Better

Can't believe I'm actually posting this, but as Miss Haana would say: "Here goes.."

Yesterday while picking up Miss Haana from her day-care I asked the usual stuff- Did you have fun today? Did you play with blocks? Did you play with everyone? Did you finish your food? ... Answer to each question was a repetitive yes. So I decided to shake it up a little.

I asked - Did you like playing blocks better or cars? 

Blocks.

Did you like Didi better or Kanha?

Didi.

Did you like Aunty better or Uncle? (The lady's husband was home that day).

Aunty.

Did you like Anika better or Anisha?

Anika.

Did you like duddu (milk) better or khaana( food)? 

Duddu (no surprise there).

Did you like cheese better or yogurt?

Cheese.

Did you like...

...

...

We went on and on for quite some time till I don't know why I just couldn't resist it:

Do you like Mumma better or Papa?

Papa

!!!!!!!!!!!

"Oww Guguuuuu! Mumma is sooo saaddd!!"

To which the little girl replies:

Mumma, it's okay Mumma. Are you alrite Mumma? It's okay!

:) 

Best Day Ever

Yesterday I was trying a dress I intend to wear when I'm out with my girl friends this weekend. The little girl came over and saw me. And she said- "Oh Mumma, looking nice, Mumma! Come, come to mirror". I was then walked over to the mirror where we looked at each other for some time, and she said, "Princess"!!! 

It's the best day ever!

:) :) :)

Blue Horse

Behold the blue horse!

Last night the little girl was fast asleep. Suddenly she turned and said "BLUE HORSE" and went back to sleep.

Someone has been visiting her in her dreams. I'm actually glad it's this cute thing.

Old Guitarist

I saw Picasso's old guitarist painting the other day. This one: 

http://www.theartistpablopicasso.com/pablo-picasso-painting-old-guitarist.htm

The painting is both stunning and dark; beautiful and painful; inspiring and depressing - all rolled into one.

If art is something that forces the viewer to feel, to think; then this was right on the money. The painting itself is beautiful- the figure of the old man, his guitar extremely life-like with impeccable detail. But even more remarkable is the feeling of despair, desolation and destitution the painting evokes. 

I still find the painting inspiring. In spite of the blue old man representing old age and death, in the center is his guitar- golden guitar. And with the guitar, it seems like the old man is not in this world at all. I felt like the guitar and his music freed him from all the worldly despair. And at that moment when he's playing, it didn't matter that he didn't have strength in his muscles or food in his stomach; didn't matter if he's dying in a desolate corner; it didn't matter that he was so close to death that it was hard to tell them apart- none of that mattered. At that moment he had something that freed his soul. It's a powerful sentiment - freeing one's soul. It makes me think of the blue blue sky with a lone eagle flying somewhere far far away. Of cotton puff white clouds floating around. 

What I thought was - right now we are tied up in things, life is busy and full of stuff. But there may be a day in our lives when we are old, unable or disable, old and alone and not a hope in the heart. We will be the old man at that point. And I hope- I wish- we figure out what our "guitar" is- that can lift us up, and free us, free our soul from the entrapments of this life, so even for a brief interlude nothing else would matter..

Don't Worry, Be Happy

Today when little Miss Haana was coughing pretty bad, and I turned to her and said "Mumma is sad, so sad because Gugu is coughing", she responded with " Don't worry! It's (going to be?) alright! Don't worry Mumma."

Needless to say I repeated my line several times this evening to hear her replay hers'!

Aquarium

The little girl has another viral throat infection - the third in the last 1 month. We both were in her doctors' waiting room this afternoon watching fishes in their aquarium. There were tiny little fishes- "Baby fishes", medium sized fishes- "Mumma fishes" and then there were bigger fishes- "Papa fishes".

Then I saw one of the fishes was eating those pellets from the sand. I told the little girl- "Look the fish is eating khaana (food)".

I had her attention.

Then I asked- "Is the fishy eating bread?"

"Yes".

I prodded on: "Is the fishy eating pasta?"

"Yes".

"Dos she also like rice?"

"No. Fish eating chicken!".

I laughed and silently thanked she hadn't said the fish is eating a fish (there seemed only herbivorous fishes in the aquarium - as best we could tell there was no carnage)!

Usted Habla Espaneol?

Yesterday i found myself doing a familiar excercise - once back from work, wondering what dinner to fix, I opened the pantry door and browsed for possibilities. The little girl was right by my side and she started counting the jars. Only, it wasn't the usual one-two-three-four-five..

She said un-duos-thres-qatro-cinc-sis!

From browsing the pantry, I turned around and looked at her in amazement (where did she learn that from?). She, on the other hand, miss cool cat, finished counting, turned around and moved on to other games!  

Wrong Stuff

Miss Haana is growing up fast. The signs of this are plentiful. I'm not sure I'm ready for it though.

For example - there were certain words she used to baby-talk earlier before she could pronounce them properly- 

Abigail was Agula

Another was dunder

Etc.

But I really like her mispronounced baby talk words! I'm not really to give up on dunder and Agula. But she already can pronounce both correctly. She can say much more- like "imagination"! 

Now, until I'm ready for her to really grow up, I'll just need to resort to teaching her the baby talk pronunciations instead. I'm already envisioning parent-teacher meets where I'm told to stop teaching her wrong stuff :-(

I'll take it!

Cowgirl

The little one spotted a hat when we were in a crowded market in India and we bought it for her. (She made us buy it!) 

She loves her hat. Loves to watch herself in the mirror with the hat on. Loves to take it off, put it back! But then the other day, she was wearing the hat, and she skipped up and with one hand, took the hat off and yelled "Hee-Haw"! I didn't teach her so, but Miss Haana is a cowgirl :-)

How strange is it- little kids- barely three feet tall, barely old enough to understand the things around them; and they already put things together, pick up ideas they like, make them theirs', analyze and improvise, choose what they like and have opinions! How did all this happen?! When did all this happen? And what was I doing all this time? :-)

Back

We are back. We had been travelling for almost a whole month. And even though many people gasp at "A month!!" implying such luxuries of getting to take so much time off from work and travelling at such leisure.. I must remind them- a trip back home with 18-22 hours travelling time is no fun in the park. It's a very hectic and tiring affair. Notice I did not use the word 'vacation' anywhere.

But it was Miss Haana's maiden voyage to India and first meeting with several relatives and places. 

She met her Aby bhaiya (brother) and they both though separated by some 6 years were inseparable thereafter. If Aby bhaiya is around, anyone else's presence or absence isn't really relevant! 

She met Softy Mausi (my sister), who, like me, fell totally in love with little Miss Haana. But unlike me, she thinks Miss Haana belongs to her and looks and behaves just like her- and she should be left with her for the forseeable future. 

Both sets of grand-parents doted on the little Miss Chief Guest! Ever since we've been back my mom calls up daily to ask how she's doing and how much she misses the little baby! And how I didn't spend enough time with them :-)