the importance of being stacey

Random act of kindness

When life gets challenging, I have a bad habit of hemorrhaging pent up emotion in public places. I have shed many a tear in restaurants and bars with poor Ragav. Two weeks ago I met our friend Toni at Tryst in Arlington as a result of a major melt down. Last night I may have clinched Tryst as my new PDE (public display of emotion) spot.

The conversation between Ragav and I got heavy quickly.... as expected. It was a hard week. And well, I cried. We talked. I cried more. 

Despite my emotions, the barmaid's bracelet and necklace caught my eye. She explained the bracelet included patron saints and the necklace included several blessing angels with inspirational words. She further shared she is a spiritual person and she is wearing them to assist with her son who is suffering with developmental issues.

We contemplated dessert. The special dessert was a carrot cake for which the proceeds go to breast cancer. Ah, the irony. My Mom loves carrot cake and I spent the morning at Dana Farber with her learning about her impending chemotherapy for her recently diagnosed breast cancer. 

I ordered the cake to go and explained the motivation. She walked away and a rush of tears came over me, not just for my Mom, but for the angst I have fought far too long. Shortly thereafter, our barmaid, delivered the cake and presented me with one of the charms from her necklace, "I wish you and you mother the best". I was truly astounded and overwhelmed by her kindness. I called her back moments later and thanked her through my sobs, touched by her generosity and emotionally exhausted.

I am incredibly grateful for the many giving people I have in my life, especially now. But this is one of those rare, unforgettable life experiences where you connect momentarily with a stranger. Thank you to our barmaid for being the caring person I always strive to be and reminding me of the incredible value of simple gestures. 

Is it instinct?

When a child stands on a bed do they inherently recognize that jumping would be fun? 

Is there a magnetic attraction to pushing their parents' hot buttons?

Do girl genes naturally associate sparkles with beauty? 

In my estimation the answer to all three questions is affirmative.

Over the weekend, Sarita's Dadhi randomly inquired, "Does the blue lengha still fit?" Unsure of the answer and desperate for a new diversion during the storm on Sunday, we tried it on.

Even before she was presented with her reflection, she proclaimed, "I look beautiful". I had to chuckle when she asked, "Am I getting married?" Clearly she's registered our wedding photos that on the telley when we listen to music on the computer. I know I am her mom, but she really did look beautiful admiring herself as she mimicked my Bollywood dancing.

Through the looking glass

Sarita is 31 months today. That's two and a half plus one month. She's already anticipating her third birthday - she recently responded with "3" to the question, "How old are you?" You would think she was 3 with the way she speaks, but her current love of museums might lead you to believe she's older. Overtired at bedtime, she insisted, "Let's go to the museum". Chalk it up to her anticipation of tomorrow's planned adventure with her NEW nanny who joined Team Sarita on July 5th and has thoroughly impressed us in her short tenure with fantastic adventures and creative art projects. 

  

For those of you unfamiliar or unable to make out what Sarita is saying, here is a link to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts Chihuly exhibit which ends Monday. If you haven't been I highly recommend it. I suggested it to the new Nanny J today since Sarita kept bringing it up after showing her and my Mom the beautiful items last week. I just wish I could be there to witness Sarita's face and hear her exclaim, "Wow" or inquire "What's THAT?"

How lucky are we to have a 31 month old not only excited about going to an art museum, but able to articulate it as well. Let me just say "WOW"!

Splash! Jump! Whee! I did it!

It has been an exciting, milestone-filled 10 days at Sarita's house. Apparently she has taken over ownership often requesting we go home to "my house".  

A week ago Sunday Sarita started her first unattended swimming lessons. We were thrilled and gobsmacked when she started swimming on her own (with a flotation device) during class 6 of an 8 week parent-n-me session. I was surprised the instructor recommended she go it alone and enroll in the Seahorse class even after I explained, "She doesn't go to daycare so she doesn't listen very well. When you say blow bubbles she chases toys." Her response, "She just doesn't listen to you. You wait and see. She gets it; she is ready for the next level. Plus the ratio is four kids per teacher so the class is designed for kids like her." The teacher was spot on. Though Sarita told me, "Mom, you need to put on your swimsuit" as we dressed her for the first solo lesson, she had no separation anxiety whatsoever. She was just happy to be going swimming whether it was with me or with Christina with the braces. Bravo Sarita! What a relief. She even waved excitedly to Ragav and I during class, exclaiming "Look Mommy and Daddy, I am in the pool!"

Last Thursday night at the town library kids concert, Sarita finally caught air, logging milestone number two caught here on this video.

 

Prior to this, Sarita's jumping looked more like a odd skip with one stiff leg. I don't think Sarita has stopped jumping since Thursday and refers to herself as a jumping chicken. Clearly we need to review animal behaviors. Now we needs rules like "no jumping in the tub". 

And tonight, well tonight was BIG. Watch this... 

 

In addition to showing off marked improvement in her Spanish skills thanks in large part to the recent realization that I need to get on the case, this could not go undocumented. Those of you without kids are probably saying TMI, but those with know how exciting the first pee pee on the potty can be. (In case you were wondering, Ragav gets credit for the song even though this is right up my silly song alley.)

