ashwini
Tangled up in blues
Bob Dylan was singing, “Tangled up in Blues” while we got out of the house this morning.
Ashwini: Daddy, I am tangled up in blue, too. No. I am tangled up in blue and white. Look at my dress.
Me: speechless
Ashwini: cold box
This post is very very overdue. Should have wrote about this last summer. We had noticed Ashwini calling the appliance that keeps our food cold, ‘frigerator’. We thought that it had to do with her difficulty with pronouncing certain “R” words. Her teacher (~25 yrs age) was at our house for babysitting and she asked about keeping food in the ‘frigerator’. That solved the mystery about Ashwini’s pronunciation. Ashwini and her best friend Sydney have picked up so many little behaviors and speaking styles from their teacher that sometimes it is hard to figure out if we are listening to Ashwini or Sara. Sydney’s mom made the same observation.
I had an intern (~20 yrs age) in my lab last Summer and she used to say ‘frigerator’, too. Must be a newer slang.
Ashwini will be four years old in another week. When I see her photos like these, it is hard not to think about leaving my job to become a house-husband.
Letter to Dad
Ashwini has gotten much better with her writing skills. She can write most of the letters pretty well. I think “S” is the only problematic one. But, when she is writing anything, she doesn’t follow the rule of writing from left to right. She just keeps writing whereever she finds space on the paper. This is surprising as she reads properly and knows to follow the sequence of letters from left to right while reading. I really like how her teachers teach reading at school. At her age, the brain is just like a sponge sucking in all the information. It is easy to memorize the spelling and read out the words. That is how I learned to read english and I now realize that it was so wrong. When Ashwini reads a word, she makes the sounds for the letters and then mixes them up to read the word.
Well… this post is about her writing skills. So, back to what we got from her school. Ashwini made some art by drawing and putting stickers. Then, it was put in an envelope to send to us as a letter. There was one for me and one for V. Here are photos of the envelope that I received.
Fun in the snow - 2007
This fall/winter had been very funny. First there was no cold and there was no snow. Then came bone-chilling cold followed by snow and cloudy skies with fierce winds. Yesterday, it warmed up to a toasty 20+ F and the Sun was out. Perfect time to go out and enjoy some winter activities. Adit and Ashwini get to do these things at their school, but it was out first family outing of the season and it was a lot of fun.
New kids videos
[youtube www.youtube.com/watch
[youtube www.youtube.com/watch
If you can’t see them, you are not on my friends list at Youtube. Send me your id and I’ll add you.
Curious headgear
While changing clothes, Ashwini used to have fun with leaving her shirt over her head. Such behaviour can’t be encoded in genes, but Adit loves it too. I was surprised when he looked in the mirror and started cracking up at his own image the first time.
Popsicles
After the recent freezing rain/ice storm, everything is covered with ice and there are icicles everywhere.
Ash: Daddy, I like eating icicles. Sydney and I were hunting for them in the playground. I love to dip them in the snow before eating. They taste so yummy.
Me: speechless
Who is my wife?
While talking with me, Ashwini always referred to V as “Aai” and she referred to me as “Dada” or “Daddy” while talking with V. We noticed a change during the last couple of days.
V: Just wait for a few minutes, Ashwini. It is too hot for you to eat. A: Can you eat it? V: No. It is too hot for me, too. A: But, your HUSBAND likes to eat hot.
She also referred to V as “your WIFE” while talking with me. At least, she is learning all the familial relationships properly.
New photo smile
Ashwini decorating cupcakes for Adit’s birthday and sporting a new smile that she uses while posing for photographs.
Halloween 2006
With all the trouble that followed Halloween this year, I forgot to post photos of the spider, the blue dog and the pink kitty (cousin Priya, who was visiting).
Another Ashwini conversation
Location: In the car while going to school.
