Spring is here!

Hello! It is April and today we are having some showers. Our roses are beginning to bloom and we are enjoying our front porch and backyard. Amara especially likes sitting at our patio table and playing "restaurant". One of us pretends to be the server and takes her order. She usually orders "quesadilla, avocado, and 'beard'" She means beer! Hahaha! I guess Dad and Mom's occasional Corona light drink at the restaurant is well remembered. Sometimes she orders her favorite breakfast foods-- "French toast, blueberry pancake" and I forgot that she loves "rice and beans!". So it is FUN go to out to brunch or Mexican food with Amara because she loves the process. We enjoyed Easter and a visit from the Kahangi family and family friend, Sam. Mom hid eggs in the yard and Amara loved finding them and putting them in her duck shaped Easter basket. She also liked dying Easter eggs and helping make the braided bread (see photo). I know I say this every time but Amara's language and vocabulary is in full bloom right now. She has the cutest voice and it is so pleasant to hear her talk and play along. Here are a couple of cute recent conversations. Dad: Amara how old are you? Amara: I am two. I am a big girl. I am toddler. I am Amara. Dad, how many are you? (Dad then counting 37 on his fingers.) Another one: Mom came into Amara's room with wet hair. Amara: Mom went swimming? Mom: No, Mommy took a shower. Amara: Mommy hair is wet. Mommy's hair long. I like your hair. Mommy make a braid. (Mom then braids her hair). Amara: So pretty, Mommy. I am so proud of you. (Then she hugged me). PRECIOUS MOMENTS! I wish I could remember and record each one. Sigh....This is a fun, exciting and rewarding time for us.

A belated Birthday party and more!

We had a really fun 2nd birthday party for Amara in March. With our move in December and getting settled into the new home it took a while to plan and execute the party. But it was a success! We invited Amara's friends to join us at our local park for food, cupcakes and a music class. Amara's music school, Nightingale Music, runs events at birthday parties. Since Amara loves to sing, dance, and play with instruments we thought it would be perfect. Bubbles were included! She had a really nice time and so did we. Family came too-- Grandpa Hamid, Grandma Patty and the St. Johns. Amara is talking so much these days! She knows words and phrases that impress us. Today when she woke up from her nap she knew we were about to go to the doctor and said, "Doctor going to look at my cough". True. Then "My had fun at Kids Club today." She can tell stories and has great ideas about what she wants to do. Lately she has been saying, "Hi honey, how was work?" when Mom or Dad gets home. She LOVES watching Daniel Tiger (a cartoon) and sometimes when playing with Mom she calls Mom "Katerina" (one of the characters on the show) just for fun. Perhaps she imagines that we are playing in Daniel Tiger's make believe world. She has a great imagination! The other day Amara was standing in the kitchen with a paper towel and two pot lids. She said, "I am doing exercises. At the gym. This is my towel (as she wiped off). These are my barbells." It was awesome. Other things Amara loves right now-- fire trucks, going out for Mexican food, drawing, painting, climbing on the sofas, beds (hiding under the pillows), meeting new kids at the playground, "helping" Mom in the kitchen. We made a loaf of Irish soda bread last week with raisins (also one of her favorites).

Talking to birds and sharing about dreams.....

Hello! This blog post is long overdue. AMARA IS A TWO-YEAR-OLD! In fact she has been 2 for 2 months now. Wow, how time flies! We have been extra busy since December 19th (her birthday) which was the day we moved into our new house in Bay Park. We are home owners now and enjoying the joys and challenges of this! The holidays flew by-- Christmas, New Year's, and Valentine's Day. Amara thoroughly enjoyed herself. At Christmas she liked learning about Santa and "Santa's sleigh", seeing lights and Christmas trees everywhere. One of her favorite activities at Christmas was opening the advent calendar that Mom has had since childhood when she lived in Switzerland. Yes-- a Swiss advent calendar. No chocolate, just a neat images of chalets in the snow and surprises behind their doors and windows. What other things have been going on? Regular visits from Grandpa Patty and Grandpa Hamid, a visit from Poppa and Janny in January, play dates with Charlotte (yoga at the library is a favorite), and time at "Kids Club" while Mom exercises at the 24 hour Fitness. One of the staff told Mom that is Amara is "awesome". They are amazed at how much she talks for a 2 year old and how outgoing she is-- "Hi guys! How you doing?" is her typical greeting. Here are two stories before I post photos: Yesterday when Amara and Mom were in the backyard we spotted a large crow in our neighbor's tall pine tree. For fun Mom started talking to the crow. Amara joined in and said, "Hi, how you doing up there?" I suggested that perhaps the crow is looking for dinner. After this she exclaimed, "Oh! Birdie, there it is! Your dinner, apple-- right there!" (as she pointed to our apple tree). Then today upon waking up from a car nap Amara began to chat about "Um nom" (a cartoon character) --how he has a pumpkin and then she began talking about a dog drinking water. I am pretty sure she had been dreaming about these things and then sharing what she saw! These moments are so precious. There are too many stories to tell. Our little girl is full of enthusiasm and a sense of humor. She loves playing hide and seek, singing, playing on the playground, meeting new kids ("Hi girl!") and "helping" in the kitchen by pulling out and using Mom's salad spinner.

