The history of me.

Happy Birthday, Arya!

2009-03-24T09:02:00.008-04:00

Our little Arya is turning 3 years old today. I can hardly believe it. She is such a fun little girl. She loves to talk, talk, talk, and tell you all the things that she is thinking. She loves singing songs. (I need to post some videos of her recent favorites.) She loves painting at her easel in the kitchen, which she does nearly every day. Some of her favorite things to paint include fish in water, Sesame Street characters, ducks, and the Lion King. (She has a Lion King book, and likes to look at the book and have me help her copy one of the pictures in it - where Mufasa and Sarabi are standing on the big rock with baby Simba.) She loves to read books and to go to the library, where they have a big wooden boat to play in.

One of her other favorite things to do is to play games at one of the two websites we let her go to - sesamestreet.org and nickjr.com. I am amazed watching her navigate the sites, pick the games that she wants to play and work the keypad or mouse to do the things that she wants to do! At Nick Jr., some of the games ask you to type in your name, which she excitedly does, and then at the end they'll make a little card for you that you can print out that says something like, "Arya saves the day!!" with a picture of the Wonder Pets or other characters. She has to ask to use the printer, but really loves it when I let her print something!! We definitely have to limit how much she plays because I think she'd play all day long if we would let her!!

Arya is very excited about the Spring flowers that are starting to pop up. She wants to pick them all! She is very happy that it is getting warmer and that we've been able to play outside more lately. We like to walk down to the "duck pond" at the retirement complex that is close to our house, and she always asks if we have any old bread she can take to feed the ducks and swans. She likes to plant rocks in the yard (which I discourage), but also likes to plant leaves too. She'll push aside the dirt, stick whatever she is planting into the ground, and cover it with more dirt. She'll water it too, if she has any access to something that will hold water! She likes to look for what she calls "beautiful leaves", and likes to point out the different colors that she notices in the sky when the sun is getting low. She'll say, "Look, Mommy, the sky is SO beautiful!" I wish you could hear it!!

I wanted to write a little about these things so that I can remember exactly what this stage in her life was like, but there are so many things that I love about her that it is hard to write them all down. Needless to say, we can't imagine life without this precious little girl in our lives. We love you so much, Arya!! Happy Birthday!!

Arya loves chopsticks!

2009-03-24T08:53:00.002-04:00

A couple of weeks ago we went to a Japanese restaurant (where they cook at the table in front of you) for Rajeev's birthday. Arya was a little nervous about being that close to the fire on the table. (I think that means we're doing our job as parents, right? Don't get too close to fire! It can burn you!) However, she LOVED using the chopsticks that they gave her. (They had those little plastic things to hook the two sticks together and make them easier to use.) I took a video of her using them. It is a little dark, but I think it is pretty cute!!

What should we name the baby?

2009-03-12T14:32:00.002-04:00

We have had trouble coming up with the right name for the baby that is about to arrive. Arya, however, has had no trouble at all. At the beginning of February, we were talking about name options, and Arya said, "I think a good name for the baby would be Walden. Walden is a good name and it is a boy's name." She's pretty much settled on that name ever since. (In case you're wondering where "Walden" came from, no it isn't a reference to Henry David Thoreau's famous book. It is a reference to a character on the cartoon Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! She doesn't even get to watch that cartoon very often, but apparently the name of the silly scientist on the show has made an impression on her!!)

Getting ready for a new baby...

2009-03-12T14:04:00.003-04:00

Arya is getting very excited about the upcoming arrival of her baby brother. She likes to curl up next to me and talk to my belly to say hi to him. She'll often say something along these lines, "Hi, baby! I'm your big sister, Arya! I love you! I can't wait to meet you! I think you will like the Dumbo ride at Disney World!" That last part cracks me up, and it is something that she tells the baby quite frequently!!

Arya has liked hearing the story about when she was born. The story of her birth that I tell her goes something like this: Before you were born, you grew in Mommy's tummy. We waited and waited as you got bigger and bigger and bigger and my tummy got bigger and bigger and bigger! (This is a phrase from the book, God Gave Us You, which she likes to read.) When it was time for you to be born, Daddy and I went to the hospital and we spent the night. The next morning, the doctor told us you would be coming that day!! Everyone was so excited! We waited for you all day long and then you were born! So many people that love you came to meet you (I then tell her everyone who came to see her that day). They were all so happy that you had arrived! (Wow! What an easy birth, right?!!)

Well, we've also talked to Arya about what will happen when her baby brother is born. She knows that Mommy and Daddy will go to the hospital and that she will get to stay with Grandma or Aunt Sara and Uncle Landon. Then, after the baby is born, Grandma or Aunt Sara and Uncle Landon will bring her to the hospital and she'll get to see Mommy and Daddy and meet her new baby brother!

The other night, I was cooking dinner when Rajeev and Arya came into the kitchen. Rajeev looked at me and said, "Arya has a question for you!" They had evidently just had the following conversation:

Arya: When the baby is born, will Mommy's tummy break?
Rajeev: No, Arya, the doctor will be there to help. Don't worry, Mommy's tummy won't break!
Arya: (laughing) But Daddy, Mommy doesn't have a hole in her tummy!! How will the baby get out??!
(That's when Rajeev turned to me for some sort of great age-appropriate explanation!)
Me: Well, Arya, the doctor will help the baby be born and Mommy's tummy will be just fine!! It won't break! You don't need to worry!

Fortunately, that seemed to be enough detail for her for that day!! I'm sure this is only the start of the questions that we'll have to answer in the years to come though!!

Arya on TV!!

2009-02-10T11:22:00.004-05:00

On Sunday we went to Winterfest, near Rajeev's parents' house in Vaughan. The Backyardigans were scheduled to perform, and we knew Arya would really enjoy that. She loves the show, which is about a group of friends that get together in their backyards to go on all sorts of exciting adventures using their imaginations. All of the adventures feature lots of fun songs as well.

Anyway, we were excited to be able to take her to see the show before we left Toronto and headed back to Muncie. It was an outdoor show, so all of the little kids were so bundled up! Arya loved it, and afterwards, we just happened to be passing by when RogersTV was interviewing kids. She had no problem taking the microphone and answering all of the questions that they asked her!! She didn't even seem to have trouble coming up with answers at all! (I shouldn't have been surprised, since she is naturally so talkative!!) We didn't get to spend too long due to the fact that we had to drive home on Sunday, but we did love the show and we got to go on a horse and buggy ride before leaving too. (Arya was wondering why we could only do two things when there were other rides and activities all around!!)

Anyway, the clip played on the show FirstLocal on RogersTV on Monday, 2/9/09. If you want to see the clip, the segment about Winterfest starts about 11 minutes in, with Arya appearing right around 12 minutes in. You can view the link here. I am hoping that the link will be good for more than just today!! If it stops working, let me know and I'll try to post another link.

Thanks, Vaughan, for providing such a fun (and FREE!) activity for families!! We're so glad we had the chance to attend!

I want to be the manager now!

2009-02-04T10:33:00.002-05:00

While in Toronto visiting Rajeev's family, Arya has had lots of fun playing with Bunu Phupu (Rajeev's sister). Bunu has a laptop, and Arya is a huge fan of laptops (and really of any computer that allows her to access the sesamestreet.org website).

Bunu works in a bank, and Arya also likes to pretend that she is working in a bank. She'll fill her little purse with change and take it to Bunu and ask to deposit or withdraw something. Or, she'll want to be the manager and sit at Bunu's laptop while Bunu comes to deposit or withdraw something. So funny! Anyway, lately she has been really interested in being the manager. We just had the following conversation with her...

Arya: I want to be the manager now! (i.e. I want to use the computer!)
Rajeev: What does the manager do, Arya?
Arya: First someone takes the money and gives it to the manager. Then the manager types the money into the computer. That's how you be the manager.

Wow, being a manager sounds pretty simple!

Arya's First Day of "School"

2009-01-27T23:43:00.003-05:00

Last Wednesday, I took Arya to her first day of "school". It is actually a Parents' Day Out program at a preschool/church where several of our friends' kids go to preschool. We have the option of taking her to the program a couple of afternoons and/or mornings a week. She went last Wednesday and again today, and she seemed to have a lot of fun. She says that the teachers are nice. They've told me that she has been a really good girl both days she has been there. She has been hesitant to leave both of the days when I've come to pick her up because she has enjoyed cooking in their toy kitchen so much. She also likes the slide, which is part of their indoor playground. She takes her lunch when she goes, and she thinks that is fun. (She likes me to pack her favorite lunch - a ham and cheese sandwich.) The pictures above are of Arya all ready to head to school with her lunch bag! I still can't believe how she is growing up!!

