A new beginning

I had such a fun day with you today. We met my friend Starla, and her son Zander, at Vios for lunch and at first you and Zander ignored each other. Soon, however, you bonded over some serious imaginary play and after lunch we took you over to the "secret" playground where you and Zander played at running away from scary (nonexistent) bees. You bravely talked to Zander about how it felt to have him (accidentally) kick you in the face, and even when he wasn't exactly forthcoming with an apology, you were able to quickly move on and get back to the business of bees. You scrambled up rock walls and kept the bee game going as long as possible.

After the playground, we took a long rambling walk around the neighborhood, admiring the beautiful arts and crafts homes and their flower filled gardens. You and Zander went from running from bees to adopting their skills at pollinating. With slender sticks you zipped from flower to flower, picking up pollen from one and giving it to another. At the end of one block, a friendly cat approached us and Zander took chase, pinning the cat down to the ground so he could pet it. You yelled in dismay at Zander's treatment of the kitty, and admonished him to be gentle. You're such a lover and I look forward to you having a pet of your own.

We discovered a "river" of water flowing next to the sidewalk and soon you and Z were building dams. You both could have easily spent another 20 minutes or so playing in the water, but the day was getting late and we had errands to run. You regretfully said "goodbye" to Zander, and wanted to take him along with us. Starla and I made plans for the four of us to go camping some summer weekend, and I'm excited at the thought of camping out under the stars with you: snuggling in our tent at night, building a bonfire and making s'mores, playing in the river and exploring the forest. You're concerned about the bears (and secretly, so am I), but I think you'll love camping as much as I did as a young girl.

Looking forward to more days like these ahead with you...

Been so long

Many days go by when I think, "I have to be writing this down." Sasha has been growing so fast and the words and discoveries just fly out and multiply faster than I can keep up. And then I look at video from Christmas and I'm struck down with how much has changed; how little she seems and I can't wrap my head around it all.

It's not just that she's grown a few more inches or that she speaks in sentences and asks, "Why because?" It's the littlest things - the register of her voice has lowered just ever so slightly so that she sounds more like a girl than my baby girl. Six months ago she clutched a fork in her right hand while shoveling spaghetti into her mouth with her left. The way she used to dance by jumping up and down frenetically and the way she now slows down or speeds up her pace depending on the rhythm, how she sashays back and forth or closes her eyes and sways her head back and forth; the way she'll say, "This song is sad" or "I'm happy!" while she plays air drums to the beat.

There's the standard stuff: we're off the diapers almost completely, a development that seemed to just click into place one day without us looking back. She's now in her own bed (very pink) in her own room and Mommy is getting a little more sleep (or at least I'm sleeping on more than six inches of bed space now).

She says things like, "hynder" (pronounced with a long 'i' sound) when she wants to "hide under" the blankets. She's exploring emotions by labeling people, animals, and music as "happy" or "sad" or "mad" or "scared." She's not so scared of bears anymore, having made friends with all of her stuffed ones, and now her fear is more manufactured then genuine.

She's a sensitive, compassionate soul who takes words to heart and is full of hugs and kisses. Yet, there's a mischievous spark about her and she can stop you with a look. Speaking of looks, she's the Queen of mimicry. Down to vocal tone and facial tics, she can mimic a friend at school, a teacher, Jay and I. She loves to dance and drawing is in competition with reading a book for her favorite past time. Classical is emerging has a favorite genre of music - when we play it, she expresses movements that complement the music she hears and the joy of a light, buoyant piece flashes across her face.

I must capture her more on video as this is where my memory is triggered most. Seeing her move, talk, laugh - all of it changes. Into something just as wonderful, of course, but I do not want to forget how she was then. And now. And now. And now.

Already surpassing her mother's math skills

Sasha has been counting from one to ten since yesterday.

Also, lots of hugs. I've been counting those.

New Stuff

I am the perfect storm of laziness, sleep-deprived, and perfectionista - all of which has prevented me from writing here for THREE months. So, I'll keep it short and add some photos.

These last few months, Sasha has grown so much. Not just physically, but in her speech and mannerisms. The other night we were reading a book, Baby Born, that we have read many times. She pointed to a set of words on one of the pages and recited, word for word, what was written there. I know she has memorized it, and was not actually reading it, but still it amazed me. She retains so much in that brain of hers. And the sentences!

