Is Deia really almost a year and a half old!?! Holy wow. I cannot believe what a full person she is...so much soul and sweetness and smarts in such a tiny package! And from being a bean to the agile and vocal toddler that she is now in no time, it's quite amazing. Her vocabulary grows by the hour. Her latest words of wisdom are a perfectly imperfect "I luh nyuuu!" That's I love you, with a huge emphasis and pitch change on the yoouuuuu! It's precious. She says it in response and on her own. Deia continues to think that saying bye bye goes hand in hand with blowing kisses...which tends to make random people in stores, classes and on the street feel really special :-) Deia has on and off days at the park. One day she tosses blubo down the slide and immediately follows. Other days she thinks slides are the scariest things ever...back arching and screaming no when you take her to it. But she hangs, assisted, from the monkey bars and says "weeee" as we swing her. It's strange that she has been to 2 gymnastics classes and was petrified of both....I am going to wait a few weeks and try again.... But before then I hope to try Tots and Tutus!!!! Deia's favorite friends are Magnus, Tal and Baby Lee. She sees them the most and knows them by name. She often asks for them and if I tell her we are about to see them, she goes bananas! She and Magnus have a particular love affair...they have a deep friendship...going all the way back to when he watched her pee by the pool fence. You can say...they've shared moments :-) Deia doesn't really let us enjoy meals out anymore. It makes sense that all she wants to do is run around...and we have to be mindful of that when we make our restaurant selections. It's even more hectic now because she climbs so well and heads for every bench and chair. Deia has become quite the little helper these days! We moved back to the Rialto house and unpacking was made easier by her because she helped me, one by one, unpack and put away my shoes. ...only to take them all out and try them all on later! But I can ask her to grab me something or put something away, and she does it with joy. Deia has become very good at eating with her own fork and still has great pride in her efforts. She cannot get enough of veggies from any soup, her eggs, tangerines, bananas (which must be peeled down so she can hold them herself), veggie booty, chicken, strawberries and water. But she's getting adventurous and enjoys the occasional kale and seaweed snack too! She LOVES her grandparents and aunts so much. She knows them all by name...tuti, tati, papi, noni, la la, cee-cee, gigi and then the last two are a struggle...she is working on saying A-iccchh instead of Annie for Alecs and we are all working on trying to figure out what to call Tony, haha. Wise one isn't going to cut it, so it may just be some version of grandpa. Sorry Tony. Deia is very independent when she plays and will let you know when she wants you involved. And she loves telling people where to "shit," which would be sit, of course. The biggest compliment we get about Deia's personality is in the way that she shows love and affection. She really is so full of warmth and heart and she goes out of her way to show her feelings and gratitude. She is a kisser. She is a hugger. She makes sure everyone around her is loved equally and she nuzzles and snuggles and gets in your face with all that love! There is a sweetness to her that is really unique. It makes us want to give her the universe...and return all those yummy kisses. I think I might eat my child....so if there is no posting for 18 months, you all know what has happened :-)
17 Months!
Is Deia really almost a year and a half old!?! Holy wow. I cannot believe what a full person she is...so much soul and sweetness and smarts in such a tiny package! And from being a bean to the agile and vocal toddler that she is now in no time, it's quite amazing. Her vocabulary grows by the hour. Her latest words of wisdom are a perfectly imperfect "I luh nyuuu!" That's I love you, with a huge emphasis and pitch change on the yoouuuuu! It's precious. She says it in response and on her own. Deia continues to think that saying bye bye goes hand in hand with blowing kisses...which tends to make random people in stores, classes and on the street feel really special :-) Deia has on and off days at the park. One day she tosses blubo down the slide and immediately follows. Other days she thinks slides are the scariest things ever...back arching and screaming no when you take her to it. But she hangs, assisted, from the monkey bars and says "weeee" as we swing her. It's strange that she has been to 2 gymnastics classes and was petrified of both....I am going to wait a few weeks and try again.... But before then I hope to try Tots and Tutus!!!! Deia's favorite friends are Magnus, Tal and Baby Lee. She sees them the most and knows them by name. She often asks for them and if I tell her we are about to see them, she goes bananas! She and Magnus have a particular love affair...they have a deep friendship...going all the way back to when he watched her pee by the pool fence. You can say...they've shared moments :-) Deia doesn't really let us enjoy meals out anymore. It makes sense that all she wants to do is run around...and we have to be mindful of that when we make our restaurant selections. It's even more hectic now because she climbs so well and heads for every bench and chair. Deia has become quite the little helper these days! We moved back to the Rialto house and unpacking was made easier by her because she helped me, one by one, unpack and put away my shoes. ...only to take them all out and try them all on later! But I can ask her to grab me something or put something away, and she does it with joy. Deia has become very good at eating with her own fork and still has great pride in her efforts. She cannot get enough of veggies from any soup, her eggs, tangerines, bananas (which must be peeled down so she can hold them herself), veggie booty, chicken, strawberries and water. But she's getting adventurous and enjoys the occasional kale and seaweed snack too! She LOVES her grandparents and aunts so much. She knows them all by name...tuti, tati, papi, noni, la la, cee-cee, gigi and then the last two are a struggle...she is working on saying A-iccchh instead of Annie for Alecs and we are all working on trying to figure out what to call Tony, haha. Wise one isn't going to cut it, so it may just be some version of grandpa. Sorry Tony. Deia is very independent when she plays and will let you know when she wants you involved. And she loves telling people where to "shit," which would be sit, of course. The biggest compliment we get about Deia's personality is in the way that she shows love and affection. She really is so full of warmth and heart and she goes out of her way to show her feelings and gratitude. She is a kisser. She is a hugger. She makes sure everyone around her is loved equally and she nuzzles and snuggles and gets in your face with all that love! There is a sweetness to her that is really unique. It makes us want to give her the universe...and return all those yummy kisses. I think I might eat my child....so if there is no posting for 18 months, you all know what has happened :-)
Beads!