December mini photo shoot

2009-01-23T16:56:00.007-05:00

In December, we did a mini photo shoot of our family to use in our Christmas cards. I thought I'd post a few of them so the blog would have some updated photos of our little Arya.

Warm feet AND hands!

2008-10-28T23:01:00.004-04:00

I had to post this snapshot that I took of Arya today. We were getting ready to go to the grocery store, and I asked Arya to go get some socks out of her drawer and put them on. Soon, she came back wearing the two sets of socks above. (She didn't roll up her pants like that. I did that so that you could see both pairs of socks!) "Look, Mommy! I put these blue ones on my feet and these pink ones on my hands! That way my feet won't get cold AND my hands won't get cold!!!" Pretty smart! :)

Mommy, where is Barack Obama?

2008-10-28T17:03:00.004-04:00

Yesterday, Arya went with me to vote early. I knew that we might have to deal with some lines, so I was trying to get Arya excited about going to "vote". She knows who Barack Obama is and regularly points him out when she sees his picture on the computer, TV, or like last week, in the books on tape section of the gas station we stopped at while driving back from Toronto. "Arya, we're going to go vote for Barack Obama!! Isn't that exciting?" I said to her yesterday. She asked lots of questions, trying to figure out what it meant to vote for president. The best question came when we actually got to the County Building, where early voting was taking place. "Mommy, where is Barack Obama? Is he in there?" Sadly, I had to explain to her that she wasn't going to get to see him in the Delaware County building. She was clearly disappointed.

Maybe the fact that I let her push the red button to submit my vote once I was finished voting was able to make up for some of the disappointment. When her daddy got home last night, she got to proudly announce, "Daddy, WE voted for Barack Obama today! ....And I got to push the red button!"

(I took this photo at the Obama rally in Indy October 8. I was going to take Arya with me, just for the history of the event, but since it was a pretty yucky day she stayed home and played with Hama instead.)

Frog or Cow?

2008-09-09T10:04:00.004-04:00

We had to go to TJ Maxx the other day, and while we were there Arya was very excited about the animal costumes that she saw. She wanted to try on her two favorites - the frog and the cow. I don't think she really thinks of the costumes in relation to Halloween, she just thinks it is so much fun to get to wear costumes. They have trick or treating at Ontario Systems every year for the employees' kids, and since we'll probably go, it would be good to plan ahead and get a good deal on a costume (hooray for TJ Maxx!) while they still have her size. I tried to get Arya to decide between these two, but she just didn't get the idea that she could only pick one. She was asking if she could get one and then bring it back a little later and get the other one. (Maybe like getting books from the library?) Anyway, I took her picture and she keeps asking family members if they want to see her wearing "two costumes". I guess I can't blame her for not being able to pick - I can't decide myself which I think is cuter!!

Jesus Loves Me

2008-09-09T09:43:00.002-04:00

Okay, YouTube is working again. Here is the other video that I was going to upload last night. Arya is singing "Jesus Loves Me". She changes the words a little at the end and then she starts to say, "Now show me!" because she wanted to see what she looked like singing in the video! Unfortunately, that gets cut off because I can only record 30 seconds at a time!!

Arya sings, "I love you, you love me"

2008-09-08T20:37:00.009-04:00

Arya loves to sing songs. Recently I have been thinking that I just have to get her on video singing her favorites so that I don't forget what it was like at this stage. The song she sings the most these days is the Barney song, "I love you, you love me." She sings it countless times a day, no matter where we might be at the time! (For example, today she put on her little show for Grandma and Aunt Sara in McDonald's.) I know, Barney may not be your favorite character, but it is pretty sweet when your little girl goes around singing that she loves you and about our "happy family" all the time. She changes words a little sometimes (including at the end of this video). This time she sings about how she wants you to "love me through and through". This is taken from the book I Love You Through and Through, which she likes to read.

I guess YouTube is doing site maintenance right now, so I'll try to upload the other video tomorrow. Until then, enjoy the Barney song!

"I'm a grown up!

2008-07-31T21:58:00.002-04:00

This afternoon, Arya came up to me and said the funniest thing. I'll recount the conversation for you. It went something like this...

Arya: Mommy, I'm a grown up!
Me: Really?
Arya: Yes. I'm a grown up. Grown ups like mints. I like mints. I'm a grown up! (Arya was handing me the container of mints that she had found in my purse.)
Me: Wow. Aren't those mints a little hot for you?
Arya: No. I like mints.
Me: Do you want to try one?
Arya: YES!!
Me: Okay, but I think it will be too hot for you.
(Arya then puts the mint in her mouth.)
Arya: HOT!!! I'm not a grown up.
(She spits out the mint and gives it to me at this point, which is followed by her begging to try it again about 5 seconds later, and then going back and forth about whether or not she likes mints or they're too hot until she has eaten the whole thing.)

So funny!

So many changes...

2008-06-12T01:09:00.002-04:00

So many changes have taken place in our little Arya's life in the last month or so. She is growing up before our eyes, and we can hardly believe it.

The week that we returned from our vacation in Florida (yes, I still need to post some pics of that!!), Arya transitioned into her own "little big girl bed". Yes, she slept in our bed for all but a handful of nights in her first two years of life, and we were actually fine with that. We liked having her near us and when we would think about putting the littlest person in our family in a room all alone while the oldest people got to stay together, we just decided to keep letting her stay in our bed!! But as she has continued to get bigger and as we think about the fact that eventually there will probably be another little one on the way (and only so many people can fit in the bed!!), we figured we had to get her used to sleeping on her own.

She has been sleeping in a crib for naps at Grandma Carol's house (when she is there on Tuesdays) for the past couple of months, and she had shown more interest in playing in her own bed at home, watching the mobile, etc. So, when we got back from Florida, we kept talking up how neat her little bed was, and a few nights after our return, she stayed there all night. A couple of days later, her daddy converted her crib into a toddler bed, which she thought was really cool. She was really excited about having a big girl bed (especially since she has seen these big kid beds at her friends' houses). Anyway, we (amazingly) really haven't had any trouble keeping her in the bed. (Of course, sometimes, when she doesn't want to go to sleep, she gets out of bed, but once she is asleep, she has stayed there all night all but about two nights. (One morning she woke up and came in around 6a.m., the other night it was around 1a.m.)

She likes us to tuck her in at night. She asks us to "till the soil" on her back or tummy, which is a little game where we pretend to plant a garden on her. The other thing that she loves is for us to "paint her face". That is where you pretend that your finger is a paintbrush and you go over each feature, "painting" it as you go. "I'm painting your eyebrows...and your pretty brown eyes...your eye lashes...your little nose..." etc. She has to keep her eyes closed if she wants her face painted or the soil tilled, and both of these things tend to relax her and get her to fall asleep.

So, the transition is going well, but Rajeev and I both still kind of miss having her with us while we sleep though!!

Sidewalk Chalk

2008-06-06T23:31:00.006-04:00

Yesterday, Rajeev and I needed to get some yardwork done, so we got out the sidewalk chalk for Arya! She had so much fun, and she was absolutely covered with chalk by the time she was finished with her artwork! She especially liked helping me draw flowers and fireworks. Here are a few pictures of her in action.

Watch out, here I come!!

Drawing fireworks.

Our silly little girl!! :)

Do I have anything on my face?

"I'm paying."

2008-06-03T23:37:00.002-04:00

Yesterday morning, Arya and I had been playing the card-matching game, "Memory." Since she's still young, we play an easier version of the game where we spread out all of the cards and we try to find as many matches as we can. After playing for a while, I'd gone into the kitchen to take care of some things. Arya soon followed, with a couple of the little 2"x2" cardboard cards in her hands. Soon she started running the cards through the gaps between the kitchen cabinet doors. She'd start at the top, then slide it down the little slot, start back at the top, and slide it again.

I didn't realize what she was really doing until she looked at Grandma Carol and me, and said, "I'm paying!" "Painting?" I asked. "Playing?" asked Grandma. "No, I'm PAYing!" Then it hit me, she was pretending she had a credit card and was sliding it through the machine to PAY!! It was hilarious!!

Mommy, I colored my face! And my tummy!!

2008-04-24T16:07:00.009-04:00

Arya loves to color, especially with markers. We have washable markers, which really do wash out pretty easily. So as long as she sits in her high chair, I don't mind letting her use them. We've talked a lot about how markers and crayons are "only for paper" though (not walls, floors, etc.). I guess we hadn't really covered the idea that you aren't supposed to color your skin!

