L. turned 2 at the end of December. She has changed a lot and grown a lot. Here is an overview on her focusing mainly on her language development (Her words and sentences are in italics).

As for her personality, she’s quite different from her big sister. She is very sociable, both with kids and adults. She likes to hug and give kisses. She is sensitive and emotional. She easily bursts into tears, however, it is easy to calm her down with a bit of cuddling. She often asks me if I’m angry or happy: – Mommy, you happy?

Likes:

• playing with cars, trains, diggers, and other vehicles
• playdough
• shapes
• riding a bouncy horse
• scribbling
• putting on shoes and boots even at home
• stealing my mobile phone and looking at the pictures or calling someone
• pasta, raw broccoli, sausages (“kolbász”)
• reading books
• watching Blippi videos
• carrying handbags around
• turning on the computer

Her favourite songs in English are:

• Hush, little baby
• Wheels on the bus
• Tractors
• I’m an excavator
• Periodic table song (Because of E.’s new craze)

Her favourite songs in Hungarian are:

• Boci-boci tarka
• Hídló végén
• Kukás autó dal (Kerekmese)
• Tavaszi szél 
• A part alatt

Her favourite books are (the list is not exhaustive) – English

• Maisy books (like Maisy’s bathtime)
• Touchy-feely books (like Halloween DK book)
• Lift the flap books (Fox’s socks by Juia Donaldson)
• Push the button books (like Incy-wincy spider or Busy vehicles)
• Books about feelings and emotions (like Sometimes I feel sunny by Gillian Shield)
• We’re going on a bear hunt

-Hungarian

• Berry and Dolly books
• Mit? Hogyan Miért? book series (like Mentőjárművek)
• Barátnőm Bori books

Dislikes:

• when I brush her teeth and she can’t do it alone (I do it)
• putting a musline square around her neck while eating
• walking up the stairs  (Pick up)
• meat (except salami and sausage)
• sleep alone

Her language abilities are amazing in both languages. As far as I can jugde objectively, her Hungarian and English are on the same level. There are words and expressions that she knows in both languages:

napkin – szalvéta

heart –  szivecske

Can I get it? – Kérem szépen.

Thank you. – Köszönöm

car – autó

potty – bili

There are some words she knows only in English:

bathroom

toilet, loo

hug

Or only in Hungarian:

baba (=doll)

Melyiket választod? (=Which one do you choose?)

Szerintem. (=I think)

She knows synonyms as well:

pants, knickers

toilet, loo

buggy, pushchair

(I can’t think of any Hungarian words at the moments)

Her 22nd month was the most outstanding concerning her language development. She started to create her very first and very own sentences. On the same day at the beginning of October she said her first sentences:

We are hungry.

We are eating.

Is it broken?

In December she was capable of saying these utterances:

I can eat the strawberry and the apple too.

What shall we do?

Where are you going? (Asking me when I’m leaving home)

Here is my boob and I can touch it (After bathtime, exploring her body)

Towards the end of last year (around November) she started to mix the 2 languages notably. Even within the same sentece. After 2-3 months she corrects herself when using a word in the wrong language. Still, she is mixing them, which is perfectly normal and quite amusing. (Here is an interesting article to read about code-switching.)

Poor grandparents, sometimes they have a really hard time to figure out what she wants to say.

When trying to crawl under our bed: – Look, Momm, I put my “fej” in (fej=head)

When Daddy was trying to hug her: Nem akarok “hug”-ni. (I don’t want to hug)

When we played hide and seek: – I will “elbúj”

She makes very interesting mistakes both grammar- and vocabulary-wise:

• Double objects: -Can I get it, tractor?
• Double possessive: – This is for mine. This is for Mommy’s.
• Wrong use of past: – Can you seed it? (Could you see it?)
• Mixing syllables: feke=kefe (brush in Hungarian)
  cesond course=second course

There are a lot of times when E. and L. play together in English.

During the night it’s not unusual to hear her talking in English in her dreams.

L. can easily make herself understood when our native nanny is around.

I’m really proud of my darling. Keep up the good work and always stay a bundle of joy! Happy 2nd birthday, Sweetheart!