For about 5 weeks now Sarita has been sitting on the potty whilst I run the bath water hoping the sound and my encouragement would trigger her. She would dismount claiming, "I did it" to which I would respond halfheartedly, "Yes, you sat on your potty chair. Maybe next time...", knowing full well not to push it. Tonight her diaper was dry even after guzzling two full cups of milk. Feeling hopeful, I adamantly demanded, "Sit back down" when she got up too quickly. My hunch was right. HURRAH, well done! With any luck the associated excitement will lead to a repeat performance tomorrow. If nothing else she'll jump around the bathroom floor saying, "I did it".

Poor guy had no chance

From our Cape Cod vacation last month...

Sarita loves her sea creatures. When she spied a girl eating a lobster lollipop walking to the mudflats outside the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History, she was more fascinated with that than the scenery, raising the subject every two minutes. We promised, "You can have one later." I would have let it go, but "later" came when she fell off a stair whilst peering into a fish tank in the museum. I didn't even see it happen. The museum folks rushed to the scene with an ice pack for her noggin and Ragav came to the rescue with a lobster lollipop. Drama over. For Sarita anyway.

The one-sided conversation that ensued between Sarita and her lobster (that I regrettably missed due to a visit to the loo) is the highlight of this story. I was unsuccessful at creating the replay on video.

Sarita to her lobster lollipop...

Hello lobster. 

How are you?

I'm fine.

I am going to eat you now.

Goodbye. 

Poor guy had no chance.

The museum trip was a hit. Sarita looked at the birds through the bee-noculars (as she calls them). She observed shells under the magnifying glass. We all enjoyed watching the various sea creatures in the tide pool and we even managed to find the queen bee in the bee exhibit. When asked that evening what she liked best, Sarita responded with "the toadfish" (a rather ugly looking thing that caught her attention). Poor lobster was long forgotten.

An ounce of imagination + A bucket of Duplos =

Hours of fun! It's pretty amazing what you can build with a bit of thought and a variety of Duplos (a larger version of Legos for the younger set).

Here we have Ragav's "Door-a-saurus".

More dinosaurs made by Ragav, Cole and Kyle (our friends' sons, 6 and 10) on vacation.

A shark

My creations - a giraffe and a pig, lest there be any confusion.

Ragav's latest masterpieces: the airfield of 7 planes captained by a variety of animals including Tigger.

Low tech gadgets. Say cheese!

And a McMansion... Some toys really are for the parents and not the kids. Sarita is still more interested in contracting out the building work. She much prefers playing with the finished product to the process and challenges of creation. No worries. I'll take Duplos over dolls and Barbies any day of the week.

 

Do you see the resemblance?

 

When your toddler has a good imagination, your limited drawing skills really don't make a blind bit of difference; she's just happy your draw for her. Thank goodness! And she hasn't discovered scale such that she won't notice Daddy's head is just a little too small or that his sideburns are just a little exaggerated, though they have gotten a little unruly once or twice. (I am hardly one to talk sitting here wondering when I am going to find time to get my overgrown hair cut.)

Fancy pigpen

First we built a pigpen out of rocks. Then we built a pigpen out of flowers.

Sarita: It's a fancy pigpen.

Me (with a grin): Fancy pigpen is an oxymoron. Sarita can you say oxymoron?

Sarita: Oxymoron.

Later that evening

Me: Sarita, tell Dadhi what we made with the flowers outside.

Sarita: A fancy pigpen.

Me: And what is a fancy pigpen?

Sarita (matter of factly): An oxymoron.

Sarita is more interested in posing or watching videos of herself. Thus, my efforts to record her newfound vocabulary word failed, but this video still cracks me up. 

 

 

I can make it at home!

Maybe I should have called this "Our budding chef". Here you have three generations making fresh roti (Indian bread) for dinner. Yum! Someday we'll remind Sarita she used to enjoy helping. For now, we'll just enjoy her desire to learn and participate. (These two videos are only slightly different, but equally cute, plus I was too lazy to figure out how to combine them; a task for another day.)

 

 

 

(For those of you unfamiliar with the British sketch comedy Goodness Gracious Me, which pokes fun at Asian and British stereotypes, you will have missed the humour in the title. Those of you who have seen it will recall the conduce (cheap) Indian mother who won't buy certain foods... because she can "make it at home". The only video I could find is too short to do her character justice if you've never seen the show.)

Is the farm stinky?

Proof positive, "thou must be careful when making commentary" around the budding young mind of a fast approaching two and a half year old. Sure, when prompted Sarita remembers many things we saw at Drumlin Farm last weekend: 

• the turkey vultures next to the crows that say "caw, caw"
• holding the warm egg that had recently been laid
• the fancy plumes of the Polish hens
• the udders on the cows
• the piglets drinking milk from their mother's body
• and maybe even the seeds in the greenhouse

But ask Sarita what she saw at the farm is she is likely to respond with one or all of the following fixations. 

• Is the farm stinky? Is it a little bit smelly?
• Did you see the lamb peeing? Where did the pee come from?

I am guilty of planting the seed on the first one, but I only said it once and then she kept bringing it up. The second one, well that is her own childhood obsession with potty related topics, something which just seems to be instinct. Maybe smell is the next developmental focus. Sarita did shock us last weekend when we walked outside and she said, "It smells like fire." She was right, but we were gobsmacked given she experienced two fireplace fires this winter. Maybe she's harping on the smell because the night after visiting the farm I teased, "You need a bath. You stink like the farm. P-U" To which she giggled and replied, "I smell like the farm. I stink like a pig."  She's a funny one, that stinky piglet!