sidewalk scribbling

  "You know mama, there is a phone in school and it's always making noises. It says things like 'I'm in the backyard, I'm in the backyard!" Took me a couple of minutes and I'm not sure if this is one of the imagined tales or mostly real as seen and understood by a 4.5 year old ... I think Z was talking about the PA system? So far, one of the nicest things about school is what I was fearing to be the most arduous one - the walk to school, which theoretically and according to Google Maps is 8 minutes but anyone who has walked anywhere with small children will know that that can be anywhere from 15 to ohmygod-I-cannot-fit-any-more-sticks-in-my -purse-please-let's-just-get-there... It was this fear that made me leave early on the first day and we were literally the first people at the gates which hadn't even opened! The first day of school. As far as milestones go, that felt like a very big one. There were no tears though, just some nerves and tuggi...

'Can I have water,' mouths Z at bedtime, for the fifth time, thinking he can get away with it if he whispers and makes his eyes as round as puss in boots. I know the sweet whispers will turn into loud whining if I say anything but yes, so I acquiesce with some dramatic eye rolling. As I watch him twist the bottle open and tilt it up to his face, scrawny and adorable in his space-themed pajamas, I wonder - How did he grow so fast? From that tiny alien-like creature with flaky skin and gummy eyes, whose only activity was to gaze deeply at things within 2 feet, sleep or drink milk, who couldn't even lift his head and only mewl as loud as a tiny lamb ... To this fiery bundle of endless energy and big emotions and bubbling affection and unbridled cheekiness? 'Thank you, your majesty PINK!' he says to me when I pour some milk into his cereal. He loves adding the word pink to things and says it in this really teasing voice that I find funny because I'm biological...

'I'm sorry I hit you with a spoon', Z looks apologetic just seconds after banging a teaspoon on my knuckle as I take him out of his highchair and plop him on the floor. My fingers are still smarting so I don't reply. 'I love mama and baba', he says a minute later, playing with his cars. He looks up at me: 'Please can I love mama and baba?' I consent to the love and all is well again. Every few months I think exactly the same thing: this boy is so smart! how did he learn to say so many things?  ... every stage seems to outshine the last one (good thing I've got these blogs to refer back to!). And truth be told, I always thought the chunky baby stage was the best but despite the terrifying meltdowns and infuriating battles over nappy changes and the NO WE DO NOT HIT mantra that keeps on going, I think almost 3 year olds are so amazing. I can now actually take a quick shower while he plays independently - granted I'll keep the door open but STILL! T...

  How cute does your baby look when he’s kicking you with a ferocity more suited to an action hero than an 11-month-old as you sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star at an increasingly higher pitch, trying to button up his onesie before he somersaults and tries to crawl off the bed?   Nothing like an almost-toddler to test your dexterity and creativity at the same time, especially in those 10 minutes before bedtime. Z becomes a total loonytoon around 6 pm since he detests naps and is so exhausted by early evening he’s almost delirious.  The strangest things will set him laughing like a cartoon villain and the most minor error will lead to a dramatically sorrowful bow on the ground, forehead pressed to his chunky little hands and tiny bum in the air.   After spending several minutes bent double, walking His Tiny Lordship (HTL) around the living room, if I dare request a sit down (for both him and me), there will follow a comical duck pout, stiffening of said litt...

It isn't very adorable but so many things about living in times of a pandemic are like surviving the first months of becoming a parent. Like washing your hands persistently.  Like restricting shopping jaunts to the online world. Like not going to the cinema. Like realising how little is actually in your control. Like wondering if life will ever be the same. As tiny and sweet as newborns are, I must say 3 months onwards they get so, so much more fun. At almost 6 months, they are just too freaking edible (I have to say, however, when people say 'enjoy this, it's the best age', I get a bit worried because when did you ever enjoy a situation all the more because somebody reminded you of its temporariness?). I still wash my hands fairly regularly but they don't feel like chipping tree bark anymore. I can't say I enjoyed the utter fragility of newborns either. The gummy eyes, the flaky skin, the red spots, the constant "watch his head, his neck, ...