Check out the memory on this kid!

I have been stunned at Eva's capacity to remember details, stories, and events lately. She regularly recounts things to me that have happened months, or even a year, before with specifics, accuracy, and certain details that stuck out to her at the time - and that seem to still help her recall the tale now. This morning seems to have triggered a bunch of her specific tales, because in the last two hours she has recounted the following stories/details for me:

 - (While sitting in the dining room next to some Christmas decorations:) Look at the carved Santa momma, its carved, its wooden, its made of wood. Do you know who carved it? Jed did! And Santa is holding a birdie, he is not waving, he is holding a birdie. And he is made of wood. (This story is completed by details I gave her about a month ago when we got out our Christmas decorations, and she randomly brings it up every few days or so, almost exactly in this same order.)

- Look at baby Jesus momma, he is sleeping, but he is not inside his house, he is outside, he is in a manger. He is by the other guys, those guys rode camels. Did you know those guys rode camels? They rode camels for a long time to visit baby Jesus, they rode camels a long time. And Jesus was inside his mommy's tummy and she rode a donkey, and then he was outside her tummy, and he was born! (She pulled these facts together from various stories, books, and times looking at the nativity - today was the first telling of this particular tale.)

- Did you know we want to a museum, and there was a scary statue, and we didn't go up the stairs, and Izey didn't want to go up the stairs, and then we went on the alelater (elevator) and we saw colors and books and hats? (Recalling our trip to the Swedish American Museum about a week ago with Izey and family - she remembers him not liking a scary statue and has told many people about this, kind of with the tone of, "So don't try to go by that statue ok? Bad idea.")     

- (Walking through the dining room while we are playing something else, she says:) One time we were at a museum and it was dark, and we had to be really quiet - and look, I was there! (Here I figure out what she is talking about, as she's pointing at our Ravinia poster on the dining room wall that shows a night scape scene of an outdoor concert there.) We were really quiet, and then we heard music, and it was Peter and the Wolf music (I think this translates as classical music in her brain!), and then we sat down, and it was dark, and I was really quiet and there were stars.

- (After talking to Grammy on the phone, the story I heard was:) When Grammy and Gramps come I can ride in their van, and we can all get groceries, and Gramps can sit in the back, and momma can drive, and Grammy and daddy can sit in the back, and we can all ride in the van together, and I wear my seat belt and then I don't fall out of the van and then I don't fall and get hurt, and then I can get to make cookies and ride in the van!

- (In the office, she looks up at the bookshelf and sees my camera and says:) Momma that's your camera, and one time Josh was sleeping and I was with Izey. (I was stumped here so asked a question or two, to which she replied:) I was with Izey and Ando and we heard Josh snoring, you know, big Josh? He was sleeping and snoring and we didn't wake him up, but we were playing and you had your camera and I was at Izey's house! (This was an actual accurate story of her view of a birthday party - either Ando's or Izey's, probably at least one year ago, could have been earlier even, when we were hanging out at Danielsons and Josh snoozed on the couch a little. I was a little floored at this one!)

- And my all time most amazed memory example from this kid happened a month or two ago, when she and I drove out to a suburb to the JCPenney photo studio, which we only do once a year to get her picture taken. We drove into the parking lot, and got out of the car, and she started to ask, "Where is Kara?" (that is her Aunt in Minneapolis,) and I was confused and said something like how Kara isn't here, she lives in Minnesota remember? But we can skype her if you want later, etc. But the girl keeps asking for Kara, and says Kara is here, Kara is here, where is she? And then I remember - Kara came with us, one year ago, to pick up our portraits at this same store. We had not been there since then, and somehow, even though it was hazy in my own head, Eva connected the parking lot of this mall store to who we came with last time. Unreal to me! She also asked for Meghan once we got into the studio inside - her Auntie who came with to help her smile for the photos the past two years when she was in town. So the parking lot is associated with someone, the studio is associated with someone else, and somehow being in those surroundings pricks her memory from a year ago. Crazy!