| Archive for langcafe2.myfreeforum.org Come in and have your daily cup of languages! |
| André in Zuid-Afrika |
Julian's babyIf I'm not mistaken, Julian's baby is to be born soon! We should organise a stork party!! After all, he/she will be the first Langcafé baby (and probably the prettiest... 
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| André in Zuid-Afrika |
Gift from me... the DVD of a local children's series called Haas Das se Nuuskas (Rabbit Tie's News Cupboard), about a rabbit reading the news, assisted by a mouse. This is to indoctrina.... er, I mean, to introduce the little one to Afrikaa... er, I mean, languages from an early age! 
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| Elaine |
What does one bring to a stork party? Is that like a baby shower?
And now I'm curious, is there anyone here who has children (and I don't mean the pet variety) or are we all without offspring? |
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| André in Zuid-Afrika |
Yes, stork party = baby shower. |
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| Elaine |
Ah okay. My gift is a footie with the langcafé logo embroidered on it. 
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| André in Zuid-Afrika |
Ah, a babygro! Very appropriate, especially as Daddy designed the logo!!
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| Elaine |
"Babygro"? okay... 
Oh, and a matching onesie, too. 
Of course, if the baby is a girl then the footie and onesie won't be in blue. |
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| André in Zuid-Afrika |
Onesie?
Babygro... it's logical, the baby grows into it. And it stretches as the baby grows... or so they tell me....
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| Deborah |
I'll get a gift certificate for a personal trainer for the baby:
(shown: resistance training -- develops great abs) |
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| Loic |
As for me, I firmly believe that a baby needs to start early in sports in order to train his eye-hand co-ordination. What better than to start by playing cricket?
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| Uriel |
Julian created our logo? No wonder it's so slick!
I will have to dig deep into my pockets and buy the baby a euphonium, so that Daddy can recreate his most famous Photoshop experiment! |
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| KSa |
As a traditionalist I would bring one of those rattling toys which babies like more than anything else. And a cuddly bear, of course. | ||||||
| André in Zuid-Afrika |
Yep, babies must have those!! I loved my teddy bear, I wonder what happened to it?
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| Uriel |
You just had one? I had a whole roomful! | ||||||
| Deborah |
I had several cuddly toys, but never a teddy bear. My favorite was a rabbit I called Wiggletail. | ||||||
| Fredrik |
Yes, even if it is a girl, give her a teddy bear and not a doll! I HATE DOLLS! (Like Tonio Kröger, I tend to over-emphazise the solid anchor points that prevent us from falling into a feminine sea of fluctuation.) Honestly, the totemistic custom of miniature ursine companions is way more adorable than the doll business. |
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| Uriel |
I had both. Preferred the teddy bears, but liked the dolls, too. And other stuffed animals as well -- not just bears. I still have most of them!
When I was at my mom's for Christmas, two of my cousins brought four kids under 3 years old  -- you can imagine how overjoyed I was -- and I was amazed at how much crap they make for little, little kids -- way over the top crap. Lights, sounds, batteries. Annoying noises, moving parts, overstimulation for everyone in the room. Pressure-sensors built in. Somebody was forever sitting on something accidentally and making it light up or say something or go off .... 
Most of that belonged to the younger cousin, who has three of the kids. If they make it and it has an electrical hookup, she's bought it. She even had a laptop hooked up to play movies and cartoons for them. Spoiled, spoiled, spoiled little brats. Sheesh, the only things I had as a kid that lit up or made noise were a Lite-Brite and a Space Invaders game. My oldest cousin, who's not so much about the toys, had made her baby a pillow with her husband's army picture silkscreened onto it (a joke gift from her husband's unit) -- the Daddy Pillow. Supposed to remind the kid of what her father looks like while he's off in Baghdad. I don't think the kid has any idea what the picture's supposed to be, but she loved that thing -- always had his head in her mouth, chewing. (Daddy went into the washing machine a lot ....) |
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| Julian |
Thanks for the gifts, guys! They sure will come in handy. FYI, the baby isn't due for another 2 1/2 weeks, in case you were wondering.
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| Deborah |
Speaking of teddy bears, whatever happened to patriccke? 
Ah, so you're going to have a little fish, Julian! |
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| Pauline |
Here are some very nice soft toys:
  
  
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| Uriel |
Awwww ... will you be referring to it as your spawn, then? Or perhaps as a fingerling! 
