Oh say can you say?

New pictures (play dough magic, making soup, changing baby's diaper)

What a winter it's been! After never ending open houses, we finally found our new home. Sammy came to the inspection and gave us her seal of approval by taking a nice long nap in the new house. More about the house later. What I really wanted to write about is that our kiddo is talking. She's been saying so many new words that I want to capture them all before I forget what they were. Some of them require a translation from Samanthese to English.

English words:

• "Mantha" -- Samantha
• "Biyaba, biyaba, biya-biyaba" -- Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way
• "Wizi" -- Kiwi
• "Kaka" -- cracker
• "Ea" - eat
• "Abaka" -- Aquaphore
• Apple
• Cheese
• Pasta
• Eyes, Ears, Nose, Mouth, Teeth
• Shoes, Hat
• Tree
• Snow (pronounced as "no")
• Water
• Paccy
• Me too!

Russian words:

• "Dulya" -- Dedulya (Grandpa), also used to refer to Grandma
• "Baba" -- Babushka (Grandma)
• Apelsin -- Orange
• Nozh -- Knife
• Oblako -- Cloud
• Kukla -- Doll
• Peet' - Drink
• Voda -- Water
• Palka -- stick
• Krug, romb, oval -- Circle, diamond, oval

We've been playing with play dough and painting a lot too.

Great Grandfather Borya

Dear Samantha,

I am writing this from San Francisco. Your Great Grandfather, Boruch Grinberg (I used to call him Dedushka Borya) passed away. You never got to meet him, so I wanted to tell you about this great man.

The thing I remember the most about Dedushka Borya is his smile. In fact, I don't recall ever seeing him without it. He could see humor in every situation. How else could one go through World War II, get an education while bringing up 2 children, move to the other part of the world in his seventies, and stay in a difficult marriage without losing his dignity?

Another thing I remember so well about Dedushka Borya is his camera. The first one he got as a teenager was the one he made himself. Just like his smile, it was almost another part of his body -- completely inseparable from him. Dedushka had a bottomless curiosity about the world. He wanted to take everything apart and understand how things worked. He saw beauty everywhere he went and wanted to commit it all to memory with his camera.

Your Great Grandpa loved to travel as close as the other part of his city and as far as the other part of the world. If you could get there by foot, he walked. I spent the summer with him and Grandma in Lvov when I was 11. He gave me a map of the city and told me to go exploring. Every morning I set out on a new expedition. Maybe that's how I got the walking bug; maybe it's genes. I thank him for it every time I get somewhere on my own two feet. Transporting yourself with your own body is one of the biggest joys of being alive. Who knows -- you might be a great walker one day. At your ripe age of 19 months, you refuse to sit in the stroller and walked 1/4 mile the other day.

Last and most important thing I want to tell you about your Great Grandpa -- he saw the good in every person, and loved unconditionally. He taught me that life is not a game of settling scores. It's an opportunity to see the humanity in others. He thought of himself as a rich man because he had so much to give. He did so for 92 years, till his last day.

Even though the two of you have never met, he thought about you since the day you were born, and loved you very much. Part of him is in you, in me, and in everyone his life touched.

Love you very much,

-Mommy

Christmas 2008

December 2008 and Christmas pictures are up. Here are the highlights.

I helped decorate the tree.

Santa came to Ms. Sophie's and brought me a tea set. Want some tea?

Tea party with Mr. Bear

Babulya's strudel

Musical cards are fun! Thank you Grandma Louise.

Grandma sent me a stroller with a baby doll. Being Mommy is fun. I get to feed the baby, take the baby on walks, get the baby dressed, and even check for poopies.

Look what Daddy gave Mommy for Christmas! I like playing the piano too and I can say Bach.

Accessorizing

What do you think of this bag with these jammies? I don't think they really go together.

I think it's time for a little shopping. Ta-ta, Mommy and Daddy.

I am off to Bloomingdale's.

Walking

Look, Ma -- no hands!

We've been making a few little steps here and there before, but on October 11, 2008, we made whole 9 steps all by ourselves on the playground.

We are now officially on the move.

We also LOVE to talk on the phone. We see Mommy and Daddy doing it all the time, and now that we tried it, we see how easy it is. You just pick up whatever is near you (a computer mouse or even a fridge magnet will do fine) and talk into it. See! Start the conversation with "ha-ya." Never fails to make Mommy and Daddy stop whatever they are doing and to talk to you.

First steps with Babulya i Dedulya

Babulya i Dedulya came to visit in the end of September. We went to the playground and made our first few steps.

Picnic and the beach

New pictures are finally up.

We went on a picnic to Decordova Museum with Zia Gaia and Zio Jerome around Labor Day.

We also went to the Cape (Wellfleet) and saw the ocean for the first time. It was way more water than in the bath tub!