Two years old!

Yep, it's official. I am two years old. And if you ask me how old I am I will tell you "two."

I can devour an entire mango, no need to cut it up (but you might want to take my shirt off beforehand). I like apples, especially picking them from out back and then crunching into one. Pomegranates, nectarines, and peaches are awesome. Basically any fruit you put in front of me I will enjoy.

I am starting to enjoy hiking on my own (like coming down from Sanitas), though Appa usually still carries me on his back. I love motions to songs, including the new one Amma made up for the song with the toy plane that I received for my birthday ('taking off for places we've never been, we'll be home for dinner then we'll fly again, zoom!'). Jumping is still super fun - including off of the living room table into Grandpa's arms (like tonight). I can do new things too, like hang from the bar above a slide before heading down it. I have been working on my skills on wheels - some on my scooter, some on my tricycle, and a little less on my new strider (balance bike). I have also been working on my skills with balls - like kicking big ones and throwing smaller ones, or swinging for medium size ones with a bat or croquet mallet - and I am getting better (today I even made a hoop).

My vocabulary continues to expand, and I repeat a lot of what I hear nowadays. Today one new one was "Percy" (as in Thomas the train and his friend Percy). On my birthday I was heard to have been saying "Happy" quite a lot. Ayyamma taught me the Tamil names for things like head and eyes and ears and teeth and nose - so I can point to them (if not quite say them yet). But I am starting to say some Tamil words like the word for flower or fruit, which is pretty cool.

I continue to love big machines of many sorts: Trains of course (including the new ones Appa got me for my birthday that run on their own and go through tunnels!). But planes too (which I used to call 'copters' for helicopters, but then moved into planes and now airplanes) - and I can spot them up high in the sky when I hear one. Trucks of all sorts (and I love my new truck books that help me name the different ones).


Appa took a quick trip to India this past month (where there are lots of cool trains), and Amma took a quick trip to Portugal too, so I got to see them on small screens when they were gone. This month included lots of fun times with Wendy, Leo, and Sebastian during the weekdays, and other fun with friends on the weekends. And of course at the end there were a few birthday parties with cake (happy happy!).

Finally, as I mentioned last month, coming up pretty soon are some big changes around here - my new little brother. Right now I can say baby and kiss Amma's belly (which she thinks is very cute). But when the little guy gets here I bet it will be an adjustment. I will have a new little friend!

Thank you God for my family, for life, for my two years, for trees to climb in, for wheels to glide on, for bright books to read, for monkeys and elephants, for friends with sound makers, and for mangoes.

 

My 5th passport stamps: Japan! and ... almost two! (23 months)

Japan has absolutely the coolest trains. Shinkansen! Bullet train! Choo choo! Mom and Appa and I spent two weeks taking a bunch of trains and exploring a cool new country - Japan. It was a pretty awesome trip (though I definitely had a hard time adjusting to the time zones in Colorado, even a week after being back).

One of the neat things about trains is that if you are little you can explore, climb on the seats, make friends, and move around on them as you make your way from place to place (mom definitely recommends travel with toddlers on trains). The window shades go up and down and the seats go back. There is even a nice lady who comes by to sell things to eat and drink. Most of the trains we took were really fast - so much so that when another one came zipping by going the other way I usually missed it. But sometimes we took slower trains through the mountains (of an island mom says is called Kyushu). I remember it because it had beautiful green hills and neat houses with tile roofs. And then there were lots of other smaller trains (subways) when we were checking out the crazy and busy Tokyo or taking a tram with the businessmen in the morning to get around Kumamoto or Hiroshima.

Of course the main thing I loved about Kyushu was the strawberries. Sweet and moist and vibrant red and so so good. The ones near Aso are pretty much the best in the world. Mmmmmmmmm. I would eat the whole fruit again and again. And then repeat. And repeat. Then pair with a little bit of creamy vanilla ice cream for an indulgent treat and you can't get much better.

Around Aso (actually up on Aso-san) we saw a cool and somewhat active volcano (it was kind of like being on another world), and then were able to go on a cool hike up to Nakadake. Parts of it were steep and rocky, but Appa carried me up and I slept for most of the way, waking up just in time to see the view from the top (and have some cheese as a snack).

