Jasmin's shoe and foot fettish

Jasmin has always liked shoes.
She accepted the shoe without much difficulty the moment the contraption was presented to her when she was just 1 year old. Walking happily in her new red Elephanten shoes  - the first shoe her Oma (German grandma) brought her.

She signals clearly when she wants to leave the house by trying to put on her shoes, or having someone assist her is putting them on, and then running to the door. She says "NANAY" which is a near should to the Hebrew word for shoes, as she goes to get them, sitting on her stool and awaiting for assistance is being properly fitted with her shoes. She brings each person the correct shoe form them to put on before leaving the house - and I do not mean only family (people and shoes that are regularly there - like mom, dad and Jonathan) but also guests, babysitters, cousins vising once a year from Germany and grandmas.

When we come into the house, she also knows where to put the shoes away. She places her shoes along with Jonathan's on the shelf near the door. Mommy's shoes are located in her room (and grandmas shoes are placed there too - when she visits, they are alike in style and size), daddy's  shoes are on the shelf in his study. When we were visiting my husbands parents in Germany, Jasmin was quick to learn the shoe habits (and general order) of the house and placed her newly purchased shoes right above the slippers of her German grandma - on a stool in the kitchen. This is a different place from other shoes; those recently worn can be found at the entrance and all the others in the various rooms.

Shoes were always a signal in our home. When Jonathan, Jasmins elder brother, was little he insisted that people take off their shoes, in order to ensure that they will indeed stay. Jasmin showed the same tendency at first, but she quickly moved to the other extreme, paying attention to shoes when the time comes to leave the house. If I intend to leave without her and she accepts this -she will wave her arm and say a musical "bye"...but if she wants to come along regardless of my intentions, she runs for her shoes! She even tries to put them on, her motoric is not great and she is not yet successful but she can open the Velcro shutters...its a start...

Different body organs have always interested Jasmin, but its her feet she loves best! Pointing at mommy's breasts or grandmas nose is fun, as is waving her arms and singing about fingers,  but having mommy blow on her feet is a real treat! Jasmin will ye down in her bed and signal her wish by making a blowing sound "ppppfffff" and pulling her feet up closer to me. alternatively she says "AWA" and holds her feet and hand up for kissing. Feet kissing is a game we play every night, just before she goes to sleep. Just the other day she was playing with my mother and she fell. Thus she received a kiss on her arm from my mother, to relieve her pain. Jasmin promptly handed my mother her other arm, for more kisses...

Jasmin The Singer

Jasmin is showing her first melodious tendencies. Although it would not seam that she is as musical as her elder brother, it is obvious that Jasmin lies to sing and dance to the music. She has already sung and hummed and imitated dancing from routines she has learned in kindergarten, hiding her arms behind her back or lifting up her hands...all suitable to works of a nursery rhyme when she was 1.5 years old. preferring to play with toys that make music is obvious from day one! She also falls asleep to a music box.

But yesterday she made a musical quantum leap. While sitting in the car ,as my husband was driving home to the music of Tory Amos, Jasmin started humming along to the critical point in the song in which Tory sings a higher pitch of "ooh-hoo!" Only think, my husband hat laughing fit in the middle of the street, and all because of Jasmin's oh so cute "ooh-hoo"s. As soon as he got home, he hurries to play the Tory Amos track again, so he could demonstrate,Jasmin's newest trick to me. We thus ended up as the "ooh-hoo"-ing trio, among smiles and other encouraging sounds, Jasmin sang along with Mum and Dad, and not to forget right on time with Tory...

Its been a while since I wrote a post...

Ideas I have collected in the past months, and that will serve as the base for this blog.
(in Hebrew)

יסמין מביאה משפכים כדי להשקות צמחים עם יעל (בלי מים)

יסמין נותנת נשיקה עם היד וגם עם השפתיים ומתעניינת בשערות החזה של אבא, בפופיק של אמא ושל עצמה וגם באיברי מין של בנות...

