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Rainbows and more

Jun 012011

Riana's rainbow

I recently bought a iPad 2 and have been really enjoying it. I’ve also downloaded a number of applications for Riana to enjoy from games, books to drawing applications. Drawing, coincidently, is something that Riana has really gotten into recently.

One of her favorite things to make, next to stick figures of herself, are rainbows and she amazingly knows and remembers the color sequence.

The creation here is what she created using one of those drawing applications on the iPad. I, at most, spent only a couple of minutes showing Riana the specifics about the applications and she promptly began using them as an expert. This is proof enough that the iOS user interface and applications on here are truly easy for even a child to understand use.

Cheers

Back to 'New School'

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Sep 042009

Riana joined the Sterling Nursery School this week and the change has been difficult for her to absorb. We had to change her daycare four months back and the transition was an easy one. Riana immediately bonded with all of the teachers and made many friends at the new place. It was a small facility and she felt very welcomed and comfortable. Unfortunately, the owner decided to shutdown the operations of the Sterling facility and we were once again faced with re-situating Riana at a different school.

Riana is extremely social and transitions like these have never been a problem. This time however, she is battling with the large school setting. Every morning she cries when I drop her off. She tells me that she doesn’t want to attend the school. She wants me to stay there with her. Albeit unwilling to attend school in the mornings, she does seem to enjoy herself a lot during the course of the day. She especially likes the big playground that enables her to explore several activities.

I am glad that the school has been around for 42 years and is unlikely to shutdown in the near future. I really like this school as most of the teachers have either bachelor’s or master’s degree in teaching. Riana is in the younger preschool classroom and can continue at this school until Kindergarten. It is not fun when a two year old is constantly subjected to major changes like this. I hope this phase will pass as Riana develops new friendships and gets comfortable with the new environment.

Good luck my baby! (Hugs & Kisses)

Preschool thus far...

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Jul 032009

Riana started preschool two months ago and she absolutely loves the activities involved in her class as they are a lot more interesting than the ones in Toddler classroom. She likes arts and crafts very much. From Lions and Elephants to Jelly Fishes and Sharks, she has brought them all into the house. Oh, and snakes too!

One of my favorites is a lantern she made using color paper, thread, crayons, stickers and party decorations. It was beautiful. The loveliest of all were the gifts she made for Ashwin and I for Father’s day and Mother’s Day using her thumb and finger prints.

Arts and crafts sure sound like fun but all her clothes are nicely stained yellow, blue, green and red! I am glad she is having fun but there is one thing I wish she didn’t do and that is play in the sand box until she is covered from head to toe.

She participated in the annual Sports day at her preschool and won a ‘fake’ gold medal for the egg relay competition. Apparently she had very good control! Shocking… Good control from a kid who is otherwise very clumsy.

Yesterday the school had their end of the year celebration and all the kids put out a very good show. They sang some wonderful songs. Riana was very shy and didn’t know why her mummy and other parents were sitting, watching them sing and taking pictures and videos. It was hilarious to see her expression when her turn to sing came. It was almost like we caught her doing something naughty!

They concluded the show with an award ceremony and every child got a certificate for successfully completing the year. Lunch was served at Noon and Riana devoured the hot dogs and Chips!

All in all, it’s been a wonderful experience to see her learn and grow. I would call this a successful transition to preschool…

Good job Riana. Mummy and Daddy are very proud of you! Cheers…

ABCs and 123s

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May 132009

Riana started at her new daycare just over two weeks ago and in that time we’ve seen great strides in her speech and vocabulary. Mostly this is due to the fact that she’s been placed with preschool kids as opposed to the much younger toddlers.

She truly began speaking only a few months ago, but since then she’s mastering the alphabet song and counting up to 11 or 12, depending on her mood, with the greatest of ease.

The funny and interesting thing is that she will count the numbers and recite the alphabets without provocation and while involved in some other activity. The moment we ask her to do it so that we can capture a video of it, she purposefully miscounts or screams the alphabets while repeating a few of them just for fun. Her favorite letter to repeat being “W”, just just likes saying “dubble-YOU” over and over again.