Another thing I really liked a lot were the fish. Appa says they are called koi. They are big and pretty much everywhere in Japan. In the quiet ponds in the garden next to the Himeji castle, in front of the big statue of Buddha in Kyoto, in the moat surrounding the Kumamoto castle, even in the canals in the middle of a busy town.

We visited lots of cool castles and gardens and shrines and temples, including really big and really old and really tall wooden ones. In one of them you had to take your shoes off but there were a bunch of slippers to put on, so I put on some that were way too big for me and tried to shuffle around a bit. Generally the wood was smooth and cool. And sometimes people were chanting, which sounded beautiful.

Most of the time we had good weather. But it does rain in Japan a lot (they actually have a pretty well organized system when you go into any place where you can either leave your umbrella or wrap it neatly in a little plastic bag). So we did have a few days of rain around Kyoto, but that led to something else it turns out I like to play with - umbrellas! It is fun to see them pop open, and then when they aren't in use I like to use them like big canes.

I learned how to bow my head to say hello (though I didn't quite pick up konnichiwa). I made new friends-sometimes meeting them when I was playing with trains in a store, or checking out a cool aquarium (to avoid the falling ash outside from the more active volcano near Kagoshima), on trains, or just meeting them in a garden. I tasted a bunch of yummy bread. I took showers in tiny bathrooms. I even saw statues that looked like they were eating because they had bibs on!

It was definitely a cool trip. And while it did take nine days until I slept through the night as I adjusted back to Colorado's time zone, this meant that there is a new part of my bedtime routine which includes shadow puppets singing! I love it.

Back at home I have a lot of fun hanging out with friends, enjoying my time with little B and L and S and I and A. Sometimes we play at the playground, or in the sandbox, or with trucks. Sometimes at my neighbor's house they get out water balloons and that is great fun. Sometimes we sing and get to play with drums (boom boom boom). I especially like the songs where there are motions involved (you know, wheels on the bus, five little monkeys, or the aforementioned shadow puppet motions to the nature-inspired hush little baby song), and I do more of the motions everyday. Speaking of which, when we were in Japan I also saw a lot of buses, which would prompt me to start the wheels on the bus motion and them mom and Appa would sing it for me, making up verses sometimes that fit the surroundings.
 
Since I am really into trains nowadays, we had a fun long weekend with a train theme. This included visiting the train museum in Golden where there is a cool train you can actually ride on (the galloping goose), lots of trains to get into and explore, and even miniature ones that go around in long loops (a medium-speed one, a slow and long one, and Thomas the train who is the fastest). We got to spend some time in the mountains and go on a hike near a cool lake, though the rain kept us from doing more. We also went on the Georgetown loop train on Memorial day - this was my second time on it, and it was even more fun this time. Though the loud whistle is still a little scary.

I am picking up more words - like 'copter' for helicopter (or airplanes since it is hard to tell the difference from so far away). I can say train now (instead of just choo choo). New words come daily (blue, cup, ...).

Ayyamma is back in town, so that is fun. She talks to me in Tamil like Appa, though I haven't really picked up a lot of it yet. 

I am getting better at finding creative ways to climb up on things. Like moving ottomans around to see what is on mom's dresser, or trying to climb the shelves in my closet to get to 'monkey' (or 'frog').

Just a little while ago I got a new bed (check it out in the upper right of the collage below)! I can climb up on this on my own, and I have some cool pillows, a bear, and a green blanket that is a crocodile. Though we are still working on me sleeping in it. It has been about a week and sometimes I fall asleep in in, sometimes not. Tonight I did fall asleep in it though, so that is good!

My final note this month is that pretty soon I am going to be a big brother! Mom keeps saying something about a baby boy in her belly -  I am not exactly sure what this means yet, but mom says I will find out in just over two months. I am pretty sure it will be a neat thing, if an adjustment.

Thank you God for mom and Appa, for grandpa and grandma, for Ayyamma and chitappa, for trains, for slides, for moving water, and for friends. Next time I write, I will be two years old!!

1 year and three quarters!

So, it happened. I started counting my age in years instead of months (though still with the 'three quarters' bit).  Can you believe it?! [Apologies for missing the last few months writing here - it was a busy time. In this post I am interspersing the monthly photo collages, so be sure to read to the end.]

