Transferred from my other blog: The Adventures of Sisterhood.
First published: 4-30-12 at 11:32 PM EDT
A hummingbird can beat it's wings up to 600 times per minute. A
mosquito beats it's wings between 300 and 600 times per second.
Mosquitoes fly at 1 to 1.5 miles per hour and beat their wings in
synchronization with their lovers. Personally, I also consider them the
biggest pests on the planet.
When I get bitten by
mosquitoes, the bite will swell to the size of that bone on the outside
of my wrist. My wrists are pretty skinny, so that bone sticks out quite a
bit. Kylie currently has two mosquito bites on her face as well as a
scab from one she most likely had a mild allergic reaction to on her
leg. Mosquitoes have been deemed by my family as the worst of pests,
worse than large flies, worse than the mice that live in our crawlspace
and visit once in a while, worse than roaches and termites. At least,
these sentiments are shared by my mother, myself, and surely Kylie.
Mosquitoes
are the deadliest animals on earth. This isn't exclusively to humans;
mosquitoes can carry a huge number of viruses, some of which are more
harmful to animals like your dog and cat than yourself. They all require
water to breed. Want to kill mosquitoes? Suck the moisture out of your
house and wait 5 to 6 months, the lifespan of an average adult mosquito.
In
the nature camp I attended 5 or 6 years ago, they required us to have
DEET containing bug spray. An adventure club I was a part of in middle
school also did. So what exactly is DEET? DEET doesn't actually kill the
bugs. It doesn't even work well for every kind of mosquito. But DEET is
safe to use on skin and clothes. It stands for N,N-Diethyl-meta-Toluamide,
and even after decades of research, scientists are still unsure of how
DEET works. It's assumed that they impair the insects' ability to detect
life. Mosquitoes are able to sense carbon dioxide (that we output) from
75 feet away.
Despite their
bad eyesight, other senses are sharp. Sense of smell is one of them, and
mosquitoes use it well to their advantage. It's probably not as simple
as using the awful sent to cover the scent of carbon dioxide, but
something along those lines makes your number of mosquito bites decrease
exponentially. I don't know, perhaps its as effective as claimed
perhaps not. I, however, like to spray Kylie's surroundings and my
clothes when going out summer evenings. I don't like to spray it
directly on her because of her more sensitive toddler skin. Off! smells
awful, but it's far more attractive than huge red bug bites.
-Chichi
Monday, April 30, 2012
Monday, April 23, 2012
Progess Report
Transferred from my other blog: The Adventures of Sisterhood.
First published: 4-23-12 at 9:15 PM EDT
This post is going to be short. Kylie turned 18 months old on the 22nd of this month, which was Sunday. When I was this old 13 years ago, I was on a plane to America with my mom. I was about to meet my dad for the first time since I was 7 months old. Of course, I don't remember any of this, but we watched a video of me from a few days before moving then. Kylie pointed at the screen and said "baby" in Chinese every time she saw me, and even recognized my mom from 1999. I thought it was about time to make a list of <i>everything</i> she knows how to say while it's still compilable.
Words she can say in Chinese:
- Mom, dad, sissy, grandma, Kylie
- Car
- Bird
- Meat
- Corn
- Wash
- Dry
- Hold/Give me
- Horse
- Dog
- Duck
- Pen/pencil/writing utensil
- Eat
- Shoes
- Thank you
- Socks
- Nose
- Baby/Doll
Words she can say in English:
- Hi
- Byebye
- Kylie
- Chichi
- Daddy
- Dog
- Duck
- A, B, C, D (can almost read them!)
- Uh-oh
- No (accompanied by vigorous head-shaking)
- Truck
- Bus
- Beep beep
- Names of some of her classmates at daycare
- Ball
- Sit
- Shoe
- Nose (Nose-y, actually)
- Baby
I'm sure I'm missing things. She knows so much already. She understand far more, but can't put it all to words. She can say some more things just by copying our sounds, but she doesn't know what they mean. In the house, our family has had to start being careful about what we say around her, because currently, her favorite word is N-O. We try not to say N-O out loud because it just reminds her of how much she enjoys shaking her head like a maniac and saying no.
