Land of Milk and Honey

We have our new sunglasses and new headphones all packed, and we're off to see Daddy's family in Israel. You'll hear from us once we've arrived in the land of milk and honey.

Love and vacations,

Zadia Love

Balance Times Day

As Zadia would say, "Happy Balance Times Day!"  We worked very hard on Daddy's present--a sweet, Valentine inspired lunch of heart-shaped peanut butter and banana sandwiches, heart-shaped strawberries, and heart-shaped cookies for dessert. 

And Mommy made out pretty well too. We got her and Daddy a couples massage, during which Zadia specifically requested that Uncle Jude babysit :)

Happy Balance Times Day Mommy and Daddy. We love you.

Love and heart-shaped goodies,

Aiyana Eden (and Zadia Love)

Mommy Dates

It's Valentine's day, and the perfect time to plan dates. Mommy and I trekked through the snow to a family yoga class on Saturday morning. Pushing the stroller through the snow was as much a workout as the class itself. The snow kept everyone else away so Mommy and I enjoyed a private class. We especially enjoyed the hot cocoa and pastries on the way home.

Then today, Mommy dropped me off to school a few minutes early, giving her and Aiyana a little extra time together. It was a chilly morning, but the sun was shining, and Aiyana kept saying, "slide." So off to the playground they went.

It's probably been months since Aiyana's been to the playground, and her skills have definitely improved. Mommy's going to have to keep a close eye on this little one!
 

Love and sweetness, 

 Zadia Love

Kitchen Confidential

Friday was just one of those days. Mommy, Aiyana and I were all tired and cranky, the apartment was a mess, it was rainy outside, and we had a bit of cabin fever again (Aiyana was feverish last week so we avoided our friends.) We were having a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. 

I turned the corner of the kitchen only to see Mommy with a pint of Haagen Dazs ice cream in her hand. As far as I knew, ice cream was a rare treat saved for special occasions, like finishing all my dinner or being on vacation. I said, "Mommy, what is that?" Guiltily, she answered, "Ice cream." 

"Is that your lunch?" I asked.

Mommy admitted, it was indeed her lunch on that gloomy afternoon. Instead of explaining that food shouldn't be eaten out of the container and that sweets are a special treat saved for special occasions, she surprised me by handing the pint over to me and said, "Want a bite?" 

Together, we sat on the kitchen floor, drowned our sorrows in ice cream, and happily finished off the pint. It was a guilty pleasure, and one Mommy isn't exactly trying to make a habit of. But it was also the sweetest solution to an otherwise very bad day.

This day just got a whole lot better.

Mmmmm.

One bite for you, two for me.

Aiyana had little interest in the ice cream.

Pretty sure the pint is empty now.

Oh wait, NOW it's empty!

Love and sweets,

Zadia Love

Little Sisters Unite

Even though I see Ollie at school three times a week, we still try to get together outside of school. I think it's so our mommies can commiserate over their kids' picky eating habits and chronic meltdowns. But I'm not complaining because I love spending time with my Ollie.

And Aiyana loves spending time with Ollie's baby sister, Vivienne.

Now that Vivienne is three months old, she's much more alert and Aiyana and I are much more interested in her. We wanted to make sure she wasn't bored at a big-kid play date, so we brought her all of Aiyana's old baby toys. I don't know why, but she actually didn't play with them. She just sat there looking cute.

Aiyana was very, very interested in adorable little Vivienne.A nd I kept asking Mommy if I could touch and kiss her. Mommy asked me if I would like to have another little baby of my own and I said "Yes. A brother. Because I don't have one of those yet."

Vivienne, you're still so tiny. But this time next year you'll be as big as Aiyana and you'll be able to dress up with us and run around the hallways while screaming at the top of your lungs. We can't wait!

Love and little sisters,

Zadia Love

Robot Designer

There's no limit to the creations I can come up with using my dress-up stuff. 

"I'm a robot designer" (said with a robotic voice while doing my best robot dance.)

Daddy was impressed. He asked where I learned the word "designer." 

"I just got it from my head."

Love and safety goggles,

Zadia Love

Sugar Snap Peas

Every time Mommy opens the fridge, I steal something off the bottom shelves. It's often grape tomatoes (even though I don't like them), but this day I scored some sugar snap peas. I hope Mommy didn't need them because once I was done with them they were full of bite marks and dust bunnies.

It's very difficult to keep food from sliding off the plate. And even more difficult to squat down, pick them up, and then stand up again without them falling off.

It took about five tries, but my persistence paid off! I finally had a plate full of peas.

Mommy suggested I share them with Zadia and Daddy, who were napping together in the next room. Knock, knock, anybody there? (They never did answer the door.) 
Oh well, more for me.

Love and sugar snap peas,

Aiyana Eden

A Voice Of My Own

I'm 15 months old now. I have opinions on hairstyles (this is not one of my favorites.)

I have my own sense of style.

I'm a big girl who can do many of the things my big sister does (or at least try.) 

And I have a strong personality and an even stronger voice.

Isn't it about time I have a voice of my own on this blog?

 Your daily dose of Doron will now include thoughts and words by yours truly.

Love and a daily dose,
Aiyana Eden

Snow: In Two Cities

It snowed while we were in Frankfort a few weeks ago, and then again in Brooklyn the week after. A dusting of snow makes any place look magical.

Footprints in the upstate snow.

Snowballs are great until you get snow up your sleeves.

Argh. Is this supposed to be fun?

The King and the princess of the snow mountain.

The streets of Brooklyn never looked so pretty.

Boy Can This Girl Eat

Aiyana loves to eat, and she can eat more than you'd think. Portion control? No such thing. She wants the option of eating the whole box.

Just tonight she ate one and a half slices of pizza (that's more than twice what her big sister ate), and for lunch she went for a second helping of Mommy's Cincinnati chili with macaroni. And clearly the spiciness didn't bother her one bit.

I guess she needs those calories for all the climbing and walking she does. (She always prefers to walk, but that goes hand-in-hand with Mommy being late.)

Baby Aiyana may have started out tiny, but her impressive appetite means she's doing a lot of growing. She's almost exactly the same size I was at fifteen months (click here to see my stats.) Aiyana is 30.8 inches in height (60th percentile) and weights 21 lbs, 6oz (28th percentile.) She gained nearly three pounds in three months and grew almost two inches taller. 
Oh, and as I like to point out, "Aiyana's belly is big!"

Family Photo Album

A few weeks ago we met Nona and Poppy in upstate NY to spend some time with the great grandparents. It was a mini family reunion.

Mommy also has a bunch of cousins upstate, many of whom have kids of  their own. Here are just a few of the many cousins' kids.