We’ve been back in the States for 2+ months. The Montessori preschool we’d lined up for Taavi has been tremendous for him, and therefore for us. We chose it knowing, since it’s also a kindergarten, that we’d have the option to continue there for another year. We’ll be exercising that option — not because we’re committed to choosing Montessori every chance we get, but because we have a chance now to defer pushing Taavi through yet another transition (he’s had more than his share over the last two years) and instead let him stay longer in a place that feels safe and fulfilling. He needs that, at this juncture, more than just about anything else. Finias has been through a lot, too, though it’s harder to say how he’s been affected.
Finias has more and more to say, in more and more tones of voice, including “I don’t know the pink one either”, by which he means some of what you or I would expect it to mean. He continues to be a champion copyist. With Taavi, everything he observed would show up in some later synthesis. (Still does.) With Finias, you can see how he’s watching carefully and then you’ll hear him say it back. He’s a very good pronouncer. The speech-copying and pronouncing process is being accelerated by a German-speaking babysitter who joined us a few weeks ago and has been helping out in the mornings. Taavi has quickly regained the comfort to express himself freely and beautifully in German. Finias’s newest words, in keeping with his longstanding interest in lights and doors and buttons, are “aufmachen” and “zumachen”.
If it sounds like my life is all about the kids, that’s because it has been, for almost half a year now. I miss having time and space to work — there’s barely even been any progress on my usual open source side projects, and my meetups haven’t happened at all — but it feels very special, while it lasts, to be able to play such a full role in what’s happening for our family. It’s what we’ve been needing as we’ve navigated the move back from Germany, getting to all the various appointments, following all the lines of inquiry, trying to hold ourselves a little more gently through our parenting challenges and opportunities, taking every chance we can to cuddle each other, and preparing for the next big transition we’ll be going through together. Any day now.
We’re grateful to be back in the place we chose to be our home. We’d already been sure it was the right place. Being here, getting settled, we’re sure all over again.
What’s this?
It’s a
/now page.
nownownow.com
is a directory of people with /now pages.
I’m listed there.