however, with “up” it seems to be a sustained usage, and in all the right contexts — daddy, pick me up; daddy, stand up and come here; daddy, help me get in the cabinet full of empty carbohydrates.

what i don’t understand is how far we’ve come with everything else, and yet we’ve still got a vocabulary of one.

for comparison (and, in no particular order):

• she understands the concept of “cheers!” and will seek out people’s glasses to clink unprompted;
• she can gracefully dismount from our gigantic 28″ tall sleigh bed, and invariably land on her feet;
• she can climb a small step ladder, stand at the top with no hands, eat a sandwich, and descend the latter — all without falling;
• she can both climb and descend stairs, unassisted;
• she can open certain doors, and close them in our faces when she doesn’t want us to follow;
• she can grab our hands, lead us over to the refrigerator, decide what she wants to eat, and hand them to us to prepare;
• she can pause and un-pause the television, and has a clear understanding of when and why she’d want to;
• she gets upset if the cat’s food bowl is empty, pick up the bowl, march into the kitchen, and wait at the food drawer for us to refill, returning it to the proper place once it’s full;
• she will help load the washing machine, and start the cleaning cycle;
• she’ll ask to do a somersault, put her hands and head on the floor, and wait for us to roll her over to her back;

i guess she’s just been focused on other things.