Katrina insisted on being walked out to the car today, and Melissa kindly obliged her. Earlier in the day, Melissa walked her out also, but had to pick her up at one point, and the screaming that ensued had Melissa worried that neighbors would come running! Just as she was telling me about that, it was time to pick Katrina up to put her in the car, and Melissa's neighbors got a repeat.
Seriously, you'd think we were torturing the child for all the fuss she puts up, except that it's angry screaming, not sad or fearful. I know this is a theme I keep pounding in, but it's pretty hard not to think of "demanding SCREECH" when I think of Katrina.
Actually, she's really not crawling much anymore. She still doesn't walk much unsupported either, which doesn't leave her with a whole lot of choiced! She either pushes something in front of her, cruises on walls or furniture, shrieks for assistance, or, in a pinch, gets down on all fours briefly.
Tonight she was pushing a footstool around and was actually running behind it -- not just faster than walking, but clearly a different gait. Didn't anyone tell her that you can't run before you walk?
(At least one of us is running around here. My calves, arches, spots under my anklebones, and every obscure connecting tissue I never knew I had below my knees are all telling me loud and clear to stop everything. I went swimming this morning, and I'm even having doubts about that. What is going on here?!)
We did the Big Reveal tonight! The boys got to see the new piano. It was an even bigger hit than I expected -- all three launched right into a huge fight over it. Gabriel wasted no time getting started, immediately translating his songs from the little piano (whose keys are marked) to the "real" piano. Julian got a turn, and Gabriel was counting minutes until his turn again.
Dave showed him how to play Mary Had A Little Lamb with more than one finger, and it wasn't long before he was playing it smoothly and quickly -- and very, very, VERY proud of himself. You'd think we'd just put him in Oz or something, the way he's acting about this new world of piano playing. I should know better by now than to ever underestimate Gabriel, but he's surprising both of us with his drive and gripping interest. Julian also loves it, but in his calmer and more childlike, playful way.
Katrina....oh my. Well, I could just cut-and-paste from tens of other posts, but I'll have to say it again: she FLIPPED when she saw the piano. Like with the tricycle, her whole body shook as she screamed and waggled every limb madly for it. She was desperate to play on it, and she did get a turn, but the brouhahah picked right back up again when we had to pry her away to give her impatient brothers a turn.
Gabriel's Bonne Maman is visiting next week, and he can't wait to show her what he can play. He asked me today if she can play a really long song without making a mistake, and I smiled at the question as I know she's smiling reading this. I told him that every piano player makes mistakes sometimes, but yes, absolutely, she can play long songs without making mistakes. "Oh!" he said excitedly, "I wonder if she can play chords!" He was beside himself when I told him that not only can she play chords, but she can play them with both hands! (My mother is a skilled pianist who takes lessons and performs and plays for hours every day and even has her own piano studio. So yes, she can play chords.)
Oh my, is Bonne Maman going to have a great time showing her fascinated grandsons how to play. And there's a long precedent for that. (Photo from August 2004, when Julian was 7 months old and Gabriel was 2-1/2.)
Welcome to our world, piano!
1/23/08
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