The Year Has Gone Bye Too Fast

Last Saturday was Hannah's birthday. I can remember the day she was born, all the preparations.... How we went to Glendale Memorial Hospital... The anticipation, the nervousness, the excitement! Looking at her for the first time and not believing that she was born! And that she was so small and so big at the same time! And the fear of picking her up and feeding her. So many things happening at the same time...

And now, here we are! One year later. And once again, Hannah seems big at times and so tiny at other times. It's really scary... Especially when things happen and you are so concerned about her well-being... Like now, we lost the post of one of her earings, one more time. And Alan is desperately looking for it because we are afraid that something may happen to her... These earings...But then she tries to do things that make you believe that she is really big and strong. Like when she gets into every basket in the house, regardless of whether the baskets are small or big... She will try and she will manage... And she does great!

But last Saturday was a special day. We went to the mommy and me class in the morning. Donna, Alan's friend from Denver, came with us. Hannah was very active. She became the Andy Warhol of the Kid's Museum. She did some painting! But in reality she painted herself!

Then in the afternoon, we prepared for the party. I gave her a good bath and she slept for an hour or so. And then she was ready to go... Running throughout the house, from one corner to the other, in the backyard, in the family room. She was so excited! And she crushed like a baby!

Reading and Walking....

One of Hannah's favorite past-times is going to the bookcase she has in her room and taking the books out while she looks at their cover. She also has books in the baskets on the floor in her bedroom, so everything is within her reach. So she is always grabbing books off the shelves, even in my office, putting them on the floor and then going through the pages in them.

Today, we went to Kids Space, to participate in the Mommy and me course. She liked it a lot. But what was interesting to see was that when the two workshop leaders picked up a book and started reading, she was the first kid in the room to immediately tune to the books. This was interesting because when it came to games she was not the first one to catch on to them. She would do her own thing for a couple of minutes. But when she heard the teachers reading, she immediately approached them and tried to touch the book. The books were in English, and although she is not used to hearing books in English, she did not reach negatively to them! And she was tired when we left the Kids Space!

Taking these classes is a learning experience for me since I don't have the education in English. So when parents sing the songs, the song about the spider, etc., I never know the words. And I am a little self-conscious. But I say to myself: Well, they don't know the Spanish songs I know! Just kidding... But what is interesting is that if I feel in the minority because I don't know the songs in English, one can only begin to imagine how a child who does not speak English or does not have references in English can feel in the classroom... Not a good feeling!

We had a wonderful time today!!! Kuki
P.S: She also did some artwork.... Well, I did it.... It'

Hannah is learning to say Chau Chau

Hannah has been hearing us say Chau Chau since she was born. Whenever someone leaves the house, we say: Chau Chau. And when I say goodbye to her, I usually say: Chau, Chau, Chauuuu! I also sing a song to her that goes: Chau Chau Adios....And this morning, when I started singing the song, Hannah said: Tau tau, a... I guess this was her attempt at saying Chau, Chau, adios....And the T sound was like the Spanish t....Very interesting.....I tried to record her as she said tau tau, but I did her by putting her in front of the computer and opening audacity..... Not the best way to do it....I will need to find a more naturalistic way to do it! Saludillos, Kuki

Hannah claps her hands!

On Wednesday, May 2, I had to go to Old Town to get estimates about a dinner we want to organize to thank the mentor teachers in the practicum course. So I went to several restaurants...though this is not the story.

What IS the story is that I went into Barnes and Noble and Hannah, for some reason, must have liked the place. She started laughing non-stop! And the more she laughed, the more she got tempted! And she laughed even harder! You could hear her laugh from a distance!

It was incredible... To the point that a woman looked at her and said to me: My God! I can't stop looking at her. Is she always like this? And I said: She is a happy baby but I have to say that she is very excited.... There was a young guy sitting on the floor and reading a book. He kept turning over to look at Hannah. And he smiled and smiled. But he did not say anything....

Then, we went to an Argentine restaurant, Il Capo, and Hannah suddenly started clapping and clapping. She had clapped before. But this time she did it for several seconds. And when I celebrated what she did, she kept doing it.... It was a wonderful day! Kuki

Hannah is walking!

Hannah is walking! Last week, it was only three or four steps at a time. Now, it's non stop! She can walk long distances, like 3-4 meters. And she reminds me of La Momia, a famous wrestler in Argentina, who was part of Martin Karadagian's Titanes en el Ring. For those of you who read Spanish, here is a link to a page that has some info on Titanes en el Ring. http://memorias.todouy.com/memmasinfo9.htm

Also, here is the song that accompanied La Momia as he walked toward the ring:
La Momia, luchador sordo mudo,
es mas fuerte que el acero,es el paladín de la justicia,
La Momia, protege a los buenos, castiga a los malos, y quiere a los niños muy tiernamente,
La Momia es justiciera, La Momia, La Momia,La Momia, La Momia, La Momia... Música aquí.

Hannita reminds me of La Momia because she keeps her body straight and tries to balance her walk with her arms, which are firm. She is so funny! Me hace derretir el corazon cuando la veo caminar! So whenever I see her walking, I start singing the Momia song.

We will be celebrating her first birthday on the 19th! A year has gone by too fast!!! Kuki