Flying

Joss seems to be progressing at the speed of light. She did some reading in her favorite spot.

She's obsessed with this book even though there are no pictures inside. I don't know if it's that there is a picture of a Chinese girl on the cover, but she flips through the pages, looking especially at the tops of each chapter where the letters are big, trying to sound out whatever she can. It's somewhat bizarre to watch.

She loves magazines.


Joss helped me deliver some mail to our neighbors that was put in our box by mistake.

She waters the flowers every day.


Mandarin playgroup went soooo much better this week. It's Week #3 so she's understanding the flow and ran in eagerly, and mostly paid attention. She especially loves clean up time, and is sure to push every chair back into place, put every toy back. She gasps with joy when the Swiffer comes out. She came home proudly to show Daddy what she made in class. (I'm thinking that Arts and Crafts time for 1-3 year olds is a bit overdone as it's the mothers who are doing it all, but Joss was pretty pleased with herself just the same.)

Joss still can't stop herself from moving when music is on. The teachers and the other mothers are pretty amused watching her in playgroup. I'm pretty amused watching her anytime.


In addition to setting the table now, she loves putting the newspapers out in the morning. The Journal for Daddy, the Times for Mommy. She helps empty the dishwasher. She makes sure I have hotpads when I'm cooking. She'll run to get anything I might not have and is always worried if Daddy isn't wearing his glasses. Her hands go to her hips, she does a loud and overly dramatic "Hmmmm???" before setting off on a search.

We stopped by a friend's house and the two little girls played house together, giggling and splashing in the sink. It was adorable. We'll have to go by more often.

At the drugstore, she walked around looking at everything. When John's with us, she asks him for purchases. "PLLLEEEEEE????" John snorted when he saw what she wanted: a two-pack of toothbrushes. She loves to brush her teeth. He's sure she's spending too much time with me.

She went to the pediatrician for her first "non-well" visit. Some unidentifiable rash appeared all over her this week. There was no real diagnosis, but thankfully it's going away. She's a mess this week with the drying rash, scabs where she scratched and a bunch of scrapes on her knees and face from falling outside. She's running more, and as a result, falling more. Sometimes she just falls though.


On the other hand, I also see that in general, her balance is improving. She can stand on one leg and put the other into her pants leg. Last night we watched as she stopped, stood one one foot, lifted the other and dusted off the sole of her foot, then went on.

She climbed an entire flight of stairs by walking up this week. It was wonderful that John was home and around to see this. She clapped her hands for herself as it's a huge effort for someone so small.

Lately, if she wants to know something and she's eating, or John is on the phone, she will sign to me without speaking. It's been pretty interesting to see her do this and know that she can communicate without sound as well. Her signs are getting much more precise.

I think the bad dreams are a thing of the past. Isn't that amazing? I could cry. She occasionally wakes in the night, but not with the screaming and the hyperventilating. She just wakes because she has to go to the bathroom, or, she's just awake.

And the potty training is done. I think she's been done for a good month and a half, but she's really at the point now where I don't worry. Much, ha ha. I do remind her before we go out or before a nap, but she's blissfully diaper-free all day, even naptimes. I just let her tell me and she does. Very freeing for both of us.

Her eating has improved enormously. Sitting still is another story. This is why she can eat so much and seemingly not grow (she has, in fact, grown another inch in the past two months). She won't stay belted in, so don't write to me. She wriggles out immediately.


She does a lot of walking, in fact, most of the walk with the dogs in the evenings. That's been a sudden change.

Every day seems to bring a new "sudden" change. I'm sure they're coming about in bits and pieces, but suddenly, one day, Joss can jump. Or Joss can run. Or Joss can negotiate a step by herself that she needed help for the day before. And she just goes on as if it's normal, which I suppose it is. But to me, it's miraculous. As if I woke up one day and found I could fly.

So maybe tomorrow, who knows? I certainly have enough happy thoughts.

Just Call Me ...

... the Mamarazzi.

I have been accused of overdocumenting. Excuse me? As of today, there is still no photobook, no Lifebook ... they wait untouched on my desk for that "extra time" that seems not to exist in Motherhood.

Overdocumenting. Harumph. And the very best moments in each day, aren't even captured anywhere but in my head, empty as it may otherwise seem.

We tried a new hairstyle this week.

And learned how to drink from a cup.



There was water all over, some sputtering and a little choking, but she got it quickly. We've switched to cups now in the blink of an eye. By dinnertime, she was fine to drink, without spilling, from a mug. Good-bye, sippees (except for in the morning and before bed.)

Sometimes she looks like a little lady.

And at others, she's still such a baby.




