"Zibing, you did it!"

That is what Zibing says when she accomplishes something..."Zibing, you did it!"





There is something so cute about hearing your newly-adopted daughter talk about herself in the 3rd person.

It took me aback at first. But then I realized, of course this is what she would say...because that is what we say when she accomplishes something.

Lily Kay has been home for 12 weeks now and her English has been coming right along. I was surprised that she didn't make more progress the first month we had her. But now I'm surprised at how much progress she is making.





I should preface this by saying that communication was never a problem between Lily Kay and us. No, we weren't speaking the same language at first, but communication was not a problem. Gestures, facial expressions, tone, body language...they all work together and communication was never an issue.

Yesterday when I went into a gas station with all four kiddos in tow, the sweet clerk just fawned all over the children and asked their names, etc. When she asked Lily Kay her name, I was about to jump in and answer for her, assuming that LK wouldn't understand the question, but she answered all on her own: "Lily Tay Zibing!" You go, girl!

Lily Kay is having issues with the "C" and "K" sounds...they come out like "T"s. Hence: Lily Tay Zibing

I find this absolutely fascinating...because the C/K sounds are not used in Mandarin. For instance, Elisabeth's Chinese name was Cen Ye Gui. The Cen part was pronounced "Tun".

This practice is apparently already firmly entrenched in our 4-year old.

So we hear:

"Mama, tome on." (while she is motioning with curling fingers for me to follow her)

"You're Weltome."

"Titty tat" (You know, like the titty tats that say "Meow")





"It's otay"

"Pittles" (LK's favorite food for several weeks there, I mean she asked for them 24/7)

"Tittle, tittle!" (She says this gleefully as she tickles you)

"Tows" give us "milt"

"I lite it" (said when she approves of something)

At the end of our meals, she will ask "May I pwease be esatused???"

My reply when she asks if she can be excused from the table is "Yes, you may." Well, LK has started to run with this phrase the last few days. For instance, tonight when I asked her if she would go bring the hair dryer from my bathroom back to her and Elisabeth's bathroom, she replied, "Yes, you may" as she went to go retrieve it for me.

Other cute things she is saying (I need to record these before she figures them out and I forget):

"Peep-a-boo"

"Happy Bushday"

"Fink you" (aka "Thank you" to the rest of us)





"No fink you, Mama" (said very politely, when she wants to head me off at the pass when she sees me giving the other children something really nasty to eat...like cheese, the nerve...)

"Wha you do juan???" (She asks this alot...inquiring little 4-year old minds want to know!)



"I'm hunday. You hunday???" (She's almost always hungry...and expects everyone else to be also.)








BUT, hands-down, no contest...my favorite thing that Miss Lily Kay says is: "I lub you."