Portrait of a Lady

No, this blog will not be a review of Henry James’ classic novel but a portrait of my little lady, Mira. Children grow up so fast. Yes, it’s a cliché statement, but for a reason. This commonplace thought is something every parent will have creeping into their heads exponentially as their children grow. Mira is already over 18 months old. It’s such a fun ‘hands-on’ age- a running, giggly, energetic, topsy-turvy age that leaves me breathless. Sure the temper tantrums and increased vocal strength can really be draining but the giggles and reciprocated affection more than make up for it.

I came across some of Mira’s baby pictures from the day she was born. And by that I mean I actually stopped and looked at the framed pictures we have around the house; the pictures that have been there every day for the past 18 months but are easily overlooked when the object of those pictures is keeping me busy chasing her around the house. I sighed when I saw the tiny infant depicted in those dusty frames. It’s rewarding and sadly nostalgic all at once. I’m having so much fun with Mira at this age; yet, where did my infant go? She grew up when I wasn’t looking- or maybe it was that I was looking too hard. But where nostalgia runs thin pride fills in. My daughter gives me so much joy. {And yes, frustration at times too- I am the mother of a toddler after all!} Howard and I have such an amazing little girl that I would like to share a bit of her with you.

Mira is talking and forming short sentences now. She says “I love you”, “Where are you?”, and her new favorite- “COME HERE!” to name a few. She’ll add nouns to these phrases to get our attention. One of her funniest candid connections came at a local Italian restaurant where, after a bite of pizza, she lovingly stated “I love you cheese” without any prompting. She’ll also scream for me if I happen to be on the opposite side of the house. “MOMMY WHERE ARRRRRE YOU?” She repeats EVERYTHING she hears, so you really have to be conscious of EVERY freaking word that comes out of your mouth!!! {I am trying to hammer this fact into Howard.} She loves to wrestle with her daddy and thinks it’s hysterical to try and stick her finger up his nose. She loves to “surf”; which means Howard, Bob, and I have to be prepared to have her balancing on our backs when we lay on the living room floor. She has her Uncle Bob wrapped around her finger. So much so that the moment he comes home from work she has him trained to do her bidding. Ice cream, fruit, a walk outside- you name it, it’s like she can transmit her wants to him telepathically. She doesn’t even have to use her words or sign language- she’ll just grunt her demands and he hastens forward.

She is still learning and using sign language with almost as much speed as her vocal skills. She cracks me up by asking (both verbally and by signing) for ice cream first thing in the morning. I made the mistake of caving to this request once because she was just so damn cute about it, and now knowing I gave in once, she asks me without fail every morning. I suppose this could also be a consequence of having consumed 15,000 gallons of mint chocolate chip while pregnant with her.

She explores and investigates everything with intense curiosity. Zoos, parks, beaches, and museums are so much more intriguing through her eyes. It forces me to appreciate everything anew. The main thing she ISN’T curious about is strangers. I suppose this comes from me being home with her all the time. The short amount of time she is away from me she’s usually with Howard, Bob, or my family so when someone new comes onto the scene she is pretty wary. She’ll usually just stay back and watch them. She’ll even be cutsie with them IF they stay at a distance.

Her grandmother has seen to the fact that Mira can name every Winnie the Pooh character with surprising clarity. As a consequence of this, Howard and I can now sing every Winnie the Pooh song word-for-word. Yes, even the newer movies. We have them all. And we have seen them more times than we’d care to admit. Mira can count to three, although three sounds remarkably like FREEEEE. We taught her this after we realized how much she loved having Howard toss her up and down. We’d count off very dramatically, OOne-Twwwwwoooo-THREE! and Howard would propel her into the air. This worked really well for us because now when she watches the space shuttle launch she counts down, and screams “LIFT OFF!” She can name and point to numerous body parts: eyes, nose, ear, hair, toes, cheek, chin, head, and point them out on people and toys with acute accuracy. She used to love hearing me sing the alphabet song while I signed the letters. She used to attempt to mimic my gestures. I suppose the 26 letters might have been a bit too overwhelming for her because now when I start to sing I can’t get past D before she sternly commands me to stop. “NO, NO, NOOO”, with a vigorous shaking of her head as if to say WOMAN! DO YOU KNOW HOW COMPLICATED THIS IS- DAMN IT I’M ONLY 18 MONTHS OLD. So I’m backing off that lesson for right now.

Mira’s is rapidly growing into– well Mira. Her idiosyncrasies and quirks are becoming more and more apparent. She is OBSESSED with fruit. All shapes and forms- fresh, dried, canned, frozen- I’m sure she’ll become the Bubba Gump of Fruit. Mira is a product of her tropical environment and HATES having shoes and socks on. She accepts the fact that we need them when we are going out, but the moment we get indoors she sticks her feet in your face and whines, “SHHHHOOEEESS”. Occasionally, just to be mean I’ll take the shoes off and leave the socks on because I derive amusement in seeing her angrily pull on those irksome cotton contraptions. She yanks at them in utter torment. When they do come off she sticks her newly freed sweaty feet in my face and blows through her lips. This is her signal to cool off her feet. Her father got her hooked on this little trick; he started it when she was quite young. He would take off her socks and blow big bursts of air through her toes. She loves it and to this day demands the special treatment. I blessed by having a toddler that actually enjoys going to bed at night. In fact, we have always been fairly lucky with Mira sleeping through the night. I hope {insert pray} that she continues to be an easy sleeper. When 8:00 rolls around either Howard or I will ask her if she is tired. She will shake her head yes and immediately, if he isn’t currently in hand, look for her Puppy. When she has him, she’ll make her rounds around the living room kissing and saying good night. Then I pick her up, snuggle her into me as we walk to her crib and just like that- she’s in bed.

So as you can see it’s an amazing time. A busy time. With all the hectic running, jumping, and climbing everywhere it’s easy to forget to slow down and appreciate the moment. But sometimes the moment grabs you and slaps you in your face with its beautiful and natural simplicity. Like when Howard, Mira, and I lay in bed and watch TV. (Winne the Pooh- what else could it be!) I can’t help but meditate on Mira while she’s calmly sucking her thumb and gripping her Puppy’s tail. I’m caught by the simple rise and fall of her chest, or the quiet clicky noise of her thumb in her mouth, or the little giggles she utters when Rabbit gets bounced by Tigger. It’s truly incredible to think Howard and I have created her- or maybe a more accurate statement would be that we have given her a blank canvas and she paints in the details as she grows. She is a staggering work of art.

That’s it.  My portrait of a lady.