I made it to India in one piece last night. It is very tropical - imagine Houston but humid (hahaha)... It is more humid that Houston. I don't know how, but it is. It also reminds me of Jamaica and Malaysia. I didn't see much last night since it was dark except for a lot of wild dogs and a bunch of men out on the town. The women don't roam the streets at night. When I got to the hotel, they said a little prayer for me and put pink dried paint on my third eye. It was cool.
The hotel (renaissance) is very nice. I had a lovely breakfast this morning with my colleague, Ali. We are headed to the office soon to go motivate the team.
I skyped with Sofie and her dad this morning. She was so happy to see me. Apparently she didn't sleep at all last night. Poor baby and poor daddy. I made a couple videos for her at the airport on Sunday and sent them to her dad but he said they made things worse. She played them 60 times each and cried a lot. I hope tonight is better for everyone. Think nice thoughts for them.
Have a wonderful day!
Monday, August 27, 2012
Friday, August 24, 2012
Traveling again
I am traveling to India on Sunday a few months early... We had a last minute situation come up at work, and we need to visit our vendors. I am feeling some trepidation leaving the family because Sofie has been extra needy lately. We believe she has been abused in her past based on certain things that have come up recently and it is going to be hard to leave her. She is feeling extra vulnerable because she was recently moved up a level at preschool (now with the 4 year olds) and none of her friends moved with her. It is a tough situation because we are delighted she is so bright, but she had finally made some good friends at school... We feel for her. Every time she gets comfortable, something changes in her life. I guess this happens pretty regularly in my life too, so I am passing on the uncertainty to her. I hope she can cope.
Since she doesn't have much concept of time yet (now, sometime, sometime in the past) we haven't really talked about the trip yet. My husband thinks I am springing this on her and torturing her because I planned to tell her tomorrow, but I really didn't want to worry her week since she doesn't understand time anyway. I hope she is fine. We have Skype but India is 10.5 hours different in time zone (24 hour trip) and it will be tricky to get her when she is awake.
Anyway, I am feeling some anxiety about leaving her. I will only be gone from Sunday - Friday morning, but it is still hard. I am relieved that there is a 3 day weekend next weekend and I will have some time to recover from the time change. Hopefully there will be pictures. This is the first time for me.
Since she doesn't have much concept of time yet (now, sometime, sometime in the past) we haven't really talked about the trip yet. My husband thinks I am springing this on her and torturing her because I planned to tell her tomorrow, but I really didn't want to worry her week since she doesn't understand time anyway. I hope she is fine. We have Skype but India is 10.5 hours different in time zone (24 hour trip) and it will be tricky to get her when she is awake.
Anyway, I am feeling some anxiety about leaving her. I will only be gone from Sunday - Friday morning, but it is still hard. I am relieved that there is a 3 day weekend next weekend and I will have some time to recover from the time change. Hopefully there will be pictures. This is the first time for me.
Monday, August 20, 2012
Still waters
Sofie had some major accomplishments this week that are note worthy. First, we took her swimming at the Y for the second time ever (first time in pool with me), and Sofie was brave enough to put her head under the water multiple times and blow bubbles. I showed her how to do it once, and she tried it 50-60 times. She also was able to float by putting her hands on the bottom of the pool (1' deep), and her legs went right up. She also floated on her back which was pretty exciting too. She loves the water.
Also, this week, we received notice at her preschool that they are moving her up to the 4 year old age group. I can't believe she would move from the 3 years to the 4 year olds in two months. Her dad is going to discuss it more with the preschool tomorrow to find out what the impetus for this was. She totally IS a smarty pants - can identify all 26 capital letters. She also can read Mickey Mouse and Dinosaur Train. But, I didn't think she was at 4 year old level. That is totally surprising.
Doing the work/life balance things has been tough the last few weeks. We have been getting ready to roll out a new version of software, budget for 2013, and building requirements for the rest of the year. Things are crazy. I am working too much, and now I have a last minute trip to India coming up this weekend. I am hoping that my departure will not create too much disruption in her life (with behavior regression). We have almost gotten to a stable point since all the visitors left. It has been about 4 weeks now, and she finally isn't having night terrors most nights, she has a routine, and she tells us she is feeling happy. I will cross my fingers on this one.
Also, this week, we received notice at her preschool that they are moving her up to the 4 year old age group. I can't believe she would move from the 3 years to the 4 year olds in two months. Her dad is going to discuss it more with the preschool tomorrow to find out what the impetus for this was. She totally IS a smarty pants - can identify all 26 capital letters. She also can read Mickey Mouse and Dinosaur Train. But, I didn't think she was at 4 year old level. That is totally surprising.
