So.. how old are you?

Ok, I know that every mum will brag about their child being the most beautiful, the most clever, creative, innovative, etc, etc. But honestly, she just is!!
Being a three year old and having a conversation like an adult is a day-to-day routine for Nicole.
Christmas is coming and she received a lot of Christmas cards from her friends in the nursery. One card was signed, Archie.
She said, "Oh, Archie is my best friend.."
??
As far as I know her best friend is always Sophie.
So in an engaging tone I asked her some questions (as usual!!), " Is he a nice boy, Nicole?"
"Yes, he is"
"Do you play with him a lot?"
"Yes, I do"
Then, searching my brain for more appropriate questions and vocabulary for her age, I asked, "Is he bigger or smaller than you?"
What I did not expect was her answer, "He is the same height as me, mummy"
'The same height??' Not 'He is as tall as me' or 'bigger or smaller than me'
Well done, baby... excellent use of comparisons.
Other expressions that she uses now:
"Hmm,... I wonder what's inside this box.."
Or
"I wish I could be as tall as you, mummy"
Or
I would ask her something like, "Do you think it is going to be a sunny day today, Nicole?"
And she would answer, "Mmm, I think so...."
So... how old are you again, Nicole? I feel like talking to an adult sometimes, bless you...

Moments....

Picking Nicole up from a friend's house yesterday after she had a fun morning baking some cookies, here's an excerpt of the moment.

It was around midday on a dank, damp and clammy Tuesday in Essex. In other words, the famously horrible British weather. My three-year-old daughter's voice from the back seat:
"Am I going to my nursery now?.."
"No, baby. We have to go home first. You have lunch, then.. .you go to the nursery."
"Is it Sophie's nursery?" (Sophie is her best friend in the nursery)
"Yes, it is..."
"Yippeee..."
"The cars are driving too slow, mummy.."
"Well, it has been raining, babe. People have to be careful when they drive because the road is slippery so they won't have any accidents."
"Oh, we don't want that....," (in a very serious tone)
"No, of course not, Nicole."
"So you cannot pass?... The car is too slow?.."
"No,. baby .. this is a single traffic road. Mummy cannot overtake the car in front."
"That's a blue car..."
"Yes, there's a blue car in front of us. And in front of the blue car, there is a white car."
"I can't see.... I can't see....!!"
"It's in front of the blue car. It is difficult to see, isn't it?"
Red light at traffic.
"Oh,.. we are trapped..."
"No, we are not trapped, babe,.. we stop because the red light is on, see?.... what colour of light can we go?..."
"Green!!!...."
"Clever girl..."
Whilst waiting for the green light.
"One...two...three... mummy,... three red cars!!"
"Yes,... there are a lot of red cars, aren't there?.. You are very good at counting.. can you count to twenty?.."
"One..two..three..four..five..six...seven...eight...nine..ten...eleven...twelve..firteen... (substitute 'f' to 'th')...fourteen...fifteen... nineteen... sixteen... eighteen!!..."
"Well done, baby... well done..."
A drizzle just started.
"Hm...mm..mm...mmm.. pitter patter raindrops, pitter patter raindrops... I'm wet through... so are you, so are you... So are you, mummy!!"
"Yes, babe... so am I..."
"Are we almost home now?.."
"Yup... just another corner now...."

It was a dank, damp and clammy beginning of October. But on hindsight... it was not too cold. There was a gentle fresh breeze pushing its way through a slightly rolled down window. And listening to my daughter's excited voice chattering away as well the smooth tune of 'Somewhere out There' from the radio, somehow... it was not too bad.
In fact, life is beautiful...if only we can capture all the beautiful moments...

New vocab today

It never ceased to amaze me how fast Nicole grows up. Everyday there's always something new. Just turned three less than 2 months ago, she is already as tall as a four-year old or even taller.

Today we went to Festival Leisure Park in Basildon, Essex. There was Angelina Ballerina, face-painting activities for children. She wanted to be a butterfly.
So her face was painted as a pink butterfly with sparkles... of course.. some things that Nicole loves the most are the colour pink and anything that glitters. Well, at the moment, the glitters are limited to shiny paper, beads, sequins and sparkly things. No jewellery or expensive items (yet...)
Anyway, on the way home.. satisfied with her butterfly face and a floaty balloon of Angelina Ballerina, she sat back on her car seat and suddenly said,.. "Mummy,.. I am soooo attractive"
Slightly taken aback, I answered, "Yes, darling, I think so too... I think you are the most beautiful girl in the world" (which of course, she is by the way..)
Then she had the sun in her eyes and protested, "Mummy.. the sun's in my eyes!..."
"Just close your eyes, now"
"Can I open my eyes now?"
"Yes, you can"
"Where's the sun, mummy?"
"It's behind those trees, baby"
"So the trees are protecting us?"
"Yes, sweetheart, they are...."
Was that a conversation between a forty-something and a three-year old?.. well, it was.

Why?..

Some studies suggest that a child can focus on something for as many minutes as is double to their age.

Nicole is going to be three years old next month. However, her speech ability and vocabulary is more like a mini adult. My husband and I always try to speak to her normally like to another adult; obviously with a much slower pace. We believe that the more you speak to her as we would to another adult, she will be able to communicate better. She does. And so much more.

Driving home from the nursery today, she asked, "Where's daddy, mummy?"
"Daddy's at work, babe"
"Why?"
"Because Daddy has to work"
"Why?"
"Because Daddy has to earn some money for us"
"Why?"
"To buy your milk? And chicken? And pasta?"
"Why?"
"So that we can eat"
"Why?"
"Well, ... (hmmm, think!..) if we don't eat, we'll get hungry, sweetheart"
"Why?"

???
Half a minute...

"You don't like to be hungry, do you Nicole?"

A glance through the rear view mirror showed that she was mesmerized by a huge pigeon perching on the electricity cable.

"Mummy.... a bird.. a bird..!"
"Yes, darling, it's a big bird, isn't it?"

The question and answer lasted about 5 minutes. Almost the end of her attention span. And I was still thinking of the answer to her last question.