Conversations

Dear Isabella,

You and I have the best conversations! Some of my recent favorite conversations and your sayings:

Me: Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. Do you know what that means?

You: No. 

Me: It means tomorrow we say thank you for all the things we love. 

You: No, today!

Me: You want to say thank you today?

You: Yeah!

Me: Okay what do you want to say thank you for?

You: [very serious] Presents. 

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[Landing in Honolulu on the plane]

You: We're at home! I'm so happy!

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Me: How old are you?

You: Two!

Me: So after your next birthday what are you going to be?

You: A Christmas tree!

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"What's dat noises?"

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"I like dems [them]."

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"I need some helps."

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[Driving home from preschool]

You: Is this my car?

Me: Yeah eventually maybe. 

You: [pointing at a black convertible] No I want that one! 

Me: Oh really. Well kiddo you're going to have to buy that yourself. 

You: After I go to work. 

Me: That's right! Where are you going to work?

You: [pointing to the mountain] Over there. 

Me: In the mountain?

You: Yeah!

Me: Oh okay. What are you going to do on the mountain?

You: Um, just paint my hands. 

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[Putting on my wedding ring on your itty bitty finger]

"I'm a mommy!"

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And they way you say "Orange" - "Urrange!" Or the way you say "girl" - "gourel." Or the way you say "grown up" - "growm up," like you'll say, "I'm so little cuz I'm not a growm up."

More later. :)

Love,

Mommy

Conversations

Dear Isabella,

You and I have the best conversations! Some of my recent favorite conversations and your sayings:

Me: Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. Do you know what that means?

You: No. 

Me: It means tomorrow we say thank you for all the things we love. 

You: No, today!

Me: You want to say thank you today?

You: Yeah!

Me: Okay what do you want to say thank you for?

You: [very serious] Presents. 

-----------

[Landing in Honolulu on the plane]

You: We're at home! I'm so happy!

-----------

Me: How old are you?

You: Two!

Me: So after your next birthday what are you going to be?

You: A Christmas tree!

-----------

"What's dat noises?"

-----------

"I like dems [them]."

-----------

"I need some helps."

-----------

[Driving home from preschool]

You: Is this my car?

Me: Yeah eventually maybe. 

You: [pointing at a black convertible] No I want that one! 

Me: Oh really. Well kiddo you're going to have to buy that yourself. 

You: After I go to work. 

Me: That's right! Where are you going to work?

You: [pointing to the mountain] Over there. 

Me: In the mountain?

You: Yeah!

Me: Oh okay. What are you going to do on the mountain?

You: Um, just paint my hands. 

-----------

[Putting on my wedding ring on your itty bitty finger]

"I'm a mommy!"

-----------

And they way you say "Orange" - "Urrange!" Or the way you say "girl" - "gourel." Or the way you say "grown up" - "growm up," like you'll say, "I'm so little cuz I'm not a growm up."

More later. :)

Love,

Mommy

Vocabulary

Dear Isabella,

We went to the pumpkin patch last weekend and you had so much fun! You picked corn, picked a pumpkin, picked a sunflower, rode on two kiddie rides, and rode a pony! It was a big day. Halloween is coming and after that, Christmas!

Your vocab and speech get more and more advanced each day! Today you said "Ba-pa" for "Grandpa" for the first time in months but I think it was on purpose. You graduated to "gwampa" a while back. But here are a few that are still so cute:

Maca-moni (macaroni)

Gwom-up (grown-up)

Ohm!meal (oatmeal)

I yuv you (I love you)

Nonny (naughty)

Baff (bath) - although not all the time

Two-mo-mo (tomorrow)

And your sentences are becoming longer and more complex (and more often correct in grammar and syntax), and you repeat words back more now. Just today you pointed at a picture of Abuela and said, "Dat's Abuela. I yuv her." And earlier when Orange didn't want to drink water you said, "Maybe two-mo-mo you tell him drink water, after Daddy take me to gwama gwampa's house with my socks, k?"

Sometimes the stuff you come up with leaves me amazed. Driving home the other day we were next to a black convertible. 

You: Dis my car?

Me: Well, one day, if it lasts that long maybe. 

You: (pointing at the black convertible) I don't want the red one, I want the black one. 

Me: The black convertible over there?

You: Yeah!

