Words are Highly Underrated

Mimi's vocabulary is developing day by day.

We speak to her in both English and Japanese, though English seems to be dominant these days.  We'll eventually balance that by enrolling her in a Japanese preschool here in SF.

At a little over 16 months, she's already developing a working vocabulary.  I guess that's a result of her being so headstrong.  She wants what she wants.  And she's beginning to realize that the only way she'll get it is by asking for it.  As such, her vocabulary has grown substantially in terms of nouns.

Here's a selection, with their phonetic equivalents where applicable, of Mimi's vocabulary:

Mama:  Mother
Papa:  Father
Mimi:  Herself
Wan-wan (Japanese): doggie
Nyan-nyan (Japanese): kitty
Bi:  Bib
Buh (book) / Huh (hon, Japanese)): Book
Ne-ne (Japanese): Sleep
Shuz: Socks and Shoes
Die-pah: Diaper
No, Arghh!, Wah!: No
Joos: Juice
Doh-zoh (Japanese): here you go
Goh!:  Let's go
Bah-bah:  Bottle
Stah-pi!:  Stop it!
Yo-ee-sho (Japanese):  Ah, there we go

There are more, I'm sure, but it's hard to recall all of them.  Imagine coming up with every word you know.  It's tough! 

Of course, her working vocabulary, what she understands when spoken to her, is far larger.  She's able to understand some basic commands, but only when she wants to.  If I ask her to get her shoes, she'll seek them out.  When I want her to pick up her blanket in the morning or after a nap, she does so without a fuss.  When it comes to eating her dinner, she just turns her head and screams. 

She's also become a veritable mocking bird.  The other day, while making burritos, she piped up with "tortillas!"  It wasn't repeated again, but she got it just right the first time.  A week or so before, while I was looking for Mimi's immunization records, I dropped a box on my foot.  Under my breath, not knowing she was right behind me, I whispered, "shit."  And a half second later, five feet below me, I heard a gentle little "shih!"  Sumie and I definitely have to be careful.

Still, we can't help but teach her a few bad things.  After all, we don't want her to be a goody-two-shoes!  Sumie and I tend to tease each other in the evening.  When it comes to teasing Sumie, it's all about her glaring lack of street-smarts and mechanical intuition.   For me, the massive gut, hick-town upbringing, and ongoing lack of a job come into play.  Regardless of the topic, the teasing usually devolves into one of us saying, "Stop it!" and teasingly smacking the other.  This has had an unexpected impact on Mimi.  Her first "phrase" was "stah-pit," combined with a little smack to the leg.

But it's not only her words that are developing.  Mimi's been picking up some of our routines as well.  When it comes to closing doors, she's all over it.  She even makes sure her fingers are out of the way.  Say it's time to climb the stairs.  Not only will Mimi remove her shoes before going up, she'll even close the child proof gate!  But our favorite is when Mimi decides it's time to throw something away.  She'll pick something up off the floor, such as a miniscule piece of onion skin, open the cupboard door below the sink, place the paper-thin refuse in the trash, and then close the door.

Once the cupboard door is closed, she'll then secure it with the child-proof latch.  Rather ingenious, I think. 

We're continuing to read her books each day, in English and Japanese, and share music, both children's songs and classical.  She's learning more and more.  Hopefully she'll soon be able to use all the words in that little brain of hers to start asking for things.  That would be wonderful.  Screaming and pointing, I have to admit, is getting a little old.

A Baby, a Bicycle, and an Out-of-Shape Papa

Thanks to the insidious and ridiculous California vehicle emissions laws, we are now a one-car family.

The California Smog Board and I go way back.  It's been a contentious relationship, to say the least.  My first Karmann Ghia, a red 1968 beauty, had been converted to dual carburetors.  As such, even though it ran cleaner than a stock engine, it failed the visual smog inspection.  Lucky for me, my father managed to total the car before we had to convert it back to stock.  My second Karmann Ghia also struggled passing environmental muster.  My Porsche 914 passed with flying colors when I first bought it but, after two years, the rubber attachment to the smog pump had worn out.  They don't make them anymore.  It took 3 months to smog that car.

And so it came as no surprise that my 1994 BMW, which passed the emissions test with flying colors in New York, failed miserably here in California.  It looks like it will cost more than the car is worth to get it to pass smog, and that's only good for two years.  And so, with my poor car in storage awaiting a sympathetic mechanic or charitable donation, we are a one car family.


For the most part it's working out rather well.  Sumie is able to take the bus to work 2 to 3 days out of the week, so I have the car about half the time.  Our neighborhood is definitely walkable - and I need the exercise - so when I'm without the car Mimi and I limit our adventures to the stroller accessible.


Walking, for the most part, has been great, but it has severely limited our range.  Without the car we can venture, at most, a mile or so out before we need to come trudging back.  Mimi's patience and my feet have kept us rather close to home and with so much to see in Golden Gate Park and the Presidio, we were really missing out.  We needed a new form of transport.  We needed a bicycle. 


And now we have one.  Well, I guess technically we've always had it, just not with us.  My red Schwinn mountain bike, purchased brand new when I was in 6th grade, has been rescued from storage and brought back into operation.  This is the same bicycle I rode in college.  The same bike that survived a 20mph collision with a three-foot pole, a misjudgement on my part that sent me flying, shoeless, a good 10 feet or more.  It's good to have it back.


I picked up a bicycle trailer for hauling Mimi.  I'm not the most coordinated of men, so I'd rather Mimi be safely behind me in a topple-proof cart than strapped to the frame of my bike when I inevitably fall over.

Our first ride was short, but a lot of fun.  We covered, at most, 40 blocks with only a few minor hills.  With pit stops we were out a scant 30 minutes, but by the time I returned, my legs were throbbing, my lungs burning, and my head pounding.  The Mimi-trailer package weighs about 50lbs - a considerable payload for a bicycle - but it's no excuse for my severe huffing and puffing.  I had thought with all my walking that I was building some strength and stamina.  I had thought wrong.  And so, now that I have my own helmet and a sturdy bike lock, we're going to do some exploring and try to get Papa back into at least "mildly morbid" shape.


I hope that Mimi enjoys these bicycle outings we'll be taking.  She liked the first one just fine save for one continual annoyance: her helmet.  She loves playing with it at home - ripping out the pads and twisting them into her hair - but when it comes to wearing it, she's not a fan.  Here she is before our ride.  Note that she's using both hands in a vain attempt to rip that helmet off.

And here she is upon our return.  She's still trying to remove that pesky helmet, but at least she's down to one hand.  Maybe that had to do with the death grip she had on her bottle. 

No idea when I'll have a car of my own again.  Maybe sometime in 2012, maybe 2013.  But I am sure of two things.  1. Mimi and I will be going on plenty of bike rides on non-rainy days; 2. My next car will be a 1975 or older.  California Smog Exempt!