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Ahh, finally a chance to pick on the babies from the first nursery class. is becoming 'streetwiser' by the day loves to corner us when we're trying to explain him things without telling the whole story ('where do babies come from? Will I grow boobs when I get older?') May - June 06 He... spent the last three days (12-14/06) in his sandbox-now-swimming-pool or the shower, usually singing/humming along with 'I won't let you down' by D Ph, number three in his all-time favourite singles collection (next to 'Ticket naar de zon' by Superdiesel and 'Rebellion (lies)' by Arcade Fire). can almost dress/undress himself without help February - March 06 He... thinks everything is either 'keicool', 'keistom', 'keilaat', 'keiveel', etc claims it's time to get out of bed at sunrise, this time of year that means 6 am (how I hate it when we switch from winter time to summer time) January - February 06 He... cold-heartedly dumped his long-time personal friend (and stuffed animal) wawaf in favour of Dumbo, the flying baby elephant says that anything is either cool or 'stom' (lame). E.g Spiderman is cool, girls are stom. uses the bathroom all by himself (lordy, he'll hate me for sharing this inside - and outside - info) dresses up like Spiderman whenever he gets the chance is picking up swearing words at an increasing rate wants to marry Sien, but is learning the hard way that women are venomous reptiles: she says they can marry, but elliott first has to 'do stuff' for her. So everytime he refuses to do her a favour, she threatens to call the whole wedding thing off. Sien is 4 years old can be very sweet for his baby brother, although he'd rather die than admit it in public (the famous older-brother syndrome I'm not wholly unfamiliar with) Year 05 (updated 14/02/2006) He... has been going to school for a year now started sleeping without a diaper around 3.5 years eats hardly anything at all but stays his little splinter-bomb self. The doctor told us not to worry, but we do - at times. We're legally required to. January - February 05 Ok, about elliott. It's becoming harder and harder to keep track. Not that elliott has stopped changing, on the contrary, but all changes are more and more subtle and gradual. That's why this section will be updated less regularly in the future. Or I'll have to write everything down and keep dates. I'll see what happens. He... is starting school on Valentine's day (next Monday)! Let's see how he likes/dislikes it. is starting to talk really well, he can almost follow most of our (everyday) conversations (which has its disadvantages too) is almost housebroken (during the day) likes to invent stories, usually starring wawaf has started using personal pronouns (including 'I') adds at least one new word to his vocabulary every day! His speaking skills have been improving at such a rate lately that it's almost impossible to keep up with him and write it all down here. Consider the words/sentences below as last month's greatest hits. So here's a far from complete list of his latest assets: - We hebben een schooltasje en een beker gekocht - Kindjes mogen geen pamper aan op school - Wawaf moet op school in het doosje wachten - - ... November - December 04 is still convinced that self-assertion is the way to enlightenment (for himself). Annelies and I are equally convinced that it is the way to the mental institution (for us 2). hates to put on his winter vest. Even bribary doesn't help. hardly eats a thing at the dinner table, except when I'm making spaghetti. I'm no Nigella Lawson, but I can cook a decent meal, so my guess is that he's still counting on his evening bottle of milk ('Why eat veggies when you can have an equal amount of liquid bliss?') is not quite ready for school, intensified potty training is clearly needed. March it is then. has started using personal pronouns (examples below), except 'I' (that's still 'Oiot') and 'his' (it's always 'hers') adds at least one new word to his vocabulary every day! His speaking skills have been improving at such a rate lately that it's almost impossible to keep up with him and write it all down here. Consider the words/sentences below as last month's greatest hits. So here's a far from complete list of his latest assets: - Een klein beetje (a little bit) - when we say he's not allowed to do something, he tries to bargain with us by saying 'een klein beetje?' - Oiot springt op jouw buik (instead of 'ik spring op de buik van mama') - Wij hebben Madelien geplaagd (we teased/bullied Madelien) - ... October 04 persists in