-Chichi
First published: 4-23-12 at 9:15 PM EDT
This post is going to be short. Kylie turned 18 months old on the 22nd of this month, which was Sunday. When I was this old 13 years ago, I was on a plane to America with my mom. I was about to meet my dad for the first time since I was 7 months old. Of course, I don't remember any of this, but we watched a video of me from a few days before moving then. Kylie pointed at the screen and said "baby" in Chinese every time she saw me, and even recognized my mom from 1999. I thought it was about time to make a list of <i>everything</i> she knows how to say while it's still compilable.
Words she can say in Chinese:
- Mom, dad, sissy, grandma, Kylie
- Car
- Bird
- Meat
- Corn
- Wash
- Dry
- Hold/Give me
- Horse
- Dog
- Duck
- Pen/pencil/writing utensil
- Eat
- Shoes
- Thank you
- Socks
- Nose
- Baby/Doll
Words she can say in English:
- Hi
- Byebye
- Kylie
- Chichi
- Daddy
- Dog
- Duck
- A, B, C, D (can almost read them!)
- Uh-oh
- No (accompanied by vigorous head-shaking)
- Truck
- Bus
- Beep beep
- Names of some of her classmates at daycare
- Ball
- Sit
- Shoe
- Nose (Nose-y, actually)
- Baby
I'm sure I'm missing things. She knows so much already. She understand far more, but can't put it all to words. She can say some more things just by copying our sounds, but she doesn't know what they mean. In the house, our family has had to start being careful about what we say around her, because currently, her favorite word is N-O. We try not to say N-O out loud because it just reminds her of how much she enjoys shaking her head like a maniac and saying no.
-Chichi
Monday, April 16, 2012
Heat Wave
Transferred from my other blog: The Adventures of Sisterhood.
First published: 4-16-12 at 11:05 PM EDT
Here in North Carolina, really in all of Bible Belt America, it's been heating up. The last 3 days have been some of the hottest days we've had all year. My little sister, recovering from yet another ear infection, has not been happy.
Today's entry is about the in-between. Everyone knows and hates the in-between, when it's still pollen-y outside, air full of allergens, yet the sun is beating on our backs and torturing us with 90 degree weather, and mosquitoes start sneaking into the house. Neighborhood pools aren't yet open (though I don't think ours even has a pool). Here in the south, droughts have been recurring for the past few years, so no beautiful sprinklers either. What is there to do when the blithering sun is languishing even the most energetic of us?
My family and I took my little sister to the playground near our house a couple of times this weekend. Before it's too dark and too much of bug territory, we sneak a few hours in the sun. But those few hours have to be before noon or around 3 or 4. They must be oh-so-precisely timed or we'll be stuck in the heat on the walk back. Once we get to the playground, the slide is hot, the swing sets are as well.
In fact, everywhere is hot. Today, I struggled and winced my way into opening a doorknob to get into the studio at which I take music lessons. Kylie's car seat buckles, black colored plastic, is hot to the touch while buckling. I'm honestly surprised that she hasn't protested because of it, yet. The worst thing about all of this is that the worse has yet to come. Summer's not even begun, and we're already suffocating under the sun.
On another note, our grandmother arrived from China last Thursday. She'll be spending 6 months with us, primarily to help care for Kylie. She cared for Kylie between Kylie's 2 months and 8 months old, but Kylie's pretty much just re-met her. One of the shiest babies' I know, it took her less than 2 days to completely warm up to our grandmother. ♥
-Chichi
First published: 4-16-12 at 11:05 PM EDT
Here in North Carolina, really in all of Bible Belt America, it's been heating up. The last 3 days have been some of the hottest days we've had all year. My little sister, recovering from yet another ear infection, has not been happy.
Today's entry is about the in-between. Everyone knows and hates the in-between, when it's still pollen-y outside, air full of allergens, yet the sun is beating on our backs and torturing us with 90 degree weather, and mosquitoes start sneaking into the house. Neighborhood pools aren't yet open (though I don't think ours even has a pool). Here in the south, droughts have been recurring for the past few years, so no beautiful sprinklers either. What is there to do when the blithering sun is languishing even the most energetic of us?
My family and I took my little sister to the playground near our house a couple of times this weekend. Before it's too dark and too much of bug territory, we sneak a few hours in the sun. But those few hours have to be before noon or around 3 or 4. They must be oh-so-precisely timed or we'll be stuck in the heat on the walk back. Once we get to the playground, the slide is hot, the swing sets are as well.
