Another list

Ten Things That Barak Can Do That He Couldn't Do Last Month

1. Eat chicken soup, with a spoon. Yes, he fishes out his knaidlach pieces with his fingers first, but he eats the rest, very carefully, just like a grownup. And most of it even goes into his mouth. An excellent skill with lifelong applications, especially for Jews.

2. Insist that cereal come in a bowl, with milk and a spoon, just like his cousins'.

3. Say "please," and "thank you" when prompted (sort of).

4. Point to his head, eyes, nose, and mouth when asked, usually getting them right; say "Eye!" when pointing to his eye.

5. Answer the question "What's your name?" intelligibly and accurately.

6. Say a reasonable version of his babysitter's name (which is not easy to pronounce).

7. Play in leaf piles (okay, he could have done it last month if there had been leaf piles last month, but it is still a first that belongs in the list).

8. Say, "all done!" when he's all done, if you ask him whether or not he is, in fact, all done. However, proclamations of this kind are not necessarily reliable.

9. Put the nails in his workbench and pull them out. Repeat.

10. When asked to say "bye bye," say "bye!" with the accompaniment of a hail of theatrically blown kisses. This is a particular favorite with Abba, who has yet to receive a single cheek kiss from Barak, on account of the Dreaded Prickly Beard Factor.