Saturday, June 28, 2008

Th-th-th-therapy Th-th-th-thwarted!

Remember how I was boasting of having corrected some of Thevy's pronunciation errors? Like getting her to realize that she was making an F sound for TH words? Well, looks like I need to stop posing as a Speech Language Pathologist cuz my efforts backfired!

Yesterday, Thevy, upon exiting the bathroom declared, "I'm thinished." :-|

D'oh! :)

Monday, June 23, 2008

Sothea's So Cute!

Sothea is a toddler. She turned one a month ago and I don't have enough posts on her. She's got quite a personality. Initially, I thought she would be quiet and observant, unlike her big sister. I thought that maybe she'd be introverted. That still may be the case, but I'm thinking she's got quite a bit of spunk! She will express her displeasures and she will make known when she's pleased. She's starting to fight her sister back, who's not always so nice and is sometimes jealous. Sothea now smacks her sister and screams!

But I think in general, she still will be the quiet one. She probably won't be as talkative and friendly as Thevy. She's not as easygoing with strangers and is more apt to cry when someone other than her immediate family gets too close or wants to hold her. But she's still great. I find her so adorable and I can't wait until she starts talking!

Thevy the Talker

Thevy is quite talkative. And articulate, if I do say so myself. And as most young children, she makes mistakes in her speech (pronunciation, grammar). But I'm so proud of her when I hear her talk. She often amazes me with how well she speaks and the things she says to express herself, or simply to talk for talking's sake!

Anyway, back to kids making mistakes, I remember she used to pronounce her L's as W's and I worked to get her to say them correctly. It took a while, but she finally got the hang of it and she now knows the difference. I think her R's are still mostly wrong, as she says them as W's... But I made a new advance in her speech. It's still not perfected, but she can sometimes correct herself: her "TH's". Normally, Thevy tells me she's "firsty". I gave some examples and tried to teach her to make the correct sound and was able to do it with the phrase, "THink about it".

She still generally says "firsty", but when I bring attention to it, she is able to fix the error, sometimes by having to repeat the "Think about it" exercise: "THHHink about, thirsty." Man, I should be a speech therapist or something. :)

Monday, June 09, 2008

Thevy Ballerina

Thevy started dance classes today. I finally found an activity close to home for her to get in to. A few months ago, I had actually put her in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, even though the school's Website states that the minimum age at 4 and she was still 2. I did it 'cause as far as I was concerned, she expressed an interest in martial arts and I felt she was capable.

Well, we learned she was able to do it - physically. It's just mentally, they figured she was too young. It's her attention span. She has none! I'm not sure if it's 'cause she was tired and that's when she acts up the most or what. But either way. I think the dance school is the better option for now -- at least economically. The BJJ class was cheaper on a per class basis, but monthly, it's more than double!

So, we'll see how it goes. She was one of five little girls today. And by far, the best dressed. :) I actually mean that. I was told the uniform was light pink tights, any color leotard, a skirt, and ballet shoes. I had no idea what color combo to go with. You typically see black, pink, and white as the options. I ended up with all pink since I had difficulty finding extra-extra small items. I ended up visiting 3 different Wal-Marts, 4 Payless Shoe Sources, and 1 Target. Why so many stores for just 4 separate items? Geesh!

Anyway, so Thevy was surprisingly the best pupil. She was pretty much attentive and followed directions. I couldn't believe it. She had a nap and something to eat beforehand, so that must've played a huge part. I'm thinking later down the line, when money is right, possibly getting her into gymnastics or martial arts. I don't know if it'll be in addition to or in lieu of. It'll depend on what's feasible and what she likes to do.

Also, something that I'm sure many people don't consider, I was worried about us being accepted. When you're a minority, the prospect of going somewhere that is all white is a little bit daunting. You never know if you're gonna experience racism. Mind you, I'm comfortable in pretty all settings, but I don't know if others are or will be. And so, we entered the school and I felt a little weird, like, were we accepted being "different"? And during the class, I was wondering if Thevy was being treated differently or being neglected. She was doing what she was supposed to be doing and the teacher seemed to be paying more attention to the other rambunctious little girls. But I also considered it to be my paranoia.

Thevy was even calling out, "Hey, look at me!" because the teacher seemed to be paying attention to the others. "I can do it!" I was a little upset and it made me question whether this was the right place for her to be. I don't want my daughter to be treated unfairly and so, I will monitor the classes and try to keep my suspicions in check. Luckily, there is no commitments or contracts. You simply pay per month.

Anyway, hopefully, I'll have pictures to post next time.