Tag Archives: walking

development

A Walk With Aliya

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Today I had an opportunity to slow down, be in the moment, and experience joy—and I’m happy to say, I took it. The thing is, I don’t always take these kinds of opportunities. As crazy as that sounds, there are many times I choose to be annoyed, overwhelmed, burdened, frustrated, and even angry. Sarah had an appointment and while Maia and Keana were at school, I still had Aliya to look after. Sarah wasn’t sure if I was going to try and work while she was gone, so she had turned on the TV for Aliya to watch. I admit, there are times I take advantage of the electronic baby sitters, but today was a day for a walk.

“Aliya, how about a walk?” I asked, and immediately she said, “Sure. I turn the TV off,” and popped up off the floor to do just that. Then she said, “My boots are in the bucket,” so we got them out, put on her socks—one on the outside of her pants and one with her pants tucked in it—and we headed out.

We walked at her pace and showed each other things along the way. I noticed a weird, gelatinous blob that we both poked with a stick and a hummingbird way up high. She pointed out a smashed snail and asked, “What’s that?! Yucky?” We ventured up Christmas Tree Lane and got up close to all the decorations to investigate. She narrated and asked questions almost the entire time.

“Who’s that?” she’d ask and I would reply, “Santa Claus,” and she’d repeat it. Then she said, pointing to Mrs. Claus, “Grandma?” I loved it when she pointed to snowmen and asked, “Who’s that?” She also decided at some point that she wanted her picture taken with only some of the scenes, and she had particular poses and placement in mind. You can see by the photos below that some weren’t exactly conventional.

She would hold my hand while we walked from scene to scene, then let go as we approached it so she could explore on her own. Lately she’s been refusing to hold hands on walks, so this particularly made it special for me.

The whole walk took about an hour and she insisted on walking the entire way, even after admitting, “I’m tired!” about 45 minutes into it. She balanced on curbs on the way home and and when we reached our driveway, stopped for a second and said, “Ready. Set. Goooo!” and took off running to race me the rest of the way.

So today I’m happy to say I took an opportunity with Aliya to stretch, feel the sunshine, notice everything, smell the crisp air, and even the “yucky poo-poo” too. I took the time to be on Aliya’s schedule and at her level—just for a little bit—and it helped me to ditch my resentments and accept joy. That walk today was a gift—one I don’t always accept—but my hope is that the more I do, the easier it gets. I’m fortunate because I have these opportunities every day and they are truly life-changing…as long as I’m willing and open.

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development

So Much Fun

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Aliya is so much fun. I mean, not much else is expected in Team Hokama, but really, we have a blast with her. It hasn’t just been go-go-go since she started walking July 1, it’s been a blossoming of her little personality and her amazing sense of humor too.

She loves to dance. Yes, the girl has the dancin’ gene. It’s that adorable, kind of stiff, knees slightly bent, bouncing baby dance, and she’ll often put both arms in the air and bounce them too. One of the newest things she’s been doing too, mostly while sitting at the table in her highchair, is this cute little swaying motion to ballads or classical music, showing off her lyrical sense. Aliya also has this other new move where she’ll squat down, bend at the waist, shake her arm side to side, all while displaying the hammiest, squinty grin you’ve ever seen. The other day she walked right into the kitchen where Iana was, bent down, boogied down, and walked away. Perfect timing and Iana just had to laugh out loud. What a show off.

She’s a perpetual, earthly satellite. She orbits round and round the house, picking things up, checking in on her people, dropping things off, and on and on and on. Occasionally she’ll even work up to almost a trot, especially when her sisters chase her or she’s captured some treasure from them and tries to make a “run” for it. Her balance is still a little nerve-wracking, but mostly, she’s quite stable.

Aliya is a water girl. She loves to be in the spray of the hose, and often orbits around the yard, transporting water from one location to another in whatever tiny vessel she can find. Often she dumps half of it down her front while scooping and doesn’t flinch—she just rolls on. And when she takes a bath, and she thinks you’re going to pour the water over her head, she puckers her lips and begins taking quick breaths to prepare. She doesn’t really mind the water pouring down her face, though she does seem a bit surprised at first, but she never fusses. I wonder if this will last? Keana was like this too I think, tolerating water on the face, but Maia, oh no.

Aliya just loves to connect with people. She’ll wave at you, hello or goodbye, and if she doesn’t smile at first, she keeps her eyes in contact with yours until she’s got her assessment. She’s cuddly and she’s so solid and squishy at the same time, it is the best to give her a little squeeze or just hold her. She’s also recently started flirting by turning her head so her chin touches her shoulder, tilting slightly down, and giving the sweetest smile you’ve ever seen.

As far as language goes, Aliya has been trying out different syllables and sounds, still saying “mama” and “papa” and “bye-bye”, and enjoys call and response, especially in the car when she can’t see you. She’ll call out “maaaa-maaaa” and we call back “aliiii-yaaaa” or “baaaa-beeee”. So sweet.

There are just so many things that she’s adjusting to and figuring out, making day-to-day things so much easier (not that they were ever really that hard with her). Everything from getting dressed to getting in her car seat to communicating what she wants to eat. I was really impressed tonight when I was taking her jumper suit thing off for bath, and she stepped out of it, one foot at a time, like a real pro. She still does several big nods “yes” when she wants something or is doing something she likes to do, and shakes her hands in refusal in front of her when she’s done with something or doesn’t want it. She’s been squealing more and more with joy and disappointment (usually when here sisters steal something from her), and she’s definitely been showing that she’s not going to let her place in the line-up go unnoticed.

development

Aliya Walks!