Who am I today you ask? Well you know my age. But that doesn’t tell you much about me. It doesn’t tell you about the cute looks I do with my eyes when I tilt my head down and then look at you with a coy smile. Or about how I love, really love, to jump. On the big couch, the small couch, on the counter if mom will let me, on the bed. Or that one time when mom went to a party and gave me a few bites of cake and how I jumped and jumped in my crib.

Back in December I had fun getting dressed up nicely for some Christmas parties and Christmas mass (Redstoners especially liked my little tan suit). On the day itself I had fun opening presents, including my fun tricycle which I love a lot even if I can't quite reach the pedals. Another fun toy was the hammer and peg set, which I love hammering down and then flipping over to go again. After Christmas we all took a quick trip to visit some cool canyons in Colorado (something like Black Canyon and a national monument).

I got a new car seat in January (I guess I had outgrown my first one since I am now over 32" tall) - part of this transition was to lose my beloved pacifier in the car. But I guess we all need to grow up little by little.

Snow is pretty cool. You can eat it (well if it is clean). You can play in it. You can watch it fall. You can try to listen to its sound. Sometimes you slip in it when you don't want to. But sometimes you purposefully hop on a plastic thing and slip on purpose down a hill - this is fun!

I like to help out a lot. For example, I can put clothes in the dirty laundry, use the sponge to clean up my tray (especially after making a mess eating), turn lights on and off as requested, or put my high chair back in its corner after eating. Oh and I almost forgot sweeping with a broom - pretty much an awesome thing to do.
 

In February I started getting many more teeth - incisors and molars, top and bottom. Now my mouth is almost full of teeth! They definitely help out with chomping down during meals.

I also got to go on a plane trip with mom and Karin to New Orleans for a week in February (mom says that's where we went). I liked staying on a high floor to look out the window and check out the buildings and the mighty Mississippi river, loved loved loved the penguins at the aquarium, and had a blast playing at the children's museum. Oh and there was this really fun jazz band that I got to hang out with and dance a little to their music. Overall a great trip (plus mom got to go on a cool trip with work to an off-shore oil rig).

There are all kinds of words I am trying out as I increase my communications. I like trains a whole bunch, and can say ‘choo choo’ (though not quite ‘train’ yet). The Little Engine That Could is a favorite book. As is, of course, the Little Blue Truck (in the country, but more recently in the city). And ‘truck’ is one of the words I can say (which gets said a lot, as well as ‘car’ – when reading books, when hearing a sound go by outside home, when driving around town). I love to try on all kinds of shoes (any left at the front door are fair game in my opinion), and can say shoes clearly.  I like to point out all kinds of things and say things as I can, like tree and cracker, cheese and ‘cado’ (for avocado, one of my faves!), socks and my standby ‘ball’! Some things are just sounds, like ‘kaaakaaa’ for bird, ‘maaaww’ for cow, ‘roooom’ for airplane, or ‘wooeee’ for the siren/police car. Sometimes signs are still easiest for things like more or apple. And of course pointing still has its place.


At the end of February my au pair Karin left to go join another family. I miss her, but do get to see her sometimes (like when we do Brazilian play dates). But, this big transition opened up a cool new thing that I do – I hang out with other little kids my age a lot now! I’ve got two little guy friends (L and S) plus sometimes girls too (I and A). The boys and I like to play and jump and run around and sometimes rough house together. It is a ton of fun. The first week was a transition and I was a little upset when mom would leave for the day, but now I know how fun the day is so I am happy and give mom a kiss as she heads to work.

Music is my thing – listening and playing things like flutes and drums and xylophones. And dancing is definitely my thing. Turning around, or shaking my hands, or doing a cute shoulder wiggle (Appa taught me this one). In the morning sometimes we will turn on nursery rhymes and dance around (you know, to classics like hokey pokey, five little monkeys jumping on the bed, shake-shake-shake your jiggles out, or if you’re happy and you know it). Weekly at day care there is a cool lady who comes and plays guitar for us and I get to play a drum, dance around, or work on the moves to wheels on the bus go round and round. And then occasionally I start to sing (like in the car. Mom can’t  quite figure out what exactly I am singing, but she loves it).

