Strike a pose

I'm not into studio photography. I think they are too manicured and I prefer a natural shot (case in point if it were purely up to me I'd have used this picture as our xmas card instead of the safer choice). Also, to boost my ego a bit, I think I take decent pictures so why get a professional to photograph my kid? I stand corrected.

The daycare had scheduled a photo day and I thought it was just a class photo so I put Tara in a dress and thought nothing much of it. Little did I know that they were taking individual pictures too. When I saw the 4 thumbnail-sized pictures I wanted to order them all. But the crooks, the clever crooks, want you to buy a package so I had to force myself into picking 1 out of the 4. I got carried away and ordered all the damned sizes - one 8x10, two 5x7, three 4x6, four 2x3 cause how could I not. I have become that annoying lady in the office who walks around with a picture of her child in the wallet waiting to just show-off. Next thing you know I'll be framing Tara's art in my cubicle, run while you can.

But, tell me, how can I resist myself?

This and That

We are all recovering, thanks for the wishes. Tara's high fever was linked to teething session number 8,015. I don't see how in the world it could be teething as there is no resulting teeth at the end of it all?? She still has the 4 top row 4 bottom row set. S has recovered mostly from the fever and pink eye and I'm still reeling from the antibiotics - can I feel even more weak than I already am? No, don't answer that.

-x-

Before all this sickness we were having a good summer. The weather until recently was balmy and made for good outdoor fun. We spent the 4th of July hanging out at our friend Lakshmi & Arvind's (air-conditioned!!) house enjoying delicious pot-luck food and 10 other toddlers to keep Tara entertained. S grabbed the comfy leather couch to snooze on while I got a room to myself. We finally filled up the basketball tub with water to keep the kids occupied while the parents munched on my fruit platter. (the only picture I took specifically to show off that even though I can't cook I can atleast string fruit). Tara enjoyed the fireworks, she didn't cling to me which I thought she'd do ... instead she was chasing the sparklers yelling du-doom, du-doom.

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I turned 43 recently, OMG!! So what if Mr.S got the numbers flipped on the surprise cake, I give him credit for remembering my b'day. This coming from a man who gets lost on his way home from work. What? don't believe me - go ahead and ask him how many times he's taken the wrong exit, or missed the exit or reached Vancouver and realized he's gone a bit too north.

-x-

Tara has been rambling like crazy. She is putting mini sentences together and totally understands us now. The words that come outta her mouth are perfectly articulated and adorable to hear. Here's a sampling.

When I put her down from the bed she warns me:
Mummy careful
When she wakes from her afternoon nap she yells:
Papa awside park
When we get to the park she shrieks:
Swing weee, One thoo three - sliddeh
When we get to the lake:
Water duck cracker throw
When it's time for bed:
No mama please, walky no sleepy

-x-

We go out every weekend and try to squeeze in a weekday park outing as well if we can handle it. She just has so much energy we feel guilty for keeping her indoors. One day we were so out of ideas we got onto a ferry and took it to Banbridge and back for the fun of it all. Plus they have long benches that you can throw your feet up on and relax while the little one is occupied with the surrounding water but yet confined on a boat.

-x-

Lastly I am soon to be entering the third trimester with baby #2. These first 6 months have flown by but I know these last 3 will take flipping f o r e v e r. My belly is definitely visible now and I'm liking it that way. My dad had a ginormous belly which was the world's comfyest (and reassuring) pillow but he said it had many other perks - it served as a table to hold his cold glass of beer and his remote controls, it was the perfect arm-rest and the best part was when he tossed a peanut in the air and it missed his mouth he always found it on the belly without having to hunt on the floor. I'm finding these features very handy and I will miss it when baby arrives cause as S put it "Please tell me baby#2 is so like the last one we are having!" (This after an exhausting weekend with Tara.) Amen to that.

All Sick

Today being a Monday we should be at work and Tara at daycare. Not.

