They say that time flies when you’re having fun. It feels like it was only yesterday that Nitara came into our lives, and she is 2 years old already.
Time really does fly and children grow up fast but that happens at the level of weeks, months and years. At the same time, hours of a day slow down considerably. It is a tedious routine to bring up a child. Day after day, night after night, it can be a constant struggle to get things right. Wake up, change her diapers, give her milk, then breakfast, lunch and dinner. Take her out for walks whenever she desires, whatever the weather might be. Keep an eye on the child all the time and make sure she is not doing anything dangerous. Right now she is sitting under the glass coffee table, the very next she has climbed onto the changing table and looks ready to jump. One moment she is scribbling with colors in her book, the next she is headed for decorating the walls. Forget about watching TV because she will want to see her cartoons instead. Spend hours making her eat her meal, hoping she doesn’t land a blow on her plate sending everything flying around. And when it’s finally time for you to eat, she wants a bite too. Or try putting her off to sleep because you’re really tired and she would turn around in the bed for hours narrating where her head, shoulders, knees and toes are.
Between her first birthday and the second, she has obviously learnt to do so much more. On her first birthday, Nitara was attemping to walk but now, she is already running around, kicking football all around our house, jumping and stomping her feet just like in Peppa Pig.
And yes, Peppa Pig is the newest member in our lives. So is her little brother George, Suzy Sheep, Miss Babbit (Rabbit), Danny Dog and Mr. Bull (If you have no idea what I am saying, watch Peppa Pig cartoons). And thanks to this cartoon, Nitara knows the sounds various animals make. Just ask her
Sometimes I wonder how much does a child really understand at a certain age and the answer always surprises me: They barely understand anything, but a bit more than we realize. She goes to a Swedish language day care whereas we speak Hindi at home. But she hasn’t started to talk in either yet. But just the other day, the door bell rang and she turned towards it and spoke in English: “What’s that noise?”
So yes, kids don’t really learn things the way we expect them to, but in their little brains the wheels keep turning and they keep learning stuff and show us their talents when we least expect them to. Such as when she first saw a gift wrapped in fancy paper and without any instigation, tore into it shouting:
“APPY BUDAY! APPY BUDAY! APPY BUDAY!”
Pee Poop Burp 