Flu-ey

Halloween was fun, but then came the sore throat and the fever (104 to be exact)!
A midnight call to the Dr. on-call confirmed that it might be H1N1 (as most all flu at this time is), and to take it cool. She was very calming and informative on the phone, I needed that.
Its been an abysmal week; Anjali has not been out of the house and the most nagging thing is "Ammi I am bored, tell me what to do".
Sometimes I feel like she is always sick, but then I came across this article by Dr. Green who says kids can't develop an immunity without being sick. He says 8-12 times in the first year and 10-12 in the second and so on... On those accounts I feel better, she's been sick about 5 times this year. But kids sicknesses takes everything out of us parents. Its hard to watch their little bodies try to cope. I dont like to give OTC medications but sometimes we have to. This time I tried a new tea that seems to work well. Its one of my favorite cold symptom relieving brands. While we are sipping the tea, we will dream of warm weather in virus-free beaches.

A Happy Halloween

Another Halloween with its ghoulish allure has come and gone.
The busy week started off with Anjali's schools' annual lantern walk.
As kids walk on an illuminated path at night among trees, teachers passed out hand-made/gathered natural treats. This year the walk ended with a show by awesome fire dancers.
Of-course I made the Dorothy dress from a vintage simplicity pattern. I loved making it and my favorite feature are the satin sleeves. More photos here.
Halloween day was a eventful with a 4 years-old and later a 40 year-old birthday party! Phew... and now its November already.

The Quilt - Its finally done

Its finally done after mother and grandmothers spent hours on it. Its our Apple Blossom Fairy Quilt. As with many inspirations in our household this one started with a book by Cicely Mary Barker, who will always be the queen of flower fairies. The book was a gift from our lovely friend and doula, so it has special significance. The songs (or poems) are beautiful and very English (British). For example the Wild Rose Fairy song goes:

I am the queen whom everybody knows,
I am the English Rose;
As light and free as any Jenny Wren,
As dear to Englishmen;
As joyous as a Robin Redbreast’s tune,
I scent the air of June;
My buds are rosy as a baby’s cheek;
I have one word to speak,
One word which is my secret and my song,
‘Tis “England, England, England” all day long.
It so happened that one of my favorite fabric designers Micheal Miller produced a series with Cicely Mary Barker's illustrations. I couldn't help but launch on a quilt project for Anjali. Thanks to my mother-in-law for helping me finish it . Its just gorgeous!

Bilingual Child

Our efforts to teach Anjali Sinhala was kicked into a higher gear after we picked up this book at Powells (the coolest bookstore in the 48). I learned some new things about teaching another language such as OPOL (One Parent One Language) and to not translate words into English if she cant understand them. The results have been amazing! Its totally rewarding when she says "Ammi harii lassanai..." followed by "Thaththi chuttak lassanai". We are hoping she's got her fathers aptitude for language acquisition. Now we have to keep at it. Its harder for us to remember to speak, than it is for her to learn.

Cousins

I just love this photo of Ranesh and Anjali on July 4th, we keep joking that either one of them can be the POTUS. How cute to watch them grow.

Gentle Giants

Anjali seems to have a green thumb. Here she is with the giant sunflower seeds she sowed. And then they got huge. It was quite something to see these grow; some of the flower centers are over a foot in diameter. I think this is going to be an annual hallmark of summer.

Idyllic Summer Day

Last week we went berry picking on Sauvie Island. It was a fantastic day; we took a tractor ride to the blue and raspberry patch. There is something very satisfying about gathering your own food. Anjali and her friend gorged on as many berries as they could. Then trooped on a 2 mile hike around a lake. I love the combination of kids and the outdoors. Achchi rewarded the kids with a wildflower bouquet at the end of the hike. Yay for summer days!