Doing the work/life balance things has been tough the last few weeks. We have been getting ready to roll out a new version of software, budget for 2013, and building requirements for the rest of the year. Things are crazy. I am working too much, and now I have a last minute trip to India coming up this weekend. I am hoping that my departure will not create too much disruption in her life (with behavior regression). We have almost gotten to a stable point since all the visitors left. It has been about 4 weeks now, and she finally isn't having night terrors most nights, she has a routine, and she tells us she is feeling happy. I will cross my fingers on this one.
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Happy Days
Happy days are far more preferable to no good, very bad days. I love the mornings where she wakes up and is a ray of sunshine. I can see her dimples when she is radiating joy. Nothing can phase her. She bounces on air. She is very playful and fun. She takes more initiative on these days and tries new things out. She managed to take off her diaper, go potty, and clean herself up this morning. She was so proud. So what if she went commando most of the morning?
She slept all through the night in her own bed. God bless us all. It is amazing what a good night's sleep can give for the family. We had a nice morning snuggling while she drank her bottle and watched a combination of the Olympics and "Little Bill". By the way, I love "Little Bill". The music is my favorite part. It is jazz - real jazz - not the smooth jazz stuff that other people I know like to listen to in the evenings. Sometimes they riff on nursery rhymes. A lot of the time they don't, and I can watch that show forever because the music is so good. Yes, I get the theme song in my head, but it doesn't matter.
She had a melt down at 1:30 and I put her down for a nap by singing about rainbows. She went down really fast (for once) while I was completely mauling "Somewhere over the rainbow". I know we sang that song & other rainbow medleys as part of our sing choir, but I have forgotten most of the words. I made up better ones. LOL.
Apparently, I have joined the ranks of parents who can understand their kids, but no one else can. With her speech impediment, some days are harder than others (zoo sounds a lot like shoe, sew, too, noodles, etc.) but we are getting it. Chocolate sounds a lot more like chocolate these days than "shower" which is what it used to sound like a long time ago. I know I will forget these things and need to write them down to remember. Yesterday, Sofie went to the zoo with her Daddy and they went to the Dinosaur exhibit because she had been pestering her dad for half an hour about it. Apparently, the Dinosaur exhibit has very realistic, lifelike, huge animals that move and make alarming "roaring" sounds. It was a disaster. Our little girl went quietly in her stroller and hid behind her hands while they walked through the park. Even a train ride did nothing to quell her fears. When she got home with him, I asked if they wanted to go to lunch for Noodles (her all time favorite food). She said no. She didn't want dinosaurs. I asked if we should take off her shoes. She said she didn't want dinosaurs. I asked her if she wanted a sandwich. She said that there could be no dinosaurs. You get the picture right? No more dinosaurs for awhile.
I am rambling, but that is where we are at the moment. She is blissfully napping, and I am enjoying a moment of solitude while the hubby enjoys his with the Olympics. Happy Days to you.
She slept all through the night in her own bed. God bless us all. It is amazing what a good night's sleep can give for the family. We had a nice morning snuggling while she drank her bottle and watched a combination of the Olympics and "Little Bill". By the way, I love "Little Bill". The music is my favorite part. It is jazz - real jazz - not the smooth jazz stuff that other people I know like to listen to in the evenings. Sometimes they riff on nursery rhymes. A lot of the time they don't, and I can watch that show forever because the music is so good. Yes, I get the theme song in my head, but it doesn't matter.
She had a melt down at 1:30 and I put her down for a nap by singing about rainbows. She went down really fast (for once) while I was completely mauling "Somewhere over the rainbow". I know we sang that song & other rainbow medleys as part of our sing choir, but I have forgotten most of the words. I made up better ones. LOL.
Apparently, I have joined the ranks of parents who can understand their kids, but no one else can. With her speech impediment, some days are harder than others (zoo sounds a lot like shoe, sew, too, noodles, etc.) but we are getting it. Chocolate sounds a lot more like chocolate these days than "shower" which is what it used to sound like a long time ago. I know I will forget these things and need to write them down to remember. Yesterday, Sofie went to the zoo with her Daddy and they went to the Dinosaur exhibit because she had been pestering her dad for half an hour about it. Apparently, the Dinosaur exhibit has very realistic, lifelike, huge animals that move and make alarming "roaring" sounds. It was a disaster. Our little girl went quietly in her stroller and hid behind her hands while they walked through the park. Even a train ride did nothing to quell her fears. When she got home with him, I asked if they wanted to go to lunch for Noodles (her all time favorite food). She said no. She didn't want dinosaurs. I asked if we should take off her shoes. She said she didn't want dinosaurs. I asked her if she wanted a sandwich. She said that there could be no dinosaurs. You get the picture right? No more dinosaurs for awhile.
I am rambling, but that is where we are at the moment. She is blissfully napping, and I am enjoying a moment of solitude while the hubby enjoys his with the Olympics. Happy Days to you.
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