3.26.2011

guest post #5 teaching my niece sweet phrases

and now, a post from one of my best friends, mikkele. she lives in california (land of my people), and has the cutest niece of ever. get excited.

I’m not great with children. I can do all the things associated with keeping kids safe and healthy and even run around and make them laugh for awhile, but I am the first to give them back when they cry or spit up or whatever it is that children do. So when the traditional role of “Aunt” was bestowed upon me with without much warning, I had to figure out what that meant for me, the non-traditional adult that doesn’t swoon the minute I see a baby.

When my niece, Claire, was born, I immediately fell in love. I was simultaneously smitten with the little face staring back at me and terrified I was going to drop her and some permanent damage would be all my fault. Fortunately, that didn’t happen. Quite the opposite, in fact. Claire, now 2 ½ years old, is progressing very nicely in her ability to interact with people and remember important facts and phrases. This is where my first comes in.

Many years ago, Emily and I sat down and created a bucket list for my life. Some items were big (obtain a Master’s, learn a new language) and some items were simple (participate in an Improv Everywhere event, go on a blind date). We decided that I should set a goal for the role of aunt, and we decided on teaching Claire the phrase, “I know, right?”

It is with great pleasure that I announce that I have completed this goal! I even have the video to prove it:


4 comments:

  1. I have a quick question: Do I get royalties and residuals on my child's work? We didn't discuss the details of this particular performance, so now we're in a kind of weird place. I just hope at the end of the long drawn out legal battle we can still be friends.

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  2. kevin, i can offer 10% of what this post earns. i'll send it when i figure out how to cut pennies into fourths.

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  3. Interesting random bit of information: a farthing is derived from the term "a fourthing" because it is worth 1/4th of a penny. See http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farthing_(British_coin) for more info.

    The more you know eh?

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