exploring his individuality. This calls for parental conflict management skills knows what he wants (a few things) and what he doesn't want (a lot) had his first haircut! knows the basic colours: red, yellow, blue (light and dark blue), green, grey, white, black adds at least one new word to his vocabulary every day! His speaking skills have been improving at such a rate lately that it's almost impossible to keep up with him and write it all down here. Consider the words/sentences below as last month's greatest hits. So here's a far from complete list of his latest assets: - Nee! - Oiot zegt 'Nee!' - Zelf! - Nee, papa, niet helpen - Alle eendjes zwemmen in het water, falderalderire falderaldera - In een klein stationnetje, 's morgens in de vroegte, wagentjes op een rij, komt het machinistje, draaien aan een wieleke, weg zijn wij, daaaggg - Nijntje, pienter konijntje, Nijntje, knuffelkonijntje, Nijntje, kijk mee - Oiot gaat na Nieuwjaar naar school - Bekke bek trekken (make a funny face) - Pepe michiel krijgt de kasten - Het is helemaal donker buiten - Oma heeft auto's gekocht in de winkel - Dat was niet zo slim van Oiot - Laat Oiot met gerust! - ... September 04 finds himself in a period of 'Assertion of the Self' as some psychologists may call it. I prefer to call it 'Pain in the Ass'. wants to get up at 6 am. We don't. drinks half a tub of water when we're taking a bath despite repeated warnings and overflowing diapers. is eagerly waiting to go to school. Until we have to drop him off the first day, no doubt. loves word games. E.g. he says 'lala', I say 'lulu', he goes 'lolo', etc. etc. has all but dropped his babyspeak. The only thing that remains is his word for finger: 'dimmer' or 'timmer'. loves 'Brum', a television series with a remote-control oldtimer car that solves crimes. He liked Bob The Builder, but that was nothing in comparison to Brum. adds at least one new word to his vocabulary every day! His speaking skills have been improving at such a rate lately that it's almost impossible to keep up with him and write it all down here. Consider the words/sentences below as last month's greatest hits. So here's a far from complete list of his latest assets: - Nee, papa, dat kan niet op de tafel staan! (No, daddy, you can't put that on the table) - Oiot wil het brood dragen (Elliott wants to carry the bread) - - ... August 04 is starting to show interest in the concept of potty training. We still have 4 months to go before he goes to school. figured out how to use a straw. Fortunately he hasn't found out yet that you can also use it the other way and blow through it. I'm pretty sure that will have changed by next month's 'about him' adds at least one new word to his vocabulary every day! His speaking skills have been improving at such a rate lately that it's almost impossible to keep up with him and write it all down here. Consider the words/sentences below as last month's greatest hits. So here's a far from complete list of his latest assets: - Klein mamatje (little Mom - give me a hug) - Dat is niet de bedoeling (that's not right) - Mama en papa slapen helemaal boven (mom and dad sleep upstairs) - De poezen maken ruzie (the cats are fighting) - Een boke met piparie (a filet américain sandwich) - Met de Porsche spelen (play with my Porsche - he calls any sports car a Porsche) - - ... July 04 is incredibly good at puzzles! He's never shown a real interest in puzzles until last week - not even puzzles with cars, which says a lot - but now he doesn't want to play with anything else. speaks Spanish to his toy plane (we bought it in Barcelona and it says things like 'left turn', 'sharp dive' in Spanish - at least that's what we think it says) is reluctant to start potty practice. Well, we'll just have to be patient. is a little commander-in-chief tends to go all wise-guy on us starts using Sentences such as 'mama moet bij oiotje blijven', 'oiot kan niet thuisblijven', adds at least one new word to his vocabulary every day! His speaking skills have been improving at such a rate lately that it's almost impossible to keep up with him and write it all down here. Consider the words/sentences below as last month's greatest hits. So here's a far from complete list of his latest assets: - nog nacht (it's still night - at 3 am in the morning) - kolalabeer (koala bear) - puzzels spelen (play with the puzzles) - puzzel afkabbelen (breaking up the puzzle and start over - although I'm prety sure that 'afkabbelen' is not a real word) - opa auto rijden (drive to grandad) - mama gaan werken (mom's at work) - piratenballon (pirate