Fly so high... Direction Sky...! :)

So today's Ami's first halloween. And she is a butterfly. :) She was quite charged up to play dress up, oh & a little bubbly too... Like she is finally free to flatter her wings & fly away :)

 

My dream is to fly... Over the rainbow so high... :)

Ami turns Ammi...! My baby's baby.

Till date, I have never seen Ami as excited by anything we have bought her, as she was when we bought her baby home. :) The look of extreme delight & excitement she had on her face then, was so surprising and completely gorgeous to look at. It was not just satisfying to me coz I'm her mother, but any onlooker could make out just how excited she was with her baby...

The first thing she did, post her sleep the next day was ask where her baby was... :)

Check out the possessive stand :)

She wanted to take the baby to School with her... The only reason she didn't (thankfully) was 'coz 'baby ko ninni aa rahi thi' (its a bedtime baby) ;)

Putting baby to sleep...

So she says 'bye' to the baby. Along with a lot of gibberish instructions which I'm going to think meant "mummy ko tang' matt karna" :P; before leaving for school.

 

And now the baby goes everywhere Ami does... :)

Chacha's baby...!

When asked if "Ami was Mumma's baby or Papa's baby?" The Brat looked straight faced at both of us and actually said "Chacha's baby!" :)

Turning the No's into Yes!

As a 2 year old, you probably hear 'No' all the time... No this is not good for you or No don't do that... No don't pick this up or No, don't eat that... So its hardly surprising that 'No' is one of the first words in our child's vocabulary. Don't they learn to say 'No' much-much before learning to say 'Yes'? 

I have been seriously contemplating, whose fault that is? As parents we want our children to be independent and learn to face the world, but we probably don't allow them space to do just that. Albeit unintentionally, but we do condition them to be less independent by saying No to everything they want. We do not let them reach their true potential, 'coz our natural instinct is to-protect. And in being protective sometimes, we just don't let them be...

I read this somewhere and really liked it- "It's hard being a 2 yr old...There're things u want, but "NO" you're told. There's not enough hours in the day, 2 learn all d words they expect u to say. I've done well up 2 this time I've learnt what's theirs n what's MINE. I've used my legs n learned 2 walk, I've listened hard n learned 2 talk. I've learned 2 count from one 2 ten, n then I say it all again, u'll hear them say that I'm so bright, Coz I know my colors, black, red n white. Life's a twinkle, let's go to the zoo, remember mommy, I'm just two! :)"

This morning I faced one such dilemma too. Ami, brought a bottle of water to me and insisted she wanted to drink water straight from it (rather than the straw bottle or straw glass she generally prefers). My natural instinct was to say "No Ami, don't drink from the bottle, you will spill water all over you." but then a small voice inside said "So what? Let her do it, even if she does end up spilling the water." 

In hindsight, I'm glad I heard that small voice and let her have water straight from the bottle. Had I not, I'd have never known that my daughter was actually capable of drinking water from the bottle (miraculously without spilling it :)) and I'd have never got to see the precious little look of accomplishment she had on her face when she finished having the water. 

This got me thinking, that maybe as parents, we don't even realize this many times. Its not like we don't want our child to learn and grow. We only say No, coz of the fear of what happens if they don't do it right. Sometimes putting things (that might break in the process) much before our own kid. But maybe, just maybe, as parents, our task is not just to say "No" but also know when to give-in and say "Yes!" I agree its a fine balance, and we'd all have to learn as we play, but isn't that true for everything in life? 

From Imp to Pixie :)

Anyone who knows Ami & me, knows I have a tom-boy for a daughter. Someone who makes it known, she prefers cars & balls to barbies & soft toys... Who prefers jeans to dresses... Who loves running around screaming and lets us know her dis-pleasures (with anything) immediately. 

So imagine my surprise when this weekend, quite out of the blue, I noticed some girlish behaviour in my pixie and her wanting to do things I did. :) To start with, on Saturday, after getting her ready, when I was getting ready myself, she came and stood by me at the mirror. When I put my eyeliner & kajal, she insisted I put them for her too. And then the same request was made for lipbalm. It had me in all smiles... But as if this wasn't enough, a little later in the day, she also wanted to borrow my stole to wear it herself. And finally she wanted me to let her carry a handbag of her own... :) 

See, let me clarify  I have absolutely no problem in having a girlie baby who's into girlish stuff... I wud absolutely luv that kinnda daughter too, but Ami's well always been more boyish, so it did come as a pleasant surprise. :)

And as I close this, the song in my head is...

"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine

You make me happy when skies are grey

You never know, dear, how much I love you

Please don't take my sunshine away... :)"