A Proud Moment

Last night was probably the proudest day of my fathering career. To set the scene, we were eating dinner, and trying to keep Bianca entertained in that crucial 20minutes before we bathe her and put her down. This 20 minutes can either be full of play and laughing or whining, crying and complaining; it's any body's bet. Ewa's mother is still here, which is a huge benefit at this time as two people can eat and one can entertain Bianca if she doesn't feel like sitting in her high chair and eating, talking/listening to us (talking being a generous description of her pips and pops). We've been working on noises different animals make, Ella - Ewa's mom - says "Jak robi krowka? (What sound does a cow make) and Bianca moos and then she says "Jak robi piesek? (What sound does a dog make) and Bianca woofs and then she asks "Jak robi koteczek? (What sound does a kitty make) and Bianca does a very diminutive meeooww. These are all known responses.

But since I've been working so much and I only see Bianca for, max, 1hr per day during the week I have a slight worry about her speaking English; absurd maybe, but parents worry about ridiculous stuff sometimes. So I say, "sure, she can woof when you prompt her in Polish, but she probably won't know what I say" - and honestly, I can't remember whether I said this aloud or in my head as my memory is clouded over, over what happened next. I say, in English, "Bibi, what sound to monkeys make?" and she replies "ee ee ee, oooh oooh ooh" (Which is exactly what I do, while scratching my armpits, when I do monkey sounds). And then I say "What sound do kitties make?" and she replies with her little meeoooww. Then I ask "What sound do cows make?" and yes, of course, she moos. I clapped and exclaimed "She DOES understand me!" Relief and exaltation; parenthood in a nutshell. Practicing my "meows" with Bianca

Queen of Fashion

Keep an eye out for this look coming to finer boutiques everywhere.

Steps

I swear, when Bianca's awake, she's moving. Like my friend Ben we are considering getting a SLR because capturing a 14-month old with a digital camera ain't easy. Yesterday, we took her and grandma to Lugo, about 1hr away. The old town is typical of this area, but it has a original Roman wall surrounding the old town. We walked the circumference, in the rain.

Bianca was bored to death in the stroller but her mood improved dramaticallly once she was free to walk the wall path herself. I tried to look cool before the rain, where I then had to resort to what is now being called a Garden Gnome look.

Night Away

You may recognize something missing from this photo.......
Ewa and I went away for a night to Leon in Castilla y Leon. Its a really nice medieval city on the Camino de Santiago. We ate lunch, we walked the city, we had pizza. It was glorious. We were gone only 30hrs, but it was a good break.

Latest Photos

We've been updating photos on Fotki, but haven't put any in the blog; well, here's a fix. The Flamingo costume's first fitting.
Bianca on her new Bike. And finally, the Chesty LaRue special.

Pink Lady

We've given up trying to avoid pink in Bianca's wardrobe. We gave up months ago under the constant barrage of pink. While we were in the States last month we picked up a pink winter jacket with a pseudo-fur lining and a pink flamingo Halloween costume. The Halloween costume isn't for Halloween though. It's too big, for one, and kids here dress up on Three Kings' Day, January 6th. Bianca has fallen deeply in love with both items and insists on wearing her winter coat in the house and hugging and kissing the flamingo costume as she totes it around. A mere glimpse of the pink fur or the beak of the flamingo sends her into apoplexy until she can get her hands on it, while we silently curse ourselves for leaving the closet door open again. I doubt the flamingo will make it to January and she probably won't want to wear it; she just likes carrying it and kissing it.

She also, long ago, discovered her mother's scarf drawer; which she feels obliged to rearrange daily. She knows that fun things are in drawers, be it socks, scarves, boxer shorts, Tupperware, pots&pans etc. Yesterday she found a drawer of bras. She knows that hats and scarves go on and/or around her head, so why not bras; and she's never even seen "Weird Science." She proceeded to drape 4 or 5 bras around her neck and strut around. I was on Bianca "don't strangle yourself" patrol and applauded every new bra like she was a tourist collecting Leis. Ewa tried to snap a few photos, but 1yr olds defy digital cameras that need to reload their flashes. If there's a good one I'll post it.

Kissing Baby

Bianca has learned, or more correctly actually understands what we're asking for, and gives us kisses. If we pucker up and ask she might wander over and press her face to ours. Its a small gesture, but it makes us feel good.