Yesterday, she was coloring a beautiful picture when I got a phone call. I was still in the kitchen with her, but I was trying to do several things at the same time and I didn't realize that her art was spreading far off the paper! I looked over to see how she was doing and she smiled up at me with a big grin and said, "Mommy! I colored my face! And my tummy!!" She proudly showed off how beautiful she had made herself, and it was definitely a sight to see. I had to take a few pictures to capture the moment!

I yove you.

2008-01-11T16:27:00.000-05:00

A couple of months ago, Arya started saying, "I love you." Her l-sound actually sounds more like a y- sound though, so when she says "I love you", it sounds like "I yove you." I love hearing her say, "I yove you, Mommy!" It just gets me! Recently, she has found that she yoves so many things though. I yove Elmo. I yove candy. I yove Blue's Clues. I yove Mika. I yove Yuca (Luca). I yove that. I yove her. I yove him. I yove...the list goes on and on. So, maybe she does yove everyone and maybe she does tell us all of the things she yoves every day...but I yove hearing Arya express herself and if she wants to say it all day long, that is fine with me!! I yove you, Arya!!

Imagining...

2008-01-11T15:28:00.000-05:00

Arya has begun to develop quite and imagination and it is so fun to watch!! She loves to pretend. She is especially interested in cooking and loves making soup, chicken, eggs, "hangaburs" (hamburgers), and more for us. She got a play kitchen for Christmas and is having so much fun with all of her dishes. Grandma Carol even noticed today that she was carefully using her tiny play potholder to remove a pan from her play oven! How adorable is that?!

I have also noticed her playing while eating her real food at mealtimes. Yesterday she was eating cottage cheese. I was cleaning up the kitchen as she was having her snack. I listened as she started telling me what she had "found" in her cottage cheese. I actually jotted down part of the conversation because it was so funny and I didn't want to forget. Here is part of what I heard (with my comments in parentheses)...

Arya: Tiny frog. Walking, walking, on the road. (As she moved a big piece of cottage cheese along her high chair tray.)
Me: Oh, it is a frog? Are you going to eat the frog?
Arya: Nooo. (In her "Come on, Mom, that's silly!" tone.) No eat him.
(Long pause.)
Arya: Eat him!!! (Apparently she had changed her mind!)

Later, her little game continued and this was what I heard:
Arya: It's a doggie. I made it. This (is the) puppy tail. (She was showing me the "tail" made from cottage cheese at this point.)
Arya: Tail! Oh no! Arya broke it. I broke it. I broke a tail.
(Another pause...)
Arya: I eat it! Eat the doggie. I eat it!

Anyway, I hope you have been as entertained by Arya's imagining as I have been! Stay tuned for more.

Arya as Elmo

2007-11-01T09:51:00.000-04:00

As many of you know, Arya is a HUGE fan of Elmo. Grandma Carol made Arya an adorable Elmo costume, so after trick or treating inside at Daddy's office as a hula girl we came home to change into the Elmo suit! Arya and I stayed out in the yard, playing and giving candy to the neighborhood kids (since Rajeev and a friend were working on replacing our front window and the porch was covered with tools, scraps, etc.). We then went to Grandma Carol's to have dinner and show her Arya all dressed up! Here are a couple of photos and videos from the evening!

Arya the Dancing Hula Girl

2007-11-01T09:10:00.000-04:00

We took Arya to her daddy's office yesterday for trick or treating, all dressed up in her "dancing skirt". We told her that if she wore her dancing skirt she could get some candy! She caught on pretty quickly, and liked taking a piece of candy from each bucket or basket that people had sitting outside their office for the kids. The only trouble was that a few times she saw candy that other kids had already collected and she tried to take her piece of candy from them too! While at the office, she got to play in a box tunnel, do a bean bag toss, and play a few other games. I think the candy was still her favorite part though! Here is a video of her dancing. (You'll notice that she wanted to keep the candy rather than putting it down to show us her dance!)

Squeaky Shoes!!

2007-11-01T09:02:00.000-04:00

Arya's Grandma Carol got her some new squeaky shoes and she LOVES them. She is still wearing size 4 shoes, and it was getting too cold to wear sandals!! She has some size 5 shoes, but they're still too big! So, Grandma found these shoes for her. I put them on her and didn't tell her that they squeak. I just set her on the floor and let her figure it out. As soon as she stepped down and realized what her new shoes could do, she started running and stomping and jumping - SQUEAK! SQUEAK!! SQUEAK!! Here is a quick video clip of her, taken a couple of hours after she first tried them out.

PS-For those of you wondering, you do have the option to turn the squeak off and on as needed! You've got to love designers who think of everything!

Arya's Newly Organized Room

2007-11-01T08:39:00.000-04:00

From this:
To this:
And finally, to this:

I recently sorted through all of Arya's baby clothes, trying to figure out what fits, what doesn't, what can be passed on to someone else, and what has to go back to the people who loaned it to us!! I made piles for all of these things all over her room and it was such a mess. I got one of those cube styles shelves with baskets for storage, so now her toys are organized as well (not just sprawled across the living room)! Now that she is 19 months old, I am finally getting things organized (or at least trying)! I guess it is about time!

Also...

2007-10-19T11:21:00.001-04:00

Stay tuned for pics of Arya in the Elmo costume that her Grandma Carol made her! Grandma Carol has finished the body of the costume and is bringing the hood/Elmo's head with her when she comes back from Florida next week! I'm sure Arya will be spending a lot of time wearing it this winter when it is cold outside!

Hula Girl

2007-10-19T10:25:00.000-04:00

I have taken a lot of pictures of Arya so far, but I thought it would be fun to have someone else take a few too. (Someone with a different perspective/backdrops/setups/ideas/etc.) I took her to Stacy and Mary in Indianapolis yesterday for their costume dress-up mini session. Arya was dressed as a little hula dancer, and she did a great job! I was just hoping she would wear the grass skirt! She really thought it was interesting when we first got it, but the day before the photo shoot she wanted nothing to do with it! I kept talking to her about her "dancing skirt" and how cool it was, asking things like, "Aren't you excited to wear your dancing skirt?" "Listen to that neat swoosh-swoosh sound it makes when you dance!" Anyway, when we got to the session, she seemed to have no problem wearing it! Yeah!! Stacy and Mary were really fun to work with and made us feel very relaxed and comfortable. Here are a couple of pics from the shoot! You can also see them on Stacy and Mary's blog. The rest of the pics will be ready to view in about a week. I can't wait! :)

PS - I made that little green top for Arya all by myself!! I was pretty happy with how it turned out since it was the first time I'd ever made a piece of clothing from a pattern!

Happy dog!

2007-10-09T20:56:00.001-04:00

Here is something that was sent to me which makes Arya laugh. When she sees it she says, "Happy dog! Happy dog!" I hope the link works here!

I did it, Mommy!

2007-10-09T09:13:00.001-04:00

Sunday we were getting ready for church. Arya had just gotten up and had gone to the bathroom. We put her diaper back on and she walked into the hallway near where Rajeev and I were. She started saying, "I did it. I did it." As we looked at her to listen to this new phrase she was saying, she looked at me and said, "I did it, Mommy!" Rajeev and I just looked at each other, shocked that a four word sentence had just come from her mouth. It was also surprising because she used the word, "I". She usually refers to herself as Arya.

She is trying to figure out the "you" and "me" thing. But think about it, that is pretty confusing stuff for an 18 month old!! Last night, we were playing and she started pointing at herself and then me, herself and then me. She'd say, "You!" and point to me, then point to herself, "Me". She'd immediately follow that by pointing to herself and saying, "You!", and then at me, saying, "Me!" There wasn't a consistent pattern for which phrase she used most, but she just kept pointing to either herself or to me and then saying either "you" or "me". This went back and forth for a few minutes and got us both laughing. (She likes to laugh along when other people laugh. It is very cute.) Her little brain is definitely hard at work learning new things these days though!

Potty Training Update (You can skip this if you want, but I figure this is worth keeping track of!)

2007-10-06T00:21:00.001-04:00

Okay, this is probably something only moms are interested in...everyone else is going to be thinking, "Do we have to include the potty training stories??" This is a pretty big one though. Arya woke me up this morning at 5:58a.m. (much before her normal wake-up time which is usually around 8:30a.m.). She was saying, "Mommy! Pee pee! Mommy! Pee pee!" I figured, "Well, I guess I should see if she has to go to the bathroom!" Anyway, she still had a dry diaper, I took her to the bathroom, and she went! Then I put her diaper back on, took her back to bed and she went back to sleep until about 9:00a.m.! Needless to say, I'm amazed! I'm hardly doing anything - just taking her to sit on the potty when she wakes up in the morning and now usually after her nap - and she's moving toward figuring it out on her own.