Months 22 and 23

We have been busy the past two months! Halloween whizzed by, then a mini family vacation in Encinitas. Then we put in an offer on a home in Bay Park! The offer was accepted. Before long we will be living in a house with a front porch and yard! Uncle Don and Aunt Sarah had their baby girl, Maeve Elaine, on 11/13/15. We have not met her yet but Amara knows about her and has seen pictures and said, "Maeve". Amara has been talking in sentences, engaging in creative play, playing with other girls and boys, enjoying time at "Kids Club" (child care the gym while Mommy works out), dressing up in hats and her Thomas the train costume (Halloween was a blast). There is so much going on these days but I will stop writing for now and post some photos! The first photo is of baby Maeve:

Twenty one months

Amara is almost two! We cannot believe how fast she is growing up and how each day brings new developmental changes. Amara started using the potty and loves it. She gets excited and celebrates each time. We are still using diapers but won't need to for long...! In other news, the fascination with trains continues. Amara has been enjoying riding on the mini trains at Balboa Park and UTC mall. She especially loves the tunnel. She has taken her first Carousel rides and continues to enjoy the playground and petting Zoo as well. It has been a fun and busy month -- we get together with friends for play dates as much as possible. Amara craves time with other kids. As her verbal skills grow, she frequently makes us laugh with her cute statements and requests. Here is a fun story -- a few weeks ago, Mom came to check on Amara when she woke up from her nap. Amara had been quiet for a few minutes... guess what she had done? Amara had reached through her crib bars, peeled off a leaf decal from her wall "tree" and stuck in on her shirt. When she saw her reflection in the mirror she thought that the kitty on her shirt now looked more like an owl so she said, "owl" proudly. Amara loves playing with her toy stove and serving others food and tea.

Twenty months

We have had a wonderful yet busy summer. In August Amara and Mommy traveled to Maine to visit Aunt Anne, Uncle Carl and cousins Nathalie and Carter. We had a great time! Amara loved playing with her cousins. We went to the Botanical Gardens on Fairy Friday (see photos). We also enjoyed great food including homemade muffins and blueberry pancakes (Carl and Anne are great cooks), soft pretzels, a lobster roll, and whoopie pie. We also went to the Boothbay Railway Museum and rode a train and played in old train cars. This was probably the highlight of the trip for Amara. She loves "choo choos". We also were able to see cousins Melissa, Mike, Claire, and Ryan Moran. The kids played at Knickerbaker lake and in the fun house and backyard of Anne and Carl! Amara tried popsicles for the first time. Thanks Aunt Anne! She loves them. She also took many walks in the woods with Mommy and cousins and picked fresh huckleberries. Maine is so beautiful in the summer! Amara also played with all sorts of new toys, including a pink baby stroller that she loved. One of the most special memories of the trip for me (Mom) was walking at Porter Preserve with the girls. This is a gorgeous natural space of hiking trails -- woods that leads up to the water and spectacular Maine views. Amara was so relaxed here that she fell asleep in the Ergo. This gave me a chance to say hello to Grandma Jean. She was a fan of Porter Preserve and took walks here with Grandpa Bob and Anne in the later years of her life. Amara has only met Grandma Jean in photographs but surely she felt her spirit presence in Maine. I certainly did!

Nineteen months!

I am running behind on the blog! Amara is 20 months old but here is an overdue update of month 19: In July we celebrated 4th of July and we enjoyed many beach dates with Grandma Patty and many fun play dates at parks, the Zoo, yoga class. Amara has been also attending a "Splash into Summer" music class at Baby Garten in South Park. She loves it! Amara is saying some sentences and asking questions too! She asks, "Where is it?" or "Where is she?" or "Hear it?". The latter she says often when she hears an airplane go by or hears the Balboa Park bell ring (which she calls the "Ding"). Amara is a more confident walker and climber now too. She can walk quite fast. However, often on walks she prefers to stop and explore what is on the ground or around her. The other day on a walk she exclaimed, "Walka walka walk -- GO!" as she walked. Then she stopped to play with the neighbors' mailboxes, pointing to numbers as she recited them -- "Eight, nine, ten!" Amara can recognize at least one 1/3 of the alphabet and often gets the numbers 1-10 correct. She loves her alphabet and number videos. And she loves going to the library and reading books. Amara is also having so much fun with her family and friends these days. Tonight when Mom and Dad came home from a dinner date, Amara was dancing in the living room with Grandpa Patty and Grandpa Hamid. She was holding a number 4 card, watching a Sesame Street video about the number 4, and wearing a hat. According to Grandma, "she saw the chickens wearing a hat and asked for her hat." That's our girl. Lots of fun and full of ideas!