I like to explore the world and try things out (grandpa likes my curiosity). I like running around. You know I have liked tennis balls for a while – throwing them overhand or underhand. Recently I have really gotten into playing with bigger balls too – like soccer balls. Kicking them and picking them up and chasing after them in the street with my neighbors. Luckily I don’t get too phased when I accidentally fall on the pavement (who puts all those sidewalks around?). I like to climb a bunch too. Up onto chairs and tables. Up the stairs (and down a whole flight on my own!). Up the steps and down the slide in my room (heck even sometimes up the slide). Up the small rock at the playground. Even up the little climbing wall at the playground onto the slide.

I’ve got this one book that I like called My Very Own World Adventure. It is about me traveling around to countries around the world that start with K or A or V or I (you may notice that there are quite a few A’s in my name, so there is one repeat, but mostly they are new places). In the real world, I am working on keeping my adventurous travels going strong. You know about my first trip to India when I was 15 months old. In March (when I was 20 months old) I went on another trip to India with just Appa! We had a good time visiting Ayyamma and uncles and aunties and cousins in Chennai and Madurai. We even stopped in Abu Dhabi along the way. Mom missed us when we were gone (and I missed her too), but overall I grew in a lot of ways and had fun with Appa and family (and mom had some good girl time too).

My next adventure coming up in a few days is going to Japan with mom and Appa. It should be pretty cool. One of my other favorite books is about transportation (thanks Sky!): the first page starts in India, and the last page ends in Tokyo with the bullet train and Mount Fuji in the background. We are going to go there in a ‘roooom’ directly from Denver to Tokyo, then take quick ‘choo choo’s around the country (starting down in Kyushu, checking out volcanoes and castles and temples and the outdoors, and making our way back through Kyoto and Nara and the big busy tall city of Tokyo). I will let you know how it goes!

Thankful to be 17 months old

This was a good month, with many things to be thankful for. Mom, Appa, Karin. Snow (and warm jackets). Squeaky shoes. Red sunrises. Magnets with gears. Kitties that are soft. Music to dance to. Heaters that keep my room nice and cozy when I sleep. Homemade yogurt (by Appa). Family hugs.

This month I became more of a climber. As in, I get onto the cat play gym by climbing up my music stand. Or I can get up on the toilet to reach mom's necklaces. I tried to get up on mom's bed by opening up the drawer and crawling inside, but the bed is still a little too high. I like to get at the train in my windowsill (with my name spelled out), but I need mom's help to get up there (she holds my knee while I do this cool knee mantle move). Still, I can stand confidently on the back of the couch once up there, which is pretty small. For months I have been climbing up to my window seat (where my big dog Mopy hangs out! and where I can come down on my slide), but I used to just play with the shades. Now I climb on Mopy to get to the high bookshelves.

Someday I may be leading orange tours at MIT; one of my favorite things to do is play with keys and figure out which things they go in. I am a little too short for most locks, but give me a few more months. I already progressed beyond opening the doors with handles to opening one with just a knob (though I can't yet open my bedroom door).

Dancing is pretty awesome. I just love it. I do this little shoulder move that everyone loves, and of course twirling is fun. I also have a cute butt wiggle that mom likes. One evening in Crested Butte Appa put on some Ghanaian tunes for me to dance to, and it was really fun. So much so that the next night I just started dancing without any music. I even like the popup book from the library about a duck who really likes to dance and goes to dance class.

Mom says I am observant and a problem solver. At Thanksgiving dinner, I saw this dog go through a door, so I tried it myself and voila, found myself outside. I like to figure out what things can fit with other things (like does the phone charger fit in the holes in the heater?). I see these cool things that mom says are outlets, but unfortunately they tend to be blocked around the house. There is this cool toy where I thread beads onto a dowel and string, and I figured it out. I must admit, though, that sometimes I get frustrated when the magnetic train doesn't stay together.

Keeping life tidy seems like a good idea, so I try to do so when I can. Okay, I don't always do this (mom and Karin have plenty of experience putting toys away throughout the day), but sometimes I am good at taking things out and then putting them back. Like putting the stuffed animal back in its place after I give it a squeeze, or dropping the checker pieces back in the jar, or moving the bath toys back in the bin (after throwing them into the bath tub of course).