All this really started a week ago when Tara was sent home from daycare with "pink eye". Her lower eyelids were pink and she had gunk oozing out of both her eyes. Mr.S and I both stayed home the next day and took her to the doc who prescribed some horrible eye drops (Mama Hurtin' Mama Don'wan - was Tara's pleading chant). She recovered pretty quick but Mr.S instantly fell ill with high fever and then I got an annoying cough. I treated it with Tylenol thinking nothing much of it. Big mistake. The cough skipped the nasal passage and headed directly for the lungs. So I'm on some strong ass antibiotics (Don't ask me what 1,000mg of this drug is doing to baby#2, horror). At this point we are all in some shade of sickness but generally still okay, dead tired but okay. Then Friday evening arrives, Tara has a blast at a friends house returns home and the fever commences. 101 all the way to 103.1 by Sunday. We head to the doc this morning cause not only does Tara have the fever but Mr.S has a pink eye, dry cough and yeah you guessed it 103.1 fever.

Our house is now officially a hospital ward. Ward A - infants that get a mild version of a sickness and pass the full dose onto already exhausted adults. Ward B - Preggo women who are told not to take ANY meds and then given some knock-out stuff. Ward C - for husbands , heck why not given them something to join in the fun, huh? Ward D for unsuspecting visitors who dare come by. When we went to the pharmacy to fill the prescription they took one look at our faces and asked us to return in an hour, an HOUR people, that's how many meds we are ALL on.

Feel sorry for us yet?

Postcards from Daycare 3

Have I told you lately how much I like Tara's daycare and how immensely happy I am that we are able to afford to send her there. Yes it costs us a mortgage payment, actually $54 more but the value we get continues to appreciate. When we first started looking into daycares I was petrified. Confronted with all the fears a new mom goes through on the effects of someone other than yourself spending most of the day with your child. I grew up with the luxury of having my mom greet me every single day I came back from school. In fact she picked me up most times and for a few years worked in the school that I went too. Till today I cannot forgot the smile and outstretched arms (even when I came home with a bad grade) that my mom greeted me with, priceless.

The first few daycares I saw were scary. Kids crying, strapped in highchairs with teachers snoozing in the corner. I came home called Mr.S and cried "I'm not sending Tara to daycare, I'm quitting!". We finally landed on a daycare that our friends send their child too (Trust me, this one is different she reassured me). We managed to get on the wait list and for months I called the place every other week, sent note cards, visited in-person just to show how much we wanted to get it. It paid off, Tara got a spot and isn't she lucky.



She comes home everyday with some new expression she has learnt (Mom, that's funnahy) or hums a new song (farmers inda dhen) or rattles off the numbers (thoo, foree, stickks, hine, thenn). I feel so guilty that they do more at daycare to educate her than I do at home. I'm often busy doing the dishes or folding clothes or watering the lawn while she plays in the background - I don't give her the undivided attention that she gets from her teachers. I'm always trying to keep her distracted so I can fold that one last shirt.

Not only is the daycare good at looking after her they send us the nicest of notes. They make you feel like your child of all the others had the bestest day and was such a joy to deal with. They even send us cute little cards on Mother's day, Father's day even when we forget it ourselves. Here's one recent note, just see the amount they write for one day:

"Tara had a fantastic day. She was so cute on her mat before going off to sleep. She was singing the ABCD song. We cannot keep up with her words now. She was the only girl in class today so she pretty much defended for herself amongst the 8 boys. She ran a lot in the playground chasing after her friends. She loved playing on the sensory table - putting the shredded paper on her head and laughed - oh so cute to watch. We also made animal sounds - she sure knows the sounds that's for sure. She is just too cute. Diapers please."

Tara loves the daycare too. Every night when the bedtime routine starts I have to say goodnight to all her toys and then goodnight to all her daycare friends. She will correct me if I miss one classmate and it's not always easy to tell who she's referring to:

"Otter?"
"Who?"
"Ohhtthorr"
"Huh?"
(Me yelling): "S who the hell is Otter?"
"Octavia"
(Me singing): "Goodnight Octavia, goodnight Nathan, goodnight Emily"
"Co*k"
"WHAT? Who?"
(S yelling): "Relax, that's Court"
"Phew. Goodnight Court it's time to go to sleep".