My sweet, silly little girl

2007-10-06T00:03:00.000-04:00

I just wanted to post of couple of pics that I took today of Arya. I was using a "light ring" that my brother Philip made, and that is what gives the interesting circle of light in the eyes. Arya didn't feel much like staying in front of the camera though. She prefers going around to the back of the camera, where she knows that she can see pictures of herself!! She'll keep saying, "Arya! Arya! Arya!!" until you break down and show her the pics!!

Arya's new fave: Feist

2007-10-05T22:38:00.001-04:00

Arya has a new favorite to watch on YouTube. Here is Feist's video for the song 1234. You may have seen it on iPod commercials. Tonight Arya came up to me excitedly and said, "Feis! See! Okay!" In other words, she wanted to watch this video. Hope you enjoy it as much as Arya. (We also hope Arya learns to count "12345678" rather than "1234569 and 10" like in this song! We try to say the right numbers as we sing along, so we don't end up with a little girl who is totally confused when she learns to count!!

18 month update

2007-10-04T10:14:00.000-04:00

I took Arya to the doctor for her 18 month checkup. She weighs 20 lbs., 10 ounces (4th percentile) and is 30" tall (10th percentile). She is continuing to grow (slowly but surely!). The doctor says she is doing great though and everything looks good!

Communication continues...

2007-10-04T10:01:00.000-04:00

Arya has been putting two words together pretty regularly for a little over a month now. I know that she was doing it when we went to Toronto the first week of September. She would grab my hand and say things like, "Mama. Come," "Dada. Play," etc. It has just continued to pick up and become more regular since then.

She has been using one word after another to carry on conversation or to tell stories. For example, the other day after Arya's friend Maggie (who is now "Maggie" instead of just "Ma" or "Ma-ie") came over and played, colored, and drank some juice from a blue cup of Arya's. The next day, Arya told us about Maggie coming over kind of like this: "Maggie. Play. Cuh-cuh. Jyuice (while pointing to the blue cup Maggie had used)."

In the last week or so she's been using three words together more often in more sentence-like form. Last night, Rajeev had to go back to work after eating dinner with us. As he was telling her goodbye, she said, "Bye-bye, Daddy. Work!" This morning she wanted me to put her up on the bathroom counter. She said, "Sit up high!

I'm amazed to hear all of these words, phrases, and now sentences of sorts coming from this tiny little girl!

High Five! Awesome! Okay?

2007-10-04T09:12:00.000-04:00

Arya is always doing funny little things that make us laugh. Last week she randomly walked up to me, held out her hand, and said completely clearly, "High five!"

She also has started picking up all kinds of words for things that are more abstract than concrete. She's been saying, "cool" for a while now. (For example, if she sees something sparkly that she thinks is pretty, she'll look at us and say, "Cool!") Another word she picked up a little over a week ago is "awesome". We were having dinner with friends, who volunteered to help us install the windows which will be arriving soon. I said, "Oh, that would be awesome!" Arya promptly followed that statement by saying, "Awesome!!" It definitely got a laugh, and she's been using it regularly since then!

Another funny thing that makes us laugh is Arya's use of the word "okay". Arya often wants something (for example, to watch her Elmo video or to eat candy) and she'll try to get us to give it to her. She'll look at us with this very reassuring look (totally serious, of course), and kind of nod a few times while saying, "Okay. Okay." She says it as if she's trying to convince us, "Really. You don't have to worry. It is just fine to give me what I want. It's OKAY."

How can you not love her??

P.S.

2007-09-20T17:17:00.000-04:00

The adorable snail shirt that Arya is wearing in the pictures from the last post was one Arya's Uncle Philip had made for her by a girl he knows in Columbus. I don't think she has a website up yet, but if she puts one up, I'll pass along the info. Thanks, Uncle Philip (or "Hup" as Arya would say)!

WEEEEE!

2007-09-20T16:57:00.001-04:00

What do you say when you slide down the slide? Weeeee! What about when you swing back and forth on the swings? Weeeee! Well, Arya loves playing outside and she has learned this summer that playgrounds are fun! She now refers to any slide or swing as a "weeeee" because that's what you say when you play on them!

Some friends brought over a slide/yard toy not long ago, thinking Arya might enjoy playing on it, and she definitely has. Here are a few pics of her that I took recently.

Trees! Yummy!

2007-09-20T16:27:00.000-04:00

Last night, we were having broccoli, which Arya didn't have any particular interest in eating...until I showed her that each piece of broccoli was like a little tree! It was magic! She started happily munching on her broccoli and asking for more trees when all of hers were gone. She also seemed to kind of like the fish that we were eating...and the mashed potatoes too!

Here are some of Arya's current favorite foods (Although she'll eat lots of other things, these are some that she loves the most!):

Cheerios "cho-chos", which somehow sounds a lot like "turtle"
cheese "cheese" (cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, string cheese - She loves it all!)
grapes "gapes"
beans "beee!" (pinto beans, green beans, kidney beans, refried beans, navy beans - She must be related to her Aunt Liz.)
french fries
potatoes
chicken "chick"? (She says it differently on different days.)
candy "caa-caa" (I actually don't give her candy very often, but she is a HUGE fan. Her grandpa in Toronto recently sent her home with some m&ms, which she LOVES. Then she got a package from her Grandma Carol and Grandpa Ray that included some peanut butter m&ms, which she also LOVED. She likes to pick out which colors she'll eat next when she is eating m&ms. It is so cute. She will excitedly say, "Booo!" for blue, "re!" for red, "or" for orange, and "ye-yo" for yellow.

Speaking of colors, she is starting to recognize some of the main ones. She nearly always gets blue right. She gets orange right pretty often too. She likes pink ("pink"!), especially the pink marker that she sometimes gets to color with. Red, yellow and green are coming along. For example, if I tell her something is green, she can identify other green items at the time, but she sometimes gets mixed up the next day. We've just started working on colors though, so I think she's doing great! She loves to color, or "cuh-cuh" as she calls it, and usually asks to do it at least once a day. She sure is growing up fast!

Mommy!

2007-09-18T14:43:00.000-04:00

I'm so far behind in blogging! I'm going to post a few shorter things a little at a time to try to catch up! At least that is the plan!

On Thursday or Friday of last week (Aug. 13 or 14th), Arya started the morning out normally, referring to me as "mama". Then, when she called for me mid-morning, she said, "Mommy!" Since then, there's been no more "mama" for her...it is only "mommy!" I think she must like the sound of the word, because she seems to be saying it much more than she ever said "mama". She has referred to Rajeev occasionally as "Daddy" since then as well, but she seems to be sticking with "Dada" just as much for him. She just sounds so much more like a little girl when she says "mommy" though. It really is cute.

Mika - Big Girl (You Are Beautiful)

2007-08-02T17:56:00.001-04:00

Here is the video that Arya likes the most. She especially likes the end, when everyone is dancing in the street, when they release tons of balloons, and when everyone opens up colorful umbrellas!

Arya loves Mika

2007-08-02T17:19:00.000-04:00

Recently Arya's Aunt Liz introduced her to a singer named Mika. Liz played a Mika ringtone repeatedly for Arya on her phone and showed her several Mika videos on YouTube, which feature things that Arya loves, including dancing, balloons, and umbrellas! Needless to say, Mika was an immediate hit with Arya. She now asks for him saying, "Muh?" and pulling us toward the computer!

Yesterday we met Liz for lunch and as soon as Arya saw Liz she started saying, "Muh. Muh. Muh!! Muh!!!" She pointed at Liz's purse and phone and kept saying "Muh" until we finally figured out what she wanted. We finally realized she wanted Liz to play the Mika ringtone on her phone! We were cracking up. Anyway, here are a couple of videos I took of Arya watching and dancing to Mika's music on YouTube.

Arya loves the rain!

2007-07-15T09:30:00.000-04:00

The video clips above are from May 25, 2007. (I know, I'm behind in getting them uploaded!!) Arya was playing in the rain for the first time and was having so much fun that I had to take a few videos of her! She especially loves splashing in puddles!

It was probably around that time that she also realized that she LOVES taking baths! Whenever we go into the bathroom, she points at the bathtub and says, "A baa! A baa!" She often will even try to climb into the tub!