Spring is finally arriving so she can wear all the 9 month and 12 month sized clothing she received last summer. Bunny can smell flowers.

The words "please" and "xie xie" are appearing in her vocabulary unprompted.



Joss has started setting the table for me. Emily Post might have something to say about her utensil placement, but since everyone gets a fork, spoon and napkin, I'm pleased as can be.

She's learned how to get her father's attention. When Joss needs her dad for anything, she speaks to him like you would someone who is hard of hearing, and perhaps a little dim-witted. Very loudly and slowly. She's quite patient with him. She's figured out that unless she does so, she's more than likely to be ignored as he's so focused on his work. She checks with him at meal times to see if he's got his napkin on his lap. "DAAA!!! NAAA???"

He told me she came in the other day to call him for lunch by standing right next to his desk and yelling, "EATTTT!!!! EAT!!!" and signing broadly. The thing is, he came down. I usually have to call him several times. Joss scored top marks in communication from Early Intervention last week. You can see why.

She's getting funnier. She stuck two spears of asparagus in her mouth like fangs and bobbed her head as if she were some sort of bizarre animal. She laughed loudly before the asparagus disappeared down her eager throat.

A basket can now make a funny hat, especially if you have a funny face to go along with it.

She signs to Ariel, telling her to "wait" and that she will be back in a "min" (minute) when she and I go outside for anything. Ariel gets a kiss and a pat on the head before Joss leaves. She tells Boris "SIT!" and signs for him to lie down and loves to put her finger over her nose (yes, nose) and tell him "shhh!!!" when he barks.

I love to watch "Daddy time." She gets to ride her tricycle or sing while he plays piano.




Just put that camera in my hand and let me go. The day is young.

A Few Videos

From last month.

This one is in Dad's backyard. Kicking the ball, unable to walk on the grass still, even with shoes on, and just exploring and climbing up on a lawn chair.



And at the airport, a tired baby looking for her bunny, and then running off steam that isn't there ...

Jumping

Joss jumped yesterday for the first time. She's a little awkward, both feet don't always make it off the ground together yet, but she's sure to practice. After she jumps, she signs "jump."



By the way, if you either scroll to the bottom of this page and hit "Posts (Atom)" or hit the little orange button on the right side of your address bar, you can subscribe to this blog. I'm not sure exactly how this works, but then you'll know if I've posted something new more easily. I think...

Full Week

I'm exhausted and apparently Joss is, too. She's down for her second nap of the day and every time I take her out in the car lately, she does a little catching up on Zs. Too bad I missed her with both hands behind her head. In that position, she looks like a little old man snoozing in a recliner.

She's probably tired because she's been working diligently on her Terrible Two attitude. Lots of screaming. Lots of "no" as she turns her head away from us.

I've been working on staying calm.

We've all been working on getting the word "please" out more often. It's amazing how just a few times of screaming "BACK!" and not getting the item, will bring about a very soft and polite "please." If she's desperate, she will sign in a big circular motion on her chest, plead "peeeeeee" or "pleeeeeee," then drop to her knees and throw her head back, eyes closed. I don't know where this drama comes from, but it's hilarious.

I got a spontaneous "xie xie" (Mandarin for "thank you") yesterday morning when I handed her some milk, nice and hot the way she likes it. Yay! One step forward ...

She worked on putting on her shoes and her clothes.

The shoes keep getting onto the wrong feet, so she ends up looking like she should be Eugene Levy's daughter in "Best in Show" but she's mighty proud when she manages to get both feet covered.

Pants are a little more difficult. More often than not, both of her legs end up in one pant leg.


If she ends up this way, there is a loud, and I mean LOUD shout of "HEHHH!!!!" ("help"). This word also gets yelled out in public if she needs anything. Thank goodness her articulation is still poor or people would be rushing to help what sounds like a child in danger. I'm hoping to break this yelling habit before she gets the ends on her words.

On Friday, I heard her telling me she had to use her potty and when I turned, she had her pants off and her panties halfway down. She was signing for help, so I did and after she was done, she got her panties on correctly, and her pants on, one leg in each pant leg! All by herself. Amazing.

Yes, the pants are on backwards, but still. She was so proud she had to zip upstairs to tell Daddy. And then accessorize the outfit.

On Wednesday, Joss put together "tree" with the trees on our walk. I'm not sure why this all worked suddenly, she's been seeing trees and we've been signing and saying it to her, but it clicked. I think it had to do with one of her books. But along with this, she understood that she could count the trees. That each was separate, but there were many. "Wah ... doo ... vo ... zihhh ..." (one, two, four, six). A little out of sequence, but she kept at it. It was a thrilling moment for her.