I like ice, as in eating it. And I like snow, as in stomping around in it. This is much easier done when it is fresh (like when Karin took me out on the back deck when it snowed) than when it is hard (like when mom and Appa took me out in the mountains).

I understand a whole lot. When mom asks me to put my PJs in the laundry basket, I do (I even flip up the pant leg if it partly hangs outside). I have good eyes - so when I drop a cheerio on the ground and mom asks me where it is I go and get it. I am working slowly on my words. You know I have been saying bottle for a while (ok it does sound a little more like botl). Ball, bye, fish (ok a little more like sh), and some others. I am good at asking for more, saying all done, and saying please with signs.

This month I have really gotten into wearing shoes - those that are squeaky, ones that are soft, and definitely ones that are too big. I go and get the ones I want and bring them to mom to help me put them on. If they happen to be mom or Karin's shoes, then I hobble around a bit. Everyone loves this.

And many good things continue. I still like baths. I like to laugh and smile. I like to play hide and seek around people or columns. I like to go up and down stairs. I love slides. I enjoy all kinds of food (thanksgiving was yummy) - some of my new favorites are pomelos and pomegranate (Appa and mom also like these a bunch)! I love my kitties (and I show it by giving them kisses and trying to hug them) - I also like to play with them by using the mouse on a fishing pole. My speed continues to accelerate - I am fast!

This month I got a new table that is just my size (thanks K&S!). I got to wear many cool outfits. Some were from India and beautiful. I love my cute teal-colored (remember how teal is my color?) down jacket from Patagonia - cozy, functional, and styling. I also transitioned to one nap a day in the early afternoon. Sometimes I am tired at the end of the day because of this.

I celebrated my second Thanksgiving with many of mom's family. I met more friends of Appa's from school. Finally, we had a good family trip to Crested Butte after Thanksgiving. We went snowshoeing to (and beyond) the old town of Gothic, and I stayed warm in my brown bear fleece suit even though the temperature wasn't above freezing!

Thank you God for this great month, for my family near and far, for pomegranates, and for things to climb on.

My first passport stamps (16 months)

Not just one, but two. I received a passport stamp for Germany (and got to visit my first au pair Nastja) and my very first stamp for India. Pretty exciting, if you ask me. A few other nice things happened this month, like a birthday party for my mom's mom's mom's sister's 90th birthday, a visit to the pumpkin patch, dressing up as a cute bear for Halloween, yummy food celebrated with family and friends for Divali, and a party for everyone from the birth class (we are all growing up!). But the bulk of the experiences were in the place where I am an overseas citizen - India!

The trip was really cool. You will notice, if you take a peek at the photos at the end, my surprising lack of hair now. Or not surprising if you were following my blog earlier (or are an Indian familiar with the ancient tradition of not cutting the hair until after a year old and then shaving it). This event - my head being shaved at Appa's family temple in Madurai - was the centerpiece of the trip. It was surrounded by visits and gatherings with about a million friends and relatives who assembled from places as near as the town we were in to far-away places like New Zealand (by the way, I don't actually know how to count that high yet, but there were a lot).


We went to south India: Bangalore (in the state of Karnataka), and Madurai and Chennai (in the state of Tamil Nadu). Throughout, my senses were stimulated.

My ears heard new sounds. Many many beeps when we were driving around, ringing bells, chants, and water flowing from never ending natural springs, but mostly the rich sounds of the Tamil language. Mom was thinking that she sometimes felt like me because she didn't understand Tamil. Hopefully we can work on that.

My mouth tasted a variety of foods. Dosas and idlis. Chutney from coconut and spicy sambhar (good as long as it wasn't too spicy). Chat and home-made yogurt (a favorite). Curries. Bitter vegetables. Lentils in many forms (as a curry, and especially good in little fried cakes). Custard apples (yum!). Kamala oranges with the green skin (the best!). Little bananas from their place of origin. Guava. Panipuri. And, of course, rice.

My eyes saw many new sights. Bright and beautiful colors that the women wore daily, decorated and painted temples and the statues and candles inside, many many people in the chaotic streets busy buying things for Divali, busloads of people who would wave at me, lush mountains surrounding Madurai. Water in the river - this is quite unusual in southern India where water is so precious; Appa says that Ayamma says that there hasn't been water in the river since Appa was a child, so it was a good sign.