Me: (laughing) Well you're going to have to buy that yourself.

You: When I'm a gwom up?

Me: Yup.

You: After I go work, k?

Me: That's right, where are you going to work?

You: Right there (pointing) on da mountain.

Me: Oh yeah? What are you going to do on the mountain?

You: Um, paint with my hands. 

Me: Paint with your hands?

You: Yeah! I'm going to working to paint with my hands on da mountain right there, k, and then I can get the black one, k?

Crazy kid. Also, you're super cute when you're trying not to cry. 

Love,

Mommy

New House!

Dear Isabella,

Where did the summer go?! You started school, I got promoted at work, we moved to a new house - all in three months! Whew!

You said goodbye to Aunty Gladys and that was a little sad. You knew her since you were three months old! 

You are having so much fun at school with Miss Bree, Miss Kalai, Miss Marvie, Nana, Miss Kelly, Miss Angela and Miss Grace. You can run and jump and count and sing your ABCs and they tell me you're quite the cleanup helper. You bring home beautiful paintings and you talk about your friends - but only if I don't ask!

Right now I'm lying next to you on the floor of your new bedroom! We painted it yellow with a sky blue ceiling, because we wanted it to be happy and cheerful for you. We have so much room to play and all kinds of outdoor spaces to explore. You love going on a walk after school and work. You always pick a flower for mommy. You're still adjusting - we've only been here a week. At first you were really really scared. But you're getting used to it, day by day. 

We said goodbye to our old apartment and our old neighbors. Mommy and Daddy miss them and everyone told us they would miss seeing you in the lobby and elevators. That was our first apartment all together as a family, and your first home. It was a little sad to say goodbye but we're excited to make our new house our home for a very long time!

For a while we were having dinner with Grandma at Zippy's every Wednesday and you loved that. We'll probably start again soon once you get used to our new house. 

You're so lucky, GranGran came to visit also, and you spent a lot of time with her especially this weekend! On Thursday,

Grandma and GranGran picked you up from school and you had a sleep over at Grandma's house. And on Friday you all went to the zoo and saw tigers and played on the playground. On Saturday all four of us went to the Ho'olaulea and ate yummy food and saw neat things. You got a pinwheel and a hat! Today you played in the yard with Grandma and GranGran at Grandma's house. You painted the house with water and watered the trees and played in the sprinkler. And then everyone came home to our house for pizza and to hang out. It was a great weekend for you!

Tomorrow you have school so it's time for bed!

Love,

Mommy

Ba-na-na and Memmet

Dear Isabella,

Next week Monday will be your very first day of preschool! Daddy and I are excited and sad at the same time. I can remember when you were so little and still wrapped up like my little Bean burrito and now you're going to school! 

Your speech is getting more and more mature every day - the way you pronounce words is clearer, and the complexity of your sentences is more impressive all the time. Just now you said banana clearly and correctly - it seems like just yesterday you called it a "bannin." You've been telling me, "I memmet dat!" And it took me a few times to figure out that you're saying, "I remember that!" 

You're still having trouble sleeping by yourself but we've gotten into an okay rhythm so until you adjust to school we'll just leave it the way it is. 

I love you more every day - how is that possible?! You make me smile even when you're making me crazy and you make me laugh all the time. You're growing into such a beautiful, smart, clever, cute, sassy!, fun little person - I'm so proud of you!

Love,

Mommy

"Pockets" and Geckos

Dear Isabella,

You're scared of geckos - kind of. You've never seen one in real life but you've heard them - and you really don't like them. You cried and cried and cried last night at bed time. It took a while for Daddy and I to figure it out because every time we went in to you the gecko stopped clicking. But Daddy heard it finally and we spent quite a while trying to find the gecko to show you it wasn't scary. We never did find it.

Also you have a "pet" peacock that hangs around Grandma's neighborhood all the time. You call a peacock "pocket" which I think is pretty funny. We saw "pockets" at the zoo this weekend too, and you were talking to them - "stay way! Stay way!" you said, shaking your finger at them. They were about as big as you.

Love,
Mommy

I for Isabella

Dear Isabella,

You're starting to learn how to spell your name! Well, sort of.

You call yourself "Bah-dee" - a form of Bella maybe? And you often point to the letter D and say, "D, Daddy," or point to the letter M and say, "M, Mommy." Today I was reading to you and you pointed to a capital letter I and said, "I, Bah-dee!"

