Are We Gonna Be Friends Again

This week little Miss Haana got in some trouble at home. I got really mad at her. She got an earful. A few minutes later she came up to me and asked, "Mumma, are we gonna be friends again?". I was still very mad, and even though I was melting inside, I held on. I said, "I'm still mad at you". She shrunk away.

A bit later it was bed time. Without saying anything, I got into bed and picked up our reading book, getting ready to do our bed-time reading. She cuddled up to me and said, "Mumma, i thought we are never going to be friends again". I hugged back and said, "But Gugu! Mumma always loves you, even when I'm mad at you. Just like you love Mumma even when we have a fight!". By this time, the hugs are more intense - she's climbed over on top of me quite literally. And now her tummy is on my face! I remind her I can't possibly read with her tummy on my face. "Oh ya, I forgot", she said with a giggle.

I start reading. We are all smiles.

The Case of the Lock and Key

It's spring. Here in Texas, its also the season of bluebonnets. Fields full of flowers. Green turf taken over by purple bluebonnets, as far as the eye can see.

I had been prepping Little Miss Haana to go to the nearby bluebonnets and partake to just laying in the flowers and seeing cotton puff clouds move in the sky, while also taking a few selfies. A couple years ago when we were trying to do that, little Miss Haana pretended like the grass was coming after her, and was about to go get her! There were no good pictures or peaceful moments that year. Last year, i was just late.  I waited too long, and the bluebonnets were all gone. This year, i was determined not to let them pass!

Miss Haana and I found our favorite patch, and walked around, sat and lay in the flowers for sometime. Then, after selfie time, we headed back to the car. But there was a problem. I didn't have the keys with me.

Oops! They must have dropped out where I lay down in the flowers. But there was a field full of flowers, and we sat at several spots, all of them looking just like the others. Sun was low on the horizon and we didn't have many more minutes of daylight left. We walked back retracing our steps, eyes glued to the ground.

After several minutes little Miss Haana found the keys!!! What a relief! I thanked her for being such a great helper! We headed back to the car again. When we sat in, little Miss Haana said -"Mumma, can you get me a car?"
"Like this car? You want my car?"
"No, I want a toy car, for which i have a key, and when i turn the key the car starts. "
Now that little Miss Haana had helped find my key, she wanted a key of her own. And for that, she wanted a car to go along with the key.
"But you can get a key to lock your bicycle.", said the voice of reason!
"Really? A can have a key for my bicycle? How does that work?"
I tried explaining to her how the bicycle lock works. She liked the idea. I had her approval! Now i just need to find the lock and key.

A few days later, a cute bicycle lock with one end shaped like a red dog (his name was Biscuit) got delivered. Immediately the key chain was embellished with a key-chain tag. And then i showed little miss Haana how to lock her bicycle and how to unlock it.

Over the last few days of bike rides, every time little Miss Haana had to stop for a water break, or just for rest, the bike had to be immediately put on a stand and locked. In fact, since the garage can not be considered a truly safe place either, the bike is locked up even in the garage.

One cannot be too safe these days! I'm glad we found the right lock for little Miss Haana's key!

Easter Egg Rewards

Easter egg hunt is a serious affair at our house. Mostly for me. Remember a few years back the egg hunt had not been all that smooth? Read about it here and here. Luckily in those egg hunts the organizers had folks doling out eggs to kids who's baskets were empty, to ensure all kids leave happy -a very smart move indeed! We were saved by doled out eggs. I realized hence forth, I shall need to take such important affairs into my own hands-to ensure adequate amount of pressure has been created and that little Miss Haana has been sufficiently psyched up for such events! Certainly parenting at its best!

So, couple days before the egg hunt, in perfect parenting mode, i reminded Miss Haana what the Easter egg hunt is all about - fill the basket with many eggs as she can! Rrruunnn, jump over the hurdles (we all know who they are!), grab the eggs, secure them in the basket and runnnn again!! I repeated for good measure. She was with me!

The day of the hunt came, and little Miss Haana and I placed ourselves on the white line in the field, looking out at the field full of colorful, candy filled eggs, waiting for the hunt to begin. At 5 minutes before the hunt, little Miss Haana needed a bathroom break. I could barely believe it! But then, we turned around and ran towards the restrooms. I thought that was the end of our egg hunt. They'll probably start while we are in the restroom, and all the eggs will be gone in seconds. 'Oh well', i thought to myself. But miraculously we returned just in time, seconds before the count down for the egg hunt. Little Miss Haana's buddy Maurya joined us too.

The hunt began and all the kids were running around grabbing eggs. I followed Miss Haana with my gaze and laughed at how incredibly cute and hilarious these kids looked. Maurya's mom and I laughed enjoying ourselves in the spring sunshine. The egg hunt was a success afterall, both kids returned victorious with numerous eggs. They both sat on the grass, opening their prized eggs, fishing for candy from inside. I made a mental note to make the candy suspiciously disappear once we get home. For now, Miss Haana and Maurya ran around in the sun, there was jumping  at the bounce houses, more running around, more candy eating, ice cream, and the world's tiniest donuts (for which we were in line for a good 30 minutes). Finally, it was time to head home. All with a basket full of eggs; a sign of a very successful and rewarding egg hunt 😊. Happy Easter everyone😊.