Snipets

Irini walks up to Natalia. "Do you have a baby in there?" she asks Natalia, pointing at her tummy. Natalia replies "no" with a smile. Irini looks back up at her and says "I want another baby". Natalia asks what she would like (meaning a little brother or a sister), to which Irini replies, without hesitation, "I want a bah bah black sheep".

Amalia is being put to bed. She knows that daddy won't take her out of the cot, so she's given up trying to get out. But as she sits there, working on her vocals, she realizes that the kissing sound is gettin a smiley response. She sends kisses. She gets some back. Slowly she stands up, pulling herself up using the side railings. She lifts her head ever so slowly above the level of the top, as if revealing her face for the first time, she sends daddy a kiss. He responds with a barrage of kisses. She falls back to the bed, head on pillow, body stretched out, a broad smile on her face.

Irini now runs to see us when we get home, and sings new songs and plays 'Duck, Duck, Goose' with everyone in the house. It doesn't matter where you are, in what position (standing, sitting, crawling) or where (bathroom, living room, swimming pool) you are bound to, at some point, feel that pat on your head and a beautiful little voice announcing "duck", or "goose". Adorable.

Amalia wants to dance. She wakes up and gets on daddy's chest. He holds her hands so as not to fall. She balances as she stands up, and then rocks back and forth, and finally picks up her feet in quick succession. Is it sprinting? Is it dancing? No matter. It brings giggles to her face.

Irini comes home with artwork that resembles things now. The faces are clear. The smiles are obvious. The nose, artistic.

Amalia has learned to say things. She says "mama" with gusto when she wakes up and no one is there to greet her to a new day. She says "this" when she shows us something. And she says "no". Oh, boy, does she ever say "no". With conviction. No questions asked. We know what she means.