Thursday we started a playgroup that is held in Mandarin. Lots of music and games. She had a terrible time paying attention, though as soon as any music started, she was dancing (while every other child sat in their mothers' laps). She spent much of the first part of the class trying to get a rattle out of another child's hand. When everyone was up, she was down, when they were down, she was up.

To get there, she had her first subway ride. She was good for about two of the 30 minutes. Lots of yelling and kicking. It was so wonderful to be with her (the sarcasm is oozing out of these words). Next time you're out and see a screaming child with a helpless looking mother, cut the mother some slack. It's probably me.

By the time we got home, I was completely fried and not sure we'd make it ten more weeks, but we'll see. I think it's a great opportunity for both of us and we're hoping to continue into the summer when it's twice weekly. I saw Joss definitely listen when someone would speak to her in Mandarin, so it's still in there and I don't want to lose this opportunity to cement a little bit for her. She learns so easily right now, and works so hard.

Friday, we had to go in to have her blood drawn to test for lead levels, just to be sure. Traumatic is too light a word. Her arms are so little and it was cold, so they had to tie the rubber strip on her and tap repeatedly until the tiniest of veins barely showed. Meanwhile, I was supposed to hold her down, while she cried and pleaded "no." A heartbreaking "no" not the irritating one I'd been hearing all week. I think I cried more than she did. At least they seemed more concerned about me as we left. They mentioned what a loud voice Joss had, of course.

She has a little bruise in the crook of her arm. Awful.

On a much more pleasant note, we went to see Brad and Steph yesterday. Joss, after much fussing for "MA!!!," rode on Daddy's neck, then waved her arms high with pleasure.

She knows a lot of her alphabet already. I'm not really sure how much, but she seems to know at least "C, D, E, F, G, L, O, P, S, Z." I wrote them down randomly and she recognized them. I did it on a hunch and was shocked. She also knows that the "P" makes a "puh" sound. I watch her look at her books and I think she's got the idea that the letters make words that make the stories. She's very intent on seeing how they work. It's almost frightening to watch her read.

No idea on colors though. She works at them, but I don't think she has a clue yet. No shapes either except a circle.

She did a lot of drawing this week.

This is Joss drawing a pig. At least that's what she told me proudly when she was done. I couldn't quite see it, but there is actually a circular shape there with some dots in it.

The drawing at times extends to the floor, carpet, her toys and books, especially the blank endpages. So far the walls have escaped attention from the crayons, but they may not be far behind. I remember drawing on any blank surface myself, and what a lovely opportunity an empty page presented, so I can't really blame her. She definitely enjoys drawing time.

Along with all this newfound behavior came another: Joss also started giving and asking for many more hugs and kisses. I keep thinking that yes, of course she knows how to show affection. And then suddenly, she's a thousand times more snuggly than the day before. If I'm lucky, and I'm pretty sure I am, her love, like the volume of her voice, will be limitless.

Happy Happy Easter

Yes, it was cold outside this weekend, but inside, our hearts were warmed with the delicious treat of having Isabelle, in her much improved state of health, and her family visit.

It was wonderful to see the babies together.

They played piano.


They played with the Easter Eggs that Anna, Big Sister Extraordinaire, shared.


Isabelle is radiant. She is crawling and is able to walk with assistance, often just holding on with one hand. How lovely to see this baby laugh and smile. She had enough energy to interact with everyone, but her world is still all about her Mommy.


She's six months past transplant now and being slowly weaned off some of her medications, though they believe she will be on many of them until about October.

Isabelle is also doing great on the potty-training. That makes for two happy mothers.

Strangely enough, Isabelle and Joss have developed astoundingly similar voices and calling methods, mostly of "Ma!" or "maMAmama!" At one point, I answered Isabelle and at several others, Kelsey and I looked at each other, unsure which baby had called. It was quite incredible to hear them both "talking." They even do, at times, the same low-pitched mumble/grumble of "mama-mama." When I mentioned something about "exorcist baby," Kelsey knew exactly what I was talking about as Isabelle also does this. Kelsey mimics "redrum redrum." It's freakishly close in sound. The babies seemed fairly intent on watching and listening to each other. Joss did more crawling and Isabelle seemed to do a lot of walking. They both did a lot of yelling for "Mama."


Anna has grown up faster than any ten-year-old should have to, but she's now getting to experience some of the joys of having a baby sister.


She did a great job of walking Ariel.


The dogs also enjoyed the added "pack members" and are now both zonked on their respective beds. Boris was amazingly patient with Isabelle.


