Lost In Translation

Chloe, being one year, 23 months and 10 days old, knows a lot of words. They live in her head, waiting to surprise us with impressive verbal comprehension. Unfortunately, at this age, these words are not always able to free themselves from her brain with much clarity. Those of us who live with her are able to understand her, although to an outsider it might sound like gibberish. Example:

Chloe: MY doh doh sinny!
Me: Sure, I'll get you some Dora candy.

Sometimes, however, I find myself stumped. It's stressful for both of us when that happens, although as the mother of a daughter I am always fully aware that any shortcomings are mine, and she is not now nor has she ever been at fault. Just last night we had this conversation:


Chloe: Iwah sight gack.
Me: Huh?
C: Iwah sigh gag!
Me: You want what?
C: Sigh kag!
Me: Psychic?
C: Site gak!
Me: Sidekick?
C: (piercing shriek)
Me: Can you show me?

She took my hand and led me into the kitchen, all the while repeating her demand. I stood in front of the pantry, naming a few items, then said, "Chocolate?" to which Chloe replied with something along the lines of "Hell yeah!" I handed her a Hersey's Kiss and said, "There's your chocolate. I'm sorry it took me so long to understand you!" Immediately her face darkened and she thrust out her lips witha a "No no NO!" I panicked, realizing that I hadn't cracked the code after all. I warily made eye contact, nervous about just how much damage this setback was going to cause. She regarded me for a moment, full of contempt and pity, then gave me a sly smile, shoved the chocolate in her mouth and ran off to watch TV.