Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Veeka finds the beach


Well, I felt I had to get away last weekend, so at the last minute, I found an inexpensive (and clean and pleasant) B&B in Rehoboth just one-half block from the beach. It was a perfect location and even though Veeka was a tad restless at night (had to crawl into bed with her to help her go to sleep at one point), it was a perfect weekend.
Miss Veeka adored the beach, toddling around to everyone else's blankets and making off with whatever shovels and buckets she could find. Fortunately all the other parents were super pleasant about letting her play with their kids, their toys and even feeding her snacks (she's a real moocher). Which is how she arrived back at my blanket snacking on pretzels or her faced covered with chocolate.
Now the water was not quite her style; at 68 degrees it was a bit cold plus those big waves knocking her down took some getting used to. Where she really shined was at a an open air pops concert at the band shell. She began swaying back and forth and dancing by herself or with a bemused 8-year-old boy standing nearby. Then she'd charge the stage until I'd come running after her. This girl is going to be a mosh pit regular in a few years. But the way she kept time and danced about was amazing; a number of people in the crowd were having the greatest time watching her.
I've been trying to interest her in Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov and Prokofiev (all former countrymen of hers) but instead she tends to gravitate toward music with a beat. Hopefully our little beach princess can get back to the sea and sand at least once more this summer.

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Mother and child


Here's a photo of me taken a few weekends ago by my friend Julie Kay when we were spending the afternoon exploring the Cactoctin mountains near Camp David. That's a pretty place I'd never seen in my 11 years here. Veeka and I are seated in a restaurant in Frederick, a nearby town.
Only news is health stuff; my dad just got a new knee today and the operation went well but now the pain is kicking in. My mom has his room phone number if you want to call. As for me, after numerous tests, it's looking like I had some form of hepatitis last month. Never mind that I had 4 Hep A and B shots in 2006; it's what doctors think was wrong with me. We're still puzzling over many of the symptoms. Fortunately I'm feeling quite well right now although I'm guzzling antibiotics just to make sure whatever-it-was won't come back.

Saturday, June 16, 2007

Veeka and the TV station


I keep on forgetting to take a camera on our outings so I am posting a photo I took several weeks ago when I was a guest on a local TV station. They called me during the one day I was home with a sick Veeka; fortunately she was feeling better when the call came in. I said I'd be glad to appear but...I had a 2-year-old with me and no way to get a babysitter at such short notice. (They called at about 2 p.m. for the 5 pm newscast.) At first they said they had other things to do other than babysit, but 10 minutes later, they called back to say they had a staff member who'd look after Veeka for a few minutes. So I dressed her (and me) up and we went down to News Channel 8. She was very good while I was on the air and she (of course) charmed everyone. Notice the cookie they gave her as a bribe.
There's not a ton of news to report here. Veeka is her usually mischievous self. We attended this lovely picnic today way west of Washington in the countryside where Veeka got to see lots of sheep and dogs and even a horse. At first, she shrieked when she saw the horse but after awhile, she wanted to ride him. Anyone, after a long and productive day, we were riding home when somehow and somewhere, she removed her diaper. Not noticing this, we stopped at Giant right near my home, I of course not noticing she was diaper-less. We had just passed the customer service counter when I noticed this puddle forming under our shopping cart....
And we have some good news for Oma. Today at the picnic, Veeka wandered into a farmhouse where all the food was being set out and discovered a piano. She could not keep herself away from it. She constantly hammered away at the keys. Oma is our family piano player (well, I took a year's worth of lessons many years ago) and folks at the picnic were noticing the Little One's musical acumen. I asked them: What do you expect? The kid sleeps with a harp in her bedroom.

Sunday, June 3, 2007

Rainy June day


It's Sunday; my heavens, what does one do with a toddler on a rainy day?? We perused the puzzles, tried out the new crayons bought yesterday at la Target, played hillybilly kiddie music, even played the soundtrack from "Carousel" and did some tumbling. Mommy ironed and made some tapioca - yum yum - of which Veeka downed 2 servings. Now she is FINALLY napping and Mommy is tired.
Yesterday, fortunately, it was sunny, which is why we're showing Veeka here dressed up in a very colorful rainbow play outfit sent her by Robbie in Los Angeles. And another friend, Amy, snapped the photo while she and Veeka were on an outing in the park. Lots of crumbs on the Little One's face.
Nothing new here to report; I am feeling better after my mysterious ailments of the past few weeks. I am now back to work on my book, after being very sick during the hottest, sunniest May since I moved here. This week might get kind of interesting; rumors abound of big budget cuts and layoffs at my workplace. So far, my newspaper has dodged that bullet, but apparently there's a reckoning in the offing.