July 24, 2011

Kiran and Maia are absolutely delicious. I've had my moments...my ups, my downs and after a bit of a roller coster last year while I found my feet as the mother of two, I have to say that lately, I find myself thinking about how Kiran is my last "baby" and that this body has finished the task of carrying and birthing babies. It is a strange feeling when you come to the realisation that although you don't want any more children that there will not be any more. I recently wrote on my facebook page that Kiran has hit such an adorable stage in his development that it is almost as though Mother Nature is calling, "Are you sure you don't want to do it all over again and have another one of these gorgeous creatures?" He looks up at me with those gorgeous, deep brown eyes and says, "Mama, Cuddle." And yes, I melt and pick him up and kiss his checks over and over again. Or when he crawls around on the floor pretending he is a kitten. Gosh, now that really plucks at my heart strings. At 18 months of age, quickly approaching 19 months, Kiran is a very verbal little fellow and today has strung three words together for the first time, "Poncho on me." He wanted me to put on Maia's rainbow Poncho. He also has been gaining confidence in putting two words together such as, "Bath Time, Thank You, and Dinner Time, Joovey Out, Puddle Splashing." He can identify most things easily and verbally say what he points to. The most amazing thing he did this week was when he drew on Maia's drawing and she was upset, he went over to her and said, "Sorry," and then went to the other room, found the box of tissues and brought them to her. Now that is compassion at a young age. He is a very cheerful little fellow and he loves to push the line and do what you tell him not to such as eating the tips of coloured pencils, crayons and putting pens in his mouth or throwing food off his try or doing things such as hitting himself on the head or biting himself on the hand, which was a new behaviour this week that he seemed to enjoy because he was getting extra attention. He loves to try and ride Maia's scooter and even has gotten the foot peddling motion down although he is too small to really ride it the way that he would like to. He likes to say, "Higher," when he is riding on the swing. When we say excited, he screams. He loves to dance and bounces and spins in circles when we play music. He is attempting to jump, but can't yet get his feet off the ground, so he just ends up bouncing. Puddle splashing is a real favourite and both kids enjoy bath time with Mom and Dad if we feel up to getting in with them.

Maia is always interested in drawing and writing letters. She recently went to a sewing class during the school break and at the age of three made a beautiful heart by using needle point. She copies words and today saw the word "Tuna" and wrote it next to her drawing of a cat and thought and she had spelled the word, "cat." She is trying to read, but she still has not gotten the concept of how each letter makes a sound and the sounds together made a word, but I have a feeling she will get there sometime in the coming year as she is so interested in trying to read. We would no longer classify her as shy and she is comfortable in her own skin. When she is excited she takes a deep breath between words and she aspires to learn every musical instrument in the world. She loves to "play" the guitar and sing and perform for us. She cuts out little paper tickets for her performances. Recently, David and I took her to hear the Soweto Gospel Choir and she really enjoyed herself. We were lucky to have the front row and the entertainers were frequently catching her eye and smiling at her. I was between Maia and a lady who was just turning 97 years old. The oldest and youngest in the whole theatre.

We move to our home in two weeks and we can not wait! Maia is looking forward to the trampoline at the yellow house and that is all she talks about. We just got Kiran sleeping through the night and finally had to tell him day is for eat and night is for sleep as I was getting up almost every night bar one in the last month to give him "Milkie Cuddle." It was hard to refuse him, but I finally hit the wall and we had a few night with some tears, but we are all happier for a good night's rest. He and Maia will share a room at the yellow house and we hope that it will work out for the two of them. Anyway that is the latest. We are loving our life in Berry and each day we pinch ourselves with our good fortune. What a lovely place for these little people to grow up.