Language Barrier Broken

"The limits of my language means the limits of my world."
-Ludwig Wittgenstein

This quote kind of embodies the process of learning to speak the English language.  For the past (almost) two years, we have been working on teaching Emmarie how to talk.  We made contrast cards when she was a baby.  We read to her nightly.  We do all of the little things that the books and "experts" on the Internet say we should do as good parents.  And it has been a torturouly slow process.

Emmy has been able to name objects, people, animals and other nouns for quite some time.  She has also been able to parrot what we say for the past two months, but really she hasn't been able to communicate that well with us.  I can tell that she gets frustrated when she can't tell us what she wants or when she can't quite get out the words that she needs.

This is starting to change.

While I was gone on my trip, Emmarie was still sick (And there goes my Mom of the year award).  She felt badly and didn't really want to play or do anything.  Well Monday, she started to rally.  My mom stayed home with her all day, and by early afternoon, Emmy was starting to act like her normal bossy self.  She started getting up to play with her toys.

Mom said it was a little heartbreaking what happened next, so brace yourself.

She had been playing with her dolls and toys for about 20 minutes when out of the blue, she came up to my mom and said, "Nana, I'm tired.  Pick me up." 

This may not seem like a big deal to you (or anyone else that isn't an English teacher), but my baby girl came up with a whole sentence (or two) on her own.  Mom said that no one had asked her if she was tired or "coached" her with any of those words.  She just came up with it on her own.

This small incident has spawned many more of it's kind since then, and it's like Pandora's Box has been opened.  We shall soon see if Emmy talking has the same disastrous results.

Language. Barrier. Broken.

Here she is cheesing for Nana later that night.


She needed a stage for her dancing and playing.


Emmy decided to take pictures with Nana's phone to send to me. Already becoming a photographer!