Erich Speak

(I should probably just go ahead and rename this blog to "The Erich Days" since that's all I write about lately...)

To track Erich's progress in learning German (and hopefully to translate at least a little bit of his gibberish for everyone else), I've documented all of his current vocabulary. As you can see a few English words have slipped in there - 'no' being his favorite. I only wish I could include some recording of him saying these words, but this kid simply refuses to be a trained monkey. So I just wrote the phonetically spelled version of how Erich says the word, then the correct German word and the English translation in parenthesis.

1. Mama
2. Papa
3. Opa (Grandpa)
4. Oma (Grandma)
5. Mimi (other grandma)
6. Nummy: Yummy
   
7. Eye: Eier (eggs)
8. NEIN!
9. NO!
   
10. Uh-oh
    
11. Mehr (more)
    
12. Buh-bye
    
13. Oosh: Tschuss (bye)
14. Ball (same in German)
15. Baby (same)
    
16. Koo: Kuh (cow)
17. Eckie: Eklig (yucky)
18. Po (bum - he says this and "eklig" when he poos)
19. Weevee: Revie (his friend)
20. Zah: Saft (juice) or Wasser (water)... He doesn't seem to distinguish between the two but that could be because cup is "Tasse" and he's just saying that.
21. Ahssee: Kashi (as in Kashi's Heart to Heart cereal, his favorite)
22. Ooo-cow-bah: Hubschrauber (Helicopter - TONS fly over our house)
23. Duh-kah: Danke (Thank you)
24. Entee: Ente (duck)
25. Ah-pee: Affe (monkey)
26. Nana: Banana (banana)
27. Bah-dee: Bade (Bath)
28. Shauw - Schau (look)
29. Yay-gah: Jaeger (our dog, not the drink. Also his first word.)
30. doo, dee, die: (combo of one, two, three & eins, zwei, drei)
31. Auf (up)
32. Aus (out)
33. Auto (car)
34. Kop: Klopf (knocking on a door)
35. Ahn-dee: Handy (cell phone)
36. Bibi (his Aunt Rebecca)
    
37. Zee: Ziehen (pull)
38. Shoo: Schuh (shoe)
39. Bauw: Bauch (Tummy) or Baum (tree) -- Depending on what he's pointing at...
40. Neh-mo: Nemo (yes, THAT Nemo. And this is to describe every fish of every color and size, by the way.)

Just yesterday, he said: Pipi (yes, as in 'peepee'), Tiger and Erdbeere (strawberry). We'll see if they stick!

And finally, he makes these noises with the corresponding animals:
Dog: Arf
Cat: Meow
Cow: Moo
Rooster: Ar-OO-oo-ar-Aroo
Chick: Peep, peep
Pig: back of the nose snort
Bear, Tiger, Lion, Crocodile, Giraffe, Bunny, Frog: Grrrrrroaawwrrr!
(We're still trying to teach him that the last few don't actually roar. He prefers things his way.)

I was so surprised while putting this together how many words he actually says! I've been telling everyone he says a dozen but apparently I've been a stinking liar. I'm thinking now I should print out copies and pass them out to all his friends, neighbors and nursery teachers. By memorizing this list, you could probably have an entire conversation with Erich and he'd be your best friend forever.

The pressures on, though.. I'm going to have to up my studying - this kid is catching up to me quicker than I thought.