Reading

 
Alice and I have been doing a lot more reading recently. I'm not sure how this habit started, but when Alice wakes up from her nap we tend to sit together in her cot and read a few books. I have read to Alice since she was... well, still in my tummy! But it has only been within the last couple of months that she has really begun to show an active interest in books, or at least more interest than just turning the pages...

I can not believe how much her vocabulary has improved since this new aspect of our routine has been in place. Cheese, circle, doggy, sheep and monkey have been my favourite new additions! And it is amazing how she actually recognises these things in other books, and real life too. It just fascinates how young children develop the ability to speak and read and use language at all!

I find that I am speaking to Alice more and more like I would a young child. She just seems to understand everything I say to her. I ask her to find her shoes and she brings them over and sits down, holding each foot out while I put them on. And then on the other hand, I tell her it's bath time and she immediately throws a tantrum on the floor (but, you know. She knows what it means!). Alice has her own preferences, favourite books, foods, toys. This sometimes means we have to go through every single book with Alice shaking her head and saying "no!" until we get to one we can read, but it's all good really!

I met a two year old at the doctors the other week while i was there with Alice about that nasty virus she had. And it amazed me how many words and sentences she could say! I can't believe how quickly these little babies go from wriggling about on the floor trying to crawl, to telling people all about what happened on yesterdays "In the night garden" episode! Crazy.

xx