We have taken her swimming in Grandma Carol's pool - which we explained to her was "like a great big bath." (It is just not as warm!!!) Once we put it that way, she has been much more excited about swimming! When we go to Grandma's, she'll often point outside and ask, "Poo?", wondering if she is going to get to go swimming in the pool! (She also now refers to any body of water as a pool - lakes, oceans, etc!) She is definitely enjoying summer and all of the water fun that comes along with it!

Modification

2007-05-24T09:45:00.001-04:00

One change from the previous post (mostly so I'll remember rather than for anyone else!): baby should have been listed with the words known as of 4/28 rather than 5/24. (This is, after all, essentially my online baby book where I'm keeping track of all of these things.)

14 months

2007-05-24T08:26:00.000-04:00

Arya is 14 months old today! I thought I'd jot down a few recent milestones so that I don't forget what things were like for her at 14 months.

Arya:
* Likes trying to use a spoon or fork to eat.
* Is quite comfortable with walking now.
* Helps me get her dressed/undressed by giving me her arms or pulling them out of the clothes.
* Loves being outside.
* Sits on the potty in the morning as soon as she gets up. (We haven't tried it much during the day except for occasionally after she wakes up from a nap.)
* Understands simple instructions/questions including:

Wave bye-bye
Say hi
Blow kisses
Give me a hug
Give me a kiss (She opens her mouth and puts it on your cheek.)
Give me the ________.
Pick up the ________.
Sit down.
Stand up.
Clap your hands!
Come here. (She doesn't always do this one when we ask, but I'm pretty sure she knows what it means!)
Dance!
Shake the _______ (towel, toy, rattle, etc.).
Where is the _______?
Where is Arya? (She then hides behind an object or her hands and plays peekaboo.)

* Recognizes and is able to make the following signs (in order of when she learned them as much as I can remember!):

More (She puts the fingers and thumb of one hand together and touches them to the palm of the other hand. She mostly associates this with food. She uses this when she wants something to eat. Learned this sign quite some time ago - maybe around 9-10 months.)
All done (Puts hands palm up and rotates them back and forth. Says this in combination with "ah dah" or simply "dah". Learned maybe around 10-12 months (?) and uses it OFTEN - whenever she is tired of anything, wants to do something else, wants out of the carseat/stroller/shopping cart, is finished eating or sitting on the potty, or when someone leaves (example: After Rajeev leaves to go to work or school, she'll sign all done while saying "da da", basically telling me that Daddy is gone.)
Change (Clasps hands together and rotates them back and forth. Uses in association with having her diaper changed. When she uses it she usually does need changed, but doesn't use it all of the times that she needs changed. Learned around 12 months?)
Thirsty (Touches her neck with one finger. Says this in combination with "bo-bo-bo" when she wants something to drink. Learned in the last month.)
Eat (Puts fingers and thumb of of one hand together and touches mouth. This is pretty new - in the last 2 weeks or so. She's starting to use it along with the "more" sign when she is hungry.)
Thank you (Moves hand toward and away from chin with palm facing her. Very new inconsistent. First done multiple times last Sunday when I gave her some bites of a Nutrigrain bar.)

* As of 4/28/07, Arya knew and was able to use the following words:

da da (for Daddy)
ma ma (for Mommy)
ight (for light)
eye (for eye)
tk-ah (for tickle)
ca-ca (for cracker)
chss (for cheese)
ah dah (for all done)
sss (for paci/pacifier)
ball (for ball)
ba (for bye)
ha/hai (for hi)
ha (for hair)

* As of today (5/24/07), the following words can be added to the list above:

bay-bay/bay-be (for baby - She is so interested in other kids! She says baby when she sees a baby anywhere - at the store, on tv, in a magazine. She also uses it for her doll and for other kids who seem closer to her size!)
bo-bo (for cup/drink/bottle/etc. - I think she got this from the word bottle, even though she has hardly used a bottle and we rarely use the word.)
she now says a very clear "hi" for hi rather than "ha/hai"
egg-ah (for egg)
beep (for beep - when she is driving the Grandma's toy car and pushing the horn!)
car (for car - learned from the toy car, but now uses in association with real cars. This week while reading her 100 First Words book, she got to the "things that go" page and without prompting from us, she pointed out the car, the truck, the fire truck and another car-like vehicle from among the other pictures, identifying each as "car" and leaving out the things like the plane, boat, motorcycle, etc!)
op/ahp (Nepali word for mango. She learned it this week and loves saying it again and again!)
hah(t) (for hot - started saying it when walking barefoot on the sunny deck at Grandma's)
whasah (for "what's that"? - This phrase is used all the time!!)
ah-sah (for outside - where she LOVES to go)
go (for go, as in go somewhere else, away from where she is right then - go outside, go inside, etc.)
Iz/Iss (for Aunt Liz - she's used multiple times. I'm starting to think she really does know what it means.)
buh-buh (for butterfly - This is a new one as of yesterday. She always wants to look at the butterfly decorations in her room from her birthday party. Yesterday she was playing with one and saying buh-buh-buh. I thought it was coincidence until she saw a dress with butterflies on it in a stack of clothes waiting to be put away and she pointed directly to the butterflies multiple times and said "buh-buh-buh"!)

(I'm probably forgetting some! I guess I can add more later.)

*Also, these aren't really "words", but she does the cutest animal sounds:

woo, woo (sounds like oo in look. This is the sound that dogs make, like "woof, woof". She loves dogs and birds and when she sees them she makes her mouth into an o shape and starts imitating their sounds!)
high pitched bird sounds (She makes this a lot when she gets up in the morning and hears the birds singing, and also when she is outside watching the birds in the yard.)
oohh (imagine the word "roar" without the r's . She has a book that talks about lions roaring and when we read it she always imitates this sound as much as she can!)
eeee! (in the same book, it says, "If you see a crocodile, don't forget to scream!" I always do a little scream for her at that point and then she does her adorable little crocodile scream!

* There are so many things I could write, and I'd still be leaving things out. Arya is learning new things so quickly. I am constantly amazed to watch her little mind working things out and making sense of the world around her. She is a very fun little girl. She loves to play and even joke around. She does this pointing thing with her Aunt Liz when she sees her and it is like their own little inside joke. She loves to dance. She is fascinated by other kids. She hasn't quite learned about sharing though! (She was quite unsure of what to do when another little boy was driving the car at Grandma's. She really wanted it!) She is very opinionated, but very loving and friendly. Isn't it amazing that kids have so much personality at such a young age? Anyway, we are beyond blessed to have this little girl in our lives. Sorry for such a long post all at once, but I just needed to get these things down because I don't want to forget all of the milestones.

My little girl!

2007-05-09T18:48:00.000-04:00

The day before yesterday, I put Arya's hair in ponytails. I was reminded once again that she is looking more like a little girl and less like a baby all the time. I wanted to share a couple of pictures that I took of her playing outside in the yard. I'll admit that I am biased, but isn't she about the cutest kid ever?

Chicken Pox

2007-05-09T18:23:00.000-04:00

Arya got her 1-yr vaccinations on April 12. She got 4 shots, including the chicken pox vaccine. They warned me to keep an eye out for any rash or bumps that might appear in 10-14 days. Apparently, there is a very small chance that the vaccine can cause the child to actually break out in chicken pox. That is what happened to poor little Arya!

She had a random fever in the night on Saturday, 4/21/07 but seemed better on Sunday. On Monday, 4/23, Liz and I went to lunch and she was holding Arya when she noticed, "Oh, Arya has a little pimple on her hand." I quickly started putting everything together - the vaccination, the fever, the "pimple" which we soon realized was one of many little red dots that were quickly appearing all over Arya's body. Arya had chicken pox!

Fortunately, she was still too young to know to really scratch at the bumps, so they didn't last long. A week after the first spots appeared, she had her 1-yr checkup (actually 13 month checkup) and was officially declared to no longer be contagious. The other good thing was that even though she got lots of spots, she didn't have tons that became huge blisters. Here are a couple of pictures to help us remember her chicken pox outbreak. And just think, now she has gotten the chicken pox out of the way for good (hopefully!).

How much longer will this last, Mom?

P.S. - More birthday photos

2007-04-04T11:31:00.000-04:00

P.S. - More birthday photos can be seen at our flickr site.

Arya turns one!

2007-04-04T09:45:00.000-04:00

We celebrated Arya's first birthday on March 24, 2007. It seems impossible that she is already one, but the time before we had Arya seems like so long ago. Now we can't imagine our lives without her!

