twinkle toes

We recently attended the wedding of one of Elliot's cousins in Delaware.

Delaware = plane trip = utter Ada happiness

Besides preparing for the plane trip, Ada also had to prepare for the actual wedding. We had to explain what a wedding was (although she has been to a few other weddings, she was only 2 then and she has simply forgotten the joy associated with such occasions). We also explained that the bride wears a fancy white dress, and the guests dress up in nice dresses and suits. This part was extremely exciting for Ada. She takes any chance to get a new dress VERY seriously. So we spent a couple different nights looking for the perfect dress, and when we finally found the purple dress with shimmery fabric that twirled just so, we knew we'd found 'the one'.

We then spent the next few weeks talking about wedding this and wedding that. The parents of her friends at school asked us (with a hint of joking) why Ada was getting married (that's what she told her friends).

And then the big day finally arrived. You would have thought Ada was actually getting married by the amount of energy she had. She was curious about the ceremony. She watched it very intently. And she was bored at the cocktail hour - can't really blame her, she is not yet of legal drinking age and it wasn't until we hit the dining room that Uncle Paul decided to indulge her in a fruit juice concoction. Of course some of the boredom came from the fact that she knew that the dining room portion included dancing. I must have mentioned it at one point during the prep weeks and Ada clung to this with unfettered abandon.

When the moment finally arrived where we were able to get into the dining room, Ada took a few quick moments to play with her new found second cousin, Ava, and then she landed in the spot she would not leave for the rest of the night - the dance floor.

Ada usually likes music with a beat, something she can really move her little booty to. However, she did not let the mundane almost sedate dinner music stop her. Nope, she did her best to channel the contemporary dancers she has seen on 'So You Think You Can Dance' while she danced the ENTIRE dinner hour. She and her new found cousin Ava entertained all of the wedding guests resting only long enough to hop over to our table to grab a quick bite before heading back out to the dance floor. She worked so hard you would have thought she was getting paid.

Once the rest of the wedding decided it was time to dance she got a little mad because she no longer had the floor all to herself but soon got over it. She then proceeded to meet and dance with EVERYONE at the wedding. If I was ever afraid that Ada had a bit of shyness I need not worry. She worked that party like a polished politician. Dancing with some, chatting up a few others, showing her stuff during the cha cha slide, and basically becoming the second biggest star of the wedding (the blushing bride being the number one).

I think it is safe to say a performer has been born.

healing kisses

I hurt my knee on Halloween evening, playing soccer, not trick-or-treating. That would be a much better story. Ada has a tendency to shy away from me whenever I'm hurt. I don't know if she is afraid she'll hurt me more, or she is scared because she just saw mommy crying and that doesn't happen all that often. Whatever it is, she wouldn't even look at me after I hurt my knee.

But she was taking all of it in.

Once she got in the car with Elliot she was full of questions about what happened, and then was able to talk through it with Papa later on while they were trick-or-treating together.

And then anytime since when she has seen an ambulance, or joined me for one of my doctor's appointments.

She has it down.

And now that she is comfortable with the amount of information she has about this ordeal she is OK talking to me, and looking at me.

I even get a healing kiss on my knee every night.

What a long way she has come in 5 days..

singing voices

I'll admit it - I'm a car singer. I don't even care if I'm traveling with other people, if a song comes on that I like - or even just happen to know the words - I'm singing along like I'm the next big star.

This has apparently rubbed off on Ada. Although she doesn't seem to care if it is a song on the radio or a song in her head. She hears music and she is singing.

Tonight as we drove home from work/school she asked me to sing a couple of songs with her. As we were belting out our version of the ABC's - way off key and a little loud - Ada piped up: "Rockstars sing really loud, so if I sing really loud I'm a rockstar" (the volume took an even louder turn). Next she piped up with: "When girls sing with their eyes closed they sing loud". I'm only guessing that she had her eyes closed because the volume once again hit a new level. I was eventually saved by a phone call (thank you built in Bluetooth) otherwise I'm not sure I'd have a voice left.

Fast forward to later in the night as we drove home from my soccer game. Ada starts to sing "The wheels on the bus" with what can only be described as the most interesting crowd ever present on a bus. She had an alligator, a bear, a wizard, a Daddy (who reads), a Mommy (who shushes), a baby, a big girl (who plays), and a Dinosaur. Until suddenly in the middle of the dinosaur stomp stomp stomping, Ada stops mid stanza with a request: "Can we turn on the radio? Loud?"