My nose smelled new scents. Sandalwood, ah sandalwood (mom also loves this one). Jasmine flowers in the women's hair and on my garland after my head shaving. Sweet other flowers in the backyard in Bangalore and in Madurai.

My hands felt a variety of things. Cold and smooth granite tile on the floor, bumpy oranges the size of my hand, hard keys that I used to try to unlock all kinds of things (including walls), soft silk of saris, prickly mustaches, squishy idlis, the cool crank of a coconut grinder (this thing is pretty cool).

And my heart grew. I loved meeting and playing with friends and family. I know many new aunties and uncles, great grandmothers, cousins. And all of these can be mixed up as well, you know. Friends are aunties and uncles. Cousins are sisters. Great great aunts are great grandmothers. I have a cool whistling great uncle, a bell-ringing great aunt, and another great aunt who is a good cook (especially that dish with eggplant and whole, creamy garlic cloves). And while Ayappa is no longer here, I learned that when I stand holding my hands behind my back (looking like a gentleman), I look like Ayappa because he used to do this as a baby as well, so I know part of him.


Beyond this, I actually grew during the trip! Taller by a bit, but in many more ways. I learned how to play around with my tongue more (great aunties helped me with this). I worked on learning how to unlock things (like all of those locks on wardrobes, though for now, unlocking an orange is what I am good at). I became faster at walking and can basically do a little run now. Plus I do this super cute little foot stamp thing that mom likes. When I taste something I really like I stretch out my arms straight with little fists like I am saying "Yes!" I dance a lot more now to all kinds of music and singing. I can knock on the door, especially if I want to go in. I really love that in India all of the wall switches are my height - this means I can figure out which switch controls the overhead fans, turn it on, and then go whish whish while moving my hands around and doing a little dance.


The tonsure day itself was exciting and executed smoothly. The celebrations started with a large breakfast held outside on this land next to a canal where there were coconut trees (it is best to avoid them when any fronds are coming down). The place was about an hour north of Madurai, quite close to the temple. I got to meet a lot of family. Some thought it was funny that I would go to other men more easily than the women, but eventually I would let everyone hold me. One 'uncle' even ran around quickly with me, which I found fun. And another one washed my hands. Appa's sister's husband held me for the head shaving itself, and I think I did pretty well - I didn't cry one bit (and this is unusual)! It happened very fast (my entire head of hair was gone in 1 minute, 50 seconds flat). When my hair was gone, it was much cooler, though I did feel around for my hair and wonder where it had gone. After that there was a shower and sandalwood on my head, then my new beautiful clothes that Ayamma and other family made, new shoes, a garland of jasmine flowers doubled up, and my super colorful umbrella to protect my head from the sun. We walked through the Beautiful Temple next (though I admit I did fall asleep for part of it), and then we traveled up the hill to drink the spring water, and see a smaller temple. On the way there were some monkeys, and even some bats up in the trees. The events of the day concluded with a big group lunch back in Madurai proper.

The other traditional thing that I did in India was to get my ears pierced, though if it was up to me I might have skipped this one because it hurt a little. Appa and mom said the earrings looked good on me, but in a bit we will take them out.


Finally, a bit about traveling long distances. Happily (especially for mom and Appa), everything went pretty smoothly! I did well on the planes (especially once they learned that I need more liquids and bottles on the long, dry, cross-oceanic flights). I adjusted to the ~12 hour time difference in a few days (after a few long afternoon naps). I stayed healthy (aside from some diaper rash in the moist environment and a small cold at the very end of the trip). Singapore Airlines gets an A+ for travel - they were super nice to me, picked me up and played with me, gave me a stuffed toy for each of three legs, helped mom when she needed to make bottles for me, fed us before everyone else and in stages so mom or Appa could hold me while the other ate, let me cruise up and down the aisles (I loved this), let me go up and down the stairs (yes it was a very big plane) a bunch of times when everyone else was sleeping, and the biggest perk...they gave my my very own bassinet to sleep in (which mom and Appa especially liked).

The world is a big place. But family and loved ones can be found everywhere. Thank you God for mom and Appa and family hugs.

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.