I'm trying to teach Uma the difference between calendar and colander. It's not going all that well. I imagine she thinks, "you're just saying the same word twice!"

Labels: words

posted by Ketan @ 7/31/2006 07:35:00 AM   0 comments

Uma is an Astros fan. Or so we are meant to believe.

posted by Ketan @ 7/30/2006 07:23:00 AM   1 comments

Sometimes, Uma has food stuck to her face.

posted by Ketan @ 7/29/2006 09:41:00 AM   0 comments

Uma admires Grandma's exotic artifact. It goes ding.

posted by Ketan @ 7/28/2006 09:38:00 AM   0 comments

Uma is a very serious girl who does not ever mug for the camera.


OK, maybe not.

posted by Ketan @ 7/27/2006 08:49:00 AM   0 comments

Uma now reliably calls me "Daddy" or "Da da." I have a name! I have a name!!!

Labels: words

posted by Ketan @ 7/26/2006 09:39:00 AM   0 comments

Uma helps prune back the shrubs.

posted by Ketan @ 7/25/2006 08:21:00 AM   0 comments

Uma the adventurer.

posted by Ketan @ 7/24/2006 08:48:00 AM   0 comments

Uma doesn't go anywhere without her trusty chapeau and tape roll.

posted by Ketan @ 7/23/2006 06:33:00 AM   0 comments

Mmmm.... shoe.

posted by Ketan @ 7/22/2006 08:40:00 AM   0 comments

Before. Uma says, "before? Before what? What's going to happen to meeeeeeeeeeeee!?!??"


After.


Uma absorbs the change.

posted by Ketan @ 7/21/2006 08:30:00 AM   1 comments

Sweet: Today Uma and I were sitting next to each other on the floor drinking water. Uma was curious about my glass, so I let her take a sip from it. Uma reciprocated by offering me her sippy cup. At first I declined, but she wouldn't take no for an answer. She kept thrusting her cup at me and wasn't satisifed until I had taken three sips from it. The girl likes to share.

Icky: Earlier this week Uma helped me pot a basil plant. She scooped up handfuls of potting soil, deposited them in the pot, and helped me pat them down. The next day she was admiring our basil plant. Isn't that cute? I thought. Then she reached into the pot, grabbed a handful of potting soil, and ate it.

Labels: words

posted by Jessica @ 7/20/2006 09:26:00 PM   0 comments

Brown bear likes to tickle Uma.


It's hard to replace the fan in her affections, though.

posted by Ketan @ 7/19/2006 08:19:00 AM   0 comments

Uma had her 15 month checkup this morning. That included 2 shots, poor thing, but the good news is that she doesn't need any more shots until 4 (except we'll get her flu shots every fall). Uma's at about 20 lbs. even, which puts her in the 10th percentile, while her height of 31 inches makes her 75th percentile. Head circumference is 44.5 cm, but I don't recall the percentile on that.

This morning, Uma said "out" to ask me to take her out of her high chair. It turned out she wasn't done yet, but still... She has at least 10 words in her speaking vocabulary and at least 50 that she understands. That's well past the 15 month baseline. Since she can stack blocks, walk, and do some other things, there's no need for her to have an 18 month appointment, so she won't see the doctor until April, when she's two.

Labels: words

posted by Ketan @ 7/18/2006 11:35:00 AM   0 comments

On our walks in the morning, Uma has started imitating barking dogs.

Labels: words

posted by Jessica @ 7/17/2006 02:56:00 PM   0 comments

Uma gets ready for a public appearance with her royal vestments, symbols of rank, and her game face. It is on.

posted by Ketan @ 7/16/2006 08:15:00 AM   0 comments

Cups are often yummier than whar's in them.

posted by Ketan @ 7/15/2006 06:05:00 AM   0 comments

Uma loves the "bye bye." You take her out of her bath and it's "bah bah." When she walks out of the room, it's "bah bah." Wave at her and it's "bah bah."

One of her favorite "bah bahs" is to stand with her hands on your knees. Then you walk backwards. It's like she thinks she's pushing you around the house. You'd best not get stuck in a corner, either, else there will be yelling.

She's a sweet little walker. She doesn't always know where she's going, going back and forth and over and around, but she just has this big grin on her face and this cute little wobbly walk. That's all for now. This is Mommy (#2) saying "bah bah."

Labels: words

posted by Ketan @ 7/14/2006 10:18:00 AM   0 comments

Uma's been saying a number of words, but just once. She's said "elbow," "slip," "up," "bed," and even "Daddy," but only once. Any attempt to get her to repeat it fails. Still, she's said as many words in the last week just once as she has in her regular vocabulary. Looks like all that eating is going straight to growing her brain.

posted by Ketan @ 7/13/2006 09:56:00 AM   0 comments

Playing with Daddy.


Uh oh, what's happening to my hair?


