Onion!

So many of Anna's adventures involve food. It's likely mine & Traci's influence - so many of our own "adventures" are about food too - generally trying new things - the masterpiece recipe that flops or the great, new 15 minute meal discovery for weeknights.

Where food and Anna are concerned, we've left the chicken nuggets and fish sticks to school. Yeah, we shovel the ocassional nugget or peanutbutter sandwich in front of her. But, for the most part she eats what we eat. It's not exotic, but I would guess that it's atleast closer to exotic than average. Last night we had baked sweet onions stuffed with a ground lamb & spinach mixture. I thought they were a flop but Anna loved them. The irony is that Anna professes to not like onion. "I don't like onion" is the standard response for buying an onion in the store, chopping an onion, or finding even the tiniest minced onion in a dish. "I don't like onion." "I know, Anna. You don't like onion." It's a common, dinnertime conversation. I was fully prepared for her to hate last night's dish and loaded her plate with mashed potatoes to fill her up.

Earlier in the evening we had been reading the spanish translation of an Eric Carle board book. So, when Anna pointed at the baked onion and said "What is that is?" I thought quickly and said, "It's cebolla. It tastes sweet. Try it." Anna said, "ce-boy-da? It's sweet?" She popped it in her mouth & shouted, "I like it!" Traci & I exchanged a glance, thinking that we had pulled a fast one. We all continued to eat, talking idly about this and that, trying to get Anna to slow down on the cebolla and try some meat. About three quarters of the way through her delicious new discovery, she stopped. By now, we had forgotten about having pulled a fast one. Anna dropped her fork, looked up dramatically, and shouted, "Onion! It's onion! This is onion!" We all three laughed. Ellen joined in, laughing at us laughing, and Anna quietly said, "I like onion."

I Luv Coins!

Six months since the last blog post. So much has happened. Waiting on baby number two (affectionately referred to as "Deuce"), bought a house, moved to the 'burbs, & watched as Anna grows into a full-fledged kid. Last week I made a list. She knows 210 words. She's learning manners; she says "tank you", "pease", & "scuse me". She also is quick to tell her old Dad when he should be saying "tank you", "pease" & "scuse me" too. She's learned to dress herself and likes to "change clothes" in the evening when she gets home. Anna loves to hang out in the kitchen, pulling out pots & spoons while Traci & I are cooking. I think she's going to find her specialty to be Italian foods. Whenver she pulls out a pot & spoon, she'll bang the spoon around, declaring, "I cook noodles!"

Anna loves noodles. But, her current favorites are blueberries, olives & today Anna announced, "I love coins". ("Coins" is what it phonetically sounds like when Anna says "corns".) Yesterday, we brought home 5 dozen ears of corn for the freezer. Anna helped to shuck, saying "it's too heavy" when she couldn't pull off a husk. She pulled husks, cleaned off silk, & sneaked nibbles of raw corn when she thought no one was looking. At the end of the day we took the last three cobs from the pot, buttered them up & headed out to the deck to taste the best part of late summer in the Midwest. A few bites in, Anna looked up with the biggest smile & proclaimed, "I love coins!"

All Smiles

This week Anna learned to smile on command. We're not quite sure how she learned - we didn't teach her. But she did. So now, all day long, we're having fun pointing to her & saying, "Hey Anna! Smile!" Tonight, she pointed at me & said," 'mile". Of course, I did. How could I have not.




Hey Anna! SMILE! (That's mom's hat on Anna. It's a favorite make-shift toy.)

A Second Lesson in Anna-ese

New words seem to come every day. I find myself constantly surprised & looking at Traci, saying, "did she really just say that?" I promise not to post Anna's new words every week, but a few others came to mind & a few new ones rolled off her lips.

A Second Lesson in Anna-ese

up = up - this week "up" also means "up" as in pick me up
bané = banana
ome = home
chicka-chicka-chicka = chicken
heh = head
eye = eyes
no = nose
muh = mouth
ear = ears
chee = cheek
koat = coat (but, in Anna-ese I'm certain it's spelt with a 'k'. It's such a hard, sharp sound you could cut yourself on it.)