And then you pointed at every capital I for the rest of the book and said it again.

You're such a smarty-pants, I'm so proud of you!

Love,
Mommy

TWO Years!

Dear Isabella,

What a year it has been! From your tentative steps as you became steady on your feet to running and jumping (sort of) - and walking in heels?! From babbling to talking in two- and three-word sentences. Your first jewelry from a boy (Camdyn's butterfly necklace) and your first kiss (again, Camdyn!). From eating (whatever we fed you) wearing a bib sitting in your high chair, to eating (if we're lucky and you feel like eating what we feed you) without a bib on a grown-up chair all on your own. You have learned and grown so much this year and looking back is just too amazing. Look at that picture at the doctor's office for your one-year checkup last year, and the picture at the doctor's office for your 2-year checkup today! Happy birthday my little Monster! What will next year bring us? (Successful potty training I hope.)

Love,
Mommy

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

Nothing Like It

Dear Isabella,

I wrote you a letter before you were born and I'm not sure when I will give it to you. I'm almost certain that part of it expressed how much I look forward to watching you forge your own path, and I still do want you to become your own person with your own destiny.

But I also hope deeply that one day you will have a daughter of your own. I watch you and think of you now as you near your second birthday and I am nearly overcome. (Really, I had to consciously turn my mind to another thought while I was grocery shopping today because I would have looked silly had I come to tears in the produce section!)

There is so much you can never understand unless you walk the path of being a mommy to a little girl. There is so much about my own relationship with my mom that I now understand on a deeper level.

There is nothing - NOTHING! - like the feelings I have when it comes to you: joy and hope, optimism at its purest, wonder at the smallest things like your happily serious facial expression when you are explaining something to me in language I can barely keep up with. The swell of pride when you do the simplest things - like demonstrating what a lever is! The excitement of wanting to watch you reach your milestones while in the same instant wanting to stop or even reverse time, and that tug of nostalgia for a time not even that far gone. The contradictory yet obvious coexistence of a deep fear that I will somehow fail you as a mommy, and utter confidence that while I will no doubt fail in some way (all parents do) you will be my greatest accomplishment simply because of your you-ness and God's grace. The terror of knowing one day very soon I will have to begin to let you go into the world and watch you get bruised and tumbled by our world of ever-growing complexity, and knowing that I will have to strike a balance between protecting my baby - a part of my very own soul - and letting you learn to protect yourself.

The feeling of having your heart walking around outside in this world of mayhem is at once exhilarating and horrifying - there is no vulnerability that can compare to having a child you love more than life itself. But the daily joys and overall depth of love is well worth the moments of stark fear. This is the reason I hope you one day can relate to me in this way.

You're almost two years old. I just cannot believe it. I love you more and more as you grow, and will be your mommy forever.

Love,
Mommy

March Madness

Dear Isabella,

This month you had your first dentist appointment! "Uncle Chris" said your teeth look great. You didn't like him this first time around mainly because you we're terrified which is what everyone expected. But he was very nice to you.

You have also become very interested in clothes - mainly laundry. You love to "fowt" your clothes and try to help me fold mine too. You also like to put on your dirty laundry like dress up which is kind of yucky but I guess it doesn't hurt sometimes.

You astonish me with how smart you are - today you watched Sid the Science Kid for less than 10 minutes while I whipped up your dinner and I overheard they were talking about levers. You came to the table to eat and made your spoon a see-saw on your own finger and said, "Yevoh! Yeah!" And you were so proud of yourself!

You'll be two soon. How does time pass so quickly? You're such a happy girl all the time. (Except when you're being stubborn - no idea where that comes from...) You're so gleeful when you discover new things or show that you can do something.

Your latest favorite phrases are:
Uh happen? - What happened?
Oh got! - I forgot!
Goddit - I got it (also, geddit - I/you get it)
Fide it - I found it, or I'll find it
Shoe - sure
Payshen - be patient

Every day is an adventure!

