Cuey Pie

Audrey (now 19.5 months old) has had us cracking up with all of the hilarious things she is saying and doing these days.  Her vocabulary is astounding and it's to the point that I can't keep count or remember all of the new words.  There are at least half a dozen being added a day, which means we have to be super careful about what we say.  We are doing a lot of spelling-it-out lately!


I know I'm going to forget this stuff if I don't write it down, so below is a list of examples of what comes out of our "Cuey Pie's" (as she says) mouth:

• New words/phrases lately that have taken me by surprise: magazine, trip (as in stumble), plenty, refill, genius (learned from her grandparents, no doubt), SUV, one more time (we get this a lot!), neighborhood, and coupons.

• We were sitting on a bench at the mall the other day, watching for the little train that kids can ride around the loop in.  (It cost too much to ride each time, so sometimes we just watch for it and wave.)  As we were waiting, a couple walked out of a store.  The man was very tall.  Audrey looked up at me and said, "Hi Mommy" as she occasionally, randomly does.  I said, "Hi Baby."  Then she looked at the man and said, "Hi Giant."  Thankfully he didn't hear her, but I have no doubt he heard my laughter.

• "No peas" (please) means "No thank you."  

• When she whines, I guess I usually tack "honey" on to my reply.  So now, she'll whine and say, "Drink, honey." or "Help me, honey."  I hate to reward her crying, but must admit that it usually works.

• David asked her if she could do a thumbs up.  She extended her thumb on her hand and then held it high in the air.  

• We were out and about one day and having a particularly good time.  She kept repeating a word I couldn't recognize (not unusual) until I finally got it:  Obyent = Obedient.  She was telling me she was being obedient...and indeed she was!

• In the grocery store, she'll usually request the parent that isn't currently pushing the buggy to push the buggy.  When we were recently there on a weekday, she said "Daddy push you" (Meaning, Daddy push me).  I said "Daddy push you?!  Daddy isn't here!" and she replied, "Daddy's [at] work, siwwy goose!" and laughed her head off.

• She likes to play a game where she'll call us by names of other people.  She'll point to me and say, "Jenny" or "Bian" and just giggle.  However, when you point to her and say "Carson" or "Annelise" she'll get kind of offended, point to herself, and firmly say "Audrey."  

• Another "trick" she thinks is funny is to call something by a different color and laugh.  This works well until she accidentally blurts out the right color.  You should see the confused look on her face as she realizes she's ruined her game! 

• She's big into telling people where they need to be, so you'll often hear her say "Sit down" or "Stay here".  The funniest is when she yells it at the neighbor's cats in our backyard.  "'Tay here cats! 'Tay here cats!"  

• As I was preparing her breakfast the other day, I could hear her squirming in her highchair.  I could tell she was struggling with something, but not saying anything.  Finally, she let out a little whimper and said, "Patient."  She's heard us say it a thousand times while fixing her food and I really believe she was trying to be!

• We had calzones a few weeks ago for dinner.  She kept mooing and I finally realized she thought I was saying we were eating cow-zones.

• Just in the past couple of weeks she's learned how to truly hug your neck.  She'll wrap her arms around it and squeeze so tightly that she'll shake.  Best. Feeling. Ever.  Even if you can't breathe for a second.

• At least once during every meal, she'll want a hug.  If she's covered in food (as is usually the case) we'll extend our arm and get a giant arm/hand hug.  The other day, I leaned in for one not caring about the yogurt all over her.  She put a hand on each of my cheeks and said, "So bootiful."  And man, did I suddenly feel like I was...even if it was post-workout, pre-shower.  

• We sing a lot around here, and a fun one she likes is "Barbara Ann".  Except that she thinks it's a song about the boy named Brandon who lives across the street.  Her version goes, "Ba Ba Brandon.  Ba Ba Brandon."  

• Speaking of singing, lately she's been doing a medley mix of Happy Birthday, Jesus Loves Me, and Away in a Manger. 

• For awhile, she was very bad at pointing at things or people and making an "Uh?" noise.  We must have finally gotten across about how to ask because now she says "Whazzat called?" (What is that called?) or "Whose it?" (Who is it?) Which is much better, until she speaks it loudly as she's pointing to a sales clerk in a store that we do not know.

• She almost always says "different music" when I turn the radio on in the car.  I think she's actually requesting one of her two favorite kids' music CDs, but I foresee a lot of music battles in our future.

• She likes holding hands (or a finger, at least) while walking now.  It feels so sweet!

• Now that she's mastered counting to 10, we are working on getting to 20.  She'll name 11, 12, 13, and then it's 17, 18, 19, 20.  Who cares about 14, 15, and 16 anyway?

• David was changing her diaper and realized he was out of wipes.  I went to get him more and then, a few seconds later, he realized he didn't have a diaper in the bin.  As he got up to grab one, Audrey exasperatedly says, "Oh my goodness, Daddy."

• As we were stopped at a red light, Audrey pointed to the car in front of us and from her car seat in the back loudly proclaimed, "'Scuse me, car!"

• She has a book in which Elmo has to share his blanket with Zoe.  This makes her cry.  Like, full-on sobbing because she hurts so badly for Elmo.  She closed the book, pointed to the cover where Elmo was holding his blanket, and sobbed, "Elmo has it.  Elmo's blanket."  I don't know whether to be thrilled with her tender heartedness or worried about her reaction to sharing.

• David has been working with her for quite a while on her very first joke.  Now, if you ask her where a sheep gets it's hair cut, she'll proudly answer:  "A baa-baa shop!"

• I love listening to her figure out how to say what it is she's trying to get across, but it can definitely get frustrating for both of us.  The other day I was supervising her as she fed herself breakfast while I was also trying to empty the dishwasher.  She kept saying "Audrey turn round. Turn 'round" and pointing at the kitchen.  Finally, she sighed a big sigh and said "Audrey go this way!" and a lightbulb went off as I realized she wanted me to pull her highchair into the kitchen so she could watch me unload the dishwasher.  Shew.  Get with it, Mom.

• We were walking out of the grocery store and Audrey was looking for the birds we saw on the way in.  I said, "I don't see them" to which she replied knowingly, "Must be bush hiding."  Seriously?!  Now you're just showing off.

I'll try to keep 'em coming, because there is definitely no shortage of hilarious stuff from that girl lately!