My little granddaughter, 20½-month-old Luna arrived today for a visit. “Hi, grandbaby!” she said as she leaned forward for me to take her in my arms.
I looked at my daughter, her aunt and nanny. “Grandbaby?”
“That’s what she’s calling you these days. She was chanting, “Grandbaby, grandbaby, grandbaby,” all the way over here.
My husband walked in the room and her face lit up, “Grandpa!”
She has no problem with Grandpa’s name. In fact, my husband and I were both Grandpa before I received this new name.
“Te amo,” Luna said to me as she gave me a squeeze.
I again looked at my daughter. “She’s just learned to say that in the last couple of days.”
“Te amo,” I said to Luna, and squeezed her back.
“Hola!” she said to nobody in particular.
“Hola,” I said back.
My oldest daughter, Sarah, Luna’s mother has told me that Luna is now counting in Spanish and English. “Uno, two, three, cuatro, siete, etc.” Out of order and in two languages.
“Agua” is her usual word for water and she and her dad and mom have several other Spanish words that are a usual part of their everyday conversation.
Luna’s dad is from Mexico and all of his relatives still live there. Luna has a whole set of the family who will be thrilled to see how much Spanish she has learned when they talk next. I know Gregorio speaks every Sunday on the telephone to his mother in Ensenada. Luna speaks, too, so she may have even more Spanish skill than I’m aware of.
I have to say I think it’s exceedingly cool to have my little granddaughter already demonstrating skill in English and Spanish. She says these words with no self-consciousness. They are simply more of the new words that she is learning everyday.
By the end of the visit, Luna looked at me and said, “Bye-bye, Grandma.”
Though I’m touched to finally hear, “Grandma” coming from this sweet child, I must admit I kinda liked, “Grandbaby.” However, I’m aware there could be confusion in the future if she says to her friends when she’s ten-years-old, “I’m going over to Grandbaby’s house today.”
I am happy with “Grandma.”
I am happy with just about anything this sweet girl says or does.
I guess that’s just part of being a grandmother.
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