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[ Tuesday, November 04, 2008 ]
I have again fallen behind in posting to this blog but there is not much to tell. Kate continues fixated (David doesn't like me using the term obsessed) on Ariel. She goes "into character" a lot, and in those occasions she calls me Gabriela (Ariel's mermaid friend) and Jeff becomes Sebastian. She even calls Grandmother Elsie "Ursula" (the evil sea-witch). I actually started getting worried the day she had a meltdown because she had to wear green pants with a purple shirt to match Ariel and of course, no such combination was available. My concerns did not stop me from planning a great "Under the Sea" party for her birthday, complete with a call from Ariel herself - yet another unexpected but smart way Disney found to make money.
[ Friday, September 19, 2008 ]
Hilarious moment while shopping with Kate: I took her out to get some new panties and chose several packages with Dora the Explorer, Ariel and other Disney characters. While waiting in line to pay, she grabbed one of the packets are said, loudly: "My Daddy has these!". The line stopped and stared. I would have said "You mean you have those at Daddy's house" but I was laughing too hard to say a word.
[ Thursday, September 04, 2008 ]
Tonight we took Kate out to dinner with Nemo, his Mom, and his cousin who are visiting from Brazil. We went to Kanpai, our favorite Japanese restaurant, and Kate stuffed herself with rice, tempura and dumplings. On the way home we had the most hilarious conversation. She claimed to be an "animal scientist" and described to us a "hamster-cat" creature that lives on trees in Africa, eats coconuts and chicken, and is as old as a dinosaur. Her creativity was impressive. She went through so many physical and behavioral details of the hamster-cat, I could almost see the thing in my head. When I asked her if she had seen one before, she replied "Obviously!".
This Labor Day weekend we took Kate to visit Jeff's family in Colorado. They have four children, the youngest - Marya - only a month older than Kate. I thought they would have a lot of fun, but it exceeded all expectations. Kate surprised us by wanting to sleep with Marya from the first night, and even taking a bath together by the end of the holiday. In between, they played and squabbled (that's what you get when one is an only child and the other is the only girl in the house). Marya shared her toys, and Kate introduced her to Dora. On Sunday, everyone watched a bizarre rubber duck race down a river. Surprisingly, Kate insisted on joining the other kids on a rock in the middle of the river with almost freezing water. Then we went out for dinner and she had two firsts - drank chocolate milk and assembled her own cheese pizza. Several times throughout the weekend Kate asked "Mommy, are we staying here forever?" and even now she is still asking when we're going back.
[ Saturday, July 19, 2008 ]
This was a rough week. On Thursday night I went to pick up Kate from swimming class and she surprised me by having a meltdown and saying she didn't want to be with me, she wanted to stay with Gigi and Granddad. We had a conversation about saying hurtful things to the people we love - since she had done the exact same thing to David a couple of nights before. In the process, I told her she is lucky to have a Mommy and a Daddy who love her so much, and she asked me about my Mommy and Daddy. I had previously tried to dance around the whole death subject but this time there was no other way. So I explained how my Dad got very sick and couldn't get better and that he "went away'. She asked where. I said no one knows for sure where people go when die, but that I like to believe in what my Dad said when I was little, that living things who die become little stars in the sky. Her reply: "When I am bigger I will buy a big car, put you in a car seat and drive you to see your Daddy up in the sky". I was bawling at that point. Luckily the subject changed but the next morning, she asked me flat out "Mommy, are you going to die?". I said yes, we will all die some day but not for a very long time and she shouldn't think of death as a bad thing, only as something natural that happens to everyone. As heart-wrenching as the conversation was, she didn't seem scared, sad or worried about it. I felt relieved but the next day learned that one of our dogs is in her final days and the issue of death will have to come up again.
[ Saturday, July 05, 2008 ]
It's been a long time and a lot has happened. Kate had her first ballet recital in June. She looked absolutely adorable in her little pink tutu, but she was far from thrilled. She had just come back from spending 10 days in Texas, and during that time I went on vacation in Honduras. As a result, she didn't see for almost 3 weeks. Naturally, she was a bit "clingy" when she got back and had an incredible meltdown right before the recital when I started to walk out of the room where she was supposed to stay with the other little girls. She grabbed on to my pants and cried so desperately my heart almost broke. I had to stay with her until she went on stage, but after that she was fine. She lingered on stage after the other girls had left because the auditorium was dark and she was trying to find us in the audience. 
[ Sunday, April 27, 2008 ]
Funny conversation in the car on our way to school: Kate: What do turtles eat? Me: Vegetables, carrots... Kate: ...and Plankton! Me: Well, there are two kinds of turtle. Sea turtles eat plankton, and land turtles eat vegetables. Kate: And there are three kinds of fish! Me: Three? Kate: River fish, ocean fish, and fish tank fish! Me: Sweetheart, fish tank fish come from the ocean or from the river. Kate: No, they don't! They come from the pet store.
It's been a while and there's a lot to tell. Earlier this month, we took Kate to a long weekend at Disney World in Florida. It was a truly magical trip and such a delight to watch her joy and wonder, and to remember my same feelings as a child visiting for the first time. We stayed at the Disney Animal Kingdom lodge and got to watch giraffes, zebras and other wild animals right outside our window. Although the plan was to visit Sea World on our arrival day, we were not prepared for Kate's bio-schedule. She was full of energy and ready to go at 7 in the morning, but by 2 pm grumpiness set in and we had to put her down for a nap which killed the entire afternoon. We missed Sea World but she enjoyed the hotel pool instead. The next day we did Disney in the morning: carousel, playground, train, even a great little roller coaster, but Kate's favorite - as we knew it would be - was to meet "Ariel". On our last day, we went to Animal Kingdom Park. My expectations were low because it was a very hot and humid day, Kate looked tired and a lot of rain was on the forecast. With all that, we still had a wonderful time in a jeep safari and watching The Lion King Festival, a great show that got Kate mesmerized and squealing with excitement. Lessons learned: remember nap time when making plans; buy the meal plan (it was so convenient!); only 2.5 days is not enough! 
[ Wednesday, March 05, 2008 ]
Children come up with very odd things to say, and Kate is no different. Totally random and unexpected conversation from a few weeks ago while I drove her to school: Kate: "Mommy, do you like tuna casserole?" Me: "No, sweetheart" Pause. Silence for a couple of minutes. Kate" What are we talking about?" Me: "We were talking about tuna casserole" Kate: "I want to talk about green beans next. I think it will be fun!" My stunned silence was the only reply. Ever since that day, she has been asking everyone (repeatedly) if they like tuna casserole. I don't know where the obsession comes from, but it's pretty funny to watch their reactions to such a bizarre question.
Yesterday Kate went to her first ballet class. I can't begin to describe the feelings when I saw her dressed in her little outfit and ballet slippers. She was beautiful and a lot more graceful than I expected (being my daughter and all). Unlike me at her age, she enjoyed the class and wants to go back next week. Grandmother Elsie took photos and I will post them here as soon as I get them.
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