I'll Slide on My Own, Thank You!

Spend more than 30 minutes with Mimi and I guarantee that at some point within that half hour you'll make the observation, "That girl is really independent, isn't she?"  This, I'm afraid, is putting it lightly. 

Mimi has always been a bit precocious.  10 minutes out of the womb and nurses were already commenting on how alert Mimi was.  The girl was hyper aware.  Even at 2 months, when we first dropped her off at daycare, she put up a massive struggle.  And she never let it go.  She flat out knew we wouldn't be around and simply would not accept it.  At 8 months or so we tried to wean her from co-sleeping to sleeping in her crib.  This was back in New York when we still shared a bedroom.  No matter how exhausted she (or we) might be, Mimi would refuse to sleep if we were in the room.  She'd scream, cry, whine, bellow, and wail until we brought her back to bed.  Only then would she quiet down.  If we laid her down and stayed in the living room until she feel asleep, she'd still wake up once we came to bed in the middle of the night.  Even in her sleep she knew we were there.  Eventually Sumie and I had to sleep in the living room for a week to get Mimi used to sleeping in her crib on her own.

It's not just at home that Mimi's independence shines through.  Take her anywhere, regardless of crowds, and within a few minutes she'll be running off on her own.  She'll even run directly into the ocean (not the safest thing for a girl 19 months old).  But it's at the park that her independence really shines. 

It starts early, at home.  As I was unloading the groceries the other day Mimi was already at it.  She'd secured her sand toy bag and was chanting, "Go!  Go!" 

Groceries secured, I bundled Mimi into her new red wagon and we headed off for the park.  We sprinted down the hills, which resulted in giggles for Mimi, huffing and puffing for me.  As we entered the park Mimi came over all giddy.  I parked the wagon near the sandpit, thinking Mimi wanted to play with her shovel and bucket.  Wrong.  She immediately sprinted for the swings. 

From the swings we went to slides.  In the past, I'd have to guide Mimi over to the slide and support her on the way down.  Not this time.  She wanted nothing to do with me.  She was going to conquer the slide all on her own.  Without any prompting, she ran over to the bottom platform of the play structure: the toddler entry point. 

She then crawled through the tunnel...

and settled herself at the edge of the slide. 

This is normally when I'd support her back and help her down, safe and sane.  But not this time.  She kicked and flew!

Mimi cracked a huge smile when she hit the bottom of the slide.  She was upside down, but very, very happy.  She immediately dusted herself off and headed back for another go. 

Mimi's independence can be a bit frustrating at times - like when she decides it's time to write all over the leather sofa - but I'm so glad that she has it.  That drive, coupled with her curiousity, will take her far.  I just hope I'll be in good enough shape to keep up.   

New Year, New Friends

It's been a busy New Year so far.

We spent New Year's Eve day in Sacramento visiting friends and family, and today, January 1st, we headed up the coast to Muir Woods (which was far too crowded, so we settled on a very windy Muir Beach).

Why all the driving?  Well, we had to break-in Sumie's Christmas present.  More details on that in a later post, but I will say we averaged 45mpg on our Sacramento trip and it's not a Prius.

Before heading for the beach, we started the New Year with "Ozoni," a traditional Japanese soup with mochi.

Mimi loved the soup, as you can see, but unfortunately she decided she just wanted broth.  No chicken.  This toddler is getting picky.  

On Thursday we had a visit from my cousin, Gina, and her two boys.  We headed over to the Academy of Sciences and had a great time.  While Gina, Ethan, and Noah were hanging out in the planetarium (Mimi was, wisely, not allowed entry), Mimi decided to climb some cats outside.  This meant pushing some older children aside, but that's her forte.  She's small, but tough.  At least until she realizes that she can't get down on her own.  She shifts from tough-girl to cry-baby quite quickly.  

We've also been busy at home during the break.  Yesterday Mimi insisted on playing a few rounds of pinball.  She's getting good at loading the pinballs into the chute...

but her favorite thing is watching them tumble down the playfield.

Mimi's also getting better at keeping herself busy.  She's starting to recognize numbers (even out of sequence) and attempting to sing the alphabet song on her own.  I'll often find her flipping through her number book, shouting out numbers in Japanese (some right, some a bit off, some woefully wrong),  or toggling through the songs on her play kitchen to get to the alphabet song.

The biggest change in the past few weeks happened when Mimi started bonding with some of her toys.  Mimi's had preferences for certain toys since she was only a few months old, but now she has a few definite favorites. 

Several weeks ago Mimi started carrying her stuffed kitty, Nyan-Nyan, with her around the house.  Eventually she wanted to take him on walks, trips to the store, and even to bed.  Nyan-Nyan was special.  We have no idea why she chose Nyan-Nyan.  She still prefers real dogs to cats and she has a cuddly stuffed dog, but for some reason Nyan-Nyan won his way into Mimi's heart.  But now, after Christmas, he has a bit of competition.

We did not buy Mimi many presents this year.  Just two.  A small snow globe and a baby doll that, unlike so many others these days, didn't look freakishly evil.  Unfortunately, Mimi's doll was "commandeered" by her cousin Lucey at the Christmas party (Mimi was too busy playing playing in the cardboard spaceship we'd set up) and became her favorite toy of the night.  We didn't have the heart to break them up, and given that Mimi didn't remember getting the doll, we let it slide.  The following day Mimi decided to fling her snow globe on the tile.  The snow globe did not appreciate this and decided to crack in half.  So, by the day after Christmas, Mimi was left with no presents from her parents.

I remedied this two days later with another baby doll.  Mimi found her before I did.  "Baby!" I heard as I was walking up the aisle, Mimi holding my hand.  And she was right.  There in front of us was the same baby Mimi had received on Christmas Day.  We brought "Baby" home and by the end of the night, Mimi had two best friends instead of one.  Sumie and I were amazed.  We'd never seen her take to anything so quickly and with such abandon.

Now we go everywhere with Nyan-Nyan and Baby (I'm hoping Mimi will get a little more creative with her names in the near future).  Mimi even takes both of them to bed with her.  In the past, Mimi would normally squirm and scream a bit after we'd put her down and closed the door.  But now, cuddled with her friends, she tends to drift off with minimal fuss.

I'm looking forward to that first night I hear Mimi "talking" with her friends as she drifts off to sleep.  With such busy days, I'm sure she has a lot to share.