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I’m just going to say it now: I’m a bad PR papa. Aliya’s been walking a month (well, almost a month, July 1 was the day actually) and you’re just now finding out about it. Sure, maybe you’ve been here and seen it or “heard” me say it online or over the phone, but if not, you’re getting the news a month late. Okay, go ahead and have your angry moment or cry or whatever…

…feel better? Now, how about some celebration! WoOhOo! She did it. She’s a walker. Aliya has joined the ranks of the bipeds. You’ll see in the video below she started out tentative and small as all little humans do, and now she’s moving around pretty good. She has a little shuffle she does that definitely gets her around the house, and she’s even navigating bumps in the road quite well. She also loves to carry things with her. Today as she cruised around she had a book in one hand, a toy in the other, and a measuring cup in her mouth, held by the handle—quite the multi-tasker.

Anyway, without further ado, the early moments, caught on flash card:

birthdays, development, family, holidays, trips

“Firsts” in Texas

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My head is going to explode. I mean so much has happened since the last time I wrote, I either have to just list it all in boring chronological order, or write an epic novel. But maybe there’s an in between.

Gettin’ There
I think the last time I wrote we were headed to Texas. I had a work trip in San Antonio from 11/19-11/22 and Sarah, Keana, Maia, and Uncle Peter flew out that Sunday afternoon/evening to meet me on our way to Fredericksburg to see Grandma Linda and Grandpa Sam for Thanksgiving. What a day that was. I called Sarah first thing Sunday morning to check in and make sure she was doing okay. Packing for three people is no small chore, especially when two of those people are actually monkeys that need constant supervision while climbing and crawling all over the house, whisking everything you’re trying to pack away. So I called and found out that Uncle Peter was AWOL. He was supposed to be there the previous night, but didn’t make it out of Santa Cruz and said he’d be there first thing Sunday morning. Here it was, three hours before needing to leave for the airport, and no Peter. After many calls in all directions, Peter surfaced and made it to the house just in time to pack up the car and head to the airport. I was a thousand miles away in San Antonio and couldn’t do a thing, so I tried to enjoy the day with mom and Sam. Their flight landed around 10 p.m. and we spent another hour picking up bags and getting the car seats strapped into the mini-van rental. (SIDE NOTE: I pretty much hate mini-vans. Call me vain, but I hate the way they look and it seems like every jackass on the road either drives a mini-van, a Hummer, or a Prius. But let me tell you, this Toyota Sienna was spacious, easy to drive, had two side doors that opened and closed automatically/remotely, and we easily fit seven people—with two car seats—in it. Sarah was totally won over but I still can’t quite get over my vanity.)

It was another hour+ to Fredericksburg and Maia cried the whole way. She was more than over it. Miraculously Keana fell asleep and rest of us were beat. We stayed at a friends guest house that was outside of town and in the middle of the countryside. It was beautiful with lots of deer, windy roads, and millions of stars visible at night.

Maia’s First Birthday
On Tuesday, November 25, it was Maia’s first birthday. In attendance were Grandma Linda, Grandpa Sam, and Uncle Peter. During the day we went into town for the first time and enjoyed some cowboy boot shopping and the quaint offerings of Main St. Fredericksburg. The girls took a little nap in the car on the way home and Grandma LInda and Grandpa Sam came over to the guest house to cook the birthday meal. Poor little Maia was so tuckered out from the day’s adventures, that she fell asleep before pie and candles, so we enjoyed them in her sleepy absence. Not exactly the pomp and fanfare that some first birthdays hold, but it was certainly one filled with lots of love and of course the novelty of celebrating in a small town in Texas.

Maia’s First Thanksgiving
For Thanksgiving we enjoyed dinner with our hosts Rex and Marylou at their house, which was right next to the guest house we were staying in. They had their nieces over and one of their friends from their ballet company, another couple that had transplanted from California and their son from Santa Barbara, and our clan. It was a great dinner with the usual tonage of the traditional foods, and Maia and Keana enjoyed roaming all over the house, Maia holding on to just one of our fingers for balance. The evening ended a little abruptly when their dog Weasel nipped at Keana’s ankle and made her cry, so we took a sad and tired Keana back to the guest house. I laid with Keana while Sarah put Maia to sleep, and Maia fell asleep without a hitch, but little Miss Keana was too amped to fall asleep, so we let her watch cartoons while we sat with Uncle Peter in the freezing cold drinking beers and relaxing. It was too cold to really sit outside for long, so we called it a night and brought the now VERY sleepy Zooba with us.

Maia Walks
On November 27, 2008, while we were at Grandma Linda’s house, and while Sarah was talking on the phone with her mom, Maia really walked on her own. She was do excited. She walked in circles and walked between Sarah and I, squealing and laughing with pride and excitement. It was truly amazing. She had been practicing for weeks holding on to just one of our fingers, so her balance was really good and she did quite well, right at first, all on her own.

Other Events and the Wrap Up
Other activities while visiting in Fredericksburg included great visits and meals with Grandma and Grandpa and Uncle Peter, a trip to Grandma and Grandpa’s property where they will be building their house, visits to the town, a great brunch on an outdoor patio at Silver Creek with live country music (solo guitar, singing), and some of the best burgers we’ve ever had anywhere at Porky’s and the Alamo Springs Cafe. Man, those burgers were amazing and we will honestly miss them. Okay, moving on.

The trip home wasn’t too bad. We flew back with Uncle Peter so three adults and two kids is just about the right ratio. Of course the girls were tired, but a nice layover in Denver allowed us to get dinner and run around a bit which was very helpful. We landed in Oakland just before 8 p.m. and as always, it felt great to be home. It was a great little Texas adventure we definitely look forward to going back for future visits, especially when Grandma Linda and Grandpa Sam get their house built!