Green Eggs and Ham

Mia adores Dr. Seuss. This was one thing when we had those 20-page board books like Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb and The Foot Book. Now she has graduated to the full-length Green Eggs & Ham, Hop On Pop, and The Cat In The Hat. We've actually had to start our bedtime preparations a bit earlier to account for the additional reading time - lately, she wants us to read both Green Eggs and Cat In The Hat. Besides being looooong, these aren't exactly the best books for winding down before bedtime.
As we read GE&H, Mia announces "He doesn't want it!" about every third page. I admit I have tried to use this as an opportunity to talk to Mia about (1) the importance of being a good listener, and (2) trying new foods. So far, Mia shows no interest in these larger messages.
During the day, Mia delights in "reading" the books herself. She flips through the pages and can remember a good percentage of the words on each page.
At any time of the day, she might begin spontaneously reciting excerpts. Yesterday, we were checking out at the supermarket when she looked quite seriously at the cashier and said "Dad had a bad day. Bad day Dad had." I quickly explained to the puzzled cashier, "It's a line from Hop On Pop. Remember? 'Dad had a very bad day? What a day Dad had?' Dr. Seuss?" Fortunately, Jeff wasn't with us, so he could not be embarrassed by my apparent need to explain.

Welcome!

(We've been reading a lot of Dr. Seuss around here lately.)

You did it! You made it!
You're most welcome here.
We're happy to have you,
Oh reader, my dear.

Graduation Day

Today was graduation day at preschool. Though Mia's class wasn't really graduating, they performed at the ceremony. They were dressed up in cute t-shirts and "duck" caps. Mia's cap was nowhere to be seen, I assume because she refused to wear it. (We have a drawer full of sunhats at home - acquired before I realized our gal's distaste for headwear.) They sang If You're Happy and You Know It. Mia wasn't exactly keeping up with the hand motions - after all, she is the youngest in her class by 6 to 11 months. Still, I thought she was so adorable, it brought me to tears. (At events like that, it doesn't take much to bring me to tears.) The highlight of the ceremony was the graduating students processing into the room in white caps and gowns, to the tune of Pomp and Circumstance. I'm guessing there weren't too many dry eyes in the room. I myself was fumbling through my pocketbook for more tissues. They closed with a blessing, thanking God for the school and teachers and most of all the children. It was one of those moments when all was right with the world and the future was full of promise.


A few days ago, a babysitter found Dr. Suess's The Places You'll Go on our bookshelf, among several other hand-me-down books that have yet to be opened. While I was familiar with the title, I don't think I'd ever actually read the book, even in my own childhood. I overheard the babysitter reading it to Mia and was really touched by the message. While Mia's latest go-to book is Green Eggs & Ham, I plan to work The Places You'll Go into the rotation.


Note to Mia - On this day, I am full of love for you and I'm imagining all the places you'll go. School, college, France, China... The world is a wonderful place to explore and I can't wait to explore it anew, through your eyes.

Grammy's Here!

Mia's paternal grandmother arrived yesterday and Mia is more than ecstatic about it. Grammy arrived during Mia's nap, and when Mia awakened, Grammy was right there. Jeff reports that Mia jumped up and tried to kiss Grammy right through the walls of her crib tent. You'd never guess Mia hadn't seen her Grammy since Christmas.
Mia is wild about her Grammy. She was bouncing off the walls last night, and why not? With Grammy in the mix, Mia has 3 adults watching her every move, reading to her, and generally doing her bidding. Another go-round of "Ring Aroung the Rosie"? No problem!
An incident this morning reminded me that I can learn something from Grammy, who parented three children and grandparented four more before Mia showed up. We had spent some time at a nearby shopping mall. As we headed back to the car after lunch, Mia wasn't being too cooperative. First, she demanded that I carry her the rest of the way, which wasn't too feasible given the sheer size of the mail. Barring that, she wanted to walk on her own, no hand-holding allowed. If you could call it walking. Mia ran zig-zag down the corridor, touching the plants in a planter one minute, zipping away to climb on a bench the next. Just as I'd catch up to her, she'd be off to her next conquest. (We'd astutely taken the elevator down to the lowest level of the mall, so at least I didn't have to worry about her jumping over any railings.) I finally stopped Mia and sat down on the floor, winding up to give her a talking-to about running in the mall. That's when Grammy had a bright idea. She asked Mia to help her carry the diaper bag. Grammy could hold one handle, Mia the other. It worked quite well, really. Maybe I'll patent it. "Hand-holding, twice removed." As we slowly made our way to the exit, I was reminded that my parenting book suggests that redirection is more effective than confrontation. Obviously, Grammy learned this lesson long ago.
We love having you here, Grammy!

