One and a quarter years old!

This has been a fun and interesting month. I survived a flood. Actually I didn't know it was really happening much aside from seeing the river outside the back gate that usually isn't there; for the most part it meant quite a few days of not being able to go to the park.

Mom says I became a much more stable walker and have picked up speed. In fact this morning I was on the verge of a trot, but not quite yet.

I like to chase the cats around, and Seng even lets me pet her.

I went a lot of cool places this month. On hikes around town. Up to the mountains (which was pretty but the altitude didn't quite agree with me and I let mom and Appa know via a messy throw up). On my very first train - this was very fun and I liked being outside seeing the trees and mountains go by, but the loud whistle did scare me just a bit. To someplace with a whole bunch of colorful (and not so colorful) fish swimming by at my eye level! There was even an otter and a tiger. Even though the tiger was far away, I could tell she was majestic and a little like my cat Taka at home. I also went to a pretty and warm place that had a whole bunch of butterflies flying around (mom says this was my second time there).

Other babies and kids are pretty fun to hang out with, and I was able to do that quite a bit this month. Sometimes it was at home, sometimes it was at Appa's house, sometimes it was at other homes, and sometimes it was outside.

I like to climb. Mom installed a cool red slide in my room a few days ago, and boy is it fun. Straight away I basically climbed up the slide, which mom thought was funny. And today Karin caught me trying to climb one of the cat perches. And as you already know I like to climb stairs.

I learned how to open the front door. I have gotten better at saying bottle, though mom still says it comes out like "bawall" but she definitely knows what I am saying.

I like to dance and 'headbang' a bit. Especially to music on my new favorite toys - one is a toy intended for kids that plays fun music, and the other is a keyboard that also has an awesome DJ mode where I can press one key (or stand on it, or sit on it) and it will give me a dance beat. I like checking out really big machinery on our street moving dirt around and doing other interesting things. I really like playing with the wood shades in my room - I can climb up on my window seat and open and close them. I also like playing the the "latch board" that mom made for me, especially making the door stops go "bwaaaaang."

Oh and the flute. Have you ever tried playing the flute? Or blowing into something that makes a pretty noise? It is really fun. (As a side note, I also try to blow spiders on the other side of the screen to get them to go away, but I think I need to work on my projection). But back to flutes: I have three that I can play with. One is pretty small and red - very portable but sometimes when I try to blow it I put too much in my mouth and I cover the second hole so it sounds strange. The second one is green and uncle Chris gave it to me - this one is longer but I can play it more easily. The last one is wooden and brown and Native American and came from Taos. It has the best sound, and mom plays a little on it making many more sounds than the one that I make.

I am getting excited about my first international trip to India - we leave in just over one week! Technically speaking this is my third international trip, but the others were in mom's belly so you can decide if they count. As part of the preparation, I have this new cool tent that mom can pack in her suitcase that turns into my bed for naps and sleeping (and keeps the mosquitoes away). Over the past few days I got used to it with napping and one full night (so far). I also get to see my first au pair Nastja in Frankfurt on the way to India - I am excited to see her!

Finally, you should take a good long look at my hair. Because it will be gone in a few weeks. I haven't yet had a hair on my head cut. We are all headed to south India and there I will have this ceremony where they shave my head - no one has ever seen me without any hair because I was even born with hair, so it will be interesting. So long curly locks (at least for a while). I am not quite sure what it will be like in India, but I like the drawing in my UNESCO world book (thanks Sky!) that shows people riding around in rickshaws. It will definitely be pretty different from here and I will get to meet a lot of Appa's family.

Below is a photo collage from my 15th month on earth. Thank you God for this great month.

Definitely a toddler (14 months)

My big news this month is that I can truly walk now. As in, decide I want to go from this side of the room to that side and go straight there. Or see my cat Taka or Seng walking away from me and follow her right across the room. Or I see mom or Appa across the room and go to say hi. Over carpeted floors or wood floors or the deck out back, those are all good. The grass is good too, though that can be a little more uneven sometimes, but it is soft to sit or fall on. When I am out front (say, heading to the park) and on the harder stuff (mom says it is concrete), then I still hold onto mom's hand. Anyway, I am pretty sure that this definitely makes me a toddler now.

I am leaving all of that baby stuff behind (or working on it in some cases, such as slowly letting go of the habit of my bottle). Speaking of bottle, I try to say it sometimes, though for some reason mom thinks it comes out 'baa'.

In other big news, I took my very first airplane ride this month! I don't exactly understand all that goes on, but it is definitely a big production, and there are all kinds of new and interesting things to check out. Like the tray table (it goes up and down!). Or the person behind me (I can hide behind mom, then pop my head up with a big smile!). Or the ipad of the lady sitting next to us (unfortunately mom stopped this pretty quickly). Definitely an interesting event is going up and down the aisle and making a ton of new friends (especially the little and young kind, but sometimes the old kind who make fun faces). Mom had the trip logistics worked out well - carrying me in the Ergo pack on her front, the backpack carry-on on her back (with lots of new toys and food), and then a rolling suitcase in one hand and the car seat in another! Oh and the pacifier around her neck completed the ensemble. It turns out I did well going up and down in altitude and my ears didn't hurt. Overall, a success!

Mom says that the trip itself was to Oregon (flying to Portland, then driving down to Corvallis) for my great uncle Warren's 95th birthday. I hope I live to be that age someday - that would be a little under 95 TIMES my age (when you are one, math is pretty easy. I think it gets more tricky when the numbers get bigger). He was the oldest Hovland and I was the youngest Hovland at the party! It was fun to meet him and a whole bunch of my relative from my grandpa's side, most of whom I hadn't met before. I met a cousin who was just a little bit older than me, and another who was really fun and shared her dragons with me.

Oregon was where I really went from taking a few tentative steps to being able to move across the room. About a week later, I figured out how to get up on my own in the middle of a room (it is a little down-dog move, followed by a squat, and then I am up!). Mom and Appa think it is really cute. For me, it is just part of my increased freedom.

If you remember, I like to play a bunch. It is a good thing to remember to do throughout life. My new favorite things are to play around and through Karin's or mom's legs,  to open and close the wood blinds in my room, and to try to crank the shade out back. A continued favorite is to hide around a post (or mom) and peak out and say hi! And of course to crawl around with mom or Appa, to play with running water in the sink, or to play with anything shiny. Sometimes little friends will come over play too. One time I even pushed my little friend around the room using the push toy (we took the blocks out so she could have a seat).

We rounded out the month with a trip up into the mountains where I got to taste a wild raspberry, crawl around some rocks, go on a pretty long hike to a remote lake (mom says we made it to Booth Lake!) in the Gore range, walk on cobblestones, hang out with some good friends (including little B), and play in some cool playgrounds.

Ayamma left Colorado (on her way back to India) this month, so I will see her in October when I get to take my first international trip!

Thank you God for this month, this day, and this moment.

One year plus one month

So being over a year old is a pretty big deal. Mom thinks back to a year ago when I was just a little baby and I had to figure out how to eat and sleep and hold my head up and hold on to things - even smile. A lot has changed, and I love life. 

Have you ever had a time when you were trying to explain something to someone but they didn't quite understand you? It is like they are listening in a different language. Well that is sort-of my boat these days. I (mostly) understand what mom or Appa or Karin are saying, but they don't quite get what I am saying. Luckily, there are a lot of ways beyond verbal that we can communicate. Like when I crawl in to the hallway and mom is still inside my room saying "Where's Kavi? I wonder where he went" - I crawl back around the corner and it is a happy reunion. Or I have taken to pointing a lot to where I want to go, and this moves the communication along very well (except there are sometimes when I don't get taken to where I want to go and this can get a little frustrating). There is also this cool thing where I can do something with my hands and it is like a language! Like when I want more of something (say, green puffs or strawberries or blueberries - can you say YUM?).

I take each day as it comes. I try new things, I explore the world, I play with sounds, and I laugh. One of the really fun things to do is to play with my big dog Mopy - he is very very soft and it is fun to roll around on him, crawl over him, and belly flop on him after I walk a few steps to him. 

Speaking of steps and walking. As you know, right before my first birthday I took my first few steps. I am still pretty tentative about them. But I progressed to taking eight in a row (after Appa moved back). Though I still prefer to hold mom or Appa's hand while walking around.

The rest of my birthday trip to Yellowstone and the Tetons was pretty great. There were beautiful flowers and mountains, and friends to play with too. The only not so good parts were when I had a little fever for a bit, and then when I ate something that didn't agree with me (and made me throw up on a hike). At least I had a change of clothes ready after that one.

This month I also traveled in the mountains in Colorado quite a bit - mom says the places were called Estes Park, Mount Princeton hot springs, and Copper Mountain. It was a bit of a whirlwind time, but I got to put on my first (and mom says very cute) suit to attend a wedding. I also went on my very first ski lift ride, which gives you really good views and has a handle to hold onto that is just my size (of course Appa held on to me tightly as well).

Aside from these adventures, the month was full of hanging out with grandpa and grandma, ayyamma and chitappa, and Karin; playing and going to the park (I can climb the stairs on the little kid's play gym and like the slide, in addition to, of course, the swings); and hanging out with some other little people that are my size.

Thank you God for life and for today. Below is a photo collage of my month.

P.S. Check out the cool green shirt from Brasil that Karin brought me!

Can you believe it, one year old!

Today I turned one year old. Actually mom says it is in a little bit, since I was born at 10:43 pm.  I am celebrating it up in the Tetons - in fact today we were on a very beautiful hike (toward Table Mountain). I also had a birthday celebration a few days ago with lots of family and friends at a park. This included tasting my first cake, though I didn't actually like the chocolate cupcake and spit most of it out (maybe I will grow to like this, we will see).

Life is pretty amazing. Every day you can learn something new. And if you try new things with your body you will probably be able to do something new too. One example from just a week ago (mom says I was 51 weeks old): I was standing at my mirror having fun (moving out of the way and then popping up to say hi to my reflection), and then I decided to move on over to my changing table, but it looked sooo close so I just went for it! About a minute later I was standing at my changing table and mom was just a few steps away holding her arms out and encouraging me, so I went big and took my first few steps! And then five minutes later I tried again into mom's arms, and I took four steps. It was a big thing and yet it was gradual at the same time, just a natural transition that comes from trying new things all of the time (of course encouragement and congratulations makes it fun too).

This month I started doing a bunch of new things. Like I can clap now (sometimes making noise), and I understand 'good job' and clap whenever mom or Appa or Karin say it. I have been waving for a while, but I am getting better at it, and even wave back to strangers that are saying hi (like the other day at Old Faithful).

I like to play a lot. Of course sometimes this is with toys, but most of the time it is with people. Like when Appa or Karin chase me around the living room table - I can move really quickly around it and try to catch them (on occasion I do!). I play by moving my head way to the right and then back up straight, imitating Karin. I like it a bunch when mom chases me around by crawling. I also love laughing. Who doesn't? I suggest everyone try to laugh every day. Another thing that is just plain fun is jumping. On couches or in my crib. I will work on finding other fun places for this. And sometimes the play is with sounds. I like to almost-talk a bunch (with sounds that are hard to imitate), but can almost banter back and forth with 'arhhh'.

I like penguins, and generally animals that like the cold. Mom thinks this is pretty funny since she likes snow-related things so much (maybe it is in the blood?). In the animal book when we get to the page with a polar bear and penguins, I give the penguins a 'kiss' - right now this kind of looks like me tasting them, but mom figured out I am giving them a kiss. Water animals aren't super exciting, so I pass by that page pretty quickly. Of course I still love cats.

This month I spent my first night outside in a tent! It was a little cold, but I think I did pretty well. There was also a fire there, and I really like watching flames. We went on a few hikes and saw pretty mountains and a neat gem of a lake. I even tried tasting pine needles!
 
I have quite a few teeth (seven as of a few days ago), and two new teeth are coming in as we speak (because of this I have a little fever so I went to bed early tonight). But most of the time these teeth are allowing me to do new things like chomp down on a strawberry (yum!).

As you know, I like water. Splashing in the bath, or running my hands through water in the faucet. But especially when Appa dips my feet into a running river (in Yellowstone) - that makes me smile a lot (see the middle picture below).

Mom says I am a toddler now because I am one year old. A lot of new and beautiful things are sure to be in store for me in the coming year. Thank you mom and Appa and God for my life!

My 11th month

My eleventh month was pretty great. It's pretty neat how from one day to the next the changes are so gradual, but when you look back on the month they can be dramatic.

There were the big things. Like I can CRAWL now - cool right? Mom thought I might skip the crawling bit altogether, but in the end I did decide to crawl before walking. I think back on a few months ago when mom would put me on my stomach and I would get upset or maybe pike forward on my feet and worm forward. Crawling is definitely a much more efficient way to get around. And it is really fun to decide where you want to go and make it happen. Like across my bedroom to the crib, or across the living room floor to get to the cat.

Of course I still love moving on my feet best. I can cruise pretty fast, now from my room down the entire hallway into the living room and around the room. I am moving faster and faster; even tonight I wanted to just walk across the room. Pretty soon I am going to just go for it. I've watched other kids to it, and I checked out the walking illustrations in my Everywhere Babies book quite a few times, so I think I am pretty ready. Plus my thighs keep getting stronger.

I have been 'talking' more this month too. This morning I tried to say 'book' though I admit that it came out a little like 'buh' but mom knew what I meant (and was excited). In return, I get super excited when she picks my favorites. This month there is an awesome book from the library called Ten Tiny Babies, but the best one by far is the book with two cats in it called Miaow (this is the Indian spelling of Meow). Appa brought this book (among many) home from Tamil Nadu when he visited in April - it has letters that mom can read and a pretty script that neither of us can read (yet), and it has a great story about two cats - one black and one white. This reminds me of my own two cool CATS (one which is black and white), who I love to watch a bunch. I can kind-of say 'Taka' by saying 'Aja', and now that I can crawl around, I have fun trying to get to their tails (though they are pretty spry).

So from my pictures you may have noticed that my hair is getting longer. Not one hair on my head has been cut yet, and it won't be until October (after I am at least a year old, well actually I will be 15 months old by then). I am going on a trip way around the world to southern India (via Frankfurt - by the way, hi Nastja!), and there will be this ceremony where I get my hair shaved. That's what mom says that Appa says. Anyway, as a result, my new 'do is to wear headbands. This keeps my hair out of my face, but especially makes me look like a rock star (or a tennis player).

I have been somewhat adventurous on the food front this month, tasting all kinds of things. I love raspberries! They are just the perfect consistency for me to chew, besides tasting yummy. I don't love all things - my first taste of asparagus wasn't so great, but I suppose mom will keep trying another 10 or 15 times and then I might like it, who knows. I also drink from a bigger bottle now, which means that I can drink more in one sitting, and that I can drink it much faster.

The weather really has been perfect. Which makes me happy because that means that we get to go to the park almost every day and SWING a bunch. Or go on a hike after mom gets home from work, where there are beautiful views of big mountains far away and colorful flowers along the way. Or even take a bath OUTSIDE, which is just great. Or eat dinner outside next to the waterfall, and you know I love the sound of falling water. Being outside also allows me to look UP, which means I might see a fast bird flying by, or the wind rustling the trees, or even a rainbow (like last night). Of course inside has its own fair share of interesting things up high, like whirling FANS, lights (that I can turn on and off with the pull of a chain), or a tinkling wind chime.  

We also had a good trip (with mom, Appa, and Karin) up in the mountains near Breckenridge. There was a gently flowing stream that sparkled, a rushing stream that had a chaotic but calming sound, a lot of bright and soft snow (good thing I had my cool sunglasses for the snowshoe trip, even though sometimes they got annoying and I wanted to take them off), high mountains, and new friends. Oh and a hot tub, I almost forgot - this was super cool because Appa kept blowing bubbles and you couldn't help but laugh.

Ayamma came back from India for the summer, so at the end of every week I get to go hang out with Appa and Ayamma, which is fun. I also get to hear a lot more Tamil spoken when I am there, and that is good. 


Finally, I spend a lot of time at home with Karin, who is awesome. She just makes me laugh, hiding behind things or tickling me. She takes me swinging, sings to me in Portuguese, and makes me good food. She even builds up blocks for me because she knows I love to knock them down.


Here is a photo collage of my 11th month on this beautiful earth. Thank you God for everything.

(when you hear from me next, I will be one year old!)

My 10th month

Today I turned ten months old. Pretty cool - two digits! Oh and I have a few books that now go up to ten too, which is quite a bit further than five.

I really like to move, and am getting better at it. For example, there was this time when I pretty much just stood up at my changing table, holding on. Now I can cruise left and right along it, make the reach over to my crib (which has very convenient slats to hold onto), and move along it. It is especially fun when mom puts little plastics eggs (which I love!) behind a slat for me to get, or a little duck. Oh speaking of the duck, it has this little hole that means that it gets filled with water in the bath, and then it comes out a little when I shake shake shake it - awesome!

But back to the crib. So I found out that I can move along the crib and around the corner and get to a little wall (Mopy my big stuffed dog hangs out above this, so I can grab at him a bit). I learned how to palm along the wall - of course mom covered up the enticing outlet but that is okay because at the end of the wall is a bunch of books at floor level! Yay! You know I like books a lot so I like to sit there and pull them out of the box (speaking of which I got a cool set with opening flaps from my second cousins this month). Sometimes mom sits with me and we read one right on the floor.

If I get bored though the next thing to stand up near is really quite fun - it is a moving chair! It glides back and forth, but I can hold onto it (mom says it looks like I am dancing). Sometimes I sneak into the corner and get the magnets, which are really very interesting things. But usually I head from there to the couch, which is just my height. After that, if mom doesn't let me play with the fan, comes the dresser that has cool hand holds that face down or sideways (mom says they look like underclings). I generally always try to reach up, but the dresser is not really fulfilling because there isn't much to grab. After that I get to the closet, which I can palm along, and then I get to my really cool wooden box plaything with a bunch of fun moving parts and wires on the top that have wooden pieces I can move around. I love this thing and spend part of every day here (mom gave it to me on Easter). At first when I tried to use it to pull up it would tend to fall over, so mom attached it to the ceiling in a clever way using her climbing gear and slings (she was excited to use a butterfly knot, girth hitch, a figure eight, and a few half hitches). And voila, I made it three quarters of the way around the room. With mom's help (holding two or sometimes one of her hands) I can then walk to changing table, completing my circuit.

Oh speaking of butterflies, have you ever seen them? They are beautiful and move around in lovely ways. Mom took me to a place with a whole bunch of them flying around and I liked it a bunch. I tried to catch some but they are very fast.

This month I learned some cool things. Like dancing to music, or even when the music isn't there. It's catchy if you try it. I learned how to push myself up to sitting from lying on my back (first I pike up using my stomach muscles then just as it gets too hard I roll to the right and put my right hand down to push myself up the remaining way) - mom thinks it is really cute, though it makes changing my diaper more challenging. I continued to learn better how to pick up foods and eat them. I like to do this when everyone else is eating. Oh and I drank from a real cup too! Like a big kid, well not quite as mom held the glass and tipped it, but it was just an open glass and looked like ones everyone else uses.

I got out hiking and snowshoeing quite a bit this month. Places up high that are sunny and snowy with beautiful mountains (and places that burned mom's face but not mine because I was super protected). I got to ride in a new backpack that was on mom's back (instead of the pack on her front that I've been in before). Places down low that are warm and have dirt trails and other dogs and people on them. One one of these hikes Appa let me sit on his shoulders which was really fun - I could reach his mouth if I leaned over, or could pat his head.

There were lots of other meetings with family and friends (both big ones aka mom's friends and small ones aka my baby friends). All in all a wonderful month.

Here is a photo collage of my tenth month on this beautiful earth. Enjoy!

Nine months old!

I am three quarters of a year old! Earlier this month, mom took me to see a friend who had a tiny newborn baby, so I was able to show her how much I have done in my life and how much I have grown. Even though I was pretty amazing and cute when I was born, I still just hung around a bunch, slept a lot, nursed often, and you even had to hold my head whenever you moved me around. Now I am a real little guy and can show the world my personality.

I love to stand - at my changing table shelf, holding onto my crib slats, in the living room holding onto the open drawer or the metal handles on the entertainment center, on the kitchen counter ringing the beautiful chimes or opening and closing the cabinets (but for some reason not being allowed to pull the plant apart), holding onto the new wooden cube toy I got for Easter, ... well you get the picture. Standing and moving around is fun, and I can even pull myself up to standing (I started this almost a month ago, and now it is pretty easy - I can even do it from my knees). I can move back and forth along something (or around the wooden cube). I can also 'walk' a bit if you hold my hands. Just don't put me on my stomach and leave me there - I really don't like to pike-push myself along the floor on my tummy, even if the wooden blocks or the empty Easter eggs are out there to entice me.

Books are pretty great things. There are all kinds of pretty pictures, good stories, and mom makes a bunch of fun sounds when reading them (whoooshhh goes the wind, baaaa goes the sheep). I especially love the part in Goodnight Gorilla where the lights go out and all the animals say goodnight, and then the woman opens her huge eyes in the black night and realizes that there is a gorilla in her bed! This makes me go 'aaarrhhh' and enjoy it. The book with the fuzzy farm babies and things to touch is also pretty cool - I guess pigs go 'oink', but the fuzzy hair is the best part. And if you give me one of those silly books that isn't cool, I'll let you know right away - I will just push it away.

I can communicate waaaaay more than I could back when I was born. I can push my bottle away when I am done. I can hold my hands up when I want to be picked up (mom especially likes this). I will smile at you when you come in the door. I am working on waving goodbye - mom waves goodbye when she leaves; I am starting to hold my hand up and move a few fingers and this gets a good reception - sometimes I even do a 'baa' sound, kind of like bye-bye, which gets an even better reception. I will hold one hand out when I want to walk over from one thing to the next, or just get closer for cuddling. I can raise my arms up when things are exciting. I can do my version of 'talking' (which may sound like babbling), but I can vary my intonation, repeat a varying tone back, and get loud when I think things are really fun. And I can also laugh. 

Speaking of laughing, there are a few things that just make me crack up. The things that we have known for a while include blowing raspberry kisses on my tummy, those spots on my thighs, and the bottoms of my feet. What I let everyone know this month was that I think snow flying off of a shovel is basically hilarious - especially when grandpa does it and then tries to eat the snow. I get everyone going with a good strong laugh. The other thing that is crazy funny is when Appa throws things up in the air and lets them come down - balls of course, but even better is Easter eggs.

Easter was pretty special this year. Of course it was my first ever, but I also got all dressed up (in a white silk outfit complete with a bow tie), there were a bunch of friends and family there, and then at church I got to get up in front of everyone and get water poured over my head three times (mom says this is baptism). There was a nice running fountain of water (which you know I love) and I was anointed with nice smelling chrism. It was beautiful, and then we had a party afterwards to celebrate.

We also got outside this month, which I like quite a bit. Mom says I look cool in my sunglasses too - I just like that it is easier to check things out along the way. On one hike it was snowy, but the sky was clear (as an aside, I really enjoy watching snow fall, though normally this is from inside). Appa and mom and I stopped near a tree and I tried some of the snow (with their help), which was cold but somewhat interesting. The neat part was when you pulled on the branch it moved a bunch (I like to pull on anything that is hanging) - this was fun for a while, until the point when I let go and the branch sprayed me with a bunch of snow!

I hung out a lot with my new au pair Karin this month and she is really great. Sometimes she sings to me in Portuguese, sometimes we go outside to the park and SWING, and all of the time we have fun playing together. Today she even picked up some cool new books at the library, including one that looks like a truck.

I rounded out the month with visits to friends and family. Mom had a birthday party, Appa's friends had good authentic Chinese food, my friend B had his first birthday party, my baby friends had a party (we all lined up for a picture again, but now we all know how to sit so we didn't squish each other like the last time), and I met some other friends of mom and Appa.

Here is a photo collage of my ninth month on earth!