38 months.

maya @ 38 months :: january 4, 2009

• two of her new favorite sayings, both of which we are trying to expel from her vocabulary :: yada (no, i don't want to, uh-uh in japanese) + dumdum (from lovely spongebob square pants)
• her potty training is regressing a bit. when she's distracted with playtime or eating she just goes.
• trial day at preschool went fairly well, but we were there so i'm not sure how it will go on her actual first day. she, of course, hogged the sink before snack time, just leisurely rinsing her hands while all the other kids waited patiently. she also cut in line to wash her hands. i'm also concerned that she's not going to pull up her pants very well (she tries to pull up her panties and pants at the same time, and then her panties get all bunched up). i'm also worried that her jap-lish (japanese-english) will confuse the teachers. well, there's lots to worry about but there's no sense in getting too worked up until actual problems arise, i guess.
• still confused about hanukkah :: she wanted to blow out the menorah candles and she was really much more about the ho-ho-ho (i.e., santa).
• she likes to go on trike rides around the block with rupert.
• when you come into our house you are basically entering whiny-town. the whining has gotten worse lately; or maybe it's because we've all been home lately and we're getting on each other's nerves.
• her favorite new dessert :: one marshmallow after dinner
• she seemed to like the smurfs and the gummi bears cartoons, both rented from netflix
• she's taken a great liking to ian's new stuffed penguin, fluffy. there have been some tiffs about who gets to sleep with fluffy each night ("ian not need to sleep with fluffy!"), but ian has been very generous in allowing maya to play with fluffy ... as long as she doesn't hide fluffy in the kitchen cabinet again.

37 months.

maya @ 37th months :: december 4, 2008

• confused the show "pushing daisies" with literally pushing her stuffed duck daisy.

• when she doesn't want to walk anymore we hear a lot of "my leg broken" and "so much walking"

• wanna get her to do something? tell her dr. burgett wants her to behave :: "my doctor said?"

• actually unchi-ing on her own (sans miralax) almost everyday. hallelujah!

• when she wants to show you something, she requests that you "close your eye ... open your eye!" i always find it funny that she uses the singular.

• starting to do some "chores" :: wanting to help in the kitchen, using the handheld vacuum.

• favorite movie :: the nightmare before christmas (she loves jack)

• rupert instituted a rewards jar with skittles in it but, to be honest, it wasn't very well-thought out so it hasn't been particularly effective. we're going to have to come up with something better.

happy birthday to my little girl

it's kind of weird to think that this little being has been in our family for three years. it seems like the longest and shortest three years of my life. no doubt she challenges my patience and often brings the worst out of me, but it's true that she's also made me appreciate the job of parent so much more and i've become more introspective because of her.

i love her (even when i want to strangle her!) and am so looking forward to watching her grow up into a little lady (hopefully a more cooperative little lady).

happy birthday, maya!

36 months.

maya @ 36 months :: november 4, 2008

• rupert taught her how to play candyland (actually following the rules) and she, of course, was two-for-two the first time they played.
• she's unchi-ing on her own a bit (harder unchi = uncomfortable unchi) but we still need the miralax.
• she exclaimed "dude!" and smacked herself in the forehead in frustration while playing the tightrope walking on wii fit.
• loves halloween :: every single time we pass a house with halloween decorations she yells, "halloween! halloween!". she even insisted, "halloween!" when we stopped at a light next to a derelict house.
• really enjoyed trick-or-treating and getting candy; the costume not so much. we told her she couldn't get candy unless she wore her costume. as for trick-or-treating, we practiced beforehand what she had to say and she was pretty courageous about going up to scary-looking houses.
• we're hearing a lot of "i not tired! i really not tired!" around naptime and bedtime, but she really still needs a nap ... i need her to nap!
• i am blessed that my pta/mom friends are so generous with maya; they help me take care of her and don't mind when i bring her to pta stuff.
• she enjoyed watching the new indiana jones and iron man movies. she can even identify robert downey jr. as iron man.
• likes to be the little mermaid :: when her hair's wet she says, "little mermaid hair" and she was insistent that i acknowledge she was like the little mermaid when she put chapstick on her lips (i didn't quite understand that, but whatever).
• finally starting to understand how the green lights + red lights work (which light to look at when we're waiting to cross the street).
• she insists that i dakko her (pick her up) when we talk about going to her grandma's house because, "lucy lick me. lucy lick my face. i not like it." (lucy is my in-laws' dog)
• interested in words and getting it that letters together make words that can be read.
• really psyched about her birthday. she's been talking about it a lot without really knowing when her birthday is ... or how old she's going to be, for that matter. well, i guess we can work on that!
• this has been going on for awhile, but she likes to use the pepper grinder and sprinkle a pinch of salt from the salt cellear to her eggs.

