• Kaizen
  • We talked about declining, surviving, and thriving when it comes to our household.
  • I re-hemmed the curtains. They're a little better now, although still not perfectly straight.
• Us
  • I updated my investment records and did some analysis. I'm starting to feel more comfortable with using Pandas than with firing up Calc for pivot tables. :)
  • I sewed reusable produce bags from 17×20″ gauze pieces.
  • I added elastic to the waist of the peasant dress I made for A-, so now it doesn't feel too big.
  • I felt so sleepy because of a bad cold and interrupted sleep. “Now it's time for our traditional Christmas nap,” I declared. And wonder of wonders, A- actually joined in, even though it took her a little while to settle down. It felt great getting a bit more sleep.
• Sensory
  • A- enjoyed catching medium-sized bubbles that W- blew. After I finished cleaning up the kitchen, we went outside to play with giant bubbles. A- was very amused by how W- kicked some of the bubbles.
  • We had fun figuring out how to blow bubbles within bubbles.
• Art
  • We painted a small Christmas tree. I painted the outline, and A- and I filled it in. We also glued paper ornaments on.
• Self-care and independence
  • A- was very proud of how she figured out how to deflate and inflate a beach ball.
  • We're slowly practising having me step away and check in on A- from time to time. She was okay for the first few rounds of 5-10 minutes being away, cried the next two rounds of 10-15 minutes, and now seems to be patiently playing with Duplo. I'm getting sleepy, but I'll check in with her a few times more.
  • A- asked to practise me going away and coming back.
  • I checked on A- because she had a hard time going to sleep. After I settled her down with hugs at 1-minute, 2-minute, and 5-minute intervals, I sat beside her to say goodnight. She patted me and said, “Go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep.”
• Eating
  • A- was curious about the cheese samples at the grocery store. She also proudly bought her own chocolate with her allowance.
  • W- made lamb korma. A- liked it.
• Sleep
  • We had a rough night in terms of sleep, since A- got a bit handsy. I think it might be time for me to stop co-sleeping.
  • More work on sleeping on her own. We've been experimenting with my going to sleep early while W- deals with her tantrums. The first night, she tired herself out crying, accepted some comfort from W-, and slept until 7. It was glorious! The second night, she was inconsolable at 3 AM. W- tried to settle her down, but reached his limit. I tagged in and worked on helping her wait quietly in bed (and also have the sense to be under a blanket).
• Emotion
  • I got so tired and cranky that I had to ask W- to take over while I slept. He helped A- settle down. He thinks part of this might be boundary-testing, since she's also a bit pushy with him.
  • A- was upset about sleeping on her own. “The room is so empty,” she cried.
  • A- woke up in the middle of the night and cried. When I checked on her, she said, “I just want company.”
  • One of A-‘s aunts gave A- a Blume doll. She was curious about it and wanted to open it right away, but needed a cuddle when she found out it could only “bloom” once. We spent a lot of time reading and rereading the books they gave her, though.
  • The day was a little tough due to some grumpiness about W- throwing things away because he had been grumpy about things on the floor, but W- helped make things right.
• Household
  • Busy cooking day! I made lentil puree, falafel, and lumpiang shanghai. A- tried wrapping lumpia too.
  • Another cooking day! A- and I made bao following the recipe in Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao, and W- made molasses sugar cookies since A- liked them. A- made her own experimental dough.
  • On her own initiative, A- collected the discarded wrapping paper and put them into a large plastic bag as people opened gifts.
• Social
  • “I will send you home with some lumpia.”
  • A- was a bit tired, but she still enjoyed playing with Ana, the babysitter. After Ana left, A- asked why Ana had to go.
  • A- had been talking to me about how she didn't get along with Gung-gung because he kept asking her for snuggles. It was amazing to see her make an effort at the Christmas party, though. A- and I were playing with the kit of origami paper that we'd brought along. She decided to offer him something that she made, which he received with the appropriate gratitude. She asked him to make something for her. He was initially reluctant (probably trying to get her to teach him instead, but that wasn't the game she wanted to play), so we coached him to just make something and give it to her. After a few exchanges, they were now on good enough terms to play patty cake. They did that for a bit, and then A- gave him a hug when I pointed out he was in hugging range. A- continued playing with him throughout the day, and even pulled him over by hand to sit beside her at dinner.
• Pretend
  • A- had fun pretending she had different dials: silly/serious, awake/asleep, roly-poly/floppy, loud/quiet, and so on.
  • A- has been pretending to be A*, to the extended family's amusement. When they asked when she would be A- again, she said, “Maybe when I go through puberty.” She gave the same answer when asked again towards the end of the day.
  • A- wanted to push a button, so I hung a measuring cup from a hook. She pushed it and said, “I requested Mama.”
• Cognition
  • A- completed a 100-piece jigsaw puzzle with some help. Neither W- nor I had been sure about opening the puzzle, but A- was determined to try it, and she was proud of being able to finish it. I helped her figure out where most of the pieces went, and she put the pieces together and figured out a few pieces on her own.
• Other
  • We bought some more red robot fabric. A- wants me to make a dress this time.

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• 2019-12-23 Emacs news

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