In fact, everywhere is hot. Today, I struggled and winced my way into opening a doorknob to get into the studio at which I take music lessons. Kylie's car seat buckles, black colored plastic, is hot to the touch while buckling. I'm honestly surprised that she hasn't protested because of it, yet. The worst thing about all of this is that the worse has yet to come. Summer's not even begun, and we're already suffocating under the sun.
On another note, our grandmother arrived from China last Thursday. She'll be spending 6 months with us, primarily to help care for Kylie. She cared for Kylie between Kylie's 2 months and 8 months old, but Kylie's pretty much just re-met her. One of the shiest babies' I know, it took her less than 2 days to completely warm up to our grandmother. ♥
-Chichi
Monday, April 9, 2012
Being A Good Influence
Transferred from my other blog: The Adventures of Sisterhood.
First published: 4-9-12 at 10:27 PM EDT
I have a friend who has a little sister also. A while ago, we had the following exchange:
Me:
Your sister is freaking adorable. Be a good influence :)
Him:So I taught her how to open a safe without getting caught today.
He said this as sarcastically as he could in an IM (at least, I'd hope it was sarcasm), but this reminded me of an issue that should have some light shone on it. How much can you do around a babbling, wordless younger sibling without being a bad influence? And how much does what you do really influence your sibling at all?
When I understood absolutely nothing about how life and the world worked, even less than I do now, I looked up to my parents. I watched them, observed, asked questions, learned, picked things up subconsciously, etc. As parents, they had the ability to pretty much control everything I did and all the habits I have now. Between always remembering to turn off the lights when I leave the room and putting my dirty dish in the sink after dinner, good habits are the things that remain clearest and most automatic.
As Kylie is growing up, I'm going to strive to prevent myself from accidentally teaching her bad habits or letting her pick up on my bad habits. From baby habits to big kid habits like speaking before you think, I've done all the bad stuff and corrected most of it. No yelling or screaming or loud noises in the house, no complimenting her or encouraging it when she makes such noises, and never say swear words. As a high school student, I obviously have potty-mouthed friends. Whatever happens, they will not be the ones teaching my baby sister foul language. I think she'll have the power to resist it as a habit even once she does get to that age. I have faith in her.
More recently than the first exchange, another question came up between the two of us. "Where do you get your moral compass?" I'm a very non-religious person. In fact, I avoid religion almost at all costs. My family is not affiliated with any religions either. I, personally, am an advocate for LGBT rights, and would categorize myself as one who bases her ideas off of proof and science, not divine intervention. Freethinker. However, with a childhood education that sprouted in a college town in the Deep South, Christian influence was extremely prevalent until I was about eight. From ages eight to thirteen, last summer, we lived in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia that had up to 6 churches on a major street. Where we live now, where Kylie is going to grow up, I've only counted 3 churches in the area total. Of course, my parents were stronger navigators of the moral compass than the community around us, it probably would be beneficial to have the extra reinforcement of the common sense kind of right or wrong within the community.
-Chichi
First published: 4-9-12 at 10:27 PM EDT
I have a friend who has a little sister also. A while ago, we had the following exchange:
Me:
Your sister is freaking adorable. Be a good influence :)
Him:So I taught her how to open a safe without getting caught today.
And she almost has the word "[expletive]" down.
I'm so proud of her.
He said this as sarcastically as he could in an IM (at least, I'd hope it was sarcasm), but this reminded me of an issue that should have some light shone on it. How much can you do around a babbling, wordless younger sibling without being a bad influence? And how much does what you do really influence your sibling at all?
When I understood absolutely nothing about how life and the world worked, even less than I do now, I looked up to my parents. I watched them, observed, asked questions, learned, picked things up subconsciously, etc. As parents, they had the ability to pretty much control everything I did and all the habits I have now. Between always remembering to turn off the lights when I leave the room and putting my dirty dish in the sink after dinner, good habits are the things that remain clearest and most automatic.
As Kylie is growing up, I'm going to strive to prevent myself from accidentally teaching her bad habits or letting her pick up on my bad habits. From baby habits to big kid habits like speaking before you think, I've done all the bad stuff and corrected most of it. No yelling or screaming or loud noises in the house, no complimenting her or encouraging it when she makes such noises, and never say swear words. As a high school student, I obviously have potty-mouthed friends. Whatever happens, they will not be the ones teaching my baby sister foul language. I think she'll have the power to resist it as a habit even once she does get to that age. I have faith in her.
