Posted in German with the Kinder

Hmm, which one of the million blog posts that have been circling my brain will I write, considering that I am up at 5 AM (but it's really 6 AM since we fell back last night) and have nothing to do?

I guess I will give the promised update on my German language efforts with the little ones.

My last entry about this was when Ryan had said to me, "Mommy, why you talk like that?" when I was playing finger puppets with him and making them speak German.  That did upset me, but as I calmed down, I realized that it was quite interesting.  It showed that he is aware that there is more than one way to talk, something that maybe a lot of just-turned-four-year-olds may not know.  And I think he was tired also.  I remember when I was in Germany, when I was tired, I would want people to turn off the German and switch on the English too.  I haven't let his comment deter me, and I still speak German with him at times.  I make an effort to say different things to Ryan and the twins, and not just the same things all the time.  I challenge myself to switch pronouns quickly and to say more complicated things.

A day or two after Ryan said that, I was helping him and he asked me a question.  I said, "Ja" and he immediately turned to his sister Gabrielle and said, "Mama said 'ja' so I can!"  That amused me.  My challenge with Ryan at this point is that we are conversing on a different level than I can easily handle in German, using vocabulary that I don't know.  So it's hard to use a lot of German with him, because he needs to be able to understand what I am saying to him.

Now, for the twins.  They both say "danke" and "bitte" (they are very polite LOL).  They just had a checkup last Monday and the doctor agreed that they had made progress and so didn't feel that they needed to be evaluated.  I told him the German words they say, and he said to one of them, "Sprichst du Deutsch? Ja? Nein?"  I was looking at the baby's face - I can't remember whether it was Christopher or Alexander - and he was just staring at the doctor.  But when the doctor said, "Nein?" there was a flash of recognition on his face.  I do say "Nein" a lot to them LOL!  That was exciting to me, because I could almost see the thought process - "What is this guy saying to me? I don't get it.  Oh! that's a word that Mama uses!"

On a side note: our doctor is taking an extended indefinite leave because his wife has cancer and the chemo did not work.  He is a lovely person, a wonderful doctor, a kind man.  His wife is also a doctor, and they have a young son.  I think he's five.  This couple is only a few years older than my husband and me.  Their whole family is going to go to Colombia and spend time together.  Please, if you feel led, pray for them all.

Back to the topic: these little stories are helping me to keep going with speaking German to them when it gets tough.  I also need to work on getting more input to them, playing CDs and reading books, etc.  It has just been a crazy couple of months here.  I am thankful though, that my whole family is healthy and relatively happy.