Singing the ABCs

She's also quite fond of "Twinkle, twinkle little star". This video was the best I could do, as Anika hates not being in control of the camera.

Anika in March

Yes, that's right, Anika is now using her potty. She's not particularly interested in telling us when she needs to go, but using it is pretty fun. Especially when Baby Einstein videos are involved.

The following photos are just of us, in and around our home in March (and yes, I'm aware we;re halfway through April).

Enjoy!

Overdue Mexico Photos

Well, this vacation seems like a distant memory now (we departed nearly a month ago), but here it is. The picture above is of Andrew entertaining Anika at Immigration in Cozumel, Mexico. We spent five nights there during Andrew's two week (gasp!) vacation. Escaping the cold and snow here in Boston (which still haunts us) was amazing.


Here Anika and I are enjoying the kiddie pool at our hotel. On the whole, the kiddie pool "bath" was much more appealing to Anika than the ocean "bath". The water and the fish were exciting, but a bit much. Sand is also not her favorite. This is why:



This is what happens when your parents smear sunscreen all over you and then you do a faceplant on the beach. This sticky-sand phenomenon is the primary reason sand did not go over well (although she was pretty unfazed by this particular incident).

The photos that follow are merely proof that we spent lots of time relaxing and soaking up the sun (despite the fact that our busy toddler rarely let us sit still).



Cozumel was much more touristy than it was when I visited about 20 years ago, which was unsurprising, but a bit disappointing. Nevertheless, it was fun, and really did feel like Mexico. We (er, Andrew) spoke lots of Spanish and ate Mexican fare at every meal. Anika came home singing "La Bamba" and saying "Hola!" when answering her phone. She and Dada also very much enjoyed imitating cruise ships (which say "blaaahhhh") and fish (which say "glub glub").

Incidentally, she's picking up quite a bit of Spanish at "escuela". She's still only really producing "hola", "si", and possibly "adios", but she clearly understands some simple phrases, colors, animals and objects.





As you may have guessed, our trip included lots of time on the beach. We did, however, go on a glass-bottomed boat/snorkeling tour. I think this was Anika's first time out in a boat (aside from a ferry). She did enjoy the fish, but ended up asleep in Mama's lap for much of the outing.

The towel here is shielding our slumbering kiddo.

Okay, Andrew just got home, and we both ought sleep, so I'll leave it at that. Good night!

Anika's First Big Snowstorm

Last night (after midnight) we were hit by a good old fashioned Nor'easter. By six, when we dug the car out to get Andrew to work, we had at least eight inches. While we got the car out there was even lightening and thunder. Anika commented that it was "windy" and "wet".

She also said "cheese" when the lightening struck. I guess she's encountered many more photo ops than thunderstorms during these past 17 months...

Here she is supervising my sidewalk clearing:


And the following photos were taken a few days ago, when we played in what was left from a previous snowstorm.



Grandma Karen: we are very glad to have the snowsuit you bought! It makes the playground across the street usable again. P.S. A snow and ice covered slide is fast and fun--particularly when Mama slips at the bottom.

A Couple Extra Christmas Pictures

Cousin Kayleigh is VERY fun; Anika readily tried saying her name. She's also great with Anika, as she now has a two year old brother.


And you only have to look to the last post to know that playing "tea" is also extremely fun.

The Holidays

Between Thanksgiving and Christmas Anika and I attended both an art class (see previous post) and a music class for three sessions each. After our trial period, it was clear that music class was by far Anika's favorite, so we've signed up to continue for ten more weeks. When we returned this week, Anika was so excited to be back that she began tearing around the room. Plus we were also given a CD of songs from this program, which Anika happily listens to whenever we're in the car. It's driving me nuts, but I guess it's preferable to complaints from the backseat. She now has three or four songs that she is attempting to sing.

Anika does enjoy painting though. We've been doing it at home quite a bit recently, and she's adopted her mother's enthusiasm by exclaiming "Whoa!" with every brushstroke. On Monday, we are going to begin going to a nearby community center to participate in a toddler art co-op group. In theory, there will be eight toddlers and parents will routinely bring art projects for the group. I'm looking forward to meeting and collaborating with the other parents.

Here are a few photos from our trip home to Denver at Christmas (I'll add more if I can coerce the garndparents into contributing theirs):




And then returning home to play:


The tea party attendees (clockwise from the bottom): Sammy, Tashi, Mr. Bananas, Barnacle Bart, Davely, Dr. Chartswell, Anika, Doggy Wog, Kitty, Gormandy and Señor Mono.

In other news, Anika has just begun attending Pura Vida Preschool two days a week. We're both still grappling with the separation anxiety a bit, but the school (er, daycare) seems great and so far (this is week one) it feels like Anika and I are both ready to be apart on occasion. We're also really excited to have Anika in a Spanish immersion program--and particularly one that uses sign language in order to bridge English and Spanish. Anika is one of the older kids (there's one other girl who is the same age and four others who are younger) and her teacher is very impressed with her sign language skills. It's our hope that he will take particular interest in educating her, since Anika is currently the only truly communicative child there (I stopped counting a few weeks ago, but she has over 100 signs and words).

At any rate, we look forward to seeing her Spanish vocabulary expand beyond "hola" and (occasionally) "adios". Mama also looks forward to learning a little Spanish in the process.

Perhaps it will come in handy when we take a (much needed) family vacation to Cozumel, Mexico the first week in February? Or maybe even when we visit San Francisco with Grandma Karen next week (for Mama's final MFA review)... Stay tuned!

Art!

Here's Anika at our first art class, having just completed her first painting. Hooray!

Just this past week, she's gotten truly interested in drawing, so I have high hopes for our "Paint Playground" class. She was a little unnerved by all the activity (she's often, surprisingly, kind of anxious in classroom situations), but we definitely still did a little painting and water play.

This evening Anika and I will attend an opening for a show in which one of my own paintings is on display (it's a small works show at a gallery in Boston's South End). Hopefully, we will both come away having acquired some Art World schmoozing skills and inspiration.