The added stimulation of more people in the house as well as the change in schedules meant that Joss explored new types of play. At one point, she thought it might be a good idea to take some toys out of a ziploc bag and put herself inside.


She learned to climb up and down the piano bench by herself.


We all went to Chinatown this morning for a dim sum feast.


That pained look on my face is because, lest you think it was all roses this weekend, the monster Joss that we picked up in China appeared full force. She started screaming orders, and even refusing to say "please."


She became horribly possessive about her belongings, including the dogs. If Anna sat on her rocking horse, she yelled to get it back and then wouldn't sit on it, deciding instead to run after the next object Anna picked up.


Joss was ill-behaved to put it mildly. While it's not unnatural or unexpected, it was still horrible to watch and difficult to curb. We're going to have to work hard and I fear we're in for a few more temper tantrums when she doesn't get what she's after.

But there was also plenty of sweetness.

The babies sat on the floor and rolled a ball back and forth to each other. They kissed a number of times. Unbelievably adorable. As hard as it was for Joss to share, I think she did learn what it means and she was able to do it on occasion, purely and lovingly.

She'll miss her friend.


We look forward to our next joyful visit with the Brights.

Most of the photos are courtesy of Craig Bright. www.crbright.com

Travels

Joss and I made another trip to see her Grandpa.



She recognized Grandpa at the airport and clapped, then took his hand to walk around while we waited for our luggage. We're so lucky that he will be out to visit us in just a few months. Since returning home, Joss looks at his photo every morning and gives it a kiss.

She also got to see her aunts, uncles, cousins and great-grandmother.


Her cousin Sebastian was so patient, playing gently with her, making her laugh, and watching her outside. When he wanted to watch tv, Joss was content to sit next to him and read a book.


I'm ready to adopt an eight-year-old boy. It was lovely to be able to have Joss go outside and not worry since Sebastian was watching and entertaining.

Carver also did his part, kissing Joss's stinky bunny over and over again every time she asked.


Maybe I need two boys.

Joss traveled well. The trip was still nothing less than hellish. It's hard with a squirmy 19 month old, but all in all, she was great. I put a diaper on her, but it wasn't needed. She was beautifully "potty trained" and did well during the week away. In fact, she improved. Naps are now diaper-free, or rather, could be if I were to trust just a tiny bit more, and even nights are better.

She came away from the week with more speech. I think I'm still the only one who can understand her, but she got her "f," "p," and "h" sounds. Her signing has become more precise as well. She amazed me as well as herself when she correctly did the sign for milk. (The word itself has transformed from "nee" to "nyuk." I'm not sure how this works. Neither sounds like "milk" at all, but at least I understand when she says and signs it. And if I say, "milk" she understands me to say "milk." If I say, "nyuk," she also understands me to say "milk." She's crazy about it no matter what it sounds like.)

I think she understands more concepts as well. Like "friend," "brother," "boy/girl." She counts to two. Anything that comes in twos, she points or holds up and says to herself, "wah ... doo." On occasion, she gets to "tee!" And a few times, I've heard "fo" and "fi!"

She seems to know a lot more of the alphabet than I think. I spy on her when she's alone and reading to herself. It's not just "o" and "z" anymore, but "f" "g" "j" and "d." Perhaps a few more. I think she has figured out that these shapes are the makings of books and she is intent on learning how they work.

She impressed the relatives with her appetite and made them laugh with her hammy nature, especially when the cameras came out. She made faces and smiled as if she was used to papparazzi.





The girl loves cameras and attention.

I've got some video also, but may not have time to look it over and post tonight. Maybe later this weekend. It was a tiring trip, but wonderful.

Joss traveled with her Bunny (of course) and her Pig.



But she was so happy to see her bear when she got back. Sleep was wonderful with all her buddies (two bears, a dog, her bunny and her pig).


The dogs were ecstatic to have us back. John said they did not eat for three days, which is par for the course when I am gone. Even Boris could not stop wiggling and kissing me at the airport.

And when we were in the house and Joss was on the ground, they both came up to kiss her. Ariel followed the baby to her room and licked her all over to Joss's delight.

Boris was affectionate, or at least tolerant, for 24 hours. Now he's back to his crabby self around Joss, though he cannot stay away from me and is always leaning on me. At least on one side. Ariel is glued to the other.

We have guests coming for the Easter Holiday. Isabelle and her family are coming to spend some time with us. Isabelle is doing well enough to travel, yay, at 6 months past transplant!

It's hard to keep this house clean, but I try, and worked hard this week to get it ready for guests.

I had help.




The work doesn't always go faster, but it's somewhat more fun with a talkative assistant. Joss is rarely quiet.

We do have fun though. Lots of fun.