Long Live The Queen!

It's Queen's Day today in Holland. The day the Dutch celebrate Queen Beatrix's birthday. It's not really her birthday, though. It's her mother's birthday, the late Queen Juliana. And her brother-in-law's. Beatrix's birthday is in January. However, since her palace is too small to host a party for all of Holland, the event is usually celebrated outside. And it's cold outside in January. Practical as we Dutch are, Beatrix decided not to change the date of Queen's Day when she assumed the throne.

Naturally I will have an orange beer in her honor tonight. Hip, hip, hurray!

Update: I just read on a Dutch news site how this year's Queen's Day turned deadly when someone drove his car into the crowd cheering on Queen Beatrix and her family, killing five people and wounding thirteen others. That makes me so sad.

Nijntje!

Twice now have I turned on the television and found myself transported back to Holland. The first time was a little over a year ago and a nasty surprise. Picture this: you're working out at the gym, pushing your own weight with your legs. You look up at the row of television-sets suspended from the ceiling, when all of sudden, without warning, Peter R. de Vries appears on screen! Dutch self-proclaimed crime solver and reporter. Very annoying man. He claimed he had solved Natalee Holloway's murder and was advertising his show during which The Truth would be revealed. Right.

Yesterday morning was a much more pleasant experience. Nijntje! Or Miffy, as she is known here. Lola loves Nijntje, we read her books frequently. She didn't feel the same about the cartoon though. After the initial happy recognition, she quickly became bored with the bunny and moved on. She doesn't care much for watching television. She prefers playing with her nipples.

Denglish

I speak Dutch with Lola, everyone else English. As a result Lola speaks Denglish. She says "ja" in Dutch but "no" in English. She says "bye-bye" in English but "hallo" in Dutch. Actually it's "hawwo." She has some difficulty pronouncing the L. She calls herself "Wowa." S’s are also pretty problematic. At least when they are located at the end of a word. She can say "I see..." but not "poes". I thought "Sandman" would be a bit ambitious so I call the cat "poes" around her. Whenever she sees him, it's "Ha poef." His cue to take off. She loves him so, he still doesn’t feel the same. Alas.

Lola repeats everything I say these days. In the morning we drink a "kopje koffie" (a cup of coffee) - well, I do, she drinks milk. She can't have coffee until she's four. But she can say it. (I don't know where the four comes from; you'll have to ask my mom about that, it’s her rule.)

We have funny conversations with each other. I told her during a diaper change "You stink," to which she replied "I know." Ryan feels I give her more credit on her language skills than she deserves. He will often ask her silly questions just to emphasize that her answering the question correctly does not mean she actually understands it. He claims she says "Ja" to everything.

"Are you going to climb the Empire State Building?"
"Ja."

"Are you going to party with your friends?"
"Ja."

"Is dad funnier than mom?"
"No."

My girl cracks me up.

When she drops something or makes a mess, it’s "Oh Lola!" In a painfully high pitch. When she finds something it's "A-ha!", "Boing..." when she falls. "All done," she'll declare when she's had enough of whatever it is she's doing or eating. Occasionally, when I point out there's a big pile of food on the table rather than on her plate, she'll act all surprised. Where did that come from? We are currently working on "I love you."

"I wuv you."
"I lllllllllove you."
"I wuv you."

Those darn L’s.

For a long time I was convinced Lola's first words would be "Bless you" because of the amount of sneezing going on in our house. No. When she started talking, she said the usual first words for a child; da-da, ma-ma, aardbei (Dutch for strawberry). But this morning, when I sneezed, she said it. It may sound different than when I say it, but I heard it loud and clear.

Ah-choo.
"Bwev you."