35 months.

maya @ 35 months :: october 4, 2008

• at the beginning of the month, her diaper was not fitting right for some reason (i.e., her pee leaked frequently). at first we thought it was because we got some huggies (we usually use pampers), then we thought it was because her pampers were too small, but now that we've switched to bigger pampers and it's still happening, we're stumped. --> duh, she's just peeing more!
• likes to make herself dizzy by twirling around, running in circles, or spinning on her butt
• favorite movie :: harry potter (usually "harry potter and the sorcerer's stone")
• favorite game :: wii fit ski jump
• favorite animal :: elephants
• we made her cry when we told her not to eat her boogers because it's gross
• she can wash her hands by herself. she even drags the stool over to the light switch to turn the light on and off.
• back to playing with her friend julia, but now i have to swing by ian's old school (after dropping him off at his current grades 3-5 school) so she can have her mini-playdate each morning.
• i cannot seem to get rid of the fruit flies in our kitchen, and when maya sees them she says, "bug :: squish it!" as she claps her hands together.
• collecting rose petals in her basket purse, ziploc bags, and spongebob tin.
• hiding her hands behind her back when she's taken something or has something that she shouldn't have.
• after some playdates with more potty-trained friends she's been going to the bathroom more consistently :: "i NEED to go peepee!!"
• climbing into her crib (swings her legs over the front if it's lowered).
• likes to use colored pencils :: the other day she was "drawing" colorful lines on a piece of paper and when rupert asked her what she was drawing she replied they were all "mad people."
• got a hand-me-down (3-wheeled) scooter from our next door neighbors. she's really cute in her doggy helmet, kicking along the sidewalk ... until she runs into something.
• the dreaded "why?"s have begun.
• she's beginning to express fear more frequently :: "i scared" and she hugs herself. she's been sleeping fine in her room without a nightlight but now she occasionally complains about the dark. (ian having just recently stopped using a nightlight we are trying very hard not to get her to use one.)
• a clear sign that we need to cut down on the tv-watching :: "i like this commercial!"
• breaking bones and choking ... and she thinks it's funny.
• when she's got attitude we hear a lot of, "i know!" but when she's being cute she'll say stuff like, "oh, i got ya!"
• calls the iphone "debbie phone," since my step-sis has one.
• taking fewer and fewer naps ... boo!knows a few more letters (w, c, r, q); rupert has been working with her using flashcards.
• learned from somewhere that after you say, "trick or treat!" you get candy.
• i've caught her using my scissors, snipping pieces of papers into tiny pieces.
• she likes to assign "mama," "dada," "baby," and "niinii" roles to everything living (usually by size).

34 months.