balloon) - ... June 04 turned 2 last month! adds at least one new word to his vocabulary every day! His speaking skills have been improving at such a rate lately that it's almost impossible to keep up with him and write it all down here. Consider the words/sentences below as last month's greatest hits. So here's a far from complete list of his latest assets: - Grote oiot! (tall elliott! - while standing on a chair, table or relative) - Kusje geven (give a kiss) - Piano spelen (play the piano) - Voetbal spelen! (play football with me!) - Te vroeg! (too early! - usually at bedtime) - Zandbak (sandbox) - Niet haar wassen! (don't wash my hair!) - ... May 04 turned 2 this month! adds at least one new word to his vocabulary every day! His speaking skills have been improving at such a rate lately that it's almost impossible to keep up with him and write it all down here. Consider the words/sentences below as last month's greatest hits. So here's a far from complete list of his latest assets: - Bob de Bouwer, Bob de Bouwer, kunnen wij maken? Nou of! (Bob the Builder, Bob the Builder, can we fix ! Sure can! - Alle eendjes zwemmen in de water (all ducks swim in water) - Draaien aan een wieleke. Akke akke tuutuut, weg zijn wij. Daaaag - sandaaltjes (sandals) - sandaaltjes (elliottspeak for shrimp) - Toedekken! (tuck me in) - Nee mama! (no mommy) - Hou op mama (cut it out mommy) - Allée mama (come on mommy) - Nee, nee, nééééééé' (uhm, no, no, nooooooo!) - All of the above + waving his index finger about - ... April 04 turned 1.93 last week has grown so tall, jesus! adds at least one new word to his vocabulary every day! Here's a far from complete list of his latest assets: - eitje halen? (go get the eggs? -- our neighbours have chickens) - mooie voenen (nice shoes) - muisje/bouwer kijken (watch mouse cartoon/bob the builder on tv) - Sien kijken? (see if Sien's at home -- the neighbours' little girl) - papamanneke (daddy's boy) - tetting (necklace) - tietelen (to tickle) - suim (foam) - wemwem (swim swim) - lepel (spoon) - sepje (shovel) - selpje (shell) - gieter (watering can) - emmer (bucket) - wipoe (winny the pooh) - tinky (bad-ass diaper) - uziek (music) - awaai (noise) - blood (bread) - wawis (sandwich) - ilpad (schildpad) - omaat (tomato) - fontein (fountain) - eewitje (snow-white) - plopje (leprichaun) - aarbeitjes (strawberries) - ... March 04 turned 1.85 last week adds at least one new word to his vocabulary every day! Here's a far from complete list of his latest assets: - buiten bal spelen (play outside with the ball) - nee, opa hallo (not say hello to grandad on the phone) -- NB: don't worry dad, it's nothing personal, he was just in a foul mood. - oiot (elliott) - papa/mama/oiot boos? (daddy/mommy/elliott angry?) - tonter (dark(ness)) - het mamabeest is daar (the mommy beast is there) - kadootje (present) - hoed (hat) - liedje (song) - nogs (again) - ander bad (other swimming pool -- cfr. our center parks weekend) - waar oiot? (where's elliott -- cfr. hide and seek) - ... February 04 turned 1.75 last week adds at least one new word to his vocabulary every day! Here's a far from complete list of his latest assets: - papa slaapt nog (daddy's still asleep) - mama nog moe (mommy still tired) - pappeloen (papa jeroen) - mammelies - pappelies (mama annelies) - haani (gaat niet - it doesn't work) - pijn weg (after annelies or I perform the well-known 'kiss - pain gone' trick) - tintjes (kindjes - children) - boke (boterham - sandwich) - plakken (to paste) - tintjes tijken (look at children) - fiets (bike) - papa geeuwt (daddy yawns) - laleen (katleen) - lalien (madelien) - jojan (johan - my uncle) - opaleo (leo - my uncle) - boem patat (standard expression when he falls over) - hopla (when he jumps) - bloek, voen, bodé, tuij... aan (put on pants, shoes, body, sweater) - bim bam beijen (singing about the Easter clocks that bring chocolate eggs) ... December 03 - January 04 turned 1.75 last week adds at least one new word to his vocabulary every day! Here's a far from complete list of his latest assets: - oma, opa - peker (Peter, annelies' brother) - mimi (my brother Michiel) - leo - moos (Mouche, the daycare lady) - weg (gone) - waan (warm) - pijn (pain, but is faking most of the time) - dinke (to drink) - uil (owl) - leeuw (lion) - mond, oog, oor, voet, teen, buik, been, hand, pietje (lots of bodyparts) - kikker (frog) - beer (bear) - tapot (broken) - taapel (sweet dreams) - lapen (to sleep) - soen (shoe) - oei (oops) - nat (wet) - ees (to read) - noep (candy) - trein, bus (train, bus) - puf (to puff) - mosse (to spill) - toel (chair) - moe (tired) - beloem (vrooom vrooom) - and combinations of the above (peker weg, buik pijn, etc) ... has had a period of separation anxiety (annelies or me had to sleep next to him to keep it feasible for ourselves) says 'no' to almost anything we say (except 'do you want a cookie?') November 03 turned 1.5 last week adds at least one new word to his vocabulary every day! Here's a far from complete list of his latest assets: - pakken (pick me/it up) - paad (horse) - aap (meaning monkey + sheep) - nee (no) - neus (nose) - wiewiet (bird) - tikak (means tik tak but also tv in general) - ellot (while pointing to himself, supercool) - koek (biscuits + bread) - wes (bottle) - muis (mouse) - bebe (baby) - aan/uit (on/off) - toe (close as opposed to open) - tetaan (gedaan - finished) - popok (chicken) - vakken (pig) - wawak (duck) - bal (ball) - bad (bath) - bed in (into bed) - boom (tree) - boek (book) - wawaf (sometimes dog, sometimes giraphe) - woef (sometimes dog, probably if wawaf means giraphe, not sure about that one yet) ... wants to get up every day at 5.45 am has discovered the difference between vegetables and meat (and has a clear preference for the latter, oh lordy) is getting a full set of teeth slowly but steadily (and likes to use them on us) October 03 doesn't walk but run! bumps into a door, wall, speaker or other person at least once a day. uses 'mama', 'papa', 'auto', 'buiten' and 'eten' in the right contexts. says 'ellot' from time to time but we're not sure if its meaning has sunk in already. likes to sit on annelies' lap and listen to her stories (so do I). just loves to open and close doors. likes to help annelies with the laundry by putting oranges and toy blocks in the washing machine. loves to be stroked on the back. September 03 can walk now! likes to sneak up on me and bite me in the leg (through my pants!). says 'mama' and 'papa' when talking to either one of us (usually there's 75% chance he uses the correct word for the correct person). loves to sing and hum. dances to our music (well, jumps up and down more or less in sync). is still chronically adorable. August 03 likes to use toys as weapons and loves to hit us upside the head. wants to climb everything, including the stairs. hates baths for some strange reason. kicks and yells when it's diaper-changing time. has discovered the joy of building towers with his wooden toy blocks instead of destroying the ones I made (current record: a 3-block tower). likes to talk and talk and repeat 'Tik Tak', 'Tutatutatuta' when an ambulance passes and so on and so forth. applaudes himself (when he succeeds in building a little tower with his toy blocks) and then starts laughing. thinks it's cool to tear up books. loves having people around. is far more angelic when he's staying at the daycare lady than at home. is still chronically adorable. July 03 is really picking up speed in the crawling department. We have to keep a close eye on him. He also loves to walk, holding two (and sometimes one) of our fingers. loves watching 'Tik Tak'. From now on it's included in his (and our) evening ritual. likes to point at everything and everyone. is slowly grasping the meaning of the magic word 'No'. June 03 started to crawl last week (beginning of June) and tries to pull himself up on anything/anyone. still has four teeth and still likes to chew things. He seems to be teething again though. There are probably a few molars on their way (judging by the lack of sleep we've all been getting lately). likes to do 'high-five'. May 03 So, he's my 1-year-old son and he's the coolest baby (or toddler, he's somewhere in between) I've ever seen. He was born on 16 May 2002, the (then) hottest day of the year, coming in with a healthy 3.610 kg and 53 cm. Almost two weeks late though, so annelies and I had some extra time to get his room ready (and believe me, we could use the extra week). He... is a very sociable kiddo, so it's pretty safe to assume that he doesn't take after me in that area. If he could talk, his motto would undoubtedly be 'The more, the merrier'. Now his motto is still 'mama papa tata pffft tssss' (not necessarily in that order). doesn't crawl or walk yet, but we're not in a hurry. Besides, annelies and I were also a bit slow on the uptake (as babies, as babies!!), so we just let him take his time. has four teeth and he likes to chew things. likes to wave, still pretty randomly. That's about it for now, I'll update this page as often as possible when there are changes to report.
	broken down and hungry for your love with no way to feed it Last update: 12/11/2008