יסמין עושה פו כי אני עושה תרגילי נשימה עם יונתן

DONE-I think I wrote this already...ha ha

יסמין מביאה משפך ומשקה כי יעל משקה על אמת

יסמין אומרת לא, הופה, אפצי, או-לא

סבתא אומרת שהיא יודעת גם איפה אף ואומרת אף

מראים לה והיא לומדת; פותחת דלתות, עושה פו לאוכל ונושפת מהאף

לפני זה עשתה תנועת קינוח אף עם ממחטה אבל פו עם הפה בשביל האפקט הקולי הנכון

אוהבת לשחק תופסת ומסירות

מביאה דברים שמבקשים

יסמין יודעת שנועלים נעליים לפני שיוצאים מהבית ושאצא לוקחת תיק אז אמא הולכת- ויסמין רצה מיד לדלת כי היא רוצה לבוא גם

יסמין נועלת נעליים או לפחות מנסה, התנועות נכונות המוטוריקה לא משהו, אפילו את הסקוצ היא פותחת

DONE-I think I wrote this already...ha ha

יסמין הולכת להביא  צלוחית מהמגירה ואז נגשת למקרר

בוחרת מאכל ואז שמים לה בצלוחית והיא מרוצה ואוכלת

ואם זה לא קורה יש לנוזפת הקטנה גם מה להגיד...ועל זה אומרים בגרמנית - הטון הוא שעושה את המוזיקה

DONE-I think I wrote this already...ha ha

בלוג

מי ים ליסמין זה טעים

יסמין לוקחת צלוחית ומושיטה יד למגירת כפיות ואז הולכת למקרר ומבקשת לפתוח ואז בוחרת את מה שהיא רוצה לאכול

יסמין רוקעת ברגליים כשהיא מתרגזת והטון נוזף

יסמין מאמצת סדרים חדשים בגרמניה במהירות הבזק לומדת איפה הפח ומחכה הרגלים של סבתא סיבילה

יסמין מוזגת לעצמה מים לבקבוק מטפטוף של מזגן והיא זכרה שזה שם אחרי חודש העדרות וגם את המכונה של חטיפים היא זוכרת

יסמין אורזת בגדים וצעצועים וספרים בשקית , אומרת ביי ועושה שלום עם היד ויוצאת מהבית, או לפחות מנסה לפתוח הדלת, לא ניסיתי לעקב אחריה ולראות איך זה מתפתח

יסמין יושבת בשרותים ועושה פששש עם הפה, להגיד ליפי היא גם יודעת, אבל בסוף בורח לה ברצפה ולא באסלה

שלבי טרום גמילה

יסמין מראה לסבתא איפה כואב ביד ומקבלת נשיקה, ואז מושיטה שוב את היד כדי לקבל עוד אחת

יסמין משחקת לפני השינה, אווה ומושיטה יד או רגל וככה מקבלת עוד נשיקה באיבר המושט

יסמין יודעת לקחת צלחת מהארון, עורכת לעצמה ולאמא את השולחן, יודעת להביא כפית,ואוי ואבוי אם לא אעשה שימוש בצלחת שהיא הביאה לי

From an email to a friend

יסמין ממש מקסימונית, היא רואה משהו ומיד מבצעת

היא פשוט יודעת הכל

כבר עורכת לנו שולחן ושמה צלחות לכולם

צריכה לטעום ולעשות כל מה שמישהו אחר עושה לידה

נוסעת על בימבות ותלת אופנים למינהם (בלי פדאלים) ממש כמו נהגת שודים במהירות וחרקה , וגם רוורס

רק פדאלים עוד לא כי הרגליים עוד לא ארוכות דיין

בקיצור, הסטרי

מתחילה גם להביע עצמה במצלולים יחידים, אבל התנועות והדרך שלה עם שפת הגוף זה מדהים!

בקיצור, אוצר

All this is accumulated in two months...got lots to write about...

Aping and Speech

Jasmin is beginning to talk. If we were not sure at the beginning if she is getting it (the idea of verbal communication) by now it is clear and she has established her first word too! Jasmin continues to ape the world that surrounds her and learns at astounding speed. And the  more she knows, the more opinionated she becomes.

