Lovely.

Haven is practicing different sounds and I'm getting an idea what her speaking voice will sound like, aside from the shrieking, grunting, giggling and "dada"ing we normally hear all day. She moves her tongue around in her mouth while using her voice and when she finds a noise that pleases her, she pauses and then repeats it again and again, playing with volume and inflection. She appreciates it when I mimic her and follow her lead.  I could watch and listen to her do this all day, but inevitably she loses interest, or is distracted by something and it's over until the next time. I suppose that it is this fleeting quality that keeps it so appealing.

Sonja is making fast friends at the playground. She will approach any little girl of similar age and introduce herself, usually with a wave just centimetres from the little girl's nose. Within seconds, she is trying to hug or even kiss this little girl and will quickly grab her hand to drag her off to play. She has been lucky that most of these girls have gotten over their initial apprehension and have played with Sonja really well. There have been a couple instances when the girl is either too surprised or too nervous to play along and I've had to explain to Sonja that not everyone will want to play, even when you introduce yourself so nicely. I've had to explain to a few parents that Sonja means well with her almost-aggressive affection. And not surprisingly, tears have ensued a couple of times when we've had to say goodbye to a newfound best friend.

My girls. May they always be this lovely.