We have been struggling this week to get her to sleep in her bed ("tiny bed") at night and not ours ("big bed"). So, every night as I sit with her and work through the night time thing, she pulls out all the stops to get me to bring her into "big bed." She nearly got me last night when she said, clear as a bell, "Sasha love big bed." I was so delighted that I nearly gave in right there. Instead, I assured her that big bed loves her too, but tiny bed is so cozy and loves Sasha, too. She relented, although ended up in beloved big bed later on last night.

She really gets into mimicking facial expressions and physical movements of people. She has a favorite They Might Be Giants video called, "Robot Parade" and she likes to mimic the hand movements of the guy singing. She'll also try out different expressions while looking in the mirror. Yesterday I was holding her in the bathroom and she was crying about something (probably something I wasn't letting her do) and I saw her watching herself in the mirror. I asked her if she was watching herself cry, and she totally cracked up and then made an exaggerated crying face and then laughed again. She's a funny girl!

Here are some of my favorite photos from the last few months:

Cuddlebug, I love you.

I don't know how she does it, but Sasha gets cuter every day. The constant acquisition of vocabulary and how she pieces together the words she knows amazes me.

The night before last, she made me the happiest I've ever been, perhaps aside from the moment I heard, "Kari, look at your daughter" and saw her pink and wriggling and taking her first gulps of air. She was sitting in my lap and I was putting on her pajama bottoms. She said, "Mommy? Mommy, wuv you." The. best. moment. ever.

This morning we were in the kitchen and she was pointing to a sticker on the refrigerator ("stickuh! stickuh!"). I peeled it off and handed it to her and she exclaimed, "Coooool!" Blew my mind. I mean, my daughter now thinks some things are "cool." Parenthood really allows you to step back and appreciate the little things.

Goodbye, Summer.

Today is the first day of the season that felt like a true autumn day in Seattle. The sky went from blue to rain and back again several times and the wind shook the turning leaves off of the trees. In honor of summer's end, I thought I'd post some of my favorite photos from what was an outstanding summer.

(...this photo was taken in August)



Sasha in the garden. She really got into digging holes (and pulling the leaves off of trees).















More digging.












Looking forward to Summer 2009!

At long last

I think I've met a new record for longest time between posts. Sorry about that, although I can proudly say we've been living life to the fullest and not spending too much time (any time) writing about it.

We took a family vacation at the end of June to Westport, which is little fishing community on the coast of Washington. We went with two other families and their daughters, who are both Sasha's age. Here is a great picture of Sasha playing in the sand with Hazel, Stefanie and Mike's daughter. Sasha and Hazel were born only a few days apart.

Spending a few days with two other families was a blast. There were plenty of adults to make dinner AND watch kids AND some adults left over who could (gasp!) relax or go get donuts and coffee for the adults who were doing the heavy lifting. All this communal task sharing made me think more seriously about the benefits of communes, kibbutzes, and polygamy. Well, until I started reading Under the Banner of Heaven, that is. Rosy images of having a few co-wives around the house have forever been banished.

While none of us are headed for communal living, we did all agree that the weekend was a success and we're ready to make another go at it in several months or so. We're thinking about Whistler in the winter maybe.

Sasha continues to grow at astronomical speed. She recently had her 18 month checkup and pretty much has the body and brain of a 2 year old. Yikes! I expect her to start to slow down at some point, but until then, we're running along just trying to keep up. The girl is packed full of energy and spirit and definitely has a strong opinion about most things, as is evident here:

When she's not telling us what's what, she loves to dance and sing and her moves are getting more evolved over time. She does this fantastic little head wobble that makes me think she has a future in Bollywood. She is eclectic in her musical taste, enjoying everything from alt country to dancehall reggae to jazz to gangsta rap.

Sasha also has a friend, Nadia, who she is quite fond of. Tonight, in fact, they had their first phone conversation which consisted of, "Bdasouwlere, Nadia!" "Sasha!" "Saoeruaeldfu, bye Nadia!"

Every one of our days is peppered with the name Nadia. Sasha even calls her Daddy "Nadia" when he walks in the door. Either she is very confused or just pretty sure that one of these days it actually will be Nadia walking through the door.

Here's Sasha and Nadia a month or so ago enjoying some kind of snack.

Billie, Nadia's mom, has a video she needs to edit and post of the two girls post-bath chasing each other around the house wearing nothing but hooded towels. They are pretty darn cute together (and apart).

Sorry to make it so short after not posting for so long, but my evenings are brief these days. I'll try to do another one soon.


In the meantime, I leave you with a final image: