Dancing Queen

Kiyomi's long been a big lover of music, and nothing gets her going like the oldies. Crank up the sound, and enjoy....

Ghosts and goblins and frogs, oh my!

Ah, that childhood right of passage. The first Halloween. The one where mom and dad dress you in a dorky outfit. Not for your enjoyment, as you can’t possibly remember it, and the costume makes you hot and itchy. And it's not so mom and dad can take numerous pictures to pull out when you bring your first boyfriend home to meet them (although there are a number of those). No, it’s all about extra candy for mom and dad!

Kiyomi, like so many other toddlers, endured the dorky costume, the humiliation, the camera flashes in her face, with grace and style, and headed out into a rather warm though damp night. Of course, she only made it as far as the neighbours - where the highlight was chasing their dog, Bandito – and scoring a few extra kit-kats for mom and dad (before you ask, they’re already gone).

While the trick or treating seemed to be met with tolerance at best, Kiyomi did seem to get a big kick of answering the door and dolling out candy. She looked on quizically when the doorbell went the first couple times, but by the end of the night, she had gotten the hang of it. Alas, we don’t really get many kids here, so it was limited fun. But enough to tire her out.

We also had a Halloween potluck here with all the families from our travel group living here in Ottawa and another family we know who were in the group just before us. That was lots of fun for all, and the food was amazing. You can’t go wrong inviting people over to dinner, and then asking them to bring the food. While it’s hard to tell, I can’t help but think that the girls are starting to recognize each other a little. At this age, there isn’t any real interaction, but there seems to be less clinging to parental units. In fact, the last couple times they’ve gotten together, they seem to be happy having the run of the house and have there own little games going. We’ve especially noticed that Kiyomi likes to follow Hailey around (that's Kiyomi in the black cat costume). They are 2 days apart, and have been buddies since China.

This past weekend was Kiyomi’s first trip to see the family in Thunder Bay and her first trip on an airplane as a toddling toddler. We were a little worried that she would object to sitting for so long, but the miracle of Toy Story II and a portable dvd player prevailed. She met her great grandmother, my aunt and uncle and some cousins. She had a great time. Nothing is better than being the only toddler in a room full of attentive adults. However, the highlight was the 3 dogs – including poor Calash, who patiently allowed the Kiyomi-beast to poke, prod, hug, lick and pretty much continually accost him. That is the most patient dog I have ever seen in my life.

As for developments, Kiyomi’s vocabulary comprehension seems to leap ahead every day. We figure she's probably up to about 30 words. In fact, she often surprises us with what she actually understands. You can ask her to go get her Animals book and bring it to you in the kitchen, and she’ll actually do it! She doesn’t actually have any words that she uses herself, but she is perpetually mimicking sounds and has learned a couple of signs. Interestingly, the one she is the most proficient with is “more”. Nothing like food as a motivator. The five ‘words’ that she uses consitently are "cat", "dat" (as in "what's dat?"), "ya-ya-ya-ya-ya-ya", “uh-oh” and “mooooooooooooooo” (yes with that many o’s).

Her latest tricks are interesting to watch. She loves opening the drawers on the coffee table, taking out whatever she finds and dropping it on the floor. Unfortunately, she's not so good with the putting stuff back and closing the drawers. She has also expanded her climbing abilities and now regularly summits her high chair. We're considering getting her a climbing harness for around the house.

It would seem that Kiyomi has also learned that she, in fact, has a mind of her own, and in the last few weeks has discovered the power of objection. Yup, she now knows that it is not necessary to do everything these people want me to do. And even if it has to happen, she figures she can go out swinging. I’m not sure who told her she had a mind of her own, but it wasn’t our idea. Getting dressed in the morning is now about a 20 minute process, as her prefered outfit is buck naked. Generally, the trick is getting at least the diaper on before she pees on the floor. This week alone, there has been two trips to the shower to hose her down after failed attempts.

There has also been a recent growth spurt and she no longer fits in clothes for 6-12 month olds. She now needs 12-18 months, and has even moved a size up in diapers. Oddly, for clothes and diapers she seems to be sitting in-between sizes. The smaller size seems to be too small, but the larger one seems a little big on her. We’re going with big and rolling up cuffs and sleeves.

The parting shot for tonight is a wee bit traditional, but a good laugh! Good night, from Ottawa.