We had a birthday party with family and a few friends at my parents' house. Rajeev's mom and sister were able to come from Toronto to join us too!

We had a butterfly theme, and I found some adorable little butterfly decorations which had sparkles and glitter and beads - which Arya loved. She loved the beads so much she bit one off and apparently thought about eating it. Fortunately, we caught her first!

We had snacks, cake and ice cream and tried to coordinate around everyone's naps! Everything went well though! Arya was a little hesitant to reach into the small cake that we gave her. After a few minutes, her Grandpa Ray helped her out and showed her how she could really dig in. She didn't pay much attention to opening presents, but she has had fun this week reading her new books and exploring some of the new things she was given.

We were blessed to be able to have such wonderful family and friends with us to share this milestone in Arya's life! Thanks to all of you.

Arya's First Steps!

2007-03-14T14:11:00.001-04:00

Arya has taken her first steps! We went to the hospital on Friday night (3/9/07) to visit Ben in the ER. While we were hanging out with Liz and Ben in the hospital room, Arya was playing with Liz's empty water bottle. We were trying to get her to stand on her own without holding on to anything, which she had been doing for a little over a week. (She had been standing on her own especially when she was holding something to distract her. - We thought the water bottle would do just the trick!) Anyway, next we decided to try to get her to take a few steps between us. She actually did it! We took turns watching her walk between Liz and me, Rajeev and me, and Liz and Rajeev. Meanwhile, Ben looked on from his bed when he could. Arya took steps on her own at least 10 times (maybe more?). Anyway, we were so excited!

Since Friday, she has been much more willing to stand on her own. She'll just let go of things and stand up. She's also getting more comfortable trying to take steps. Last night she kept going back and forth between Rajeev and me over and over again. It was so much fun!! I was able to get a video clip of her taking about 10 steps (depending on how you count them). That's the farthest she has gone so far. Anyway, here it is so you can see it too!

Florida Pictures

2007-03-04T14:08:00.000-05:00

Our Florida pictures are now online (or at least a lot of them are). If you want to look at them visit our Flickr site.

In contrast to our pictures from warm, sunny Florida, here are some pictures of Arya during her first Indiana blizzard, which took place Feb. 13, 2007.

Let's dance some more!

2007-03-03T21:20:00.000-05:00

Okay, pasting the video didn't seem to work. Here is a link so you can watch it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnCPF6FiBpo

Let's Dance!

2007-03-03T21:08:00.000-05:00

Arya loves phones. She really enjoys pushing the buttons that make noises. She's been able to turn on the speaker phone on our home phone for months. Now she loves playing with our cell phones, especially since in addition to making noise they light up! The other day I didn't realize she had my phone and when I picked it up it was ringing. - She had called Sara! Lately she has even started picking up the phone and holding it to her ear (or at least the side of her head!). We've given her Rajeev's old phone which no longer functions so that she has a phone to play with that won't let her actually call anyone and get into trouble!

Another thing Arya has started recently enjoying is dancing. We were watching a movie earlier tonight that had a lot of upbeat, reggae and dance music. At one point she had both hands above her head and she was bouncing to the beat (using her tummy to balance herself as needed against the coffee table). It was so cute!

Anyway, the video clip I'm hoping appears above (if not I'll link it in a separate post) is from last night. Liz's phone has a really fun ring tone of the David Bowie song, "Let's Dance". Arya was thrilled to be allowed to play with a real live phone that made noise and had lights, and the fact that it was playing fun music for her to dance to only made it more fun for her. The video is kind of dark, but I had to include it anyway!

Arya has a friend.

2007-02-22T18:25:00.000-05:00

Lately, Arya has become quite intrigued by other kids! Luca is the 17-month-old son of some of our friends. He has come over to play a couple of times and last week Arya went to his house to play for a couple of hours. When we arrived and I was taking her out of her car seat, Arya heard and then saw Luca. She started getting all excited and even laughing. She has a friend!

Here are a couple of pictures that Luca's mom, Maria, took while they were playing. Luca kept giving "baby" Arya hugs. Very sweet, don't you think?

Likes and Dislikes

2007-02-09T12:49:00.000-05:00

I thought I'd just jot down a few things that Arya currently likes and dislikes. I'm sure there are lots more things that could be added to the list, but these are just the things that quickly came to mind.

Arya likes...
* green beans
* cheese
* Cheerios
* chicken
* ham
* peas
* ice cream (Shh...she's not really supposed to have much of that but she LOVES it.)
* trying to feed herself (with her fingers)
* pulling things out of their place (cds & dvds out of the cabinet, clothes out of the laundry basket and out of her drawers, papers out of anywhere she can find them!)
* standing at the sliding glass door, where she can look out the window
* playing peek-a-boo (especially from around the corner)
* tickling!
* typing
* giving "kisses"
* reading books with Mommy (It is a new accomplishment in the last few months to be able to look at a book rather than just eating it!)
* crawling and cruising and pulling up on anything within reach
* waving "hi" and "bye-bye"
* staying up late and sleeping in

Arya doesn't like...
* applesauce (at least she hasn't liked it any of the times we've tried it so far!)
* getting strapped into her carseat
* going to bed

Arya and her Daddy

2007-02-08T22:12:00.000-05:00

These are a few pictures of Arya and Rajeev from our recent trip to Florida.

Arya loves her daddy. When he gets home from work, she is always so excited and happy to see him. Today, when he pulled into the driveway I picked her up so she could see him out the window. When she saw him she started squealing with laughter. It was adorable.

The day before we left Florida, Arya was really starting to say "da-da" clearly. We weren't sure if she was associating it with Rajeev, though. But now, we're pretty sure she knows what it means. When we hear Rajeev coming to the door after work, I always say, "Arya, who is that? Who is coming?" When she sees him she'll usually say "da-da" (or sometimes "da" or "da-da-da-da-da-da").

This afternoon, Sara had called me and was just a couple of minutes away from our house. I unlocked the door for her so she could just come in when she arrived. Meanwhile, Arya and I were in the (home) office. When Arya heard the door, she looked up, got excited and started saying, "da-da-da-da". I know she had to be associating it with Rajeev coming home. I definitely called him to tell him about it, and I think he was pretty proud!

She hasn't really picked up the word "mama" or "mommy" yet (although she is starting to say "mimi" occasionally in what might be a reference to me and she makes a repetitive "mamamamamamama" sound when she is sad or upset and needing something). I'm not too worried though...I'm sure that with time she'll like me too! :)

First word?

2007-01-28T23:36:00.000-05:00

This week we went to Florida (I'll post some photos and details on that soon). We arrived last Saturday evening, enjoyed a warm, sunny week, and returned home to a very cold Indiana this afternoon. Arya had a very fun time and enjoyed watching the birds on the beach, swimming in the pool, and trying to eat sand and seashells. :)

Last Sunday morning we were sitting at the table eating breakfast, while Arya's Grandpa Ray was holding her. We were trying to get her to show him her tricks. "Where is the light, Arya?" "Do you see the light?" Of course, Grandpa was impressed to see her look up, find the light, and point! This game went on for some time, and it was Grandpa who noticed that when we would talk about the light, Arya kept babbling the same thing, "ight." Was she really trying to say her first word? We thought it might just be coincidence at first, but then she kept doing it all week. So, we think that "light" can probably be considered her first word. (Mom is conviced that she has also been saying "hi" this week.) To me, it is amazing to think that this little girl who has only been here for 10 months, is learning that words have meaning and that there are ways she can communicate. I'm sure this is only the beginning, but I'm definitely enjoying getting to watch as it all happens!

Isn't she cute?!

2007-01-15T23:33:00.000-05:00

Learning so much!

2007-01-15T21:47:00.000-05:00

So how do I catch up on all of the things Arya has been doing when we've been too busy to blog for 2 1/2 months? Well, I don't think I can do it in one post, but I'll do as much as I can for now.

Arya is learning so many new things. Today she stood on her own for the first time for about 3-4 seconds. I was amazed, and I think that she was too. She is cruising everywhere - around the coffee table, the couch, and around anything else she can hold onto. She'll often stand at the coffee table playing with a toy without really holding on to anything - just kind of balancing herself with her tummy.

She started pulling up the last week in October. I remember her pulling up to her knees on Grandma Carol's box of blocks that she loves to play with on the day of Liz's bridal shower (10/28/06). She had done it once earlier in the week, but that day seemed to be the turning point. Within about another week, she was pulling up regularly to a standing position, and by Liz's wedding on 11/11/06, she had basically mastered that skill.

