A Rosemary by any other name…

When I was pregnant we told my parents and my in-laws that they could choose what they wanted to be called. Meara was the first grandchild on both sides of the family, so the names they chose would be what all the (eventual) grandkids would call them. My father-in-law picked “Papi” after his favorite Red Sox player. My mother-in-law chose “Grammy.”

Meara started calling my father-in-law “papa” very early on. She didn’t even attempt to say Grammy, so after many months we started discussing a name change. We settled on “RoRo,” which we thought would be easier to say (my MIL’s name is Rosemary). Meara was totally confused. She knew perfectly well that Grammy was Grammy, and she was not interested in this RoRo business. Not long after the failed name change Meara finally pointed at Grammy and said “gwanny.” She and Grammy both lit up with big smiles. Next time we’ll be more patient and trust that Meara’s timetable is the right one.

And in a fitting end to the story, Papi is still not called Papi. Meara has switched from “papa” to “peepaw” and everyone laughs so hard when she says it that I think it’s going to stick!

What do your kids call their grandparents? How did you choose the names?

Spin, Spin, Spin

My daughter’s favorite activity these days is spinning. She runs to daddy when he walks through the door and says “dada, ‘pin, ‘pin!” They twirl until they’re both dizzy. She has her arms flung out the whole time and when he slows down she yells “more ‘pin!” Before Meara could walk she loved jumping almost as much as spinning. She spent many happy hours in the doorway jumper with a huge grin on her face.

Most babies love bouncing, swinging, and spinning, and it turns out that these activities can actually improve their motor development. One study spun a group of babies around in a swivel chair (on a lap, of course) four times a week for four weeks. The babies who were spun showed more advanced development of skills like sitting, crawling, standing, and walking.

My daughter was an early walker so I'll give a little credit to daddy and his spinning.

Toddler Humor

I had my daughter falling out of her high chair laughing this morning when I took Bear (her lovey) and used him as a hat. She kept handing him back to me all morning saying “mama, mama, hat.” Then she cracked up all over again when I put him on my head. It’s a cool developmental milestone, the ability to recognize when something is out of place. If I had tried this several months ago she wouldn’t have found it funny.

Humor is correlated with high intelligence, sociability, and self-esteem. Correlation isn’t the same as causation, but it certainly doesn’t hurt your kid to have a sense of humor. And it’s great fun trying to teach it to her!

Every Mama Is a Teacher

I used to get paid to teach other people’s kids. Now my job is a lot less financially rewarding and a lot more important. I’m a stay-at-home mama with my 16-month-old daughter and it is clear to me every single day that in addition to being her parent I am also her first teacher. I taught her the sound of the English language from the time I was twenty-three weeks pregnant, when her auditory system started responding to my voice. When she was born I taught her that when she cried someone would always show up. I taught her that peas are yummy and that olives go on your fingers. And someday I hope to teach her about compound interest, world history, and the Beatles.

What are you excited to teach your kids?