Art is now a close second to Austen’s favorite activity of singing – she creatively changes lyrics and even tunes. She likes painting the most but also does doodling with a doodle pro; drawing with crayons, markers, chalk, pens, and highlighters; gluing; tearing paper; molding play dough; applying stickers and using her ever-growing stamp collection. The effect of art class is profound. Austen frequently offers to draw a picture of Mama, Dada, the kitties or some object and she also manages the occasional letter (usually an “A”). Mama hopes Austen has great handwriting and speedy writing ability – areas where Mama was below average. Ask about Austen’s amazing drawing of the fireplace.
Austen joins Mama every day during bathroom time, washing up with soap but mostly playing with the water in “her sink” (aka Dada’s sink). Austen insists on “up and down!” when she wants to have the water stopper pulled up to keep water pooled in the sink. She recently put some soap in her mouth, but we doubt she’ll do that again. Mama tries not to waste too much water and also tries to remind Austen to push up her sleeves in order not to get wet, but mostly Mama remembers what her mom did and just lets Austen experiment and figure things out for herself. Mama thinks this helped contribute to her own interest and success in science as a kid. Shopping with Mama (or Mommy, as Lucinda now wants to be called) is a regular activity for Austen. She’s much better at it now that she’s older. She doesn’t run off so much anymore and will walk around following Mama’s lead for about a half an hour. She’s not crazy about riding in the cart (control issues – she wants to be in control of her body) but she does do some riding when tired or when snacking. Mostly, Austen likes to explore and grab things … like her mother! Once in a while, Mama gets some scrapbooking supplies picked out, or some groceries shopped for, but mostly Mom and Austen explore the area malls and stores. Unfortunately for Dada, this means we’ll soon have another shopping enthusiast in the family. Yeah, it might be better to be in Manhattan for its stores and restaurants, but Middlesex County, NJ is definitely more kid friendly and the places are easily accessible with a toddler in tow. As of now, Austen doesn’t use a stroller anymore. As an infant, Austen screamed a lot when strapped into her car seat. Now she enjoys listening/singing to music and watching videos in the car – not to mention snacking. Mama enjoys the fifteen to twenty minutes of relative quiet when she can tune out and gear up for the next activity. Thus, Mama and Austen go out every day, be it just for lunch at Jack Cooper’s Deli or a walk around the mall. Activities such as Music Class, Art Class, Gym Class and play dates also lead to daily driving excursions. Austen’s longer-term memory of nonrecurring events has also improved. She recalls closing herself in the coat closet with the lights off a week ago and reminds Mama, “I got stuck in the closet. Dark in there. It’s scary.” After being unpredictable as an infant, Austen is now loyal to her weekly schedule. Monday is Art Class, Weekends are with Dada in charge, My Gym is followed by avocado and tortilla at Tinga. She’s quite committed to making things happen according to her expectations and can get upset by major shifts in the way things are “supposed” to be done. She’s experiencing the common set-in-her-ways-ness of toddlers. Austen have lived up to her role as Mama’s “’lil sunshine.” So much laughing and smiling, and regular hugs and kisses. She’s great at energizing people.