Jasmin’s first clear sound was mumumum. I was not sure if she  meant mommy or mmmm…delicious. Or maybe the combination of “mommy feed me mmm delicious food”. Jasmin eats well! She eats everything! Aparticular joy to her grandfather… The second sound she repeated was “TSE”. I thought it was a mimic of the words “Et Ze” which mean THIS in Hebrew, but I must admit I am not sure. By the time Jasmin made her third clear sound, I was sure. She says “Hoppa”. She uses this sound like her kindergarten teachers to representan action (like jumping or falling on her but) or satisfaction. She also clearly laughs (her bigger brother often makes her laugh, and she likes a good swing in the park too). As her fourth sound she combines a clear “LO” (the Hebrew word for NO) with a shake of the head or a lifting of her shoulder. There is no mistaking the meaning. So “no” counts as her first word (it was her big brother’s second).

Her second word is “ATSCHEEE” which is a mimic for a sneezing sound. All Israeli kids know the song about the b8unny who forgot to close the door and got a cold and started sneezing… la la la APCHI!, la la la APCHI! Jasmin loves this song and asks for me to sing it by saying “ATSCHEEE”. Her elder brother Jonathan also did this. In fact they reversed the order of the words. Jonathan said Apchi first and LO later, Jasmin said LO first and ATSCHEE as a second word. Or maybe it was her third when one counts her amazement sound of “WOW!” as a word.  One day she was looking at magazines sitting next to granny and when a colorful image of fans came up she exclaimed “WOW” and showed my mother the page. Jasmin loves to read! She carried books and magazines with her and turns the pages. Scribbling with a pencil (than k God)in the books is another favorite pastime. My mother has claimed before that Jasmin can say “AF” (nose in Hebrew), I first saw it last weekend when instead of the usual sneeze in the song, Jasmin pointed to her nose and said “AF! So we have four words until now.

Her fifth word is ABA! The Hebrew word for daddy. She is calling for my husband when he is no home. Jasmin is clearly a daddy’s girl. She likes to take part in all activities, so today; when dad and Jonathan were cooking together she joined them in the kitchen. When I took her away to bed, she clearly combines “LO mama”, telling me she did not wish to go away with me (does mama count as her sixth word?).

 Jasmin is definitely getting more opinionated. The “music” of her babbling tells me when she is not happy. In German there is a sating “the tone makes the music”, meaning that the music behind our conversation transports the true meaning of our words. Recently she started biting me (picked it up in kindergarten probably), and got scolded heavily for it, so now clever little bugger that she is, she starts to bring her mouth closer to my shoulder, but closes it at the last minute. This is a great example of the fast learning Jasmin can do! Such intelligence! Ah, I am enjoying a “proud mom” moment as I write these lines (despite the fact that my daughter did bite me a few times).

Jasmin’s verbal speech development is not impairing her other learning. She continues to mimic the world t an astounding pace. Last weekend we had friend come to visit from Germany and they wanted to go to the beach. In preparation they put on tan lotion. Jasmin immediately began to “crème” her own legs after the fashion of our guests. She likes to stand on Jonathan’s high stool in the bathroom and brush her teeth. She is no longer satisfied with her own baby tooth brush but prefers that of Jonathan (or second best, mommy’s toothbrush) –I can only assume the small remains of toothpaste (which she can probably taste on the brushes) are the root of this preference (because usually she is very possessive of her own stuff). She shoves the brush into her mouth and mimics the brushing motion. I showed her only once how to brush her front teeth and that’s it! She was brushing correctly! She even imitates a spitting sound to represent washing her mouth (sadly she still spits after if it’s from a cup, so we cannot truly start her on properly brushing her teeth).