Uma likes making faces.

posted by Ketan @ 7/12/2006 08:35:00 AM   0 comments

OK, I've got all my plans in order... let's roll.

posted by Ketan @ 7/11/2006 09:10:00 AM   0 comments

Uma likes the oatmeal.


Where's my oatmeal! I want more oatmeal!

posted by Ketan @ 7/10/2006 08:42:00 AM   1 comments

Uma wants to show off her teeth.

posted by Ketan @ 7/09/2006 07:57:00 AM   0 comments

Raaaah! Puma attack!

posted by Ketan @ 7/08/2006 07:36:00 AM   1 comments

For a child who has only been walking for a couple of weeks, Uma sure is good at it. Sure, she falls all the time, but she is basically a full-time walker now. She has excellent quads, too, judging by the squats she can do.

She's also learned to say a few more words. Yesterday she started saying "bye-bye," just as I was leaving for work. She says it "bah bah," but it's obvious what she means, and she does a cute high-pitched tilt as she says it. Uma also says "squirrel" as "querr," and said "bed" this morning as "beh." Earlier this week she learned "tube" as "bvoo" and "butterfly" as "bffy." We're trying to teach her to stay away from dirty things by calling them "yucky;" she has great fun responding "yuh yuh" and otherwise ignoring us.

I've stopped trying to keep track of the words she understands; it's at least 50, including body parts, actions, animals, and so forth. We're not having any more luck with signs; she knows to do a particular sign when she hears a particular word, but she doesn't realize she can sign "drink" in order to ask for water. She has "dog" nailed, though.

One thing Uma takes delight in is her little music maker that goes with her high chair (aka the command center). It's stored hanging on the back of the chair well within her reach. She loves to march over to it to get the music going. When it stops, we often hear her "uh oh."

Uma's interpretation of "uh oh" is a little different than what you might expect. She certainly uses it after something undesired happens like the music stopping, dropping something accidentally, or closing a door. However, she also uses it before something happens. How does she know? Well... Yesterday morning, I was holding her shirt up to show her the dinosaur on the front. She grabbed it, said "uh oh," and threw it aside. That same morning, as I was feeding her breakfast, she took a chunk of apple, looked me straight in the eye and said "uh oh," and dropped it down her front.

Speaking of breakfast, she's had an enormous appetite recently. It's tapered off as this week has progressed, but last week Uma was eating a truly prodigious amount. I'm certain some of it has to do with walking so much, but it's likely she's also having a growth spurt. Her standard breakfast was about 1/4 of a Royal Gala apple, at least 1/3 cup cooked oatmeal, and all of the non-crust parts of a piece of toast smeared with hummus. She really, really, really likes that last one, which we call "happy toast." She gets so excited when I bring out the toast and start spreading the hummus. She starts alternately yelling with impatience and shrieking with delight, making her lip-smacking "num num num" noise that she does when she wants food.

We've broadened her diet considerably from what she was getting at the beginning of the year. With the exception of mango, we've exposed Uma to every likely food allergen without issue: soy, nuts, eggs, dairy, wheat, etc. We're still a little cautious giving her new foods, only giving her new foods in the morning or early afternoon. Otherwise, if she has trouble digesting them, she can wake up in the night. Generally, she eats at least a little bit of what we had for dinner the previous night. It's hard to pin down her tastes. She's liked sweet things, sour things, salty things, and spicy things, but she's also disliked things from each of those categories. She even ate (and enjoyed) plain feta cheese. It was a rocky start, but Uma's turning out to be a good little eater. We ourselves had a bit to learn about communication and respecting her wishes.

The new thing in playing is taking things out and putting them back again. It used to be all about throwing things on the floor, but now she also likes to put things back. Uma can go a surprisingly long time putting something on a table, moving it to the floor, putting it on the table, moving it to the floor, et cetera ad infinitum. She likes putting things inside other things, often not where you would expect. As a result, we find blocks and toys in surprising places, and have to carefully sort through the office trash and our laundry hampers. The girl has an agenda. We just don't know what it is.

Labels: words

posted by Ketan @ 7/07/2006 10:11:00 PM   0 comments

Uma's stylin' in an improvised bib.


She's not too keen on it, though.


Maybe it's a hat.


Or maybe it just wasn't meant to be.

posted by Ketan @ 7/06/2006 08:58:00 AM   0 comments

I don't know what's making her happy, but it doesn't really matter.

posted by Ketan @ 7/05/2006 09:20:00 AM   0 comments

Hooray for swimming!


Uma likes her ball.


Eww... what was that!?!?


Sleepy girl going home.

posted by Ketan @ 7/04/2006 08:58:00 AM   0 comments

Uma keeps a sharp eye out for nefarious evil-doers looking to steal her bandages.

posted by Ketan @ 7/03/2006 07:08:00 AM   0 comments

Uma uses her royal scepter to ward off evil.

posted by Ketan @ 7/02/2006 08:45:00 AM   0 comments

So many choices, so little time.


Uma makes her choice.

posted by Ketan @ 7/01/2006 07:55:00 AM   0 comments