maya @ 34 months :: september 4, 2008

• finally realized the piano can be played. she actually plays quite well and smoothly considering her pretty short fingers.
• calls herself "superman" ... she also calls spiderman "superman."
• took her to the body worlds 3 exhibit at the california sciencenter. when we stepped in and she saw the first skeleton she said, rather unconvincingly, "i scared!" she showed great interest in the plastinized digestive tract; i showed her where her food goes and how her unchi was stuck in her intenstine. since then she talks about gummy bears going through her tummy bones (she doesn't quite grasp the idea of organs) back and forth and coming out as unchi with a plop. she was also intrigued by the lecture i gave on how jiji's lungs are black like the cancer-infested lungs on display and hers were more white/pink. jiji's lungs are now bacchi (dirty).
• while we were watching who framed roger rabbit she kept referring to jessica rabbit as "little mermaid."
• the thing she says most often may quite possibly be, "sowwy [sorry] mama."
• fun at legoland with mama and ian. she really liked captain cranky's challenge, which swung us around all over the place, and the big lego elephant that shoots water out of its trunk.
• a few days in palm springs with my side of the family. we spent a lot of time in the pool. she also confirmed that she is a complete flirt; she was after my sister's boyfriend the whole time we were in palm springs.
• likes to eat korean nori (seaweed), wrapped around rice or all by itself.
• playing with D's iphone ... she knows how to access the photos, zooms in and out, and plays games. in fact, she was so into popping bubbles that she didn't notice D tickling her feet.
• although we decided to forget potty-training while she's dealing with her unchi issues, she's been pretty good about going potty on the toilet before bed.
• can pick things up (like puzzle pieces) with her toes ... just like her mama.
• she is getting into the bad, lazy habit of saying, "can't do it" without really trying. gee, i wonder where she got that defeatist attitude from?
• now that football season has started, maya is watching games with rupert and ian. for almost every play she yells, "touchdown!"
• says, "sure!" for answering in the affirmative.
• i went to get her from her nap and she had torn apart and completely obliterated her diaper, as well as peed in her crib. lovely.
• she loves having "shake shake" for dessert (vanilla ice cream with milk).
• she is turning into a girly-girl :: at our friend's house she was all about their daughter's princess crown and dress-up clothes (i.e., ariel costume and tutu).

33 months.

maya @ 33 months :: august 4, 2008

• sings really random songs like, "don't know who farted" ... at least, that's what we think she's warbling
• second time at the movies :: wall-e
• her legs are finally long enough to pedal her tricycle
• she is a sticker fanatic. but, unlike her mother who hoards stickers, she likes to use 'em up. she sticks them all over the place :: her body, her face, the glass on our cabinets, the floor, the exercise ball, the inside of the car door, etc. luckily, she gets lots of free stickers at tj's, which i don't mind her using up immediately, but sometimes she gets into ian's sticker drawer and wreaks havoc.
• her favorite vegetable continues to be kyuuri (japanese cucumber) sticks
• lots of running = constantly scraped knees
• likes her swimming "class" :: she'll dunk her head underwater if i make her but she prefers to kick around the water on her back (but she keeps her ears out of the water)
• will take showers now but needs a bit of coaxing to look up so i can rinse her hair
• loves to talk about her "friends," who are really ian's friends
• hanging from the kitchen counter, door knobs, and her crib railing
• keeping summer hours :: staying up waaaaay past her bedtime
• her favorite movie :: little mermaid (watching it now, that movie looks really crude and the storyline is pretty weak compared to animated movies today)
• coloring and drawing with pens and colored pencils. they're mostly squiggles, but if she shows me a random shape and claims it's me, i'll ask her where my eyes are, and she'll go back and add eyes. i also bought her some crayola paintbrushes but i don't recommend this particular item (they're frustrating ... for kid and parent)
• miralax is really helping with her constipation; she now goes almost everyday, which hasn't happened since her first 10 months of life! she loves putting a happy face sticker on the calendar after she goes; she's very proud. she also insists on looking at the unchi in her diaper. yuck.
• becoming a little star wars fan because of ian's obsession with playing star wars battlefront, currently her favorite video game to watch.
• likes getting her ears cleaned with q-tips. she's always bringing me q-tips from the bathroom and i have to tell her that they don't need cleaning that often.
• she heard ian and his friend spew, "that's not fair!" during star wars battlefront so she said it happily for a few days without knowing what it meant :: "i shwim [swim], that not fair!"
• ian taught her how to play jyanken (rock-paper-scissor). we're not sure if she totally understands the "rules" but it keeps her occupied in the car.

32 months.