Jasmin also tries to put on her own shoes. She can open the Velcro that holds the shoes and her motoric actions are on a continuous improvement, I am sure she will soon be truly able to put them on! If she sees me take up my bag or keys, she knows I am about to leave and she runs for the door. Jasmin brings her shoes to me every morning of her own accord; she knows that part of getting ready in the morning means to put them on. On Saturdays she can bring her shoes to me as a sign that she wants to go out (despite the Israeli summer heat, which is already upon us!) just like dogs bring their owners their leash (dog lovers will claim dog psychology is very like that of a child, and that canines are as much a part of the family). Just the other week, Jasmin saw her cousin watering the plants in grandma’s home. So she ran to the storage room and got her own watering pot (empty) and started to follow her cousin and “water” the plants as well. A week later, the first thing she did when arriving at grandmas was to go get the watering pot and “water” the plats once more.

By now she is tall enough to reach items on our dining table, climb grown up chairs; she can even open the front door of the house! She can blow soap bubbles, blow to cool her food and make a blowing sound with her mouth when mimicking the action of blowing her nose. I was doing some breathing exercises with Jonathan to help him calm down and Jasmin immediately joined with some breathing of her own. She blows me a kiss to say goodbye when I take her to kindergarten in the morning and kisses daddy on the lips when encouraged. Exploring her own naval and mommy’s is her first curious “lets research my body” activity, right there with trying to clean herself with a wet wipe when I change her diaper. In the bathtub today she clearly mimicked older kids wiping themselves after a visit to the toilet, and then washed her head with her hands so proficiently that I began to think of purchasing a bathing sponge for her to use.

At the advanced age of 1 years and five months it is clear that Jasmin understands what is being said to her, and she will even do as she is asked at times (bring me stuff when I ask). She likes to play catch with mommy chasing her (she  loves to hear me stomping my feet, this knowing I am on her heels) and she likes to chase after balls and then pick them up and throw them. Jasmin has even taken recently to kicking a ball and running after her, her granddaddy (who has a history as a teenage football player) will be mighty proud!

A fast driver, even her bodice says so, and has a suitable baby car design to go along!

Moving on to more serious vehicles (she climbed on her own at Jonathan’s kindergarten)

The bodice says “my grand-dad is crazy about me” and I do believe they both are…

Swinging siblings!

Nothing like a good swing ride to while away a very hot afternoon!

A Quick Learner

Jasmin needs to see something only once to grasp it. She then sets immediately to trying to imitate what she has seen and usually masters the skill rather easily. If she does not, it can only be said that she is just 1 year and 2.5 months old. Her experimentation at skills is a delight all the same.

It is clear to see that Jasmin understands her world instinctively. She simply gets the way things function. She needs little trial and error to get it right. There are many examples. She was able to attach a magnet to the fridge and getting the right side so that the magnet indeed attaches and does not fall, on the first trail. No other cousin or sibling has achieved this so fast. We have a Smurf magnet puzzle on our fridge, Jasmin likes to pull the pieces off and then put them back on the fridge. All toddlers in Israel have these puzzles and like to pull of the pieces and re-attach them. But only Jasmin used the fold of her shirt as a pocket for the pieces she removed, like storage. Although she is not old enough to put the puzzle together, she is already trying to do so.

With more simple puzzles it is clear she understands the concept of attaching two pieces together to create an image. We have the Fisher price box with a lid with shaped holes (circle, square, and triangle) and she immediately copied me after I showed her once that the shapes fit in the holes. With a similar toy She tries to push all shapes into the square (into which they all do fit), but if I show her another shape (try to push the triangle into the triangle sweetie…) she will immediately do as I suggest.

It is clear she understands what she is being told. I asked her to return a magnet that fell of Jonathans score board of good deeds and she immediately picked it up and returned it to its place. When I asked Jonathan one morning to get dressed, Jasmin started pulling at his shirt. Ever since she saw me sitting on the balcony, she wants to open up a resting chair when we go out there. She even knows one reads a magazine in the restroom (I saw her try, while sitting on a stool in the toilet aside her brother…) Did I already mention she is just 15 months old?

