Eyeball

I am a total geek when it comes to my kid.

Each month, as she grows older, I get so excited to whip out the child-development books and see what milestones she has achieved or will achieve soon.

I love watching her grow and charting every new little thing she does.

And, sometimes, when I get worried, I even enjoy spending hours poring over books and Web sites and forums, seeking reassurance that, if she's not above average, she's at least normal. (Even if her mother isn't.)

Not to make it all clinical, but sometimes, I feel like raising Ella is the biggest, most important science project I've ever been entrusted with.

And, gosh darn it, I want to make sure my poster-board isn't barely hanging on by a thread at the science fair. (Not because I care what others think, mind you, but because I'm pretty fond of the subject matter herself.)

Sigh. I really wish I was better at science.

Anyway, now that I've really turned parenthood into something creepy, let me just say this: I'm very intense about my child.

So, a little over a week ago, when she hit 5 months old, I put her to bed and then whipped out my books.

I read all about what Ella will be doing over the next few months. And then, I spent some time browsing the suggestions the "experts" made for helping your child grow and learn.

One suggestion, in particular, caught my eye.

It said that, because most babies Ella's age are babbling prolifically, that, to help them develop language skills, we should start saying words that start or sound like the noises she makes.

So, for instance, if she's chanting, "Pa-pa-pa-pa-pa," I would say to her "pal" or "pan."

You get the idea.

Being that Ella is already a social butterfly and talks from sun-up to sun-down (and sometimes in her sleep, to boot) I figured this was a good tool to have in my back pocket. And later that evening, I re-iterated what I'd read to my wonderful husband.

So, the following evening, when I walked in to check on him as he got Ella ready for bed, I shouldn't have been surprised at what I saw.

Ella, getting a bit cranky, screeching, "Ay-ay-ay-ay-ay!"

And my husband, intently holding her, looking deep into her eyes, with the world's most serious expression on his face, repeating back, "Eyeball. Eyeball. Eyeball, Ella. Eyeball!"

I bet even the experts didn't see that one coming.

***

Later that evening, after both the hubs and I had a good laugh about it, we realized that, perhaps, the experts hadn't accounted for something else, either.

Because Ella was tired and getting upset while my husband was steadfastly yelling "Eyeball. Eyeball. Eyeball!" at her, we began to worry that not only would she associate the sound she was making with the word, but also the emotion she was feeling.

So, in the future, when I have a really tired, ticked-off 2 year old walking around screaming "EYEBALL!" at the top of her mad little lungs, you'll know who to blame.

***

Happy Tuesday, everyone!