Pajama Party

We had a landmark day this weekend. Last week when Miss Haana went to her gymnastics class, she came back with a news. They're going to have a pajama party at the gymnastics place this Saturday. They had raffles and prizes (including a secret spy kit), and gymnastics all evening. What would be not to love about that!!

The following week i heard the wish list (to go to the pajama party) on repeat mode, several times. Little Miss Haana has been to pajama parties before, but that's either at our place or at a friend's place where we (parents) are there too. I wasn't sure I had reached a place where i can let her go to a party all by her 6-year-old-self! More repeat cycles of how she excited she was about the party played during the week. Including a reminder that the raffle prizes included the secret spy kit, which she was definately going to win!

Finally, i made some calls. We weren't going to be sending her to the party alone. So i arranged for her best friend Rushil and her to go to the pajama party together. They were both stoked! Us parents were looking forward to an evening dinner with grown up conversation unpeppered with kids.

On Saturday, kids brimming with excitement, were dropped off at the gym. We were a little shaky leaving her there, but this gym is a known territory for her and for us. And they had our phone number in case anything comes up. We adults went over for a dinner with some real conversation. Towards the end of the dinner, though, we were eager to pick up the kids. Are they sleepy? Are they tired? Did they have fun? Was it too much?

I was expecting when we pick them up, they'll be terribly disappointed to see us. Turns out, i was spot on. Rushil wanted Miss Haana to come over to his place from the gym, for a play-date, and was heartbroken when he was told that wasn't happening  (at 930pm). Miss Haana was in a line to get a nail paint in 1 finger nail, and was heartbroken when she saw us, thinking we will pull her out of the line when she was so close to getting that blue nail paint. We waited till the snail-paced line moved so the little girl could her nail painted and almost her heart's content.

Driving back home in the car, we were told, remember that secret spy kit in the raffle prizes? She didn't win it! Another kid got it. Oh! The secret spy kit was amazing. I got my hint and took to some internet shopping. Meanwhile i was wondering if the pajama party sans parents may be the beginning of a disturbing trend. I have to say, I'm not ready for it just yet.

Gummy Bears in Child Lock

Food is a touchy topic. It just has always been so.

These days if Miss Haana doesn't want to eat what's for dinner I tell her to go upstairs and sit quietly alone while we finish our dinner. If she wants to do anything else she needs to finish her food first. 

Yesterday when I said that, the little bitty girl decided to go and sit upstairs instead. Usually she starts to go upstairs but then hangs around on the stairs and sulks. But this day she went upstairs without a fuss. In a few minutes she came back with the new bottle of gummy bear multivitamins, and asked me to open it and give her one. I reiterated my rules, if she wants to eat or drink anything she needs to eat her dinner first. In a few seconds she vanished upstairs again. I didn't hear from her or see her around for the next couple minutes. Then I got curious. What's going on?

I decided to find out, so I quietly climbed up the stairs. Still no sign of her. No noises. I went inside the bedroom, and found her sitting with her back towards the door. I stood in the doorway to watch what she was up to. Little Miss Haana had the bottle of gummy bear multivitamins in her hands and was diligently trying to open the bottle to help herself to the goodies. She kept on twisting the cap, it kept on rotating without opening. It had a child lock on the bottle. After watching her intently at work for several seconds and nowhere close to giving up, I entered the room. 

She looked up at me and have me a beseeching look. I told her- Gugu, this bottle has been made by people who knew little kids very, very well. They knew when mummies tell little kids not to have gummy bears, sometimes the little kids don't listen and instead try to open the bottle themselves to eat all the gummy bears. So, they made a bottle that only mummies can open and little kids can't. Little Miss Haana replied in earnest. "No, no, I'm not going to eat the whole bottle. I'm only going to eat one. That's all. Only one." 

Her earnestness did win her that gummy bear. And with dollops of patience she finished dinner too.

No You're Not Done

Today while having dinner I didn't have much of an appetite. I hadn't finished my plate but I was full and said- I am done.

Miss Haana's response:

No you're not done. Because you have tofinish your food. Because to be big and strong. Because how to be a big girl? Because you're not done yet! Take your fork and eat Mumma!

I had heard this was going to happen (when the little girl teaches me things) I just didn't know it would happen this fast!

