Is it a fluke that our daughter can say “Apple” better than some 5-year-olds? Perhaps not.

We can’t say for sure she’s an Apple fanatic, but she sure knows her way around an iPad. In case you’re not familiar with the fierce brand loyalty that Apple fans have, trust me, it’s impressive. In fact, a recent study claims that “Apple [stimulates] the same parts of the brain as religious imagery does in people of faith.” Wow.

We’ll keep an eye on Zoe for signs of fanaticism, but in the meantime, we’ll just be happy that a) she likes to play and learn on the iPad and b) that she CAN! Most recently she’s fallen in love with Peekaboo Barn, an iPad app with a “bouncing barn” that when you click it shows an animal, who makes its sound, and then a voice tells you the animal name while showing the word to you in writing. For a foreign language education grad (that’s me), I think it’s brilliant. REALLY simple graphics, super simple functionality – oh, and it will tell/show in spanish, too. I’m in heaven.

Next up, Peekaboo Wild, a safari adventure with wild animals that appear when you touch the shaking grass that covers them. Fantastic. So if you are a parent of a small child, and you have an iPad or iPhone, I highly recommend these apps. They’re great for on the go or around the house – and they actually teach something. Yes, I’m a nerd.

Such a nerd that when we went to a local bakery to explore cake options for Zoe’s first birthday, the lady asked me ‘what cartoon characters does she like” and showed me fairies and princesses and Dora and Elmo. And seriously, other than the Timmy Time (which teaches making good choices, I suppose, though the animals interact in animal noises not words – my husband picked that one) and a random Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (which she mostly likes for the intro song), Zoe really only watches Baby Signing Time.  Nerds. And so, we nerds had an owl cake for her birthday.

Anyway, seems to be paying off. My “I can barely speak English in a way that others understand” husband does an AMAZING job of explaining things to Zoe, and I swear she understands (mostly). It maybe took him twice to teach her to take the iPhone off lock, and clearly, that one stuck. Psychology, I guess (there is definitely something she wants on the other side of that lock screen…)

We’ll keep you posted, but I’m afraid this little girl is going to outsmart us, literally.