Deia is into water, sunglasses, bunnies, doggies, shoes, pbs, the beach, her car and BEADS! She has taken a liking to a few beaded necklaces and they have provided her with hours of fun! They have become a really fun way for her to learn how to count...she says one, two, three as she pulls each one over or off your head and neck. She often leaves the house with them on, which is giving her quite an eclectic look :-) Luckily she is just beyond the age where she puts everything in her mouth. She has lost interest in tasting these beads and I am sooo relieved!
Garden Girl
The only catch to our moving into 505 Rialto is that there was going to be a 2 week hiccup where we had to move elsewhere...so another family could pay an excruciating amount of money for their Easter holiday in Venice. And so we moved into, what we call, the shoebox on Electric and California. It's an adorable cottage, sort of. A 1 bedroom restored craftsman. Maaybe 350/400 square feet, on a good day. Perfect for a couple week vacation with a couple suitcases, and it exceeds all you wish for in a hotel suite. But when you move in with "stuff," it remains a cluttered and tight spot. The saving grace is a perfect, enchanted garden. It's a communal garden shared by the owners and 3 other rental properties and is a nook in Venice unlike anywhere else. You wouldn't imagine it to exist just off of the busy street of Abbot Kinney and over its hedges. But it's a world that was so consciously crafted over many mindful years. Every time you are in it you catch a new hidden statue, pot, plant or antique seat. It is so inspiring and Deia just loves frolicking down the pathways, jumping on the stepping stones and digging her toes in the gravel. She picks a different bench or chair to sit in almost every day. What a special space we get to enjoy for only a blip in time!
Moo Moo Musica
We started a new music class at the electric lodge in Venice. It's walking distance from our house and absolutely perfect. It's in a large dance room, where I take jazz and samba, and there are anywhere from 15-20 kids of similar age. Moms, dads and nanny's come ready to play and we sing in EVERY language you can think of. It's a wonderful class that inspires musicality, movement, awareness and silliness. The teacher is incredibly animated and captivates the children. Deia's favorite part of class is the magic carpet ride, where she sits or lays down at the base of a fleece blanket while I pull her around the room. The static that raises her hair is a priceless site!
Beach Days
The beach is warm in early Spring and Deia likes to kick back with a good trash mag and some cool shades. She loves the sand between her toes and the endless running areas. ...Only gets precarious when she bolts for the water. She adores the waves and has no fear in her approach to them. ...And so we get wet :-)
Farmer's Market
Just another sunny Sunday on Main Street. We went to the weekly farmer's market, listened to the banjo band, ate yummy snacks on the grass, shared balloon animals and watched the pony ride...from a distance of course. It's wonderful to have some happy stimulus around and to enjoy seeing an otherwise simple square come alive with food and families.
16 Months!
Well, I updated Deia's 15th month status in between months, so there is slightly less to blog about on this one. I am hoping to add new notes and not just reiterate what has already been written.... So. Deia is now very interested in using her fork. She rarely gets anything on the prongs when she attempts on her own, but when she is successful she has the sweetest look of pride on her face. She also likes we when arrange bites for her and hand her the fork. She's definitely getting more adventurous with her food, trying pretty much anything...but always spitting the bite out before she decides if she wants to continue eating it and then some. The only shoes she lets us put on her, without protest, are her uggs and she is ok with crocs so far. Tennis shoes take a little distraction. Deia is very much into stacking items. Loves putting her wooden discs on those posts, but loves wearing them as rings even more. She also puts the plastic stacking rings all the way up her arms. Soraya and Magnus introduced her to the recorder and it's her favorite instrument, for the moment. Although, we can't wait to take her to the drum circle on venice beach with her little djembe :-) Deia isn't into sitting in her stroller for long. She would much rather get out, get behind it and push it along. ...makes for a long walk for all of us. She is also very interested in learning how to go up and down stairs. Which is great! However....it frustrates her that we have gates prohibiting her from doing at her whim and she screams open while nearly breaking the gates down. Hey, at least now she'll throw in an "open please!" Deia is definitely adding more words to her vocabulary (lub loo = love you!) and makes very good attempts at saying some tough ones too. The coolest bit of progress is in the way that she responds with "ok" or answers with "no." She is getting better at asking for things she wants with words and sounds. Sadly, she still wants elmo/youtube too much and we need to stop the madness ASAP.Deia thinks that saying bye-bye must go hand in hand with blowing kisses. She even blowss a kiss when we sign off on a cell phone! I think she is headed into a single nap a day now. She has played in her crib through several 2nd naps this week, taken longer to go down for her 1st nap and that nap is shorter now. So we are going to see what happens when we push the 1st nap a little later...hmmm... Deia MUST have music playing in the car. She is very unhappy when there is a lull between songs and really doesn't want to have to wait out the 12 second silent interlude. No more bluetooth on speaker, for that interrupts her listening pleasure! Deia finally has some molars poking through and my heart goes out to all the little ones that endure a painful appearance of their molars. How awful :-( It didn't help that they showed up just as she was dealing with her worst illness to date and some strange, involuntary eye-rolling movement that had us visiting too many doctors in a single week. All is well, thank gawd, and she is healthy and lovely. She is getting more feminine by the day, showing true signs of being a girl, innately and socially. And when we walk on Abbot Kinney, she tends to bolt straight into the cool clothing shops and check out some of the fabrics. That's my girl!
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