maya @ 32 months :: july 4, 2008

• first time away from mom + dad :: three days at baba's with ian and my aunt.
• first time at a movie theater :: kung fu panda :: and she actually sat through it on my sister's and her boyfriend's laps (until she fell asleep). now everytime she sees the panda -- on tv, in the newspaper, on a happy meal box in a random garbage can -- she gets excited, yells "kuh-fu panda!" + does her kung fu arm moves.
• first time on a real pony @ griffith park while she was with my mom. unfortunately, the camera battery died and there are no pictures of her going around the pony trail, by herself, twice (ian only went around once).
• the last month has been her verbal spurt. among some of the things she's been saying are her favorites :: "go away, ian" + "that's mine, ian." picked up "cool!" and "oh my gosh!" from somewhere.
• went 16 days without going poopy, a new record. we started giving her "candy juice," a rootbeer-flavored children's laxative. then she went 12 days without going so we called the pediatrician. we saw a new (to us) doctor who jumped into action right away, warning us that it could take a year or two for maya to get over her constipation. we got an x-ray done of her abdomen and, sure enough, it was completely clogged with poop. poor girl had to endure three days of daily enemas (her "i don't like that!" crying was heart-breaking), and now we have to sneak miralax into her food and drink. but it's the first step towards breaking the cycle of constipation (and, hopefully, crankiness).
• asks begs rupert to play lego indiana jones :: "play jones, daddy. please! just little bit!" she's actually pretty good at taking control of the nunchuk and, therefore, the lego character; guiding it around the screen and wielding the whip like an expert. she's particularly fond of the female characters, calling them "pincess maya," and she goes around the room screaming like willie. you can also get her to pretend like she's actually wielding a whip (using a long fabric scrap) with a "whupsh!" sound.
• she's really into candy -- she plays with it more than she eats it -- and popsicles. as you can imagine, the pinata at a friend's party really piqued her interest. after all, there was candy falling out of the sky!
• even with her short little legs she's becoming quite the climber ... but her jumping still needs some work.
• it's happening -- she's interested in disney princesses! the horror! the horror!! she watched "beauty and the beef" (yes, that's what she calls it) and "the little mermaid" at my mother-in-law's house. she also declared her purple dress to be her "pincess dress."
• when we bought rock band, she came in from the beach and instead of going down for her nap, through her groginess, insisted on "rock band! rock band!" sometimes she'll sing parts of "blitzgrieg bop," but usually she just dances to our horrid singing.
• while we were at the park last week a boy fell of the slide and the ambulance had to be called. maya asked her usual, "wha happen?" and we explained that he broke his arm and had to go to the doctor. ever since, when she sees an ambulance she talks about how "broken arms? boy broken arms?" the power of association is pretty amazing ... and maybe a bit traumatizing.

31 months.

maya @ 31 months :: june 4, 2008

• i got around to starting her on pull-up diapers. she opted for dora ones rather than disney princess ones ... thank god! but we aren't having much luck with getting her to go shishi on the potty very often.
• finally interested in the names of various shapes, and when she feels like it she gets her colors right. numbers and the alphabet aren't really coming along, but she did show some interest in the hiragana book i checked out for her at the library.
• it's happening ... the dreaded, incessant "why?"s and "what's that?"s.
• she is one bossy little lady. i will often find her talking to her little friends by literally wagging her finger at them and commanding them to do as she says.
• picking up new phrases like "calm down!" and "whoa! that messy! (in regards to her own mess in the living room that's been there all day)".
• one of her new favorite toys is the toy cash register and the pretend money in it.
• was actually quite well-behaved on our plane trip to milwaukee. it probably helped that she had her own seat and we replaced our aging portable dvd player. and much to rupert's delight, she called the photo of matthew fox on the cover of the inflight magazine, "daddy."
• she says, "c'mon! c'mon!" to get her unchi to come out.
• if i give her a 1-2-3 warning to do something, she usually does.
• she locked the bathroom door ... and shut it behind her.
• she now answers "two-half" when people ask her how old she is.

30 months.