Apparently everyone is a critic.

rain

We have had a lot of rain in San Diego lately. And by a lot, I mean about a fifth of what Seattle and Vancouver normally get.

Ada has noticed the rain and is a little perplexed. Almost every night this week we've had the following conversation:

Ada: "Why is it raining"

Either Elliot or I: "Well the clouds were full so they are letting out some water to make more room."

"Why?"

"Well the sun shines on the water and brings it up into the sky, and the clouds can only hold so much water."

"Why?"

"Well, they are only so big. Plus the water helps things grow."

(after a series of other Why questions)

Ada: "But why is it raining in San Diego? It rains a lot in Seattle, but not in San Diego."

I swear, we aren't brainwashing her.

oh isn't that cute

Ada's class has started to take field trips to the local library every week where the kids get to pick out a book to bring home for the week. This week Ada brought home a book of baby animals with a picture of baby Cheetah on the front. As we were driving home from school the other night Ada was quietly "reading" through her library book as Elliot and I chatted about our days.

Then all of a sudden we heard a very adult little voice coming from the back. You could hear her turn the page and then say, "Oh isn't that cute". Page flip "Oh how cute!". Page flip, and so on.

Turns out she picked up the baby animal book because it was "Cute". I'm sensing a new phase in our lives.

At least it will be... Cute.

just like each other

The other day Ada and I were hanging out in the front seat of the car and she was showing me all of the scrapes on her legs. After pointing out three nice ones on her shin she turned to me and said, "I'm just like you mommy, we both have a lot of scrapes on our legs." So true.

And before I could add anything to her little discovery, she said, "I'm also just like Daddy. We have the same boobies. Little ones. "

negotiations

As a parent 'Teachable Moments' come along almost every hour. I'm a dork. I love these moments. Which means that I often see a chance to teach something to Ada that most parents wouldn't think of teaching a four year old. Our daily subtraction lessons are some of my favorite moments (and Ada's as well since it involves eating yummy things) and to give Ada credit she often puts up with my absurd exuberance around seemingly mundane activities, playing along, because apparently Mommy isn't such a big fan of "Princess Froggie" but LOVES to play "School".

Well last night as we loaded up the car to head out to the grocery store I laid the plan out for Ada. First we were going to do our grocery shopping, and then after that we were going to fill up our water jugs. To which Ada flatly replied, "How about we fill up the water jugs first and then go shopping." It is worded like a question, but really it was a statement, Ada's way of stamping her full control on the family activity. And if you think about it, that change didn't really matter, we were going to do both either way and the order doesn't really matter. However, it was at this moment that I thought "Ah, teachable moment, let's start her training in negotiation" (I know, what the heck was I thinking). Here is how that conversation went:

"How about we fill up the water jugs first, and then go shopping."

"Well, I'm open to negotiate that"

"What?"

"Negotiate, it means to offer an alternative with conditions attached"

"Huh?"

(Elliot stepping in) "Well you could say, If we fill up the water jugs first, then I'll sit quietly in the cart while we shop, or I'll eat all of my dinner.. get it?"

"Oh, yeah..."

(back to me) "Ok, so what are you going to offer up as a concession in the negotiations?"

"Huh"

"What are you going to trade for filling up the water first?"

"Oh.. (very confidently) I'll eat all of my dinner."

(Seeing an opportunity to flip the negotiations around) "OK, we are having avocado for dinner" (Ada hates avocado)

"No, I'll have something different"

"Dinner isn't negotiable, we are having avocado"

"But I don't like avocado, why would you make me have avocado"

(Elliot helping out again) "Why don't you offer an alternative dinner?"

"Umm"

(back to me) "OK, how about we have salmon and spinach for dinner?"

(Getting the hang of this negotiation thing) "Well, how about broccoli and salmon"

"You got it, but you have to eat everything that we put on your plate. If you don't then you have to sleep on the bottom bunk and go to bed early"

"OK" (confident that she could handle both salmon and broccoli)

At this point, I thought to myself, I could push this further and pile on a whole lot of both to her plate just to teach her that she has to be aware of all parameters of the negotiation (I'm such a mean mom). And just as I was finishing this thought Ada piped up with, "OK, but it has to be a whole lot of salmon and just a little of broccoli."

It was as if she had read my mind. AND she totally figured out the whole negotiating thing, at least in that instance. I love watching Ada actually get something like this. You can almost see the light bulb on top of her head.

Of course I'll regret this day somewhere down the line when Ada turns these skills on me while we battle out her teenage years. If last night is any indication - I'm screwed..