Using real words

I read a lot.  These days it's mostly articles online about anything that seems interesting at the moment.  Because I have acquired a second language, I read a lot about bilingualism.  Unfortunately, there's not a lot of stuff about adults who acquire their second language in what I would consider "a natural way."  I mean, I studied Spanish before moving to Guatemala, but I would say that a good 95% of my language ability was acquired in much the way that a child acquires their first language.  So, I read a lot about how kids acquire language and ways to help them acquire it faster.  One of the tips I've seen is to use real words.  You don't say, "Do you see the moo?"  Instead, you say "Do you see the cow?"  Yeah, sure....cows go "moo," but you can't see a sound. (Okay...not typically at least; let's not discuss how sounds can be translated as sound waves, and even so, you're not seeing the sounds, just a linear representation of it.)

So, I'm sitting here today, doing mending, and thinking it's a good thing I don't have kids yet.  I just asked myself, "Where is my snip-snip?"  Yes, I was looking for my scissors.