Just after a few days with us in China, we started to teach her "more" and she signed it and said it. She also said "She-she" for thank you (xiexie), and learned to say hi to us while we were there.
Now she says and signs "more" and "all done". She says: hi, bye-bye, na-night, rah-bye (for rock-a-bye), poo-poo (when she wants her diaper changed), go, and up.
She says "puh" and points to the rocking chair when she wants me to sit there with her for a few more minutes before putting her in her crib. I'm not sure why she says that, but it is the same word every time (and so so cute when she says it).
And yesterday, Jemma started understanding that we pray and she wants to be a part of it. She cheerfully folds her hands to pray. Tonight, Phil said when he was rocking her and giving her a bottle before bed, he decided to pray with her then instead of after putting her in her bed. He saw that she was holding her bottle with her wrists and folding her hands over top. He hadn't told her he was going to pray - just closed his eyes and started and she knew what he was doing. :D SO precious!
When I rock with her, she will put her hand on my mouth to tell me she wants me to sing to her.
Also, we've made some changes to her cocooning. We've had people over or in her presence and we've simply asked everyone to ignore her - (it sounds awful, but wow, it has made a big impact!) - meaning don't say hi or act like she should know who you are at all even though you know who she is. People have been really great about this and seem to really understand the concept. This has been a critical change in Jemma's bonding with us. She no longer wants anyone and everyone to pick her up and has stopped seeking out everyone's affections. She didn't reach for our neighbors or family members and today, PopPop was here and she didn't make any attempts to get him to hold her.
Over time, we will want Jemma to see that there is such a thing as extended family and friends, but right now we are teaching her what it means to have an immediate family and making everyone else strangers to her has REALLY made a big difference. In the future, I think Jemma will start to realize that SHE knows certain people because they come around or we go visit. But it's important to let those familiarities come from within her instead of telling her who she should know and shouldn't- basically making her try and grasp how to develop the relational circles (nuclear family, inner circle of loved ones, and more circles beyond that) when everyone presented to her is all put on the same playing field at the beginning of her relationships with them. (did that make any sense?)
Anyway, we have another smart cookie and are getting such a kick out of all the new stuff she says and does everyday!
Oh and yesterday, I noticed that for the first time, Jemma seems to be understanding no-no. She likes to climb up in my desk chair and touch my computer. I saw her crawling into my office after I'd taken her out and I called to her and gently said no-no. She stopped and crawled back out. I was SO pleased that went well. We really haven't stressed any sort of "character" or behavioral stuff with her yet and I think that was definitely the way to go this time. Realizing her tantrums are a necessary means of communication at this point instead of her being naughty is also very important. Reassuring her during a tantrum and redirecting her or helping her understand that we are meeting her needs, just not as fast as she would have wanted is really what diffuses any tantrum. And over time, we are seeing fewer and fewer freak-outs! She's gaining trust in us that we meet her needs and that is SO exciting to see. She doesn't scream and cry for bottles and we are seeing far less of her crocodile tears (heartbreaker) AND she really isn't hitting her face or head or scratching profusely at all anymore when she is upset by something.
One last thing to add... after 5 children, there aren't a lot of firsts that you go through that you haven't already gone through before... however, I had a first today that was just LAUGHABLE. I put Jemma in a walker outside so she could figure out how to stand and move her legs a little easier. Little stinker is too smart and figured out how to climb out of it. I asked everyone who got Jemma out of the walker. No one knew. We put her back in it and not 5 seconds later she was out again. LOL! Hilarious. Here I was thinking that this would be a great toy for her AND FOR ME so that periodically I could have her busyness contained so I could... take my eyes off of her. I have not had any of my kids figure out how to free themselves, let alone that quickly!
I wonder how long it will take her to figure out how to climb out of her crib???
I'm ordering a few more gates tomorrow. :D
Jemma turned this stool into her own personal desk:
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