At Least She Recognizes Her Behavior

In the middle of a fuss over the weekend Angie looked at me mournfully and said, "Dwama."

Tonight she was fussing and heard her tell her Father, "Cwabby."

I guess all the times we've told her she's engaging in "Drama" or being "Crabby" have finally registered.

I don't think the amused parental laughter was what she was hoping for though.

First Music Class at the FAA

You probably read about her first art class here.

Angie's first Music Class at the Fine Arts Association did not go well either. Because we were leaving immediately after class to visit the PA grandparents, I took a vacation day from work so that I could go with them. Angie was a little fussy getting out of the car because her Daddy took her bear from her, but I calmed her by carrying her, pointing out the green grass and reciting one of her favorite poems, "Heavenly Grass" by Tennessee Williams.

All was well as we went inside the building and try to find the classroom. We climbed the stairs and I hear Angie say "Peeno." That's "piano" for those of you who don't speak fluent Angie. I was very impressed at this because we went to the open house roughly a week and a half ago and one of the music instructors let Angie play the piano in her office. I thought good sign, she remembers having fun here. This should go well.

I recognized one girl from Angie's Gymboree Music Class last winter. I waived at the girl's mom as Angie started fussing. She wanted "Carseat" and to "Go go go." She did not want to play with the instruments (her favorite part at the Gymboree Music class) and we were barely there long enough for me to tell the teacher her name when Angie became hysterical.

I took Angie to the hallway outside the classroom so that we could listen from there.

Angie told me, "NO singing!" and cried so I sent her Daddy to retrieve her bear hoping that would give her enough comfort to sit through class. Bear in hand we returned to the classroom while the teacher sang, "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes," an Angie classic. Angie was calm and almost happy until the teacher sang a new song about the body. More tears and she and I returned to the hallway. Her Daddy stayed in to get a feel for the class. Angie shut the door to the class and ran down the hallway.

Finally, class ends and our little family returned to the classroom to give Angie a little time to acclimate herself to the room. The teacher was completely understanding as Daddy explained that Angie doesn't like new things very well. The teacher was very pleased that we weren't giving up on the class and Angie was allowed to run around the room, play with instruments, and hoops. She was a completely different child from the hysterical toddler I held just five minutes previously. She let us stamp her hands with little music notes. She was sweet, content and charming again. When we left she ran up to the teacher and let the teacher hug her.

Daddy will be going to class early this week to see if some extra time in the room will help her acclimate herself to the class. Keep your fingers crossed.

Music Critic

We went to visit the paternal grandparents this weekend. Angie had a wonderful time and of course, the great grandparents, grandparents and great aunt and uncle loved seeing her.

We had a lengthy trip home due to a not so quick stop at the Hershey outlets and an accident (not ours thankfully) on the turnpike.

To keep his energy up, Daddy was listening to some of his favorite music: TheGrateful Dead and Paul Westerberg.

Angie did not approve of her Daddy's selections at all. When she rapidly realized that he was not going to turn off his music, she plugged her ears with her fingers and sang the alphabet song out loud for most of the trip.:

"A, Bee, Cee, Dee, Eee Eff! Geee! ah-aitch, eye, Jay, Kay, emm, enn, o pee.! Koo, Arrr, Esss-a, Tee, Ooo, veee! Dopple o, why and Zeee! Nahw Know Bee Ceees! Happy I could beeee!"

At least she can entertain herself (and Mommy--who didn't care for Daddy's choices either)!

27

I just wanted to note that Angie is twenty-seven months old today.

Maybe that is where she got the birthday cake idea.

Let Her Eat Cake?

Since roughly the time I walked through the door tonight at five, Angie has been asking for cake. Birthday cake. We're not certain what put the idea in her head but she is adamant about wanting cake.

A few minutes ago I heard her Daddy ask, "What kind of cake? Pizza cake?"

"Of course!"

"Chicken cake?"

"Of course!"

"You don't know what you want do you?"

"Birthday cake. Pease."

We don't have any cake or cake-like substances in the house.

We could be in for a very long night.

First Art Class

For those of you who don't read Daddy's blog, you can find a brief post about Angie's first art class here.

