Learning to Speak Saraphina

In Saraphina's World everything is a drum. "See that box grandma?" It sounds like a drum when you hit it with a drum stick.

Saraphina is teaching us to talk as well as drum. She patiently points to things and tells us the words for them. She shakes her head no if I choose the wrong object, such as the stuffed dog instead of the stuffed monkey.

Here, she tries out a few dance steps in preparation for the Saraphina Show. You can see that our dog has grown accustomed to these practice sessions. Amber's job today is to guard the exit that leads to the eternal bliss of walking up and down the very dangerous stairs. Amber acts as the doorstop reminder that one must not run toward stairs.


On occasion, Amber will agree to have her photo taken with superstar Saraphina.

Grandma Nan News Alert!

Saraphina is expecting a baby cousin in early March. This is the latest photo of Tiny Miss Quimby, currently weighing in at about 12 ounces. Her parents Michelann and David Quimby will be here for Thanksgiving. I understand that Miss Quimby is already practicing her dance steps in anticipation of the Baby Quimby Show. By Thanksgiving we may be able to see some of her rhythm kicks. We'll keep you posted.

Exploring Grandma's Room

Hey Grandma we really need to clean this place up!

Saraphina has been crawling for a couple of months. She moves fast but crawling is only a means to getting to someplace where she can stand up. Standing usually involves taking some risks like holding onto wobbly objects... and then letting go with both hands. So she has been practicing falling.

When she comes upstairs to visit, she goes first to the toys, visits the fish (pronounced "ssshh"), and then heads off to search the files. I'm glad she is getting familiar with the file system. I'm hoping this means something.

Nana, I want that book!

This could be the world's cutest baby.

At 7 months, Saraphina knows her name, recognizes her grandmas, holds her hand out for Grandpa Dave to kiss, and drinks water out of a glass. She's also waves hello whenever someone enters the room.

She almost has a tooth and looks at our food hungrily when we eat. Her favorite snack right now is avocado. Banana ranks up there pretty high too. She has tried out some pureed fruits and eats creamy cereal for breakfast.

She has figured out how to make her toys make sounds, so her playroom is a filled with toy sounds and squeals of delight. It's pretty hard not to smile when she is around.

Textures, reflections, and new smells

Saraphina is beginning to make sense of the world. She recognizes people and reaches out to touch everything.

We think this is because she is brilliant. Plus she's really cute. She especially likes her own feet, which are quite fascinating and can be put her in mouth. This is awesome to anyone who has ever done yoga.


She likes to visit the baby in the mirror. The other day she discovered the baby in the colander. That was just before she tasted the colander. Most items must be tasted to be understood.

In our household, this is not surprising.

For Christmas she got a rocking horse. Our golden retriever sat down across from it and began to growl when she noticed it sitting in the dining room. To reassure her, we pressed the button that makes its muzzle move, as it whinneys and swishes its tail. Being a friendly sort, she got up to check it out further.

It seems to have passed the test.