Birthday Celebrations

Today was full of celebrations for this special girl's birthday. 

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I'm Four!

Pizza play date

Recently, we were treated to a "play date" at Magnolia's classmate, Leonore's house.

Public Service Announcement: Leap Year Birthdays

“I’m almost four!”

When a grown-up asks a child how old they are they usually ask because they love the way their face lights up or the way they hold up the appropriate number of fingers, proud that they know the right answer, but also proud that they are getting older, getting bigger. 

Living in a world designed for incomprehensible giants--door handles at head height, sinks and toilets you have to climb on to, sentences riddled with words that sound like gibberish--it is no wonder that kids always want to be bigger, older. 

They create imaginary worlds where they can work out the adult world in their pretend play. We encourage their desire to grow up as we mark their growth on the wall, celebrate when they are "big girls," and promise "When you are ____ years old, you can do ______." So, naturally, they can’t wait to get to the next number. Do you remember how cool it was to be in the double digits? Or reached the teens?!

Word of the Week: Gonahn

Gonahn (noun): ????
[a versatile word of unknown meaning and etymology]
alternate pronunciation: Dough-nahn

Party Planning

"Mama, we're planners," Magnolia says to me with a proud grin on her face. She's right. So one night as I'm looking for things to do to occupy the girls until bedtime, I decide to brainstorm with her how to celebrate her birthday. After assuring her that Brian and I would have the final say...

TAQ: Toddler Anatomy Question

As Shannon and Kaleia dry off after their respective shower and bath, Kaleia (2.5) points to Mama's crotch.

K: Mama, what's that?

S: That's my vagina.

K: Where is it??

Dance Class or How to Make Magnolia Meltdown

Bonus Track: How Kaleia fixes the falling house after performing her spins

Hat Thieves

Chinese Children's Books

Sometimes we look at Chinese children's books for the girls. Usually they are fairly similar to our English books, some even have both Chinese and English, or you can make up the story where our limited Chinese vocabulary fails. There are pop-up books and ones that have pull tabs or parts that move. This one has a cut out circle to reveal more on the next page. 

Bicycles

Time Out for Polla Bear

"Mama, Polla Bear is going to eat you. So I put him in 'tend outside. You 'stand? 'Stand? Okay." Kaleia, age 2.5

Chinese Kitchen: The Basics

The last class I was able to fit in during my Chinese New Year holiday was The Basics. Different than other classes, instead of cooking three dishes, we spent the time learning about different ingredients. We received a 7 page packet of information detailing uses, origins and pairings. I was heart broken when I arrived home and found that my neighbor and I accidentally swapped packets, leaving me with nearly blank margins. I hope he is enjoying all my notes.