Saturday, September 29, 2012

The Quotable Annika


Her version: 
--hibbit (aka habit)
--granilla (aka granola)
--Sadsquatch (aka Sasquatch)
--brownd, crownd, etc. (aka brown, crown, etc.)
--mai-tai (aka tie-dye)

Unique phrasing: 
--a nut of peanut butter (quantity!)
--That is the rule and the law. (very serious pronouncement about very serious things, like seatbelt-wearing)
--hotel house (where we stayed in -- or as she puts it, at -- Hawaii)
--marry with (her phrasing of to marry, or be married to)

Be careful what you say around her, because she will pick it up: 
“That is a bad man and a bad President. He made the earth dirty and he left a BIG MESS for Obama to clean up.” 
--re: My George W. Bush-with-devil-horns mug, a sort-of gag gift from a friend

August 2012


Mademoiselle bebe le sophisticate
Annika is such an interesting little person, full of questions and contrasts and prone to monologues chockablock with thoughts and information she thinks is important to share. We speak fake French to each other, she learns something new every day, she can sometimes be UNBELIEVABLY frustrating. She’s full of contradictions, like the way she’s of two minds about food. First, all she wants and all she asks for is pasta (all kinds, all preparations, except no marinara sauce). But then she also has this really adventurous cheese palate -- we often have a fruit and cheese lunch when it’s just the two of us, consisting of whatever fruit I can get plus bits of cheese I buy from the odds and ends basket at Whole Foods’s cheese counter, and the stranger the cheese, the more she likes it -- garrotxa, brie, Cotswold cheddar with chives, hard aged Gouda, manchego, whatever. It’s pretty awesome. She’s also got an unpredictable mix of independence and babyishness; she can’t brush her own hair (though she tries, and insists it’s perfect), but she’ll do stuff like dress, toss and plate salads for five all by herself, with tongs almost as long as her own arms. I think four-going-on-five is just like that, and though it’s rough roads sometimes, it’s mostly pretty awesome. 

Danger Baby
We never really babyproofed our house for Annika -- maybe it was too small to really need it (we could intercept her more easily), but it also seemed like she didn’t need it. This one, though -- OMG. He is a perpetual motion machine, with arms like a Gumby octopus, an eye for the finest scary detail, and a complete disregard for health and safety. He knocks stuff over on purpose, he bonks his head, he crams everything he finds into his mouth, he pursues stuff like cords and electrical outlets with relentless focus -- and he’s FAST. You literally cannot turn your back on him for ten seconds without danger a’happenin. It’s exhausting, and it means that unless he’ll consent to spending a little time in one of the various baby-containment devices around the house, your own productivity will hover around eight percent of normal; he won’t even sit on your hip, in the crook of your arm, while you do things with your free hand -- always twisting and turning and nearly flopping out of your arms in his struggle to be free. Diaper changes are like wrestling matches with a particularly strong little piglet, and baths ... well, go get another towel, cause the water’s all over the bathroom. Like I said: EXHAUSTING. Good thing he’s so cute and merry or there’d be Issues. 

A month of grandparents
Grandma and Grandpa were here August 1-18, and then Mamalah came on the 21st for 9 days, so August was pretty much the kids’ Favorite Month Ever. Swimming, story-reading, crafting, jewelry-sorting, swinging, playing in the sandbox, drawing, going on walks, talking talking talking -- it was heaven, as far as Annika was concerned, and Lukas always had a grownup’s attention as well, so he was a happy baby indeed. The kids are very lucky to get to spend time with their grandparents! We enjoyed the visits as well, and thanks to the babysitting, R. and I got a couple of date nights for the first time in months. There was somewhat of a letdown when it was just the four of us again -- boring old Mom and Dad aren’t nearly as much fun as Mamalah and Grandpa&Grandma. Awww! 

New baby skills for Lukas: 

  • One-finger exploring: very patient, very detailed. Right before he crams whatever it is into his mouth or chucks it away from himself. 
  • Peek-a-boo: He thinks it’s hilarious when someone does it to him (I hide behind my hair, or around a corner, or behind my hands, whatever), but it’s even funnier when he’s the one hiding. Give him a cloth of any size -- washcloth to beach towel -- and he’ll cover his face, wait for you to say “Where’s Lukas?” and then yank it away, laughing like a maniac time after time.
  • Waving bye-bye: Boy, you think this one doesn’t charm the folks out in the world ... cute as all get-out, especially with his dimple-headed two-toothed smile. 

July 2012


Lukas stands up, speaks out
On July 3, Lukas figured out how to pull himself up to standing -- and with that, his reach increased vertically, so that very little remains safe from Mr. Grabby McGrabberson. Around the same time, he graduated from random gurglings to actual vocal sounds, e.g. “muh muh muh,” much more wordlike than before, and seemed to really enjoy the sound of his own voice. Heh. 

Real live neiblings of their Uncle Sam
We didn’t have Grandma and Grandpa with us for the Fourth this year, but we did have the neighborhood parade, this time with the foresight to bring something to put the candy haul in. Lukas slept in his stroller while Annika just about went out of her mind with excitement over the floats and the candy. The theme was “Games,” so there were a lot of board games, a likely-unofficial pickup truck representing Drinking Games, etc.; the highlight for Annika was the little cheapo medal hung around her neck by a guy from the Olympic Games float. After the parade was an afternoon of swimming and grilling, then watching the illegal ordnance display by pretty much everyone in this part of the city. 

A visit to the hair salon
It had been about a year since Annika had her one and only haircut, out on the deck, and what with all the swimming this summer, the ends were a little ragged. So for a little adventure, I took her to my salon and got her a haircut and blow dry; the ladies there made a HUGE fuss over her, gave her cookies, held Lukas while I hung out with her, and made it a lot of fun all around. I think we can do the maintenance ourselves, but every once in awhile, it’ll be fun to get her a pro cut. 

A summer dance class
Just for something different to do, and because Annika loves her dance class at Harmony so much, I signed her up for a little mini-session (four classes) of beginner ballet and tap at the library/community center. We had to buy shoes for this one, so since I was planning on starting her at a real dance class in the fall, we also got a leotard and tights while we were at it. It was a pretty hilarious class -- 45 minutes, unserious, kids in all manner of dancewear -- followed by us sitting down for a doughnut and milk at the little coffee bar in the building, and it quickly became the highlight of her week. 

The Olympics begin
With the TV outside, we were ready to log some quality time watching the Olympics. We let Annika stay up for most of the opening ceremonies (and seriously regretted that the next day, ugh), then spent a lot of time out on the deck with it on in the background. She loved the swimming, quickly becoming a Michael Phelps fan, but haaaated water polo and volleyball of all kinds and kept asking for more opening ceremonies whenever they were on. She also got really into the running events, including running races around the house and across the deck and such, figuring she was just pretty much almost as fast as Usain Bolt, but “maybe a little bit not as fast because he’s a grownup.” She decided early on that silver medals were the prettiest, and that the REAL winner would get a silver medal, not a gold one.