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| André in Zuid-Afrika |
So it's less than two weeks now.... THINKING OF YOU AND TITA, JULIAN!!!
Post pics of the little one once it's born, will you?
Awwww, our first little baby!! Hurry up, Joanne...
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| Julian |
Wow! You sound just as excited as we are.
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| Uriel |
Julian should be changing diapers by now .... | ||||||
| Joanne |
Competitive baby-making!  Don't worry, I'll smoke alla y'alls in about four years My husband and I want at least three. There will be no bratty only-childs in this household!
Or desperately catching up on sleep...  Quick, someone shave off his eyebrow
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| Uriel |
No, no; it's Tabasco in his open mouth as he snores.... 
Hey, I was a bratty only child! Until my mom got conned into reproducing again when I was 18 ... but I was already on my way to college, so it doesn't hardly count! 
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| Joanne |
Tee hee...we're so mean! 
My mom got pregnant with my little brother (well, not so little anymore at nineteen years old) about six months after she and my stepdad stopped trying. And they had been trying for years, even before they got married. It was weird, she had gotten back on the pill, and everything! I think my dad fainted when she told him the news
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| Uriel |
My ex's brother and his wife had 2 kids and wanted one more -- and ended up having triplets. Natural triplets -- no fertility drugs. I saw him at a barbecue just after the first ultrasound confirmed it -- he was slamming beers like no tomorrow, with a terrified look in his eye, and mumbling something about "...have to get a minivan...."
Careful what you wish for, sometimes!
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| Julian |
Hello everyone! I just popped in while I had the chance, to let you all know that there's a new lady in my life who's turned my whole world upside-down.      " alt="" border="0" /> " alt="" border="0" />  But it's all good! 
Her name's Isabelle, but everyone's taken to calling her Isabella. If you're wondering why we were a little excessive in doling out the names, it's because my mother-in-law insisted that our firstborn daughter bear the name of the Blessed Virgin and, well, we compromised. Anyway, Isabella never seems to want to sleep at night, she eats alot, poops alot, and cries all the time, and when she opens her eyes she looks Chinese! Oh well, I'm in it for the long haul, I suppose.
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| André in Zuid-Afrika |
CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!
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| Uriel |
Congrats, Julian! She even looks Chinese with her eyes closed -- she'll be a beauty when she grows up! (Genevieve, huh? That's worth two or three other names by itself! )
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| Joanne |
A daughter! She's so cute!! And you're in for it, all right, especially if the girl ends up with your looks! 
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| Walker |
That's fantastic! What a cute little human being. I can't even imagine what you must be feeling! | ||||||
| Pauline |
Congratulations!!!
Isabelle is a very pretty name and she looks as a very sweet baby!!!
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| Deborah |
Awww, she's already a beauty! Congratulations to you and Tita, and have lots of fun! | ||||||
| Julian |
Thanks for the congrats, guys! And if you all don't mind, I'm going to play proud papa right now and show you a couple more pictures of the baby's first day (I can't wait to whip out the home movies on unsuspecting guests who come to visit! ):
Here she is playing peek-a-boo And here she is laughing at daddy's corny jokes
How so? It's only got 2 syllables.
It really is amazing. I look at her and think, "Oh my God ... this is a new life here -- absolutely no knowledge, no life experiences, no memories to recollect -- just a blank slate. Every experience is new to her. And I can't believe that me of all people will be one of the main persons in her life to shape and mold her beliefs, behaviors, and experiences. How scary is that?! 
But believe me, I'm still in a quasi state of shock. After 9 months of preparing and anticipating I convinced myself that I could handle having this new human being in my life, but when she finally arrived and we took her home ...  After the first few days I went into a sort of private panic and thought, "Holy shit! This is my life from now on!" But then you hold that precious little thing in your arms, and she gasps and gurgles as she sleeps, those little lungs still trying to adjust and acclimate to its new surroundings, and you just melt and all is forgiven.  [/lump in throat]
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| Deborah |
Well, you probably know enough not to make her play the accordion...
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| Julian |
Oh no no no. I will not have my daughter be a band geek! Unless, of course, that's what she wants to be. (no offense to any bandmembers, past and present, here).
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| Loic |
She's such an adorable angel, Julian! Pretty names too, although I must say people might think she's French since even her surname (Gaillard, right?) is also of French origin! | ||||||
| Elaine |
Oh, how precious! Congratulations, baby daddy!
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| Lazar |
Aw, she's such a cute baby. Good job, Julian! (And good luck with that whole parenting thing.)
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| Uriel |
You know, I just never think of men as liking babies. Weirds me out sometimes. I don't know why I have that preconception. | ||||||
| Fredrik |
Herrgott im Himmel! I just take an Easter break and someone manages to produce a whole new human being in the meantime! Congratulations, little Isabella looks like the best Easter gift ever!
If (or should I say when) you get exhausted from changing nappies and lulling her to sleep, remember that it is life in its truest, deepest meaning - the pulsating, red-blooded bourgeois life that we mavericks may ridicule, but still secretly worship with a chaste love, if you allow me to once more paraphrase Tonio Kröger. Uriel wrote:
I guess because it's a male trait to have an aversion against fluctuating stuff. And babies are very much flucuating, from their soft, not yet fully developed skeleton to their constant crapping. But just as boys around the age of 10-13 suddenly abandon their æsthetic ideal of solidity and develop an intense fascination with feminine fluctuation and curves, I guess males also at some point (at the latest when they become fathers themselves!) develop into decent humans who think babies are cute and adorable. Why I'm always so prone to synthesis...? |
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| André in Zuid-Afrika |
So how's our baby doing? | ||||||
| Julian |
Baby's doing fine, thank you. She's getting bigger each day and awfully chunky. Boy does she like eat! And she'll raise holy hell until she gets her supper. She also never sleeps whenever mommy & daddy want to sleep.  Funny how such a small and helpless creature can run your entire life.
I think she's a little tired now, so you'll have to come and visit another day. You can take a peek, just be very quiet.
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| Elaine |
What a cutie!
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| André in Zuid-Afrika |
Awwwwwww....... I want one of those!
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| Uriel |
Um, well, you're going to have to rethink some of your habits....
She's definitely not as squished-looking as she was before. It's like she's fully inflated now. |
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| André in Zuid-Afrika |
I said I want one, not make one.
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| Julian |
Isn't there a gov't agency near you that you can bribe?
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| André in Zuid-Afrika |
Nearest one is in Malawi.
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| André in Zuid-Afrika |
Actually gay people are allowed to adopt in South Africa now, but I'll need a new boyfriend first. 
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| Julian |
Re: Julian's baby
Guess who turned 1 on Saturday! André your gift must've gotten lost in the mail.
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| Walker |
Happy belated Birthday to Isabelle! 
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| Uriel |
Happy birthday, too! | ||||||
| Deborah |
Will you post a picture, Julian? | ||||||
| Walker |
Click on the word 'who' in Julian's post!
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| Tiffany |
Auguri!!! Is she hapa Julian? | ||||||
| Julian |
She's what Filipinos would call mestiza. I prefer halo-halo.
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| Tiffany |
I would tell you to stop arguing semantics, but this is a language site! Lei è bellissima, whatever she is
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| Uriel |
Filipinos use hapa, too? I always thought it was just a Hawaiian thing, as in hapa haole = half white. (Of course, I haven't heard that term since I was a teenager, so what do I know!) | ||||||
| Deborah |
Very pretty! | ||||||
| André in Zuid-Afrika |
Re: Julian's baby
Whaaa....ttt? SHe's one already!!??  How long have we been doing this? Good grief, had it been that long?
Awwww, but she's so pretty!!
(Damned South African postal service... )
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| Tiffany |
Um, it's kind of been appropriated by people outside of the API (asian pacific islander) group. It's not 100% correct and some of the API group denounce its use by others, but really, no language or one group of people own exclusive rights to a word, so... Other words that also well-known and used are eurasian/blasian/amerasian, mestizo/a, haafu and simply mixed. Biracial is not used much since it seems to have been appropriated by the black community for use with mixed children with black ancestry, but it could be used. And that's our lesson for the day! |
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| Deborah |
Pardon me for going off on a tangent, but are the terms triracial, quadriracial, etc., used? |
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| Elaine |
¡Ay, qué bonita! What pretty eyes she has.
I have never heard those terms, but I guess if one wants to use those terms they most certainly can. I would just say multiracial and call it a day.
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| Tiffany |
What Elaine said :) | ||||||
| Uriel |
I can't help but remember the Scrubs episode where Carta berated Turk for A) being utterly unable to ever remember her ethnicity (Dominican), and B) calling their baby a "blaxican".
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