Oh No

We've entered another exciting phase.
My little baby Suhaana can now say 2 to 3 words together- sometimes on cue, sometimes impromptu.

I'm not entirely sure when it started, bug I noticed last week.. She was calling herself "Good girl". Today when she wanted a cup of water, she demanded "water cup".

But the funniest came when I was trying to give her her dinner and she was less than enthusiastic about it, and she looked away from me in dismay and said "Oh no, food!!"!! I laughed for several minutes after!

I'm told my troubles are just beginning..

All by Herself

This day should go down in history as the day my little girl actually had (and finished) her dinner (which mostly ended up in her tummy and not the floor) ALL BY HERSELF!

Yes. Just today over lunch I was lamenting to my friend what has come over my little baby- lately she's gotten whiff of this terrible thing called independence. All parents would agree. I would want to give a good 'talking-to' to the person who first introduced the concept (sorry Ayn Rand - I've loved you all my pre-Suhaana years, but looks like we might need to take a break!) - especially to my little baby. But it's possible she just stumbled upon it all by herself ( I looked for a scapegoat and didn't find one).

So in this new spirit of independence, she was intent upon feeding herself last couple weeks. Which translated itself into- we place the girl on high chair, put food on her plate. She proceeds to prod it with her fingers, smash it between her palms, rotate it all over the plate, smoother it out on the food tray, take it to her mouth (we're watching in foolish hope and excitement at this point), then very soon, spits it out with her tongue, picks it up again, smashed it some more with her fingers. Puts it back on the tray, then picks it up. Finally, coolly tosses it out of the tray on to the floor! It was diving me crazy!!

So anyone would appreciate what happened today. Fearing the worst, a bowl of rice and grilled fish was presented on the tray to her. First, she coolly picked up the Cod and segregated it on the side. That was the end of the fish. Then, using her spoon proceeded to feed herself the wild rice one spoonful at a time! I could barely believe myself. And did not even react till she was finished so I don't jinx myself!

Only after she was done and I picked her up that I told Raj what a wonderful baby I've gotten.. My absolute, hands-down, no-question-about-it best mama's baby in the whole world!

I've been lucky, but that can only take you so far. Suhaana has now learnt the no word. And she uses it aplenty! But the best part is, even when she says no to the things I rather she said yes to, I can't help but laugh out loud. Let me explain:

Mom: Suhaana do you want to have dinner?
Suhaana: (Shaking her head in negation) No (Short, definitive)
Mom: Suhaana, do you want duddu (Baby talk for 'Milk')?
Suhaana: (Eyes are gleaming with naughtiness now. Again shaking her head.) Nooo (The no is getting longer)
Mom: Suhaana, do you want mammam (baby talk for 'water')?
Suhaana: (Smiling now - Mom has played this game before. Twitching her nose now - who would want to have water!) Nooooo.
Mom: Suhaana, do you want a diaper change?
Suhaana: Noo.ooooo.oooooooo.. (Same long sing-song as "Miaaaooowww")
Suhaana: (Giggling at the shared joke)
Mom: (Laughing out loud, makes an attempt to catch the little girl into a big hug and sloppy kisses. Little girl knew what was coming and scuttles away beyond arms' length).
Smart kitten!

Nothing sets you straight like a child.

Suhaana is now in the phase where she likes to try to repeat things that we say and do. This is quite exciting when we see her struggling to enunciate words like "pa-ca" (peacock), "phfffissh" (fish), and "totle" (turtle). And then there are those that she's already mastered like wow, hello, hi, ba-bye, ball, bear etc.

But it also means I need to watch what I'm saying. A couple of time last week when I turned to Suhaana I found her in the middle of some naughtiness. In both surprise and humor, and in a bid to immediately put an end to the illegal activity (like putting her sock into the oatmeal bowl, then trying to put her leg into the oatmean bowl. Or the other time when she was trying her bath time crayons on the bed sheet.) I called out "eyy" (like a 'hey' but with h silent) and soon enough, she repeated after me "Eii". As soon as she'd said it I realized that's not a very nice way of asking someone not to do something.

I did this a couple time last week. Both times Suhaana repeated after me filling me with realization and regret. But since then- nothing. I'm cured as it were. Now for bigger battles of keeping cool when her dinner is taking too long and getting too frustating - we're still working in that one!