When visiting the neighbor from across the hall she knows where the cookies are in the kitchen and points clearly in their direction to request a treat. At home she points every morning to the cornflakes box on the top of the fridge, thus asking daily for her breakfast. When she sees me pick up my bag, she knows I am leaving and asks to be picked up and taken along (or protests in tears when I do not comply). When we go out to kindergarten every morning, she knows to take her small bag, and even takes that of Jonathan as well…

My mother showed Jasmin how to ride a toddler’s bumper car (so called Bimba in Israel) and she was immediately off! My mother set her astride the contraption and she was pumping legs and driving off in no time at all, never once bumping into walls as she took turns and corners. It took a day of practicing to climb and sit on the car by herself without being assisted. On the second day she was speeding through grand mama’s garden as if she was born to drive! A professional by all baby standards, and that in just a day and a half.

My parents came over to babysit Jasmin this evening and my father used the opportunity to repair a sliding door for me. In the process of doing so he was obliged to use Jasmin’s wooden stool. She came to look out for her property. Every time the stool stood free (or my father…) Jasmin sat on it. My father would then take it and use it, and when it was free again, Jasmin would sit again. Then she watched as her granddad hammered and screwed and she immediately needed his tools to try the hammering and screwdriver twisting herself. My mother calls Jasmin the professor, because it is so clear that she really does know everything…

On her way! Unterwegs!

Character Summary

If I were to summarize the character of my children and their learning methods I could do so with two simple sayings. Jonathan is the quantum leaper; Jasmin is the one after the other consistent. He the daydreamer, she connected to earth.

Jonathan can be stuck for months: repeating questions, discussing a subject respectively over and over again for days.  If he does not immediately succeed he wails and gives up. He is not thorough. Often he imitates, but with no exactness. He is detached from reality and lets a fantasy computer and cartoon world rule his imagination. It takes time for him to register how the world around him works, and he is often disappointed in what he finds. He has little patience or duration, bordering on the spineless, expecting mommy to solve the problem and somewhat typical for the eldest son. But once in a while he gets it! Suddenly its all comes together and he makes the quantum leap! And whatever it was he could not do before, he does naturally and flowingly.

Jasmin is the one who takes everything in. one step at a time. She is consistent and methodic – going about her way is small steps and phases to reach her goal. On the other hand she is earthly, connected to the world with sheer instinct. She needs to see something only once to understand it, and if she were not just a baby of 1 year and two months of age, I am sure she could also master any skill in a very short time. At this stage she imitates everything she sees immediately. She just gets it immediately! She learns quickly and imitates immediately. Her efforts seam not perfect only because she is but a baby!

How alike they may sometimes look, both strongly resemble their father, somehow, both have my “look” to them too. They are siblings. And yet, they are separate entities, two different people, who react to their surroundings in so different a way.

Jasmin, Jonathan and daddy

Curiosity killed the cat… or perhaps not

Jasmin’s curiosity is ever increasing and no door is safe from the inquisitive Jasmin. Little fingers find their way to every nuke and cranny. Electric sockets have been blocked with plastic plugs, toilet paper is removed to higher positioning and my clothes are never safe from a turning over. Still, it becomes clearer that Jasmin is learning about the way the world works, so it’s not sure that curiosity is bad. Curiosity does not seem to kill the cat but rather to make her more knowledgeable and independent.

It’s a lucky thing that Jasmin likes to put things into boxes. It’s always easy to get her to help tidy up. As long as I am there to partake in the fun, Jasmin is always willing to put toys back into boxes. She is of course just as happy to pull them all out again a few minutes later, not to mention my clothes or the plastic boxes in the kitchen.  We had been spending the recent spring holiday at my parent’s house and according to my mother Jasmin took over the kitchen. She first pulled out all the posts and pans from the lower drawers and then rearranged them. On the other hand, when she pulled out a container of cocoa power and my mother asked her to return it to its place, Jasmin did just that. It was also on this holiday that Jasmin has finally climbed and descended the stair case at my parents’ house, on all fours, alone and unnoticed. On an especially quiet afternoon we searched for her all over the house, only to find her in one of the toilets tearing at a roll of toilet paper and making quite a mess (not to mention the waste of paper), enjoying herself immensely in the process.