I'm going to have to think about when Arya started crawling on her hands and knees. For a long time, she would get up on her hands and knees and wait, but she'd go back down into her army crawl if she wanted to go anywhere quickly! But not anymore! Now she's all about crawling on her hands and knees and she is speedy - let me tell you!

One of the funny things that Arya does to make us laugh is her fake cough. When we went to Iowa for Liz and Ben's reception there the weekend of Nov. 26, this was the new trick that Arya learned. Liz had a bad cough and she noticed that when she would cough, Arya would do this funny little fake cough. Then she'd look at us and smile, like she knew she was being funny. So, we started coughing, getting her to do her fake cough, and then we'd all laugh, which would encourage Arya all the more. We could pretty much count on Arya's response whenever we'd try to get her to do it...until the week before Christmas. I don't know if she got tired of it, or she forgot how to do it or what happened, but no matter what we'd try we couldn't get her to do her fake cough trick! Then, she coughed a real cough one night around the time we went to Toronto, and the trick was back! We'll see how long it lasts this time.

Arya has recently learned the meaning of several things that we say. The week after Christmas, we realized that she knew what it meant when we said, "Clap your hands!" She responds by clapping! Once we realized that she understood that phrase, Rajeev began working on teaching her the Nepali version, "Tali bajau!"

While we were in Toronto the week before last, she learned to point to the light when we say, "Batti khoi?" Soon after she also learned that the same response goes with the English version, "Arya, where is the light?"

In the last couple of weeks she also has kind of learned what it means when we say, "Arya, give Mommy/Daddy a kiss!" She won't always do it, but a lot of times she'll lean in open her mouth and push it against your cheek. We've also been working on getting her to blow kisses. We can't count on her to do it when she is asked, but she will occasionally do it. She'll bring her open hand to her mouth and then kind of repeat this several times.

The other really cute thing that she has just learned is tickling. When we say "Tickle, tickle, tickle" she will wiggle her fingers and touch you, and make this sound, "Tk, tk, tk, tk." Obviously she can't say "tickle", but she mimics the "tk" sound, and it is so cute!

As far as playing goes, Arya loves playing peekaboo. When I give her a blanket, shirt, or anything else that she can cover up with and say, "Where's Arya?" she pulls it over her face and then drops it down. I then say, "Peekaboo!" or "There she is!" and she thinks it is a really fun game. She'll repeat it over and over. Another version of this game that she plays is to go around the corner and then peek back into the room. She especially likes it if you hide too, and peek out to see her peeking at you.

Well, those are as many updates as I can give for now. At least I've been able to catch up a little bit. Arya is so full of life and such a happy little girl. She adds so much joy to our lives, and it is hard to believe that she has only been with us for 9 1/2 months. How time flies!

On the move!

2006-10-23T02:43:00.000-04:00

Arya is a little girl on the move. When we went to Toronto most recently (the first weekend in October), we spent about 3 1/2 days there and during that time Arya made great strides in learning that she could actually move herself around! Shortly before that time, she would get so frustrated at not being able to get where she wanted to go. She would try so hard - even getting her knees up under her body - but she just wasn't able to go anywhere yet! Then, she started "accidentally" moving herself backwards on occasion. She would seem to want to move forward, but it just didn't work and all of her efforts would just move her backwards!

During the time in Toronto though, she finally got it. She started dragging herself slowly forward using just her arms (the beginning of her little army crawl) - but she was definitely moving! It was quite a start. Then in no time, she started getting faster. Now, I have to say that I believe true crawling (on her hands and knees) is just around the corner. She uses both her arms and legs to scoot all around and also gets up on her hands and knees over and over again, only to sink back down to her forearms in order to start moving. She is just too cute when she does it though. I'll try to get some video of her soon, because I really think this stage won't last much longer, and I want to remember it!

More teeth!

2006-10-23T02:36:00.000-04:00

Shortly before last weekend (10/14/06), we realized that Arya's top front teeth were getting very close to coming in. Her left one seemed to be a little ahead of her right, but you could just see them coming to the surface. Anyway, I think it was Saturday (10/14) that the top front left tooth broke through. Then this week the right one has been moving its way in and somewhere around Thursday (10/19) it broke through. These two haven't moved down much - they're still nearly even with her gums, but they are definitely there. I can't believe our little baby has four teeth now! Does anyone else feel like she is growing up too fast?!

Arya's Contagious Laugh

2006-10-09T12:33:00.000-04:00

Arya has a great laugh and I love when she gets going and can hardly stop! Sometimes she laughs when we tickle her. Sometimes it is when we make funny sounds. Other times it is when we just say things that she apparently thinks are hilarious!

One night, Rajeev was teasing Arya about being a "spitter" and a "spitty girl" who spits up on us all of the time! He was just saying different variations of the words and she started laughing so much! Anyway, we got part of that little episode on video. To see it, click here.

I like the outdoors!

2006-10-04T15:44:00.000-04:00

Arya loves to go outside. We went for a walk recently and I took some pictures of Arya. (These are from 9/21/06.) Don't you love her sunglasses? She liked playing in the grass after we took our walk, but we have to watch her carefully or else she'll eat the grass! Yum, yum!

More updates coming soon!

2006-09-13T22:15:00.000-04:00

I'm trying to catch up on Arya's blog. This month has been really busy and I haven't had much time to post. But, as you can see, this is my 3rd blog entry tonight, so I am truly trying to get things up to date! Coming soon - Arya's first rice feeding ceremony and Arya at the zoo. Sounds fun, don't you think?

She's learning to sit up

2006-09-13T21:43:00.000-04:00

Arya is getting better and better at sitting up on her own. She did it for the first time on a Sunday night - I think it was Aug 27, 2006. (She was 5 months and 3 days old!) It was a world of difference from when we tried to get her to sit up on the day that she turned 4 months! (I'll see if I can find those pictures and post one later because it was really cute and funny!

Of course, she can't get into a sitting position by herself - we have to sit her up and get her in place and then she takes over. She is till wobbly, and tips over after not that long, but she is starting to get the hang of it (even if she does often sort of lean over in slow motion until she is bent in half and her nose is next to her feet). She doesn't seem to mind though - after all, that gives her easy access to chewing on her toes, which has become a favorite hobby for Arya.

I am going to put a video here for you to watch of one of her first successful attempts at sitting up on her own. (It was taken Aug. 29, 2006.) It is kind of shaky because I was trying to tape while keeping her from falling over! Sorry! Anyway, I hope you enjoy it! To view the video, click here.

TEETH!!

2006-09-13T21:33:00.000-04:00

Arya has been chewing on everything she can get her hands on for several months now. This last week she had seemed to fuss more than usual and I wondered if her teeth might be moving up. Her nose has been running for the last week and I'd heard rumors that often accompanies teething. I couldn't really see any sure signs of teeth though.

Well, tonight we realized that Arya's bottom two front teeth have broken through the gums! I think it happened just today because she chews on our fingers quite often and today was the first day I'd felt anything different. She was chewing my finger and I felt something sharp so I started feeling and looking around. They still aren't up out of the gum much, but you can definitely feel and see where they're coming in! I can't believe she is big enough to have teeth. Time is sure flying.

Arya's 1st Visit to King's Island!!

2006-08-19T12:32:00.000-04:00

On August 6, we went to King's Island in Cincinnati, Ohio. Our group consisted of Mom, Phil, Liz, Sara, Liz's fiance Ben, Sara's fiance Landon, our friend Robby, Rajeev, Arya, and me!

Arya was so good the whole day! She got to take her first ride on the merry-go-round, and liked looking at the lights and mirrors that decorated it.

Later, Rajeev, Sara, Landon and I took Arya to the water park! Landon and Rajeev went on some slides while Sara and I took Arya on the Lazy River ride, where you float in innertubes down a slow, gentle "river". Arya didn't cry, she just sang her semi-fussy "song" for most of it! Here is a picture of Sara, Rajeev, Arya, and Landon underneath one of the water fountains that you can play in at the water park.

I just had to include this last photo of Arya, because I think she looks so cute in it! She was just hanging out in her stroller seat wearing her strawberry bib! (She had been wearing a cute little strawberry outfit as well, but it was SO HOT that we eventually took it off and just let her wear a bib and a diaper so she could stay cool!)

Anyone up for a swim?

2006-07-24T14:03:00.000-04:00

Arya went swimming for the first time a week ago today. I thought she looked adorable in her little two-piece bathing suit with the matching sun hat. She even gave me a big smile for the picture!

It has been SO hot lately, and I think she liked the cool water. She liked kicking her feet around, but when the water got up on her belly, she wasn't so sure about that.

