Thursday, February 6, 2014

Lovely Daughter

I am in a stay at home chapter of life right now and I have decided that for my family and me, being with these littles and raising them myself is the most important thing I could be doing in the entire world.  So, seeing them grow into happy, curious, kind creatures is what my success is all about.  I must post about Giovanna every month, but for me it just doesn't get old.  Have I told you that I have a super daughter?    

Zorra the Princess Superhero, here to save the day!


What is going on in Gigi's world these days?  Well, Gigi loves big words.  She frequently inserts words like fascinating, fantastic, apparently, necessarily, and reaction into her sentences, usually in the proper context.  When she had the chance to play with some older friends and cousins over the holidays, the following days were filled with sing-song monologues - long strings of big words and big girl talk.  None of it made any sense, but we loved hearing her practice being a big girl.

And I am not sure if I have written before about Gigi's interest in music.  We keep a basket of instruments at kid level for spontaneous family jam sessions and I have always considered Marcos and I to be music fiends, and this little apple is not falling far from the tree.  While I was preparing dinner yesterday, we listened to our new Pandora station that mainly pulls a cappella songs.  In the short time we were hanging out in the kitchen, Gigi kept identifying the original artists of the songs saying, "Isn't this a Journey song?" then a Madonna song, then Katy Perry (what does this say about us?).  When we were tired of listening to a cappella we changed the station to our Raffi kid's station and Raffi sang "What a Wonderful World".  I asked Gigi if she remembered who else sang that same song and she said thoughtfully, "Iz... and Louis Armstrong".  Nice.  Gigi's most recent musical interest is beat boxing.  Our youtube search bar is familiar with our frequent "How to beat box" query, and Gigi is often practicing her beat boxing at home and on the road.  Being her mom is pretty fun.

Especially when she calls me out on my disorder of priorities, like she did the other day.

Gigi: "Mom, do you clean up the house more?  Or play with kids?

She wasn't even pulling a guilt trip because she doesn't understand guilt yet.  She was just genuinely curious and trying to figure out the hierarchy of my attention.  Needless to say, I have been trying to truly tune out the ten other projects I always have in my mind, and give her my undivided attention every day for a good piece of time.

Here are a few other recent conversations:

After Marcos accidentally gives her too much maple syrup.
Gigi: Wow, did you give me lots of maple syrup because you love me?
Marcos: Yes.
Gigi: Never. Stop. Loving me.  You can never stop loving me!

****

At the kitchen table doing art together.
Gigi: I'm drawing me, as a bride, with a bouquet.
Metta: Oh, wonderful.  And who are you going to marry?
Gigi: Well, this drawing is just me.
Metta: Okay.  You are very young now, so you can choose later who you want to marry.
Gigi: Actually, I am going to overmarry Papai.
Metta: Good plan.  What does "overmarry" mean?
Gigi: Well, I'll still live with you both, but I will marry Papai over again.