Kid-less (so this post is all about my kids)

News flash: I’m in Hawaii!  That’s right—Sevak and I are here in Waikiki celebrating our fifth wedding anniversary.  As soon as I got on the airplane I was already missing my babies!  I can do this; I can do this…right?  Sevak’s parents will be watching the kids until Saturday evening.  We’ve been prepping Rose for a few days now and I think she’ll be okay, because “going to Hawaii” is now synonymous with “bringing back a seashell bracelet.”  Simon, on the other hand, has not yet grasped the concept of delayed gratification, so any promise of a future prize doesn’t really hold any weight.  I’m also worried that he’ll throw clothing-related tantrums right and left.  He’s a pants-free kind of guy, and unfortunately, the weather hasn’t been conducive to nakedness lately.  I have a special way of negotiating with/tricking/bribing him to wear clothes, and I’m afraid my in-laws have not yet mastered that intricate art.  As we left this morning, I explained to him that he was to wear pants when his friend’s mommy picked him up for Music Makers, and of course he refused.  However, like I said, he doesn’t really understand the “future,” so hopefully he’ll come to grips eventually.

I’m slightly nervous that there will be some communication issues with the language barrier, but I know the kids are in good hands.  And Rose is a good translator.  The other day I caught her teaching her tatik colors.  And her papik is a great reader, so I know she'll be able to have all her reading wishes fulfilled.

 

Pretty much the most endearing image I’ve captured in a long time.  I have a video, too, because you just gotta hear Tatul’s beautiful Armenian accent.  And check out Simon's face!  How can you not love him to pieces?

And, if language is ever an issue, I know for sure that Rose and her tatik have one lingua franca—food.  Some of their best interactions occur in the kitchen.  Our family has really enjoyed the delicious concoctions that Ofik cooks up.  I think her food is so yummy because she’s not only skilled, but she cooks with love.  When she visited after Rose’s birth, she showed me how to make gata.  It’s a time intensive process, but there was one really sweet step I will never forget—after putting the trays in the oven, my mother-in-law prayed for good results.  You just can’t beat food that’s prepared with a prayer.

 

Beautiful homemade matnakash

So anyway, Rose is definitely on her way to culinary greatness.  She has a little play kitchen in the corner of her room, and let me tell you—no one enters without a personal invitation.  The area is literally barricaded off with chairs and stools.  A few weeks ago I went in there to try and clean things up, and I noticed that she had little trinkets hidden in pots, plates full of rocks in the fridge, stuffed animals nestled under the table, etc.  I probably should have known better, but I tried to organize things and I ended up throwing the rocks outside.  Poor little Rose was beside herself, and I could totally relate—how could I have gone into a woman’s kitchen and rearranged everything?  Heaven knows how riled up I get when someone puts one of my Tupperware in the wrong cupboard.  I tried to help her put everything back in “order” and allowed her to gather some new rocks from the front planter. 

She is such a cutie, and she’s such a good big sister.  The other day I realized how deep Rose’s love for Simon is because, get this—she actually let him in her kitchen.  That’s right—her whiny, naked little brother was granted admission into this most sacred of territories.  I know he’ll be just fine these four days with Rose watching out for him.