This evening in the car Anna was singing to herself. We weren't quite sure what she was singing. At one point I thought it was the ABC's because I thought I recognized a letter. Mostly it was just rhythmic jibber-jabber. Then, out of nowhere, clear as day came "RowRowRow". DID SHE REALLY JUST SAY THAT?

A Lesson in Anna-ese

Anna has become a real chatterbox. She's constantly trying to communicate with us & is always pointing out & identifying things she knows. Her words aren't always immediately understandable. Though, Traci & I pretty much have them down. While there are a few cognates (says the foreign language nerd), anyone else who might be around Anna would likely find a lesson in Anna-ese helpful.



A first lesson in Anna-ese

ba = ball

ba = blanket

baby = baby

bee-bee = beep-beep

boot = boot

bye = bye

ca = car (as in, the "ca" says "bee-bee")

'cado = avocado (a favorite food)

cheessssssse = cheese (lots of emphasis on the esses)

da = dad

da = dog

da = diaper

da = done

da = down (The context clues when using "da" are critical.)

kee-ka = kitty kat

ma = mama

no = no

No!No!No! = No thank you . I'd rather not.

NOOOOOOOOO! = HELL NO! Are you crazy?!? Get that broccoli away from me!

pea = pea (another favorite food)

poo = poo (as in, there's a "poo" in my "da")

poo = Pooh (as in, "Winnie the")

'poon = spoon

sssslthsl = slipper (watch out for the spit when she says this one)

up = load up (only used when eating. As in, help me "up" (load up) my 'poon.)

vee = Eve (our dog)

VEE! = EVE!! (mostly reserved for when "vee" is laying on her "ba")

vee-vee = Evie (more affection than just "vee". Usually accompanied by petting.)

Something new ... EVERYDAY

Most of you know that life with a one year old is full of new experiences for her. It seems like there's something new everyday. Today alone there were at least 3 firsts.

(1) This morning Anna kissed me for the first time. It wasn't a case of me kissing her. She walked up to me, turned her chin up, pursed her lips, & kissed me.

(2) Anna & I "skated" around the kitchen in our stocking-feet for the first time. She laughed & smiled the whole time.

(3) Anna ate out of the garbage ... for the first time. Hopefully, that one was also for the last time too. She hadn't finished all of her dinner, but clearly she was done eating & wanted down from the high chair. The last few lima beans left on the plate were scraped into the garbage (with other icky things). While Traci & I cleaned up the kitchen, Anna played at our feet. Lately she's been playing with a large bag of potatoes which she mistakenly thinks are called "bigs". Though, that's another story that Traci can explain. In this particular story, Anna skipped "the bigs" all together & headed straight for the trash. Neither of us realized what had happened until we saw her standing there chewing & saying "yum yum." More like yuck, yuck.

Happy Birthday, Anna!

Happy First Birthday, Anna! It is amazing how so much can happen in one short year. At 8:42 a.m., one year ago today, I stood in awe as Anna Genevieve came into the world. I knew our lives would change, but I could never have quantified how. We both loved her instantly, but I don't think that we could have ever imagined just how much we would grow to love her in the days, weeks & months that followed.

Our little baby who could barely hold her head up, who struggled to roll over on her own, whose Papa taught her to sit up, and whose Grandma literally saw her first steps, is no more. Today Anna is practically a toddler, a little girl, if you will. She babbles constantly - sometimes making sense, asking for milk, calling for the dog, greeting other babies on the train & saying "bye-bye" when she's leaving. This moring, in fact, she said something to her mom as Anna & I were leaving that sounded a lot like "I love you" (Traci had just before said the same to Anna). She plays at the park, chasing after the "big kids," trying to do what they do. Last week, she came down the short slide by herself. Abut half way down, she pulled her arms in towards her chest, clenched her fists, shut her eyes tight & grinned the biggest grin as she glided towards the ground. She is literally transitioning from a baby to a little girl before our very eyes.

I cringe at the thought of saying, "she will always be my baby." Having been the child of a parent who said this from time to time, I was often annoyed by this expression. I'm still not sure that I can bring myself to say it but I certainly am growing in my understanding of the sentiment. I suppose for me the sentiment is more one of love & pride. We are immedasurably proud of Anna. She has changed our world in remarkable ways (and, will certainly continue to). Happy Birthday, Baby!