Laying Low

My apologies for the lack of action around here these days. I’m still here.

We’re into our new routines where Punk 1 attends a new daycare and is finally in school all day, something she’s been waiting for since she was two years old, and where Punk 2 has started Junior Kindergarten and continues to go to the daycare both Punks have been attending together. It took a little while for everyone to get used to this new arrangement, especially young Punk 2 who’s been missing going to daycare with his big sister, but we’re all good now. Having them go to different daycares makes my morning and afternoon runs a little longer and I’m not looking forward to doing this in the winter time, but all in all this is working out quite well.

We’ve been quite busy with everything, everything except our efforts as far as German goes.

Which is a bit spooky since we’re not used to that, but actually quite enjoyable when I think about it. Both kids took big steps forward in German when we first went on vacation together this past July as they had much more opportunity to hear and speak German since I was around all day long, and then again when Oma came to visit and they both spent a lot of time with her, all in German of course, since she doesn’t speak more than a few words of English. It’s hard to believe that Punk 2 really only got into German when she was here last year, and that Punk 1 used to find it exhausting having to speak German for full days. Of course they are both older now, but I think it also has become easier because we are so much more in the swing of it than we were back in the days when Punk 1 still refused to speak German and Punk 2 insisted in mixing to his heart’s content. Things always seemed to be more of a struggle back then, if only because I constantly had to justify to Punk 1 why we were speaking German. And as entertaining as Punk 2’s mixing was, at times it was also frustrating since we didn’t know how this was going to turn out. So having them speak German so effortlessly and making such big improvements so easily has been really nice to see, or rather hear.

It looks as though speaking German is so normal and maybe even natural for them now that they just do it. We haven’t had any big ups and downs for a while now, and both of them speak German to me pretty much exclusively, regardless of where we are or who else is around. Even when I find myself being polite and speaking English to them because we’re at my in-laws, for example, they look at me funny and continue speaking German with me. Good for them – I’m still working on this part of it. The only thing I’m really watching with both of them is mixing and switching as this continues to get out of hand rather quickly if I let them get away with it.

Punk 1 will now often speak English when she’s speaking to both me and The Husband – normal behavior for a bilingual, I know, yet a change for her in that she used to repeat things in the other language before. She still speaks English with Punk 2 and during self-play, but I also overheard her this morning giving herself instructions in German. She hasn’t questioned why she speaks German with me in a while now, she just does. English continues to be her strongest language, and she’s well on her way to getting used to speaking French in school. Outside of me leaving her notes every once in a while in her lunch bag, in German of course, we haven’t done anything to make sure she stays on track with her German reading and writing – so this is one thing I will pick up with her. We have talked about it and she is not opposed to it, we just have to get into some sort of routine and do it. She is also asking a lot of questions these days about German vocabulary, either English words she doesn't know in German, or German words I use that she doens't understand. This is all good, and without meaning to brag I'm quite excited about her progress. She much more so than Punk 2 has questioned our whole family language arrangement, has been unwilling to speak German at times, and struggled with using it as she noticed her German is not entirely perfect. I'm pretty much tickled pink with her right now, and hope this will last - if not get better from here on in :)

Punk 2 is still willing to speak German with just about anyone, but knows to use English when spoken to in English. He’s enjoying going to school and is beginning to ‘write’ cards and lists for himself that he then shows to us to read back to him. Unlike Punk 1, he doesn’t expect us to magically know what he’s written, but really wants to hear what he wrote and usually finds his letter combinations quite amusing (which they are, given that he’s not usually into vowels, much). The odd time he hits on a real word, but so far these have all been either names of his friends or English words.  He is more likely than Punk 1 to use German in self-play or absent-mindedly with others, but he also is much more at home in English. He’s also picking up more French from Punk 1, something that will help him next year when he starts French immersion SK. So far, I don’t recall him ever questioning me as to why we are speaking German, he just goes with the flow.

It feels really odd to say, but it appears that for the first time in a long time we can afford to relax – a bit!-  about this whole bilingualism thing. I still read mainly German books to them or translate on the fly, I set up activities with their German friends, and all that kind of thing – but speaking German seems to have become so normal now that this is just what we do, rather than something the kids, especially Punk 1, needs to be convinced is how it should be. They don't even laugh anymore when The Husband tries to speak German, they just accept it as part of it all.

So really, no news is good news!