Poor, Neglected

Sybille.
 
Yes, Sybille is our third child.  This is why you haven't been getting the play-by-play, daily updates of her progress.  Here is where I attempt to make amends.  Because Sybille is growing and changing so quickly that I can hardly keep up with her.  Just today, she said the word book (she is her Papa's little girl!).  The biggest novelty was not so much that she said it as that it was distinguishable from the word ball.  Beu, as opposed to Ba.  She has used both those words repeatedly, often coupled with her own way of saying, "READ IT!", which sounds like da-da.  Also, today, she said "I love you."  I'd give you the phonetic transcription, except that I can't remember.  It had three syllables, and was accompanied by her throwing her arms around my neck.  It made my day.  Along with the traditional Papa and Mama (that she says Mamo), she also says Pongo, our cat's name: Ba-bo.  In fact, every cat she sees gets called Ba-bo.  Her new trick
is alerting me to a ringing phone by saying Ay-o and holding her hand up to her ear.  She will also say either Ba or O-Ah ("Bye" or "Au revoir") when taking leave of someone.
 
She still takes her beloved Jack with her most places.  She says his name, too, now.  He's starting to take on a life of his own, often eating food out of books, with much lip-smacking, or kissing animals or characters in books.  This is very noisy, as well.  She isn't completely fooled by the fact that there are two Jacks.  One has bigger eyes than the other, and she is always quick to point this out to me whenever she's given the big-eyed one.
 
Sybille is our little clown.  She has this way of cocking her head to one side, scrunching up one eye, and grinning that makes you realize that she's sharing a great joke with you.  She has no fear.  I recently took the girls to the swimming pool.  I have memories of Alina at the same age clinging to me with both arms and both legs, but Sybille had no problem laying out flat on the water and letting me trail her around just holding her hands.  She loved it!  In our little wading pool at home, she's actually slipped and gone under a couple of times.  She just shakes herself off, wipes her eyes, and continues right on playing.
 
She's becoming a Papa's girl.  Yesterday, she cried when he left the house with Tassia, and then insisted on being taken on the walk he took later.
 
She tries to do everything her big sisters do.  The scary thing is, she often succeeds!