maya @ 30 months :: may 4, 2008

• coloring better, and attempts to stay within the lines sometimes.
• spits ... in the house. but we put an end to that pretty quickly. another icky thing she's been doing lately is eating hair, oftentimes my hair.
• assumes "the position" to put her diaper on standing up.
• writes draws Os + Is, and recognizes a few other letters. when i complimented her on the O she wrote one day, she took a bow, so to speak, by saying, "thank you, thank you, thank you very much." her counting is improving ... sort of :: "one, two, three, six, seven"
• we're starting her on playing boardgames. the buzzer on "operation" scared her, though.
• movie of the month :: meet the robinsons. she also watched amelie with me a couple of times.
• when she's in the mood, she's kind enough to jump over the cracks in the sidewalk so she doesn't break her mother's back.
• she managed to clog the toilet ... twice ... this month (we had to call the plumber + get a snake for the toilet). she's also been reluctant to go unchi on the toilet lately, but we still make her.
• she loves to move the hose/sprinkler in the front yard with rupert when he waters the lawn. and even when he doesn't have to water the lawn she insists on going outside to do the "spinklah."
• she's capable of saying "sorry" and "thank you" at the appropriate moments ... it's just that she usually doesn't choose to. and who knows where she picked up her sassy "oka~y, oka~y!" from.
• for some reason she calls roly-polies "wakamolies." she also seems to be confused about "chickens" and "kitchens." it took rupert a few days to get her to say "pineapple" instead of "apple pie." yeah, it's taking her awhile to get the hang of the english language.
• has a new best buddy, the little sister of two kids who go to ian's school. at drop-off in the morning the two love to chase each other around and sit on the steps to the office and chat.
• the librarian gave her a tootsie pop, at which point maya wanted to go straight home to eat it. after she unwrapped it she asked me to take pictures of her eating it (like with the ring pop she got from the library last month).
• every little noise/change in voice/thing makes her ask, "what happened?" and she'll keep asking until you give her an adequate answer. i can only imagine what it'll be like when she starts asking, "why?"
• she and her brother are beginning to "fight" more. not real fights but little tussles. usually i'll find maya sitting on top of ian and hear his muffled cries of, "get off of me! get off of me!" but i'll also catch ian trying to bop her in the head with the couch pillow or throwing balls directly at her in the backyard.
• she's always curious about ambulance/fire engine/police car sirens, but she seems to be confused about the ice cream truck music. when the ice cream truck stops at the library on the next block -- which is everyday -- she asks with a hint of concern in her voice, "what that noise?"

29 months.

maya @ 29 months :: april 4, 2008

• she is finally -- finally! -- starting to use more japanese words. and she definitely understands that there are two ways of saying things. for example, she will ask me to draw her a "wani" and then repeat "ow-ee-gatow." (and by "ask" i mean she brings me her magnadoodle and says "wani" while pointing with the magnet-pen.) but she still does not speak very clearly; her enunciation is really quite poor, which is starting to worry me a bit.
• the movie-of-the-month is "mononoke hime (princess mononoke)," which she calls "shishi" for inoshishi (boar). her favorite line? "sare!" (leave!)
• she really relates to the "curious george goes to the hospital" dvd rupert bought for her recently. it must be because she often has a stomach ache. [warning :: the second story on this dvd, "mouse soup" is bizarre!]
• everytime we go to a birthday party she thinks it's her birthday. or, if she gets a present for whatever reason she thinks it's for her birthday. and she knows cake and candles come with any mention of birthday.
• she talks to her little friends (and me!) like she talks to my mother-in-law's dog :: "stop!" "stay!"
• she likes to look at my scrapbook layouts. she asks me to pull down the "pick-cas" (pictures) from the bookshelf and flips through the layouts, often mistaking baby pictures of ian for herself.
• we're able to get her to unchi (poopy) on the toilet exclusively. this is helpful since her poops are so huge that they are unpleasant to clean up after they've been deposited in a diaper. she's also getting better about telling us she has to go #1 so we've started getting her to pee on the toilet at least once a day. but i haven't had the inclination to actually start "potty training."
• it's not very rie, but i am going to have to start using time-outs more often.
• she's getting attached to my workout buddy, P (who also happens to be ian's best friend's mom).
• sticks her plastic stethoscope to her mouth by sucking in.
• enjoys talking on the phone :: she's always pretended on her toy phone but she got a taste of the real thing while rupert was out of town and now she always wants to talk on the phone when it rings.
• loves bandaids ... then again, what kid doesn't?
• gives loooooong, slobbery, full-on-the-lips kisses
• she sings this crazy song she made up over and over again. what i can make out sounds like, "i'm a boy." and because she is her parents' daughter, when she starts warbling ian reaches for anything and everything that will cover his ears.
• when rupert and i embrace she comes running and wedges herself between us, yelling, "no! no! no!" as if to say, "break it up, people!" just to bug her we hug often and hard. ;)
• likes to use the pre-k/kinder computer at the library.

