When I Get Bigger

Tess is constantly telling us what she will do when she gets bigger. She will shave and take a shower and go to work, she told me this morning. She told us last night that when she gets bigger she will eat Dada hot sauce. Then she cried almost the entire dinner because Eric and I were drinking wine and wouldn't let her drink it too.

She doesn't like being treated differently. We have a toilet seat that sits on top of the regular seat to adjust to to be toddler size. Tess now refuses to use it, because it's not what Mama and Dada do. Even though she risks falling in every time she uses the potty now.

She's also reading to herself now. Well, she's been looking through books by herself for over a year, but it's really comical now because she can remember so many of the words. Or sometimes when she's never read a book, she just makes up the story as she goes--emphatically and with lots of expression.

The Mermaid Parade

We went to this parade last weekend, but I'm only getting around to posting pictures now. Some of our swing dancing friends march in this parade every year, so we try to go and watch the parade every year. This was Tess's first year. She enjoyed the parade. The highlight was when she received a lollipop. Otherwise, she loved the beach (we were at Coney Island) the best.

Summer Solstice

Tess and I welcomed the summer today with a trip to the beach with friends.

Don't let the dress fool you. 90% of the day, Tess looked like...

THIS:

She couldn't get enough of the water and sand. She played in it, ate it, and wandered off several times all by herself both into the water and sand. She was fearless, soaking in the glory of the beach.

We ended the day with pizza and an early bedtime for all. A great way to spend the longest day of the year.

The Agony and the Ecstacy

Tess's emotions all feel more intense lately. On Sunday, we were talking with a neighbor when her dog snatched a snack out of Tess's hand. We continued to talk for a minute after this happened, trying to comfort Tess, offer some more snack, but Tess was just silent, her lip slowly emerging. When our neighbor left, Tess turned to me and burst into sobbing tears. She was inconsolable for several blocks. She'd stop, think, and then burst into tears all over again. She didn't want more snack, she just needed to cry.

Last night we had a small bowl of cut up tomatoes on the table for tacos. She wanted to eat the tomatoes out of the serving bowl. No other scenario was going to work, and we tried offering many, including putting some of the tomatoes in a separate bowl and then giving her the serving bowl. Inconsolable sobbing once again, which was really annoying because I just wanted to eat.

She's definitely a toddler with the rocky emotions to prove it.

(She's worn that band-aid since Ime or Sebastian put it on her yesterday afternoon. In the second photo, she's trying to lift her markers onto the table with her toes.)

Quiz Time

Today Eric and I were sitting on the floor, talking. At some point he scooted over and put his head on my shoulder and I put my arm around his shoulders. Tess came into the room at this point and got mad, "No! No nuggling!"

Nuggling is the way Tess says snuggling. Noman is her version of snowman. She struggles with blended consonants. :)

Can you guess the meaning of "tam" or "ham"? (Same meaning, but the pronunciation varies.)
Or "trust"?

Tam is clam. She likes to act out a scene from a Backyardigans episode where a big clam is going to attack Uniqua. So she says, "The tam! The tam," while opening her eyes wide for emphasis and using her hands to imitate the top and bottom shells opening and closing. This is a game we all have to play several times a day. It can be a useful way to get her to run down the street.

Trust is crust. As in "Dada, you eat the trust!"

Ordering Lunch at the Columbian Diner

I thought $7.95 was a bit much for a bowl of soup, but it seemed like the best option for Tess on the menu, and one of the cheapest options, so I went with it.

"Do you want the big bowl or the little?" the waitress asked.
I looked back at the menu; no size difference was mentioned. I looked at her confused.
"Is it for her?" She clarified, pointing at Tess.
"Well, I thought we could share it," I replied.
"OK. It comes with rice and salad."
"Good," I replied, thinking that must explain the price.

About ten minutes later she comes out with a very large bowl of soup, a platter with salad, a large scoop of rice, and a large grilled steak. Apparently the steak is so obvious it's not worth mentioning. What, you eat your soup without steak?

Today in the Garden

We looked for centipedes:



And then someone turned on some loud music:

Weekend Away

This weekend I was able to get away by myself for the first time since Tess was born. I spent the weekend at a friend's little house on Greenwood Lake, a lake about two hours from the city. Here's a picture of the front yard:

And the inside of the house:

And this was my view from the deck Friday night:

Sadly, this was my view for the rest of the weekend. (The fog moved in and it was cold all day Saturday and Sunday.)

I had expected to spend the weekend at the lake's beach, or hiking, but I didn't bring appropriate clothes for the cold, so I spent a lot of the weekend inside. I read, worked on some writing for a job I'm applying for, talked on the phone, slept (very welcome!), and just enjoyed the time and space to myself. I also went for a drive, and a couple of walks, and spent some time enjoying the lake while wrapped up in a sweater.

The first night I was there, I felt this overwhelming sense of relief and calm wash over me, followed by a wave of exhaustion. It was such a welcome change to completely check out of my mothering responsibilities for a couple of days.

Eric and Tess managed quite well in my absence. Eric enjoyed being primary parent, the one she ran to for kisses when she got hurt. Tess would tell me stories when I'd call to check in, and it was remarkable to notice how much she can communicate now.

Since my return, Tess has been a little clingy and in need of a lot of Mama-attention. It's been exhausting, but also feels like part of the process of teaching her I can sometimes go away.

While at the lake, I overheard this funny conversation between two girls:

Girl 1: I'm 5.
Girl 2: Me too!!
1: I was born in 2000...no wait...2006.
2: Me too!! We are like twins.
1: What's your favorite color?
2: Blue.
1: Me too!!
2: And we both have brown hair and brown eyes.
1: Are you a tomboy?
2: No. I'm a girly-girl.
1: Me too!!

Stop Talking!

That's what Tess tells us when we are telling her something she doesn't want to hear or obey.

Captured on the Iphone

Her new helmet

Playing trains with Ime

Exhausted after a napless day

Welcome Summer

After weeks of cold, thinking summer was going to be rainy and cold like two years ago, the hot weather arrived without warning and without relief. Memorial day weekend felt just about perfect with temperatures in the 80s and lots of sun. Friday night we had Lenny over for dinner. Then Saturday morning Eric, Tess, and I drove up to Bear Mountain for some retreat-from-the-city time. Usually, we hike there, but Tess was cranky, it was hot, and Eric and I were tired. So we walked around the lake, went to their little zoo, picnicked in a quiet spot, and let Tess play on the playground.

Sunday we stayed home and did chores: laundry, farmer's market, buying air conditioners. :) And then Monday we were the first tourists on the ferry to Governor's Island. We managed to snag a hammock in the shade at about 10:30, and we didn't leave until after 3pm. We came home via Chinatown where we ate at our favorite vegetarian restaurant, and got home tired and sun burnt.

When we were driving on Saturday, Tess was cranky so I offered to put on some music. I put on Wheels on the Bus, which we haven't listened to in months. It was the theme song of last summer, especially on long car trips with Tess. Tess got so excited to hear it again, and it felt oddly comforting to me as well, considering how sick I got of it last year. But hearing it in the car this weekend felt like the inauguration of travel, heat, water play, and all things summer.