The Things You Say

Julia, as more and more words- and sentences- come out of your mouth the more apparent it becomes that you are whip-smart, super powerful, and amazingly funny too.

You know most of your body parts and don't hesitate to tell us. "Eye", "Eyebrow", "Elbow", "hair", "knee", "nose", "Behbuh" (belly button), "mouth", "eeah" (ear), "teef!" "eyelash" are among your favorites. I often have no shirt on (that's what Dads do)...so I've noticed that you - like your brother before you- seem very interested in "bibbles" (nipples).  And you use these liberally: in your favorite book ("Nemo") you always have to find the "shaaa" (shark) and tell us all about his teeth.

You know when you want to play "Horsey" or "kikitty" or "dog."

When you go potty, you tell me to "sit!" So, I sit across from you on the edge of the tub.

You learn words left and right, and remember them too. Last night in the bath tub, you said "Grover Cup, Pease."

Last night while you were trying to avoid going to bed, you kept point and asking me to take you to the "chair." "Chair." "Chair."

When you are proud for going pee pee on the potty, or just looking for someone, you use your "Oh!" Such as "Oh, Mama!" "Oh, Daddy!" "Oh, Aidan!"


If you don't know someone's name, that never stops you:  You called your cousin Jenny "That."

"Nah" means "yeah." "Neh" means again. "No no no no no no"- you can figure that one out.

We played "ring around the rosey" once before you fell in love with the game and request it every day a hundred times. "Robey robey robey neh!"

You sing songs too, including "clean up clean up" (often you'll make messes just for the joy of cleaning them up!)

You love to sing songs that your brother is teaching you too. "A, B, A, B, A, B, B" But once a few days ago I sang "ABCD" and you sang "EFG" unmistakably!

You also LOVE when a song from "Frozen" comes on and in a gruff voice you say "FROZEN! FROZEN! FROZEN!"

And of course, Old MacDonald remains one of your favorites.

In the car one day, Aidan was doing some improv and sang "E I E I Daddy." He thought it was hilarious! So did you...and you've been singing it ever since!

You are making sentences quite readily too. "Oolia bath" (you wanted to get back in the bath since Aidan and Kaelyn were still in there having fun).

"Ho me ho me" is of course "hold me hold me".

"Oolia go goo gleep shirt" (you were wearing your Go Goo Gleep shirt..duh!)

"Aidan shoes"

"Mine iPad! Mine iPad!"

"Aidan bite." (no, he didn't)

"Good gog"

"Aidan cry." (yes, he did)

"Mama book"

"Thank you!"

"Hi Nemo!"

"Bye bye, Nemo!"

"Bye bye, park"

"Mimi! Bop!" (Pops)

"Yaya! Baba!"

"NG NG" (it means "swing"...trust me on this)

"Asher! Asher! Asher!"

"Baby Bottle! Baby..."

"More wah wah Oolia!"

"Mama, Dada, there you are!"

Sometimes you just sit and babble stuff we haven't heard before and can't translate yet; occasionally it's over a book, so you're probably just reading. But, with the speed with which your vocabulary is growing and you're mastering language, we'll understand you soon enough. For now though, you are a little girl in a big world, and you have a lot to say about it. We're just happy to hear it!

Julia Sekina: A snapshot at 18 months

Julia,

I can't believe you've only been here for 18 months. None of us can recall life without you- nor would we want to. 

You are an amazing young lady: a burst of sunshine, love, wit, strength, creativity, determination, smarts and- of course- beauty.

It is amazing being part of your life: watching you make connections, helping you grow, being so surprised when you've grown and learned without our help. 

You are funny- and have a wicked sense of humor. You know when you are about to do something mischievous and get this incredible look in your eye. 

You are fearless and brave, but smartly so. You hate to fall down, so you are very careful in your bravery. 

You are independent: If you're hungry, you just go to the pantry, and get what you want. Luckily, it's usually raisins...or pirates booty (aka "boobee") or cereal (aka "seeral").

You talk all the time. Last night you were playing with a toy cat, just saying "meow meow meow meow." Sometimes you even pretend to be a cat. You also have adopted one of Aidan's stuffed cats, which is your beloved "kikitty."

You love your family, including your dear old dad ("Daddy"), your "Mommy", your "Aideen"/"Bruder", and your cousins, whose names you're still learning. But you definitely have words for Addison and Autumn. And you LOVE to just go through the list of all the people you know.

You're very interested in kids younger than you, including your good friend Asher. Everyone is "baby." In fact, sometimes you are "Baby." The baby next door? She's "baby" too. You spent the better part of 20 minutes one day trying to climb the fence saying "Hi Baby! Hi Baby! Bye Baby!"

You are silly:

But, you're also silly smart. When Aidan's not guiding you to color all over your face for no reason, you are usually just applying marker to your face. You started doing this after watching Mommy get ready in the morning. The foundation makeup looks awfully close to the flesh-colored marker. So, why not be like Mama?

You're super advanced too: 18 months old and already you've already started to "go" on the potty. You tell us when you need to go! About a week ago you had gone pee pee on the potty 3 times and poo poo once. Now those numbers are so high that we've lost count. There was, of course, a bit of confusion. At the beginning, you went pee pee on our deck outside and raised your hands in the air triumphantly and said "HOORAY!" But now, when you get chocolate (aka "I-doh") for going on the potty, you really are starting to get it!

