Curious George Goes to the Beach

Last weekend little Miss Haana was watching a curious George episode. 

"This is George. George is a good little monkey. Always very curious...."

George and his friend, man with a yellow hat were lounging at their country house. Suddenly George wanted to go to the beach to make a sand castle. The man with a yellow hat decided it was a good idea. So they both got into a car and when to the beach, where they built sand castles and learnt about the tides.

As soon as the episode was over, little Miss Haana demanded to go to the beach! I thought it was a joke, but learnt soon enough she wasn't joking. Tried to tell her the beach is far, far away from where we are. Got out a map and showed her where we were and where the beach was; and still the little girl didn't understand why we can't go to the beach right away. Anyway, promises were made to visit a beach the next weekend.

Promises are forgotten sometimes. This one was too. Till it was Friday afternoon, I was at work and I suddenly remembered i had told her we will visit the beach this weekend. I looked up flights for standby travel, looked up and booked hotel, checked on car reservations and was all set in an hour. I picked her up from school, Daddy joined us at home and we all packed a backpack and left for the airport. Next morning we were sitting in golden sand with the ocean waves washing over us and the little girl encrusting the sand castle with sea shells! We spent our morning at the beach and took the afternoon flight back home in a short impromptu getaway! But I have to admit our sand castle was nowhere as grand as curious George's sand castle was! More internet lookups required!

The Favorite Dragon

We were getting out of our usual neighborhood bookstore hangout and I was getting ready to pay when Miss Haana's eye caught a purple dragon. "Mumma! Look! Purple Dragon!!". Soon followed by: "Mumma can I have the purple dragon!" 

I turned from the cashiers' with a big, internal "Oh nooooo!". No escape was possible now!  'How can they keep the cutest, shiniest little stuffed decoys right where they'll hook into these toddler brains'- is what I was thinking. That was until I saw the dragon. Violet dragon with shiny green wings and shiny green belly, deep pink nostrils and ears. Ohh my! This one was soo cute! And so unusual! Just one of a kind.. So beautiful and pretty and woonderfullll! ( I was saying this inside in my head). I quickly paid and we grabbed the dragon and the books and headed out. 

The little girl was holding on to the new dragon (already acclaimed as the favorite) and me holding the curious George-s, Arthur-s, Winnie-the-Pooh-s, Cat in the Hat-s and Minnie-s; captured in wonderful books in a bag. All the "other" favorites :-)

Side Effects of Reading

A new realization just dawned on me. I've been reading Miss Haana a lot of story books these days. So much so that every weekend she demands to go to the bookstore (I consider that a personal success! ;) )

While reading her the stories I love to stretch some words, sing some others, prance on still more and hop around on certain phrases till it becomes like a sing-song rhyme :) Both Miss Haana and I thoroughly enjoy this. I just hadn't realized how much I was enjoying it till today.

The little girl and I were at Walmart shopping for activity sets for her. I was super excited about all the stuff we had just picked out for her. I called up and talked to Raj and I was telling him the stuff we picked. And I was barely done when I realized I was talking like I'm reading one of her Curious George books "We're going to have sooooo much fuuuunnn!!" "We found soooo mannyyy sticckkkerssss!"! 

This realization took me back to a workplace conversation I was a part of while I was pregnant- where my coworkers were talking about how people start talking in baby-talk and how funny it sounds. I cautiously said-" I don't know, I just don't think I'm one of those baby talking types".. They both gave me a look like - we'll see about that! Oh my! I just realized I have become my own embarrassment :-)