Love,
Mommy

Preschool Hunting and Pretending

Dear Isabella,

We started looking for a preschool for you and we've only toured one so far (we have another tour scheduled next week) but it was so perfect and you loved it! The Early Learning Center (Seagull Schools) was so great! You got to play with a few classes and when the tour was over you didn't want to leave. The kids all shared nicely with you. You played with homemade play-dough with the older (pre-kindergarten) class, played outside with a 4 year old class, and played with the toys at the 3 year old classroom. All the teachers and staff seemed so enthusiastic and welcoming. It made me excited to think of you as such a big girl but also a little scared! What happened to my bald little wiggle worm?

When I asked you if you wanted to go to school there you said "yesh." It was interesting to see you so fearless also. When we first got there all you could see was the playgrounds so of course you wanted to go "pay" (play). And when we checked in at the office the security/maintenance man tried to talk to you and play a harmonica for you but you became very serious and turned your head away. But when we started talking to the director and walked near a group of kids playing you asked to go down and when we let you down you walked right up to the kids. Then when we went to another classroom where the kids were all sitting on the carpet facing the teacher you walked right into the group and didn't freak out when the teachers and kids started talking to you.

Speaking of talking - you talk a lot now! You even say two and three word "sentences." Like "Daddy work" or Mommy cook." And you know how to tattle on people. Haha, I'm only joking because I found a blood blister on your finger and asked you what happened and you said, "Oh no! Car seat. Gwapa [Grandpa] peech [pinch]. Yah. Oh no." Grandpa confirmed your finger got accidentally pinched in the car seat buckle. You can almost tell a story now!

You also love pretending. You put your doll on the chair, put your monkeys from your Barrel of Monkeys under the chair, and use the comb to pretend you're brushing and cutting hair. You also "read" to yourself - you open a book and babble and turn the pages. With the books you're really familiar with I hear you saying the words related to that part of the story - like saying "hi!" and "hat" in the parts of Go Dog Go where the two dogs say hello and talk about the girl-dog's hat. Also you pretend to rock your baby dolls and make your toys walk and say "walk walk." Of course you also love cooking in your kitchen at Grandma's house.

You also like cleaning. You insist on wiping the table, and you like sweeping, folding clothes, and washing your bath baby. Let's hope this love of cleaning lasts!

Just today Grandma said you started (all by yourself) trying or pretending to draw letters! She said you drew circles and lines and said, "A! Y! O!"

I know I say this every time but it's astonishing how fast you are growing up.

Love,
Mommy

Isabella-isms

Dear Isabella,

Here are some of "your" words:

Heppanin - help
Uppanin - up (please pick me up, please help me up)
Mookanin - milk
Runinnin - running
Weedanin - reading
Sitannin - sit
House-anin - house (in reference to your castle)

You add "annin" not necessarily to make a word an active verb (like saying "ing") but often just for emphasis. So if you REALLY mean it you add one or two more annin's. Like "mookaninnin" or "sitannininin".

You're so funny.

Love,
Mommy

"-inin'"

Dear Isabella,

I forgot to mention your other "-inin'" words - upinin is also accompanied by "heppanin" (help - not helping, mind you, but help as in please help) and "yappanin" (lap) and "hide-inin" (hiding). There are others. You add "-inin" to almost anything.

Also, you say "talk" when you see a cell phone, and point to whoever is holding it. Only thing is you replace the "t" sound with a "k" sound. So far you haven't done this in public. I hope you learn to say the "t" sound for this word soon!

Love,
Mommy

Holidays and More

Dear Isabella,

This Christmas with you was so fun! You still don't quite understand but you were into it anyway. You loved the lights everywhere, and ripping open presents, and I think you liked all the excitement and electricity in the air. You got so many presents! These are just some of your favorites: clothes (you're such a girly girl!), castle, chair, letter factories, kitchen.

You're growing so fast and your vocabulary is just too big for me to keep up now. But one thing that is so cute and unique is that you add "inin'" to every verb. So if you're sitting you're "sit-inin" or if you want to be carried you say "up-inin". Singing is "sin-in" and reading is "weed-inin."

You're also so particular - you want things to be put away in their place and if we change it you get a little perturbed. Does this translate into you cleaning up your toys without being asked? No of course not! But once we do clean up, it must be done properly.

Also lately you've been hiding ("hide-inin") your face if you get scolded. It's hard not to smile or laugh when you do that.

Happy new year my angel! 2013 is going to be another great adventure of learning and growing!

Love,
Mommy