Eliana the Brilliant!

Eliana will be 27 months old next week. I just have to brag a little... For several months now, she has known how to count to 10 in Spanish and (almost) to 20 in English. She knows her ABCs. She knows all her colors, shapes (which she likes to point out everywhere we go) and body parts (both in English and Spanish). Not only does she regularly put together longer (and grammatically correct) sentences than me but she knows several Spanish words and phrases. She even still remembers the sign language she learned at 6 months old and knows a couple French words! She is a sponge! She has an incredibly memory. She never forgets who gave her what gift and repeats it every time she sees that item ("Papa's BIG dog present." "Bon Bon's jacket." etc. etc.) She completely understands pronouns and uses them in adult-sized sentences, "I'm going to go to my room and get my dolly, okay Mama?" I'm so used to her talking like this that I only realize how impressive it is when Brandon tells me what level is typical for a child her age (since he studies this at school).

Her latest thing is pretending. It seems like I'm constantly playing 'Cinderella' or 'Sharptooth' with her. Even if I'm not playing with her, she can play with several of her toys at the same time and give them all their own "parts" complete with animated voices and exciting drama. She has also recently started reading (recognizing and remembering words, really). But she comprehends and interprets their meaning. She can currently read close to 10 words without help but she'll only do it if she's in the mood (what a girl!). Speaking of, she can definitely be moody but I really expected my two-year-old to come with head-banging breakdowns but NO. She's pretty chill for the most part.

I'm so grateful to have such an incredible child and be able to spend every day with her. She never ceases to amaze me. The only problem is... I'm starting to run out of things to teach her! Ideas, anyone? I'm going to try harder to keep track of all the cute and amazing things she says. She's the sweetest girl in the world and I am so lucky to have her in my life!