The forty minute class was full of High Angela Drama. She didn't like the Opening Song and was so upset when her Daddy tried to sing along that she pinched his lips shut. Angie has recently reached a stage in which you can no longer just sing to her; You must sing a song of her choosing. Anything else will result in "No Sing! No Singing!" followed by screaming if you persist.

She didn't want to sit peacefully at the table; she wanted to run. She wanted food. When Her Daddy offered pretzels, she said, "No," then asked for "Pretzels."

She was okay once they started working with the clay so I have been asked by her Father to work with Angie and the Playdoh Grandma Rich brought on her last visit. He's hoping that will help acclimate her to the class. It can't hurt right?

She also did not like the closing song. This does not bode well for the class this Friday because the Instructor explained that they alternate music and art throughout the class. Her next class will involve music and I can't wait to see how she will handle forty minutes of singing songs other than Angie's' current musical rotation: "Sing," "Song in My Tummy" and the "Oobi" theme song with an occasional burst of "Baa Baa Black Sheep" or "Row Row Row Your Boat."

I'll be at class this week since we will be heading to PA immediately after class.

Peek-A-Boo on a New Level.

Like most babies, Angie has enjoyed playing peek-a-boo. During the last few months she has put her hands over the eyes of someone else, pulled them away and said, "Peek-A!" We won't discuss the amount of eyeglass cleanser we have used recently, except to say you all might want to purchase some stock.

Yesterday we took her to a park to enjoy one of the last decent days Cleveland will offer this year. It was Chagrin River Park--the site of her birthday parties for those of you who want a clear mental picture.

Angie saw some slender trees near the playground and ran to them. She stood behind one of the trees then popped out to her left, grinned and said, "Peek-A-Boo!" She hid again and then popped out on her right side and said, "Peek-A-Boo!" again. The tree hid her perfectly and she had a great time peeking out from different sides.

Of course, it was adorable.

"Cuppie"

For a few days, I have heard Angie say "cuppie" over and over again. I couldn't figure out what she was talking about. Usually I can get some sense of what she means, but I was at a complete loss as to what "cuppie" meant and I kept trying to give her a water bottle every time I heard it.

As I mentioned, my Mom was up for a few days to watch Angie. Last night we were having dinner when I heard Angie say, "Mommy, Daddy, Cuppie!" and continue eating very cheerfully. The lightbulb went off in my head. I told my Mom that I thought she was "Cuppie."
Angie repeated, "Mommy, Daddy, Cuppie!"

We asked Angie, "Who is Cuppie?"

No answer--she was very busy attacking her sandwich.

Finally I pointed at my Mom and asked Angie "Who is that?"

She said, "Cuppie!" with great enthusiasm.

Excellent. Mystery solved. Grandma is thrilled because Angie has given her a pet name. Life is great.

The only problem is that we don't know why Grandma is Cuppie.

This will please my mom

My mom is coming up to watch Angie while Daddy takes the cars for some tune ups and minor repairs.

Today I told Angie that Grandma was coming up.

She replied, "Come on! Come on!"

I think she's ready for Grandma.

Funny Words

I guess I have been speaking English (or my version of English) for so long that I did not realize that new words could be funny.

For several months, Angie has been bring us "A book a read!" (Translation: A book to read.) Most recently she has actually been allowing us to read the book to her instead of just racing to get a single word out before her nimble fingers turn the page. Shortly after her birthday, I was "reading" one of her colors books to her. This involved her turning pages, while she pointed at various items on a page for me to identify them. We finished the book, she closed it and then started pointing at items on the back of the book. I dutifully identified "orange," "cat," etc until her fingers landed on the Universal Product Code. Figuring that honesty was the best policy even at this early age, I promptly looked at her and said, "UPC Symbol!"

She looked at me as if to say, "Seriously Mommy?"

I repeated, "UPC Symbol" with enthusiasm. Angie began giggling wildly for several minutes. I repeated, "UPC Symbol" several times, laughing with her. Then Angie said, "Symbol" and giggled hysterically while repeating the word.