On another occasion during the holiday, she opened a cupboard door, which I desired her to close.  So a new game began; I ordered her in a stem voice to close the door whenever she opened it and smiled and cooed at her is she closed it, then again the stern voice because she opened it again, and the sweet tones when she closed the door. I clapped my hands and complimented her. The door opened again and a paid or mischievous eyes danced in her face, one again I turned stern, the door closed and I was all smiles once more – this time Jasmin did the hand clapping to congratulate herself. She has taken up the various tones of adult speech and can clearly communicate displeasure, truly scolding me or wailing, as well as gurgling her satisfaction, occasionally whooping a happy screech or breathing with excitement and wonderment when wanting to show me something. She gets more and more consonants into her vocabulary and recently has taken to saying “babababa” which as close to the Hebrew word for daddy (abba).

One morning when I was in the restroom and my mobile phone was ringing, serving as an alarm clock, Jasmin went to get it from the other side of the apartment, attracted by the noise. She brought it to me with an inquisitive look in her eye. She likes to bring me things and one day she brought my glasses from the counter near the bed to me in the bathroom. She also tries to pin my hair up with a plastic claps I use. Taking my glasses off my face and trying to put them back on for me is a national sport, as is pulling at the earrings have recently resumed in wearing.

She likes to press on buttons and no DVD or video or any other electronic devise, preferably one with lights is safe from her. She sat down holding my mobile phone and pressed the screen in an effort to light it up. The first trials were fruitless, but not such as Jasmin would give up (I call her my little fighter, because although her elder brother is 4 years her senior, she hold her own with him). She persists and presses and by now she gets all kinds of apps to work and websites to go online.

Understanding her world includes various attempts at drawing from a very early age. Taking a pen and putting it t paper first occurred around the age of 6 months. The attempt then was futile, but she has been improving since. In kindergarten I am told she likes to sit with the elder children and she can put together a scribble and decorate it is stickers rather nicely. I should probably frame her first attempts, as I did Jonathan’s (Jasmin’s elder brother) but I find that I am a lazier parent o my second child. Jasmin is however not lazy, and as always willing to take part in any activity. Yesterday, as I was hanging the washing, she joined me and started handing me the clothes to hand. She grabbed each piece with two hands and raised them in my direction, making one single vocal sound as she did so, to draw my attention. She was soon handing me the clothes much faster than I could hang them on the line…we completed the task rather quickly and poor jasmine was disappointed that there were no more textiles to grab (I do believe she has a soft spot especially for the kitchen towels).

Jasmin is a scientist at heart. At least I would like to think so. What other explanation can there be to her turning her bottle upside down while it is full of fluids and pressing the tip to her shirt to look at the expanding stain on the fabric? Or just shaking the bottle upside down and delighting in the drops on the floor? Or smearing food all over herself after taking the mash in her hands to get a better feel for it? Or throwing her bottle or any other toy into the toilet? I have often read about pranksters in books and wondered why parents would tolerate such childish tricks. it would seem, however, that I have a prankster on my hands, and I do assure you that while my husband was laughing affectionately at the bottle he found in the toilet basin, I scolded Jasmin and I hope the message with get though…but as I write these lines, I cannot help smiling as I think of it all.

Turning out the kitchen cupboards

Primitive Communication

As Jasmin comes into her second year upon this earth, she is showing an excellent, even feminine, instinct for communication. She used body languages and basic sounds to deliver clear messages. Its primitive communication at its best and most innocent, and yet, so sophisticated. Who said humans needed to speak to be understood…?

Jasmin is showing mature forms of communication, along with a stubbornness and strength of character I believe her elder brother will have trouble to match when she is older and being more articulate. Just the other day, when being asked by her grandmother to give her something, the child resisted with a simple twist of her body and a lifting of one shoulder – a clear and resounding “I do not want to do as I am told”. Such gestures are usually considered typical of toddlers who are much older than 1 year old Jasmin. By now she clearly shakes her head for “NO” or “I do not want” especially when being offered some food she is not interested in. she gestures with her finger in a certain direction, but if I hand her something wrong (and not the desired item) she pushes it away and nods her head in clear negative – mommy, once again, you got it all wrong… Only a few days ago, when she was insulted that I did not comply with a request to be picked up (hand up in the air and big cajoling eyes to boot) she sat with her head stooped, clearly offended by my lack of cooperation.