Cheers

The Dancing Baby

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Apr 142009

What is it about music that causes one kind of person to get up and feel the urge to dance while another is perfectly happy sitting still while equally enjoying the music? Having one of each in our family with Geeta and I (I’ll let you figure out who is which kind), it’s always interesting to see what traits Riana develops and explores.

As witnessed at recent parties that Riana has attended she clearly is the kind of child that enjoys dancing a lot. With her growing vocabulary she insists on wanting dancing music played whenver we are on the computer so that she can jump around like a maniac. This also has put an end to my listening to NPR on the drive to work and home and need for constant channel surfing on the radio to ensure that there’s always some music playing.

Children, in general, I’ve found enjoy dancing but I think Riana is going to be more like her mother in that regard.

Cheers

Darling, You're Two

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Mar 022009

How the time has flown. It seems like it was just yesterday that is a cold March night as we were whisking you away from the hospital to welcome you into our home and hearts.

Riana's Birthday Frock

And now nearly two years into that journey has been filled with moments and memories that will be remembered for a lifetime.

Here’s looking forward to many more moments..

Love,
Daddy & Mommy

A Natural Affection

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Jan 092009

We visited India this past November and Riana got a chance to reacquaint herself with her grandparents and her cousin. The initial trepidation of meeting new faces dissolved quickly when she got the chance to do as she pleases, most of which was to go outside and play with the other kids.
Riana and Adi
After spending a wonderful week in Pune, we traveled to Bangalore to visit with Riana’s aunt and cousin. From the first moment she laid her eyes on her cousin Adi, Riana behaved like the bigger sibling that she is. It was quite touching to see the care that she took of her cousin, from calming him when he was crying, feeding him, or pushing him around in his stroller.

Now that we’ve returned to the States, she asks to look at the pictures and the videos we made during our stay all the while calling out the names of the people in those pictures.

I think most of all, being a little older and better able to recognize and remember faces means that now she has a connection with her grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousin. Those connections will be further strengthened as she gets to communicate with her family in India on the phone and webcam.

Cheers

Speaker of the House

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Dec 082008

Riana not only understands a lot of what we say but she also tries to communicate using words. She knows a lot of words, some Hindi but mostly English, that compliment her wonderful gestures. She nods and says ‘Ya’ or points her finger and says ‘Over there’. Her enunciation is getting better too. Lately, she has been making attempts to form simple sentences such as ‘I want Cookie’ or ‘I want Duddu’. I am trying to get her to say ‘Love you mummy’. That’s a big expectation:)

Clearly, this communication is making things easier for us. She can ask for water when she is thirsty. She also tells us when she has ‘pooped’ and when she needs her diaper changed. Does this mean she is ready for potty training?! Now, THAT is something I am NOT looking forward to!!!

The Safety...Tag?

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Oct 252008

The sight of a child clutching dearly to it’s favorite blanket or stuffed animal is very cute. The animal or blanket provides some level of comfort and safety to the child and accompanies the child on every excursion to the supermarket, the playground, the beach and any other place imaginable.

Riana, has something that comforts her equally when she seeks it out, but her thing is not a stuffed animal or a blanket, but rather a tag. Any tag. Tags on her burp clothes, tags on her onsies, tags on her pants, and anything else imaginable.

Up Above... Da Dy...

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Oct 162008

It’s amazing how toddlers pick up language so fast. In the last few weeks, Riana’s ability to form words has increased dramatically. Her vocabulary is growing exponentially and according to her pediatrician, that is to be expected. She likes to point our body parts such as nose and eyes. She has fun counting 1,2 and 3! She likes to interact with people. I am amazed to see that she even tries to make up short sentences such as “My duddu”, “Bye Bye Dadda”, “No Touch”, “Hi Baby”, “Over There”. This morning, I was reciting nursery rhymes to her. I was surprised when she sang along…

Me: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, How I wonder what you are…
Riana: Up Above da… Dy…

Me: Baba Black Sheep, Have you any wool…
Riana: Yes sa… Yes sa… tul…

How sweet. I believe she learnt this at her daycare.

Life is fun with Riana around… I am looking forward to having real conversations with her although I don’t think I am quite prepared for the “whys and hows”… Not just yet!

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