" (yuck).
Part African? Talia loves to smell spices. The odd thing is that her "word" for spices is a clicking sound. We have no idea where she came up with that way of communicating spices. Apparently Jon is related to Booker T. Washington, so maybe Talia has ancestry in a clicking tribe? :)
A Lap Lover: Talia loves to sit on our laps while she plays. She will pat the ground or a chair and say, "sih." If we are sitting on the ground, she will inevitably back her caboose right onto our laps. She often brings books, toys, or stuffed animals with her.
A Little Mommy: Talia loves her stuffed animals and babies. She almost always has at least one in her arms, sometimes as many as four. She feeds them, puts them on the potty, puts them to bed, and even prays with them. Talia makes her "friends" talk and make sounds (like eating or snorring). Her "friends" even know sign language! Talia can spend half an hour playing house, making food in her kitchen, and reading to her stuffed animals. She is generally very gentle with her "friends," rocking, hugging, kissing, and tenderly holding them. One day at the park Talia saw two girls playing roughly with a baby doll. Talia was noticibly upset. She tried to go "rescue" the baby doll now laying discarded on the ground. I stopped her, and it's a good thing since the girls loudly let her know that it was their doll and she couldn't touch it. Watching Talia with her stuffed animals brightens our days and makes us prayerful that she will someday have her own family to love with tender care.
Sensitive: Talia likes to see kids, but can be very shy and nervous around them. Ever since a little boy chewed Talia out for no apparent reason, sending her crying back to me in tears, Talia has been worried about her well being around other children (the boy did this twice, I might add, with his mom sitting there mumbling, "that wasn't nice"). Now she hovers around me watching them until she feels safe enough to approach. She will begin to share or play around them until they make a sudden move or try to touch her. At that point, she runs back to Mommy or Daddy. She has warmed up to Anna and her cousins. We are looking forward to giving her more opportunities to be around other children in the near future. When Talia feels safe, she can be a ham. For example, at the grocery store she was standing on the floor holding my hand. A toddler close to her age was close by confined to a cart. Talia started to perform. She danced, clapped, waved, said "hi" numerous times, and generally showed off her repertoire of talents. The toddler just watched her with little expression.
A Gigantic Blessing! Our lives are so full and we are so thankful. Having Talia has brought an even deeper understanding of God's love for us. He is that perfect father that loves, trains, and guides us.
