Balloon friend

Abhay’s dad finally came home last night with a happy face balloon in his hand! Thanks to this weekly homecoming ritual, we now have three to four yellow smiley balloons floating at different heights at home. Children are always fascinated by balloons, esp. helium filled balloons that you see in many places like car showrooms, malls, restaurants, or even rental offices in apartments. In fact if your kid gets a haircut, he gets a balloon that you have to guard with your life as you walk out of the shop till you get into your car, lest it flies away. A little carelessness can yield disastrous results. Once, after a hair cut, Abhay’s balloon flew away sinking him into a sea of depression. We heard our four year old making profound statements like “I don’t want anything anymore!!”:-) Not letting him wallow in despair, we made a trip to a party store and got him more than he could ask for. Abhay now gets his haircuts done at home!:-)

So today I read to him “Emily’s Balloon” by Komako Sakai. A book best suited for toddlers and preschoolers who can easily relate to Emily’s allure. Emily gets a balloon that she takes home tied to her finger. At home her mother attaches a spoon to the balloon that takes a shape of her friend who gives her company when playing in the yard or picking flowers. Just as she crowns her balloon friend with a tiara of leaves, the wind blows and the balloon gets stuck in a tree. Her mother promises to borrow a ladder and get her tangled friend back the next day. But Emily still misses the balloon at the dinner table and later at bed when she looks out of the window to wish her balloon friend ‘Good Night’! A book that may cost you a trip to the store for balloon shopping!

Snow delays!

If you are living in the US, there’s every chance you’re having snow showers right now! To people on the east coast, I cant even pretend to understand what you are going through as I have always lived along the west coast where it hardly snows. But this time round, we have also been affected by the blizzard-like conditions prevailing in most parts of the US. My husband who was supposed to have flown back yesterday couldn't, as his flight got canceled due to bad weather conditions.

Besides mine, I have to handle Abhay’s disappointment because of which he has lost all his ability to reason out. He wonders how his dad’s flight can be cancelled when there’s no snow around. As usual, I took him to the library and picked out a book called “The Snow day” by Komako Sakai . An ideal book to cuddle up with your little bunny when you’re all snowed in. In this book, the little bunny can’t believe his luck when he gets a day off his kindergarten due to heavy snow fall the previous night. But what seems like fun ends up in boredom as he’s stuck indoors all day and added to it, his dad’s flight is canceled. As he is about to give up any hope of playing in snow, it stops snowing and his mother lets him get out of the house to make snowballs and snow dumplings. Not bad for what would’ve been a snowed-in day and it brightens up even more when he learns that his daddy will be home the next day! Just as I finish reading this book, I get a call from my husband that his flight is being rescheduled!! Abhay loves the snow day!:-)

Love me, Love me not!

The other day, my son asked me, “Do you love me every day?” I said yes. to which he further asks me "Do you still love me when I eat slow? This was a tricky question and I was at a loss of words. The answer is in the affirmative, of course. But having said that, I don’t want him to the wrong idea. This is not only very confusing for a four year old but complex even for us, as we introspect. Can we honestly say that we still love them just as much when they throw a tantrum in the store, or act stubborn with a friend’s toy they want to take home as their own even when you always buy them whatever they ask for, or refuse to finish their food day in day out? Parents cannot be lovey-dovey all the time and kids should be aware that their actions would have consequences. At the same time, as much as you want your kids to please you, you don’t want to them feel that your love is conditional on good behavior. Hmmm…..something to ponder over!

Today I read an adorable book called ‘All the things I love about you’ by LeUyem Phan who dedicates the book to all the mamas who love their little boys. A mother fondly recalls all the things she loves about her little one – the way his hair is all messed up as he wakes up in the morning; the way he looks with his pajamas on and the challenge of getting him out of them before bath; the way he lovingly calls for his mama, during the day and also in the middle of the night, when she wishes he hollers for his papa instead!:-) She loves when at one moment he is holding her hand and in the next letting loose leaving her to frantically run behind him to avoid any unpleasant surprises. She loves to watch him grow each day and also watch him learn something new and dangerous adding to the list of “NOs”!