Since then, when we finish reading a book, Angie will turn the book over and proudly point out the "Symbol." She will also identify it in any other location like a DVD case or cereal box. I can occasionally give her the giggles if I respond with "UPC symbol," but it has never been quite as funny to her as it was the first time she heard it.

Only one other word has been as humorous to her. Roughly a month after her introduction to the UPC Symbol, we were shopping at the grocery store. Daddy was in another aisle picking up orange juice while I pushed Angie in the cart. I looked at Angie and was surprised to see that she was slouching sideways in the cart with her legs hanging over the side.

"Are you comfortable Angie?" I asked laughing.

Angie took one look at me, said, "Com-por-ble!!!" and started giggling wildly. For the rest of the shopping trip, Angie reassured me that she was "Com-por-ble!" at nearly every step.

I love that she has as much fun playing with words as she does playing with blocks.

Twos

Hey, I just looked at our age chart for Angie and discovered she is all twos today! Two years old, two months, two weeks and two days. Nifty.

She's peering over the gate to the computer room right now, so I'm about to depart to dance to our nighttime music with her.

Twos. She's has always been very independent regarding what she likes, and she hasn't hesitated to tell us when things weren't the way she wanted them. However, she really hasn't been a Terrible Two. Of course we're only two months into this so she could really throw us for a loop.

I've heard the Three's are worse. I won't think about that now. I'll just go get her ready for bed and we'll dance.

Happy Labor Day

We had a nice day running errands then spending a relaxing evening at home. Early this morning Angie grabbed her swimsuit and wanted to go out to the "water"--the medium sized pink plastic pool we set up in our backyard since the Public Pool closed for the season a few weeks ago. Unfortunately we couldn't immediately oblige her because we had errands to run to prepare for our new refrigerator. So I promised we would get the pool out later.

At 4:30pm, Angie grabbed her suit again. Daddy Monster insisted on snacks before the pool so we had a pouty child until she realized that Daddy's very spicy salsa was quite tasty. I ran outside to fill the pool. Apparently, when Angie heard me pulling the hose to the faucet, she grabbed her Little Swimmer and took it straight to Daddy.

Angie was very excited about the pool, however, she doesn't like to sit in the pool (too cold apparently). So I spent the evening watching Angie fill a little watering can with water from the pool, run them to two measuring cups she had placed on our steps, then proceed to dump the water out of the cups with dramatic flair. Each time she finished she would running back to the pool shouting, "More Water!" I'm not sure what was the point of the exercise, but she loved it and it kept her amused for some time.

We had the traditional Labor Day Feast of hot dogs and french fries on a card table in our back yard because most of the stuff we had stored on the old refrigerator was sitting on the kitchen table. Angie sat in her high chair, happily eating her hot dog and staring in wonder at the big blue sky. Her Dad and I felt the same way--blue skies are rare in Cleveland. Just kidding.

It was a wonderful, mild evening to spend with our little family.

Here is a fine example of early Angela Cumulative Art. Notice the fine choice of color.  

Art is a Cumulative Process

Angie has been using crayons for nearly a year. I gave her a set of washable crayons when she hit the fifteen month mark. For the last several months Angie has drawn on blank pieces of paper, then quickly moved on to another blank piece of paper after just a few crayon strokes. A few days later she returns to these pages and adds more colors. The entire process can take weeks to reach a finished masterpiece.

Now her artwork is interspersed with demands for Monster Daddy or I to draw something on the pages as well. She requests circles, feet, hands and TV with much enthusiasm. I try to mix it up a bit. I've made my circles into clocks and suns and added some very simple fish, all of which she recognizes easily. I've also drawn dogs and horses to the best of my ability. Much to my surprise, she immediately understood what I was trying to draw. I've seen Monster Daddy throw in a car here and there.

She hasn't tried to draw anything specific yet, although she has some lovely spirals.

We've signed her up for art classes with some birthday money. Orientation is next week, the classes will start in two weeks. It will be a fun way for Angie and Monster Daddy to make colorful messes. You'll be seeing the fruits of their labor here.

Inaugural Post

Since I have not been able to maintain Angie's Web Page as frequently as I would have liked, I thought I would try a blog or live journal. Monster Daddy with his preference for blogging suggested I try blogger.

We'll see how long I last here.