amazing watts towers

as our last "activity" for spring break, the kids and i headed to watts towers. the towers are pretty amazing; but surprisingly, they weren't as tall and huge as i thought they would be. it's really all in the details.

there's more to it than just the towers. originally, simon rodia built his complex, which he called nuestro pueblo, adjacent to his home (that burnt down in 1955). what's left is an enclosed triangular area (essentially his backyard) with the towers and a gazebo inside. according to the tour guide, this enclosed triangular shape is based on a ship and the towers are the masts. there's even a "steering wheel" and a miniature ship (called the marco polo) inside.

another interesting fact :: rodia was a disenchanted roman catholic who started his own religion. many who study rodia now believe the gazebo is actually a chapel and the bird baths and fountains are baptismal pools. there are tons of crosses and hearts placed throughout the complex.

i recommend spending the $7 for the half-hour tour. the kids and i joined an elementary school group on their tour so it may be different than the adult tour. i'm definitely bringing rupert here (without maya) so we can really take in the amount of work that went into the building of the towers.

[here's a another write-up about the towers with pictures. you can see a few more of my pictures here.]

the end of an era

last tuesday was our last rie class. i am really bummed, and i think maya would be too if she understood that we aren't going anymore. we have been with the same group of kids for two years, in the same environment, with the same teacher.

this is my second round of rie classes (ian attended too) and i couldn't recommend it more. it's not a "traditional" kind of class with lots of music and "engaging" activities. it's about the kids figuring out things for themselves in a safe and nurturing environment. the parents learn and share rie parenting techniques and sit back to observe the children.

there used to be a rie-based infant center (daycare) in redondo beach but, unfortunately, it's no longer in business. i wish there were more rie classes/schools for older kids. i would love to keep learning about rie and how to apply the philosophy as the kids get older. (it's my understanding that some rie parents move on to the waldorf school when their kids get older.)

i'm also disappointed that class has ended because i've grown really fond of the other parents. i hope we stay in touch and get together often.

now i've gotta find something else for maya to do on tuesday mornings ...

28 months.

maya @ 28 months :: march 4, 2008

• bugs really, totally freak her out ... especially if they find their way inside the house. sometimes she'll find an ant in her room and she will burst in wails and tears until i get rid of it.
• now watches "nemo [lilo] and stitch" -- no matter how many times we say, "li-lo" she keeps saying "nemo."
• calls her grandma (rupert's mom) by her first name.
• it's been a rough month of whining and defiance; rupert and i are nearing our wit's end. it's been a totally different parenting experience with maya compared to ian's toddler years.
• good reminder not to leave crayons within reach of her crib :: she drew purple swirls on her wall one day while i thought she was taking a nap.
• she's definitely stringing together more words into sentences and questions.
• likes to sit in the basket of the stroller. people look at me strangely because they think i'm pushing an empty stroller. as i pass them maya peeks her head out and i hear giggles from the passerby.
• doesn't care to remember her ABCs but remembers after one visit that marukai is where we get strawberry pocky.
• working our way to higher numbers :: counting to 3.
• she has been daddy's little girl this month and insists on "daddy do it" if he's around.
• loves her cereal; she's into tj's honey nut Os right now (we can dupe her with regular multigrain cheerios if we're out of the good stuff).
• she's extremely particular about what piece of food she eats from a specific place on the plate. it's annoying when she wants a particular honey nut O with milk from one part of the bowl. it's no use trying to tell her that the milk moves around in the bowl and it's all the same!
• she plays with the little girls at ian's school during drop-off in the morning. but she calls them all by the same name, "maggie" (one of the girls she plays with everyday).

