two

Dear Veda June,

You are 2! How did that happen?? You are so full of life and energy (seriously. boundless energy) and joy. You are a sponge, soaking up the world, with a never ending capacity to grow and learn. It is a wonder to behold a child stepping into the world..

Things you love:

Books.
My God, do you love books. We read a book to you and immediately, it's "again" over and over (and over) again, until it seeps into your brain. I have caught you "reading" some of your favorite books (The Giving Tree, Little Hoot/Owl, Richard Scary's Busy Town, any of the Moomin books, The Cat in The Hat) to yourself- and you have literally memorized entire passages. It's definitely your favorite thing to do by far..

Your baby dolls.
Sunny and Lala, as well as your stuffed animals. You love to diaper them (i.e. have me or your dad change their diapers), and get them dressed and undressed; feed them, and put them to sleep. Recently I caught you putting one of your babies to bed and you said the exact same things I say to you at night- word for word. It was so sweet.

Your cars.
You also love your cars. One of your favorite activities is to take the couch cushions off and lean them on their side and then "race" the cars down (then you slide down face first after them).

You also love playing in your kitchen (making "soup" is one of your specialties), as well with your farm and all the animals. You love music and singing songs and dancing. You have an imagination now and have started pretend playing. You have also really started to spend more time independently playing. The other day you spent the better part of an hour playing in and around a suitcase.

Things you say: your capacity for speech wows me each and every day. You are speaking in sentences and are capable of expressing yourself incredibly well. Some funny things you say: things are always "naked" - if there's no record on the record player, it is "naked"; a sweet potato fry without it's peel is  "naked" (your preference); Things are also always "taking a nap". You have learned the power of possession- things are often "mine" now. "I want it" is another favorite phrase ; )

You are still a tiny thing and mealtime can be a challenge, though I'm REALLY trying to relax and just trust that you will not starve, even if the only thing you eat for dinner is mustard (true story). You are strong and coordinated and love to climb and dance and jump. You are a good sleeper (knock on wood). I guess you'd have to be to replenish all that energy you use up during your waking hours!

It seems a 2 year old has perfected the art of living in the moment- and there are BIG emotions that go along with that- some of them more reasonable than others ; ) All in all, you are a joy and I am learning from you each and every day. You are still my baby- eagerly dishing out kisses and hugs and a cuddle on the couch. But you are also becoming more independent, and each day a little bit more of a "big girl".  I am so honored to be your mama Veda. Happy TWO!!

xoxo
mama

 (these pics are actually from over a month ago- think I need to take out the big camera more often...)

I am in LOVE with this home...

21 Months

 Dear Veda,

Today you are 21 months!! Truthfully, I never really understood why people used months to indicate the age of their babies.  But now I understand that infants and babies grow so quickly and there is so much change month to month that simply using years wouldn't be sufficient. The last 3 months you have become more and more of a little person. You are developing a stronger sense of what you like (and what you don't). You love animals and songs and stories. You are sweet and have unbounded energy.

We have sort of relaxed a bit with food, now that we're a bit more used to your ebbing and flowing appetite and tastes and willingness to try new foods. I always try and offer you something that I know you'll like but am trying not to be afraid to offer you new things as well, even if it means that you don't eat as much. I am really trying hard not to create a picky eater by playing short order cook. You seem to be getting what you need, and though you are still a peanut (roughly 21-22lbs), you are healthy as can be!

You are speaking in (short) sentences now and are able to answer questions with more than just a yes or a no. Last night I mentioned that I was making salmon for dinner and your response was "that sounds yummy". This morning while we were lying in bed, you looked at the fan and said "that's fan. goes round and round woom". I can ask you about your day and you will tell me things you did- recalling events and memories. It blows our mind each and every day!

Your dad has been taking you to swim lessons once a week and you seem to love it. It's pretty amazing to see you willingly stick your head under water and always come up with a big smile on your face. We also took an art class at the ymca. It was fun to let you explore and play creatively (even if that just meant putting the cap and on off the pen).  We continue to take music classes once a week which you love. You've started dancing whenever you hear music and you also love to sing! Abcs, Old Macdonald,  Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, You Are My Sunshine, This Old Man, etc. My favorite is when I come upon you singing by yourself. You're really into helping (unload the dishwasher, cooking food with me) and want to be a part of everything. Your favorite toys are your babies, your cars and your toy food. You have also started to really love drawing and will spend a good 15 minutes coloring.

You continue to be a very cuddly girl- though of course you have your moments. For the most part though you are still quick to calm. And despite the challenges of trying to figure out what you want from moment to moment, I am really enjoying this age. You are our little pal now. We truly have fun with you and enjoy your company.

love,
mama
xoxo

Hurricane Sandy

We were among the lucky ones affected by the hurricane that swept through the East Coast almost 2 weeks ago.  It was a scary night spent in the dark, listening to the howling winds and the giant crashes of trees falling. But we were safe and our house was not damaged. So many others cannot say the same and my heart goes out to them and their families. We did lose power for nearly 11 days and were lucky enough to have friends to stay with- first in Brooklyn and then in the town next to where we live. It was definitely an adventure- trying at times, sort of fun at others.. but let me tell you, there is NOTHING like sleeping in your own bed. We are so grateful to be home....

 this tree fell into our neighbors yard at 3:30 on Monday- and that is when our power went out.  

We heard this loud boom around 8:30 on Monday night- and unfortunately for our neighbors 2 houses down, it was this tree crashing into their home. Luckily they had all gone down to the basement beforehand and nobody was hurt!

 the next couple of nights were spent like this.. 

 and days like this...

Bundled up inside- it wasn't really safe to go outside the next few days because of all the downed trees and wires. We visited friends who had power (phone charging and coffee!!) but mostly hung around the house and drew pictures and played..

 We knew it would be a long time before power was restored and it was getting cold and hard to manage with a toddler so we took our friends up on their offer to stay with them. This is our first morning waking in Brooklyn. It was also the first morning that we saw some of the images of destruction that Sandy caused. Unbelievably heartbreaking....

 Settling right in with her favorite friends..

 Veda was mostly a trooper throughout the 11 days- though with all the moving around, her sleep got a bit messed up and she started waking up VERY early. Daylight savings did not help...

The part of Brooklyn we stayed in was mostly unaffected which was both comforting and slightly surreal. There were visits with old friends and lot's of trips back to our favorite playgrounds..

On Sunday we moved back to NJ- to our dear friend's house 1 town over who's power was turned back on. Veda and Lily making conference calls and working from home one morning...

 

On Wednesday night, the region was hit by yet another storm- this time a Nor'easter, dumping snow and bringing down more power lines. Luckily, our friends were not affected. 

With our hopes growing dim of when we would ever have our power restored, I was not too excited about the snow- despite it being the first of the season. Veda, however was pretty psyched. Luckily we had this snowsuit that her friend Penny had given her (which fits her perfectly, despite being size 6-12 months- what 6-12month year old is that big??)

Before Sandy hit, we had carved pumpkins and were gearing up for a Halloween that never really happened (which is the 2nd year in a row for our town- last year, a freak snow storm caused tons of trees down and power outages). 

We did get in 1 Halloween party though. Here is Veda in her owl costume that I made. She refused to wear the wings unfortunately.. but she still wears the hat, so hey... 

Now we are home again and feeling blessed trying not to take anything for granted. I've had a serious urge to clean and organize since we've been back which has given me the opportunity to gather things that can be donated. We we're sort of in survival mode for those 11 days but now that we're home, I'm feeling a need to find ways to help. Wondering what the best organizations are to donate to and other ways I can be of assistance. Love to hear other ideas if you have them...