C turns 22 months on Sunday, which doesn’t mean anything except that we’re two months away from measuring her age in years, not months. Of course, there will be half-years, and maybe even quarter-years, once she gets in on the game.

Here are some C tidbits for the grandparents, aunties, and so on.

1. Yesterday was G-mommy’s birthday. We called and sang to her, and C chimed in with “[dear] G-mommy” at the right time.

2. She remains healthy. Thank God. That makes one significant illness in the last… since she’s been alive. Granted it was a month-long extravaganza of cold, RSV, ear infection, etc., but she has been healthy as a horse since then. [knocking on wood]

3. Apparently she can count from 1 to 10 in Spanish. She also knows her colors (in English) and can identify several letters. Thank you Cookie Monster and the Letter of the Day. Also thanks to ABC Cookies from Trader Joe's.

4. I heard her singing the Barney song this morning, which means they must watch it at day care. I’m not crazy about Barney at day care, but at the same time, the place is clearly kept scrupulously clean (see #2), and she is thriving (see #3), so you pick your battles.

5. One of her favorite games is "Where'd C go?" She will stand behind us as we wonder where she is.
We'll look up: "Is she up on the ceiling?"
C: Noooo... (the irony of her answering is lost on her)
We'll look down: "Is she down on the floor?"
C: Noooo... (you get the idea)
Eventually she emerges from behind our back, mouth open in mock surprise, so pleased that she has stumped her gullible parents once again.

Other favorite games include basketball--with the old Houston Astros batting helmet on. (The helmet is a key component to many games.)

6. She is adoring Christmas. The decorations! The ladybug ornament! The decorative tins that stack into a delightful tower! The lights! The demand for more lights Mommy! The inflatable yard decorations (santa claus! snowman! nutcracker!)! She got a snowman stamp on her foot at the Little Gym this morning and was quite proud of it. Wait 'til she encounters the real thing.

7. Speaking of the Little Gym, the semester ends in January, and we have decided to mix it up a little bit, and doing Kindermusik as our next mommy-daughter activity. (It’s also much cheaper.) We took her to a trial class the other day, and oh.my.God. You would have thought she’d been there her whole life. She got a little bashful during the dancing, but she sang, played instruments, and generally had a splendid time, pretending to be a butterfly, making animal sounds, you name it. There’s also a really lovely closing ritual where they put on slow instrumental music, during which you can cuddle and sway to the music and just generally end on a quiet, sweet note. The child has not been that cuddly outside of bedtime in months. And to cinch the deal, they give the kids stamps at the end of each class. We’re sold.