27 months.

maya @ 27 months :: february 4, 2008

• at the beginning of the month she went the longest she's ever gone without a bowel movement :: two weeks! for days she complained about "pompom (tummy) owie" and she tried to go but nothing. rupert and i are thinking that maybe she thinks she can't go unless she's on the toilet ... which is where she finally went ... and clogged up the toilet a bit. can't blame her, it was two weeks after all!
• she cries during the "fishnapping" scene in finding nemo because she's so upset about nemo being taken away by the dentist.
• she's definitely talking more. unfortunately i don't seem to be understanding more.
• somehow learned to sing the alphabet song by herself. she doesn't say every letter but she's got the general tune down ... and "l-m-n-o-p" sounds so cute.
• her current favorite pixar movie :: the incredibles. she especially likes jack-jack and the robots (see below). seriously, we watch this movie at least once a day, sometimes twice. for some odd reason she calls bob parr's boss at insuracare "jiji" (what she calls my dad). i don't think they particularly look alike, but whatever.
• she's really into "be-bots" (robots) :: she likes to play with my robot pencil sharpener (but i had to take it away since it's a favorite chotchke of mine); we've watched the iron giant, robots, and the incredibles; i bought her robot pjs from old navy's boy section.
• actually enjoys drinking the "jolly green" smoothie i made (pineapple, mango, spinach).
• during the second to last week of january she had four bowel movements. four! she's been a nicer person for it. and during the last week of january she almost went everyday. we've been a happier family for it.
• when rupert started reading one of his school books, she went over to his school bag and brought him his highlighter.
• for awhile she was into chunky yogurt and insisted we add cut-up fruit to her once-favorite-smooth yogurt.
• rupert, in his infinite wisdom, taught maya how to say, "oh man!" when things aren't going her way.
• at the park she doesn't want to go down the slide by herself anymore. she will climb up to the slide but then freak out until you go down with her. but just before sliding down she likes to wave to all the little people, "hi everybody!".
• the moment i've been dreading is about to arrive :: she's not napping everyday anymore. i'll put her down, she'll complain, and then it'll be quiet. so i think she's napping but when i peek in her room she's standing in her crib, bright eyed, and apparently without having napped.
• i think she understands the counting concept ... up to 2.
• when the front of the crib is down she tries to climb up into her crib. but her legs aren't long enough to get all the way up so she just leans forward and falls into the crib headfirst.i'm having a hard time distinguishing between her "help me" and "hold me".
• spiders freak her out.
• a few new fav phrases :: i want it, i don't want it (usually right after she says the first phrase), i neeeeeeed it.
• using the spoon much better without spilling (too much) ... now if only i could let go enough to allow her to feed herself.
• when we cross the street she holds my hand and yells, "run! run! run!" and tries to hurry to get to the other side.
• terrible two independece is shining through :: "maya do it" as she gets into her car seat.

26 months.

maya @ 26 months :: january 4, 2008

• while watching bits of "pirates of the caribbean: at world's end," she identified davy jones as tako, japanese for octopus.
• her current favorite movie is "monsters, inc." and "toy story 2 ("buzz! buzz!")"
• much to my chagrin, she has been carrying around the ugly doll i had hoped to keep for myself. she calls it "dah-yee."
• her bedtime routine is getting longer and more difficult since she doesn't want to go to bed ... i speak of this as if i am suffering but it's rupert's job to put her to bed so it's not my problem. ;)
• it seems totally wrong -- but somehow appropriate -- that all of maya's hanukkah gifts were dvds while ian's were books.
• she has picked up the very nasty habit of nose picking ... ewwww!
• she got sick randomly with the stomach flu. it was her first time vomiting and it was not a pretty scene. oddly enough, after that she vomited a couple of times in the middle of the night for no apparent reason.
• she's a complete natural at playing the drums.
• first trip to SF for new year's. during the new year's party at our friends' house she dropped a whole plate of lemon bars on someone's coach purse. yay!
• stringing more words together into sentences ("already kissed mama," "dada do it," "i want one"), and she'll say some more words in japanese, but usually either the first or last sound so you really have no idea what she's saying.
• starting to memorize right foot and left foot.
• more potty time (with daddy) ... she's now peed more times in men's bathrooms than in women's bathrooms. when she tells you she needs to go shi-shi she usually does go in the toilet. bathtime also seems to trigger unchi (poop) in the toilet.
• sings songs ... sort of.
• figuring out how to use the dvd player; she can also properly handle dvds ... most of the time.
• when she hears the toaster "ding!" she automatically shouts out "waff! (waffle)" and confiscates the waffle from whoever toasted it.
• i have been giving her "good bacteria" pills for her digestive tract and she just loves them. when she asks for one, she says, "i want five" but holds up all ten fingers. still have to work on the counting ... (and a whole lotta other stuff)