Celebrating a New Life

Today we are sharing in the joy of a wonderful event. Mia's playmate and her family are in Guangzhou to adopt a new big sister. The new big sister (by all of 6 months) looks wonderful in the photos and the two girls look adorable together. By the end of the month, our Saturday play date will be a threesome!
Seeing pictures of their Gotcha Day brings back so many happy memories of the day they first put Mia in our arms. We wish our friends every happiness as they learn to become a family.

Independence Day

Oh, Mia, you are growing up so fast.
It started on the playground a couple of weeks ago. Your Daddy offered his hand as you walked across the 'mushrooms', those elevated stepping stones that up until now have been a bit too far apart for you to navigate comfortably. "Wanna do it myself!" you said as you pulled your hand away from Daddy's.
Your desire to be independent is spreading faster than a melting ice cube. You say "Do it myself!" a lot now. Last night before bed, we were rocking in the green chair and you requested your current favorite book, The Napping House. But then when I started to read it, you said, "Mom can't say it." I didn't mind, because then you took the book from me and read it to me. When I tried to do "Round and round the garden" on your foot, you said you wanted to do it. My favorite moment of all was when I asked you (as I do most nights) if you wanted to hear the story about when you were born in China. You said yes, but then for the very first time you started telling the story, in your own words.
We're proud of your fierce desire to be independent. You aren't our baby anymore, you are our little girl. An amazing little girl.

The Big Girl Bed

You may recall that her crib has a tent-like cover to keep her inside-- otherwise we would have been forced to move her to a big girl bed a long time ago. Mia is getting so big now (37 inches, 35.6 lbs) that I have trouble getting her in and out of her crib if she doesn't want to cooperate. Which is a significant percentage of the time. We tried out the big girl bed for a couple of days. Mia liked it a lot, as you can see in the photo, but the problem is that she will not stay in it. The side rails aren't enough to restrain her, no way. So after 2-3 days of playing, "Get back in bed, honey, or you will have to sleep in the crib", we went back to the crib. Maybe in a couple of months we can try again.

Parenting Lessons

I'm beginning to think that learning to parent is like learning to ski. You can take lessons to get some of the basics, but at a certain point the instructor says, "No more lessons for now -- you need to put on some mileage." Meaning you can't learn to ski only by taking lessons, you have to actually get out there on the slopes with all the snowboarders whizzing by you. Sure, you can start small on a bunny hill and get your confidence up. I stayed on the bunny hill a lot longer than I needed to, because I like skiing to be easy and fun, not fast and terrifying. (And then there was the day I accidentally got on a black diamond trail...) Is there a bunny hill for parenting?
Being a stay-at-home mom for the moment, I'm getting a lot more time with Mia, and I can see my parenting skills really improving. I spend about 15 minutes per night in a "lesson", i.e., reading my new favorite parenting book, Becoming The Parent You Want To Be. It has taken a while, but I'm getting the hang of parenting in the way the authors suggest. Mia still has her episodes, but I find I am better able to stay calm and problem-solve in the moment. Jeff has noticed the difference and wants to read the book.

Mothers Day at School

Yesterday they had "Parent's Day" at school. The children had made muffins and fruit and little gifts for Mothers Day and Fathers Day. The teachers gave each of us a personalized "yearbook" containing facts and photos about our child's school year. Thanks to the teachers, I now know that:
Mia is 37 inches tall (I've been meaning to measure her).
They describe her as "Energetic, curious, and helpful." (The first two I knew about. Helpful I wouldn't have guessed, but the teachers assure me she is really helpful at school, e.g., running to get a clean diaper when a child needs to be changed.)
Her favorite indoor activities are kitchen (yup) and dress-up (really?)
Her favorite outdoor activities are swings (yup) and playhouse (No surprise there - I have to practically drag her out of there when I pick her up each afternoon)

They also included some of Mia's artwork. What do you think of Mia's family portrait?

The Carousel

Mia's dentist has the coolest antique carousel. Said carousel resides on a covered patio next to the dental office, and the hygiene room (which has half a dozen child-size dental chairs in it) has windows so the children can see it while getting their teeth cleaned. The carousel lies still 363 days a year. Twice a year, the entire office staff comes out on a Saturday morning and all the patients are invited to come for a ride, parents in tow. It is quite a festive occasion, with balloons and a face-painting clown. (As always, we kept Mia a safe distance from the clown.) The ride itself lasts about 5 minutes and when you are done, you can get back in the very short line and ride again if you like. The staff tells us the idea is to provide the children with pleasant associations about going to the dentist.

This was the second time we've taken Mia to the carousel, and she was considerably more comfortable this time around (no pun intended). After we rode the carousel a few times, we took Mia into the office and let her sit in the brightly-colored hygiene chairs.