We went swimming again on Wednesday evening and Rajeev got to go with us. She let him float her around on her tummy and this time she didn't mind the water on her belly. We had so much fun!

Trying to roll over!

2006-07-20T09:35:00.000-04:00

I'm going to try to post that video of us trying to get Arya to roll over. I'm hoping you can see it if you click here.

What a mobile little girl we have!

2006-07-12T23:36:00.000-04:00

Arya is doing well these days. She has been having very happy days filled with smiles that I can't get enough of and her colic-y evenings seem to be getting shorter as we near 4 months. (At least that's what we're hoping!) She also seems to be changing faster than ever.

On June 28, 2006 (4 days after turning 3 months old!), Arya rolled over for the first time. She tends to dislike tummy time, to put it nicely. However, because I know it is good for her and helps her build muscles she otherwise wouldn't use that much, I try to help her get through it as painlessly as possible. She seems to not mind tummy time as much when she is on her changing table - maybe because she is high and can see more. Anyway, on the 28th, I put her on her tummy on the changing table and was playing with her, and all of the sudden she flipped over! I was stunned. I kept thinking, "Did I really just see her do that?" I took her to our bed so she would have a nice big flat surface to try again. I laid her down and again, she flipped right over! I tried a few more times that day, but she had no more patience left for tummy time so we just gave rolling over a rest.

Well, we kept trying occasionally with no luck until the day before yesterday. She flipped right over when I put her down, like it was no trouble at all. Then yesterday, she rolled over three more times. I think she is starting to get the hang of it!!

Arya is also learning that she can move around in other ways too. I've put her in her bed with her head in one direction only to come back and find her sideways or sometimes even with her head at the opposite end of the bed. It is amazing that she is already learning to get where she wants! And I know this is only the beginning.

I have a cute little video of us trying unsuccessfully to convince Arya to roll over. I'll try to post it soon. I guess that is all for now though.

Arya's First Fourth (of July)

2006-07-05T23:20:00.000-04:00

Arya experienced her first 4th of July yesterday. It was a pretty normal day until evening when we took her to the fireworks. We were nervous that she might be startled by all of the noise, but it didn't seem to bother her. (I did cover her ears for a large part of it though, semi-paranoid that her eardrums would burst or something crazy like that.) She watched all of the bright lights in the sky attentively for about 20 minutes and then fell asleep for the last 10 minutes! (Rajeev says she must get that ability to fall asleep anywhere from her mom!)

A little while after we got home, Arya woke up and started screaming and just wouldn't stop. None of the normal tricks would even calm her down a little. It was getting quite scary and we ended up calling the doctor's office. By the time the nurse called us back she had finally stopped crying and calmed down, but it had lasted about 40 minutes non-stop. The nurse asked us lots of questions and eventually told us just to keep an eye on her and to call back if she started up again but that she was probably okay. She was fine the rest of the night and has acted totally normal today, but it is just so scary when something like this happens because she can't tell us what is wrong. I am just glad that she is alright, and I hope we don't have any more nights like that anytime soon.

Yum, yum!

2006-07-03T22:47:00.000-04:00

By the way, one of Arya's favorite things to do these days is to put her fingers in her mouth. She also likes putting anything else she can find in her mouth as well. Grandma Carol got a really colorful little rattle for her (which is just the right size for her to be able to hold onto by herself), and she thinks that it is extra fun to look at AND to chew on.

I realized that the previous ponytail photo was a little dark, but this one shows Arya's love for her fingers and also shows the ponytail better.

2006-07-03T22:30:00.000-04:00

Arya wore her first ponytail today. She's 3 months and 9 days and she has LOTS of hair! What a cutie!

Reaching out...

2006-06-13T23:19:00.000-04:00

Arya, you're making so much progress and learning so much so fast! Yesterday was exciting. For the first time, you reached for something. Aunt Liz was holding you and you reached out trying to touch the newspaper. You were looking at the paper and then at your hand, and I think you were trying to figure out how to make your little fingers go where you wanted them to go. Some would say this was just an accident, but Liz was there and she saw it too!

Today you reached out several times to touch your musical pink bunny that sits on your changing table. You were lying on the changing table and I wound up the bunny and was holding it in front of you. You were smiling and you kept reaching out and touching the bunny's foot.

You're "talking" a lot these days, making little noises and learning that you have a voice. It is so cute and I love the little "conversations" that we have back and forth. I wonder what you're thinking when you make all of those little ohs and ahs.

Another new thing that you've been doing is grasping things. I have put a little rattle in your hand a few times and you'll actually hold it for a maybe up to a minute. You used to just drop it almost immediately. Today you grabbed your burp cloth a couple of times and held on to it and even waved it around. And of course you like to grab my hair, but that can be pretty painful. I'm afraid sometimes that you're going to pull your own hair. You did that when you were about a month old. You had been sleeping peacefully and all of the sudden I heard you screaming. I ran to see what was wrong and you had your hair tight in your hand and you were pulling. I think that the more that it hurt the more you pulled, not realizing what was going on.

You're so alert and you are learning to watch things more carefully. Serveral times this week we've put you in your bed and you will lie there and watch the mobile moving around above you. Today you even looked at the pages of the book "God Gave Us You" as I read it to you. I've read to you before, but today was the first time that you paid so much attention to what was on the page.

I know that there are so many more things that I could write, but I'm trying to get down the major ones. It is fascinating to watch you learn and to get to experience each new step that you take. And we have so much ahead of us! We love you, sweet little girl.

Back up to her birth length!

2006-06-04T21:18:00.000-04:00

Yes, it is true! Arya is back up to her birth length! Don't you mean birth weight? No. Her weight has been increasing at a good pace. However, as a result of that difficult trip from the womb to the outside world, she was born with a bit of a conehead that made her measure a little longer than she actually was. (Maybe she just wanted to be like her mom, who was born with a conehead of her own!) Arya measured 22.5 inches at birth, but by the next day her head was nice and round and she was down to about 20.5 inches. When we took her for her two week checkup she was up to 20.75 inches and I'm happy to report that on Friday at her 2 month checkup she measured 22.5 inches and weighed 11 lbs., 4 oz. Way to go, Arya!

Meanwhile, she is learning so many new things these days! She loves it when we make clicking sounds with our mouths. She watches so intently when we do it, and often gives us huge smiles because we are able to do such cool things! :) I started making those sounds for her a few weeks ago. She often sticks out her tongue or moves it around trying to figure out how to make the sounds herself. It is adorable! When we were in Toronto visiting Rajeev's family last week, she actually started making clicking sounds herself! Rajeev's sister can even back me up on this report because she witnessed it too! I don't think Arya always knows how she does it, but we still think it is fun to watch her learn this amazing new skill!

Other great accomplishments include sticking out her tongue quite frequently when we stick out our tongues at her. Are we teaching her things we'll regret later? :)

I just have to add one more new thing that she did today. I had put Arya down on the changing table and was unfolding a clean diaper before taking her dirty one off. She was lying there on her back, kicking all around and all of the sudden she put her feet down on the changing table, lifted her bottom up, and scooted herself up the table about 3 or 4 inches with one big push! I couldn't believe it! She did the same thing later when she was lying on the floor. I am starting to think that we may not have as much time to child proof the house as I thought we did!

Well, I need to go. Our little one is practicing using her loud voice to express herself right now. (That is secret code for "she is crying".) More updates to come...

New Beginnings

2006-05-01T14:22:00.000-04:00

First of all, I am not Arya. Arya is only 5 weeks and 3 days old, and although she is learning new things every day, typing is one that will probably have to wait for a while. So, being her mom, I have decided to try to write things down for her.

Arya and me on Easter Sunday - April 16, 2006

My sister, Arya's Auntie Liz, has talked before about the internet and blogging becoming a new form of history keeping for this generation. When I was growing up, you just wrote things in a baby book. Well, I have a baby book for Arya, and I'm doing my best to fill in all of the spaces. But eventually there will be more things to write than will fit in a single book. My own mom has told me again and again, "Write things down! You think you'll remember everything, but you just can't!" I understand her now. Arya is changing so quickly and it is amazing to watch her do so. But even this early, things start to run together. Was that just last week that she started making her first "cooing" sounds? How long has she been so alert, watching everything around her? Maybe those are just tiny things, but maybe someday Arya will want to look back and find out when she started sleeping through the night or read what she was like as she was growing up. Or maybe I'll be the one wanting to look back and remember. Either way, this is a place where we'll be able to do that. Three cheers for the internet!