We want kids to be sure we still love them when they make mistakes but we also want them to realize when they are wrong. So Abhay, the answer to your question is - I love you even when you’re eating slow, but I would also love for you to finish your food!:-)

Thomas and his enemies!

I don’t know what to do about Abhay's fixation with Thomas and Friends! The talking engines are everywhere! I cannot stand them any longer!!! They have taken over my son’s life, who now calls himself Edward (a blue engine numbered two from “Thomas and Friends”). His best friend in school calls himself Gordon (another character from the same animated series)! If you had a daughter, you are expected to know the names of all the Disney princesses by heart. Similarly, my son's general knowledge quiz for me is on the names of various engines from the Thomas & Friends series. Abhay’s obsession is such that now my parents also rattle off the names of the engines, their colors and respective numbers! Edward, the blue engine is Abhay's signature sketch on each of his drawings. He not only wants to watch Thomas and Friends while having lunch, but is so influenced by the train series that every morsel of food that goes into his mouth represents a certain engine number and its capacity. Not making sense? Every day during lunch, I watch helplessly as my son says – “1^st bite is for Thomas the tank engine and so a small bite, 2^nd bite is for Edward which is a medium size bite….No. 4 being Gordon, the big engine and so a big bite!!!” All I can say is… HELP!!!!

So in an attempt to enlighten my son about other trains besides Thomas, I read two books regarded as some of the best children’s books of 2010. The first book was “My Little Train” by Satomi Ichikawa, a nice little book on a train that takes its heterogeneous passengers to their respective destinations. The little train chugs along the tunnel, over the bridge and across the hill helping the duck get off at the pond, monkey at the forest, bear at the mountain and lastly a baby kangaroo into its mother’s pouch. An ideal book for toddlers and perpetual wannabe toddlers in love with trains!

“Subway” by Christoph Niemann is a book on the lifeline of New York city – its subway system. Abhay enjoyed this book as it reminded him of our trip to NYC last summer when the subway was our main form of commute around the Big Apple. If you’ve been to NYC or live near any big city, you’d know how kids are fascinated by the trains running underneath the city through their dark tunnels. In the book, a father takes his children for a ride on the A line and then F line, then No. 1, 2, 7 , J and Q lines as you see the different lines merge and separate and then merge again just as in a New York metro map. As the day long expedition beneath the city of lights ends, the kids are in no mood get back on top. Just like Abhay for whom the best part of New York city was what lay underground and not above ground.

Funny Definitions!

Staying on the subject of classics, today I read three other books written by Ruth Krauss. “A very Special House”, “The Happy Day” and lastly “A hole is to dig’. My son enjoyed the last one in particular, 'A Hole is to dig' by the team of Ruth Kruass and Maurice Sendak.. Described as a first book of definitions, it is a book of little definitions of everyday mundane things that often turn out to be an exciting discovery for our kids. The funny illustrations only complement the hilarious definitions. Some of them, being - A hole, according to the author, is to dig; Dogs are to kiss people; Toes are to wiggle; A whistle is to make people jump and so on. It’s a great book to let your kid’s imagination run wild. This reminds me of word association games with answers reflecting your state of mind. I had Abhay give out his own definitions of a couple of words in the book. For instance, a face, according to Abhay is to make an angry face! (Grumpy little fella!); Hands are to fly as an airplane (his dad took an early morning flight today); a party is to eat cake ( Of course!); Last one had me laughing out loud – a whistle is to come out of a cooker! (his pressure cooker phobia!) This book inspired me to come up with my own definitions.

Pre –school – 3 hours of heaven at home!

Play date – playing umpire in a game of tug of war

Lego blocks – A new form of décor at every corner of your house

Grandparents – Experiencing sibling rivalry with your own child!

Nap time – Something to thank God for!