15 days until wheels up. I've been really busy with work and Elyse has been busy caring for the kid and getting our house in order for pack out. It's hard to find time, and a topic, for a blog. So much of what I find
interesting I simply hesitate to post on-line. I have many interesting
stories or my own opinions about things like Nepali culture, Nepali government, U.S. immigration law, funny visa
cases, strange Americans wandering the globe...but it can be pretty sensitive stuff not for mass consumption. I guess it's the cautious diplomat in me. We call it "sensitive but unclassified." The only 100% safe topic, in my opinion, is baby stories. Personally, I find parents' constant baby stories monotonous. Also, she
broke our camera. I could tell stories and weave a tapestry with my words, but it's so labor intensive. Ahh, what the heck. She's worth it. Here's one nugget I'll want for posterity..
We've taught Ryan a lot of sign language. If I had to guess, she probably knows 60 or more signs. Mostly animals, which isn't really helpful. It is, however, entertaining. Take a kid who can sign sheep to New Zealand and they'll never stop shearing the imaginary wool on their arm. She also knows a lot of useful stuff for parents like milk, yes, please, more, all done, food, etc. But she's beginning to speak as well now. Her spoken vocabulary now consists of the following words (actual pronunciation in parentheses): daddy (daddieeee), mommy (mommiemommiemommiemommiemommie), me (ME!), ouch (oush), couch
(coush), pool (poow), motor boat (mow bow), back pack (back pi), jelly
(blblblbl), bubble (lblblblb) and bow (pronounced perfectly).