She is also getting much better at imitating adults. A certain way for babies and toddlers to learn about life. It is clear she likes to do as the grownup do. My mother has taken to calling Jasmin “the professor” because it becomes increasingly clear that she does understand the world around her. Jasmin likes to be in company of the adults and always asks to be seated in a high char to join the company if we group together.

Jasmin imitates us feeding her by force feeding us (mainly her mother and grandmother) back. Feeding time is mostly mutual, with two spoons. Jasmin cannot be feed if she does not have a spoon of her own, with which she occasionally tried to feed herself (at 1 year and almost two months she is becoming increasingly competent). At the beginning it was always quite a struggle to feed her, while she sent food flying with the spoon in her hand, but if the spoon was not given, she struggles for the spoon in my hand and the mess is even bigger. Quite the fighter for independence.

So we both hold spoons of food. I give her one spoon and then she tries to feed herself, and then I feed her another mouthful and then she feeds me back. Considering the fact that Jasmin has been feeding adults and cross feeding her mommy from day one in the feeding chair, it is amazing that there is not photograph demonstrating this special action. Feeding is accompanied by the syllable “Hum”. When calling to an adult, Jasmin says “amama”, clearly a try at the Hebrew word for Mother (Imma) or the German version perhaps (mama). It can get confusing with the request for food. Recently she has taken to trying a fork and attempting to pin her food with it. She is not quite successful, but as she grows more independent, it would seem that the times of cross feeding are at an end.

Other imitations include speaking on the mobile phone, just like mommy. Whenever Jasmin gets her hands on a mobile phone (or any other similar object with buttons, including a calculator or gameboy, she tries to speak in it. Recently even the sound of “Alllll” has accompanied the gesture, a clear try at "Hallo". Tearing toilet paper is a special treat, but Jasmin has shown that she clearly understands what it is used for. She regularly takes a piece to her nose and blows with her mouth, imitation sounds of adults blowing their noses. Then she crumples the paper and throws it to the trash.

Jasmin has recently given more vents to her stubborn nature by starting to throw tantrums. If she always used to lie down at my feet from day 1 in order to ask to be picked up, she has now refined and elaborated her signs of displeasure. The mode of request to be lifted in my arms has changed and she now sits with her arms up, or buried her head between my knees standing up t do so and to indicate that she wants an even higher view of her surroundings than the floor), but if the request is not complied with, its back to the basics with laying down on her tummy, only recently she adds kicking legs and waving hands and yells to the display. It’s just like a classic cartoon; I had no idea until now that the humorists have taken inspiration from the real gestures of children.

She cleverly gestures and makes request for whatever it is she desires. Only two days ago she invited my mother (her grandmother for a walk) by pulling her along. Jasmin is usually mobile on her knees (so much that the skin on the knee has become hard in both her legs), but she has recently taken to standing up and dragging chairs or finding a willing adult to take her for a walk. Usually it is the adult who initiates the walk, but in the above mentioned instance it was Jasmin.  When Jasmin is exited she expresses her wonder with large heaves of air. Recently she started saying “wow” when she wishes to express wonderment. The gesture is repeated almost whenever she is looking at a book or gets her hands on some towel or other piece of fabric. She loves books, but has not yet patience to be read too, grabbing the book and turning the pages herself.

She is also showing a knack fro humor, she likes to put things on her head. Smiling at the observer to make sure the joke is understood. Then she is pleased with herself and claps her hands. She also plays with people the game of give and take – or rather take a ways fast and not give. She can hand you a toy, and just as you come to take it and thank her, she will whisk it away and laugh. The gesture is quickly repeated to her delight. For some wild reason it is my father, who enjoyed that particular trick. My parents, I am glad to see are developing a special understanding for Jasmin, then get along with her swimmingly and I do believe the joy of keeping company with Jasmin is mutual. May she always continue to be so cheeky, clever, and absolutely adorable!

Jasmin the carnivore! Eating like an adult!