Your favorite foods include Jelly Beans, which we discovered on Easter morning as you devoured all the eggs left for you!

Cereal is always in style.

Watermelon ("wamelon") is a perennial favorite.

You are focused. When you want something, you do NOT let it go: "Nemo. Nemo. nemo. Nemo. Shreh. shreh. Shreh? Shreh? Go goo gleep?"

Oh, did I mention that you speak in full sentences? Too? "Hi, Mommy!" "Aidan cry." "Daddy work." "Aidan school." 

And, you're finally learning to say your own name. Right now it sounds like "ooolia", although, sometimes you still call yourself "baby," which is no longer the case.

You love to run, and swing, and go on wagon rides. You love to clean up (so much so that you'll make a mess just to immediately clean it up again). You love your best friend, your brother. 

You are tall at 32.5 inches (75%) and skinny at 23.2 pounds (25.5%). But these are just numbers.

You are 18 months old and you are just plain amazing.

My two cents on your senses, and your cent

Aidan,

Lately, your empathy has bubbled up to the surface in incredible strides.

For instance, after accidentally swallowing a penny, which rightly freaked me out, you came up to me unprovoked and said "Daddy, I'm sorry I swallowed the penny."

Whenever we go eat at "Red Baby Tacos" and you see the Drama Masks in the Casa Linda shopping center, you ask, "Why are you sad, Marshmallow?"

You sat quietly in the shower, and your mother asked you "What are you thinking about, Aidan?" You're response? "Closure."

The other day you brought out your doctor's bag and said "Daddy, you are sick." (I wasn't, but I'm always ready to pretend).

"I am. Please help me doctor."

Your response? "I'm a boy, not a doctor!"

When your mother has a headache, you play with her hair and say "It's alright. I got you."

 When Julia's crying, you start crying, saying that her crying is making you sad. One day, Julia stabbed me in the head with her toothbrush. I sternly rebuked this action: "NO HITTING!" Julia's smile crumbled into tears. Soon enough though, she got over it. But you were more upset than her: "Why is she crying? Don't make her cry!"

Even once, Julia bit you...hard...hard enough to leave a mark and make you cry. Your Mom said "NO BITING!" Making Julia cry. You, through your tears, sobbed "Don't...yell...at...Julia!"

Now don't fret, you're not all philosophy and empathy. You're goofy, silly, rambunctious, a bit defiant, proud, clever, creative, and fun too! But this empathy...it's incredible, insightful, -sometimes funny- and beautiful.

That's just my two cents on your sensibility...and your cent...which has now hopefully passed. But your senses won't. They're part of you, and a growing part at that.

Understanding

Aidan,

The other morning you awoke a bit before my alarm. Since we were up a little early, we decided to hang out. You asked for us to read a book together. So we sat in your bed and just read. I think the book was "How do Dinosaurs Eat their Food."

The extra time from our early awakening evaporated oh-too-soon.

I had to go take a shower to get all clean and business-presentable for work.

You popped in the bathroom to talk to me for a bit at the end of the shower, asking me questions about lotion, and shaving, and flossing.

You followed me into the closet as I headed off to get dressed.

You quickly figured out what I was up to.

"Where you going?" you asked.

"I have to go to work, buddy."

"No. You don't go."

I got on one knee. You put your arms around my neck.

"I want you to know that when I'm at work every day, I think of you and Mommy and Julia all the time. And I can't wait to come home and be with you."

"Don't go."

"I'm sorry, Aidan. But I have to go to work."

"Why?"

I tried to explain how the house and the electricity and the water and even the food all cost money, and Daddy goes to work to earn the money. I told you that I have to bring home the bacon.

"Do you understand?" I asked.

You turned away from me, folded your arms on your chest and said "I don't. I don't understand."

To be honest, at that moment I didn't understand either. It sucked. I was tempted to just stay home all day, every day with you. But...we kind of need a home to stay home at.

I'm so sorry Aidan- and you too Julia- that this is the way the world works. I wish I could take like 5 paid years off to be home with you guys while you're little and then just work until I'm 72. But I don't think companies like that kind of deferment plan.

So, I'm on lunch break right now- the first one I've truly taken away from work in a long while- and since I can't be with you, I'm writing to you, and -as always- thinking about you.

One day, when you're both older and have little ones of your own, I'll hopefully be nearing 72 and I can use those 5 years to spend days on end with your little ones, so that they'll miss their Daddies and Mommies just a little less, like how Pops and Mimi and Yaya and Baba do for you.

That's the trade off, I guess. And that's the understanding.

But please know, while you don't understand now why I have to be here and you have to be there, I'm not distraught and not sad. I'm thankful that we have such a good set up that your Mommy gets to be with you every day, and I'm excited for every moment I get to spend with you both, after work, on weekends, and days off, when I get to enjoy the company of those for whom I working so hard.

All my love,

Daddy

Aidan's 4th Birthday Pirate Parrrrrrty

Aidan,

On February 27th you turned into a four year old boy.

On Mach 2 you turned into a four year old pirate.

There were mateys, scalawags, scurvy dogs…. and a bounce house.

This party was EPIC!

You bounced so hard, loved being with your friends and family…and we loved being with you.

The deck turned into a Pirate ship, complete with sail. The cupcakes were volcanoes and islands. You and your friends were a motley crew of dangerous pirates.

There were mustaches. There were beards. There were bandanas and skulls and crossbones. There was bouncing and dancing and singing. There was revelry and grog…and presents!