A: Aai, I want Daddy to drop me at school. V: But, he drove you yesterday. It is my turn today. A: No. I want him to drop me everyday. V: Why? A: Because, Daddy is my favorite parent. V: Can I be your favorite parent, too? A: I am sorry Aai, but you cannot. … … If you want, you can be Adit’s favorite parent.
Ashwini, the foodie
Saw an article in Parenting magazine (or something similar) about what children from around the world eat. They listed three C’s that American kids live on: Cheerios, Chicken nuggets and Cheese. Ashwini being an American kid, likes these things, but she also eats a lot of different things.
Breakfast:
- Cereals: Cheerios, Kix, Froot loops, Mini Wheaties, Chex
- Pancakes and waffles
- Buttered toast, english muffin, bagel
- Donuts and muffins
- Yes, poptarts, too.
Lunch/Dinner:
- Pasta
- Jam sandwiches (No peanut butter due to allergies)
- Meat sandwiches
- Chicken nuggets and fish sticks
- Grilled Salmon
- Grilled cheese sandwiches
- Quesadillas and tacos
- Soups and chilli
- Veggieburgers
- All kinds of veggies: green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, soybeans, corn, black-eyed peas, carrots, roasted peppers
- All kinds of fruits: apples, bananas, oranges, pears, peaches, nectarines, grapes, mango, cherries, lychees, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries
Snacks:
- Various salty crackers, graham crackers and animal crackers
- Various dry fruits: raisins, apricots and dates
- Jello, Ice cream and fruit popsickles
- Indian snacks like chakali, papad and bhakarwadi
Ashwini likes to eat several Indian dishes and asks for them to be made: Khichadi, Pohe, Upama and Toop-Sakhar-Poli are her favorite.
She likes to drink her milk without addiing anything to it. Loves to eat plain as well as flavoured yogurts. Likes to eat cheeses. She wants to go to Whole Foods for grocery shopping to taste all different kinds of cheeses that they have out for tasting. :) Due to her nut allergies, we kept her away from chocolate and candies as much as possible. She is getting interested in candies like Starburst, Skittles and malted chocolate balls recently, especially after Halloween.
We have been really fortunate to have a kid who eats a good variety of foods and is willing to try new things. Hopefully, she will influence Adit and he will be a good eater like his sister too.
A bedtime conversation
Ashwini: Aai, I'll tell you a secret in the morning. V: What is it? A: I'll tell you in the morning. V: Come on... tell it now. What is it? A: If I tell you now, it won't be a surprise. V: That's OK. Tell me now. A: But, I can't. It is not in my brain right now. It is outside... blowing bubbles.
Here is what Ashwini sees when she looks up from her bed.
These butterflies are about 2 feet wide. They spin around gently as they hang by a fishing line and are nicely balanced to stay horizontal.
Here is what Ashwini sees when she looks up from her bed.
These butterflies are about 2 feet wide. They spin around gently as they hang by a fishing line and are nicely balanced to stay horizontal.
Flu shot
Ashwini received her influenza immunization this evening. While we were going to the Doctor’s office, she was a little apprehensive about getting a shot, but agreed to come along when I reminded that she’ll get a sticker and a lollipop there.
The nurse that gave her the shot was very good. She kept talking with Ashwini and finished the injection in a jiffy before Ashwini realized what was happening. Thankfully, there were no tears as she got excited with the ‘Sesame Street’ band-aid that was put on her leg. She picked a red lollipop and then it was time to choose a sticker. She made me very proud by picking one with the picture of Saturn in stead of a ‘Sesame Street’ character.
After coming home, Ashwini proudly showed off her new acquisitions from the Doctor’s office to V.
Ash: Look… I have a red lollipop and I have a saturn sticker. V: Wow. Ash: And look at this sesame street band-aid. V: Very nice. Ash: I got a shot and I didn’t even cry. Do you believe it? V: Noooo. I don’t believe it.
The answer to Ashwini’s “Do you believe it?” question has to be in the negative. If we ever say, “Yes, I believe it”, she reminds us that that is not correct and we have to say “no”.