My daughter will be two years old tomorrow. She's a strong, active and curious child with curls that become more pronounced on rainy days. Last night she and her older sister spent close to an hour playing with a toad we found in a puddle, shrieking and chasing it and pulling it around the yard in a yellow wagon. She is excited by birthdays in general and often sings "Happy Birthday"-- perhaps her second favorite tune these days, after the a-b-c song.
Last week while dining at our usual Mexican restaurant, one of the waiters stopped as he always does to say hello to Lula in Spanish. She responds to this like most children her age, with a certain amount of shyness--uncertain what to reply despite my urging her to say hello in kind. As he walked away however, a thought came to her and she leaned out over the table: "I yuv you man!" she said.
"When he comes back," I suggested, "you can say, 'Hello, Señor!'" Just then he emerged from the kitchen again at our table, smiling and waiving at Lula.
"E-yo, Seymour!" she said brightly, then pronounced her version of the word 'fish' and pointed at the wall behind him, which indeed featured a wooden fish. He looked puzzled.
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