More recently than the first exchange, another question came up between the two of us. "Where do you get your moral compass?" I'm a very non-religious person. In fact, I avoid religion almost at all costs. My family is not affiliated with any religions either. I, personally, am an advocate for LGBT rights, and would categorize myself as one who bases her ideas off of proof and science, not divine intervention. Freethinker. However, with a childhood education that sprouted in a college town in the Deep South, Christian influence was extremely prevalent until I was about eight. From ages eight to thirteen, last summer, we lived in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia that had up to 6 churches on a major street. Where we live now, where Kylie is going to grow up, I've only counted 3 churches in the area total. Of course, my parents were stronger navigators of the moral compass than the community around us, it probably would be beneficial to have the extra reinforcement of the common sense kind of right or wrong within the community.
-Chichi
Monday, April 2, 2012
The Polka-Dotted Raincoat
Transferred from my other blog: The Adventures of Sisterhood.
First published: 4-2-12 at 10:39 PM EDT
This past weekend, our family was grocery shopping. At Target, my mom and I browse the baby section, like we do on every trip. We decide that Kylie needs some new little outfit, like we do nearly every week. This time, it was some raincoats that caught our eyes. After choosing, we narrowed it down to two: a pink on with white polka dots or a classic but cute solid yellow one. We couldn't decide ourselves, so I went over to where Kylie was playing with one of those shopping carts that have the fun little area for kids in the front.
First, we asked her which one she liked better, as always. She didn't really pay much attention, so I dressed her in the pink one. We saw her in it, and as I started to take it off, she resisted just a bit. Then we put the yellow one on her. My mom and I agreed that the yellow one would be easier to match with pants, demonstrated quite obviously by the fact that the polka dots clashed with her cheetah print pants. We took it off of her, put it in the shopping cart, and started taking the other one back. The whole time, though, Kylie had been eyeing and grabbing at the pink one.
At this point, Kylie is starting to fidget a lot more. She chased after mommy and clawed the air for the pink one. Laughing, my mom took the two and held them both at Kylie's eye level. I held her back until my mom had them even. When I let her go, she flew straight for the pink coat and practically tackle-hugged it. She carried it back to me and made the motion that asked me to put it on her. Take account of the fact that the day was very hot, and the rest of us were sweating in our short-sleeved shirts.
At the cash register, Kylie still refused to take off her new raincoat. The little fashionista finally relented when we left the protection of AC inside the building for the egg frying heat of the sun. When I was a toddler, I never chose my own clothes out shopping. Even now, shopping isn't something I enjoy. Kylie, however, has made it very clear very early on that we will not be the ones choosing her outfits in the future.
This is the jacket (much cuter in person, though)
-Chichi
First published: 4-2-12 at 10:39 PM EDT
This past weekend, our family was grocery shopping. At Target, my mom and I browse the baby section, like we do on every trip. We decide that Kylie needs some new little outfit, like we do nearly every week. This time, it was some raincoats that caught our eyes. After choosing, we narrowed it down to two: a pink on with white polka dots or a classic but cute solid yellow one. We couldn't decide ourselves, so I went over to where Kylie was playing with one of those shopping carts that have the fun little area for kids in the front.
First, we asked her which one she liked better, as always. She didn't really pay much attention, so I dressed her in the pink one. We saw her in it, and as I started to take it off, she resisted just a bit. Then we put the yellow one on her. My mom and I agreed that the yellow one would be easier to match with pants, demonstrated quite obviously by the fact that the polka dots clashed with her cheetah print pants. We took it off of her, put it in the shopping cart, and started taking the other one back. The whole time, though, Kylie had been eyeing and grabbing at the pink one.
At this point, Kylie is starting to fidget a lot more. She chased after mommy and clawed the air for the pink one. Laughing, my mom took the two and held them both at Kylie's eye level. I held her back until my mom had them even. When I let her go, she flew straight for the pink coat and practically tackle-hugged it. She carried it back to me and made the motion that asked me to put it on her. Take account of the fact that the day was very hot, and the rest of us were sweating in our short-sleeved shirts.
At the cash register, Kylie still refused to take off her new raincoat. The little fashionista finally relented when we left the protection of AC inside the building for the egg frying heat of the sun. When I was a toddler, I never chose my own clothes out shopping. Even now, shopping isn't something I enjoy. Kylie, however, has made it very clear very early on that we will not be the ones choosing her outfits in the future.
This is the jacket (much cuter in person, though)
-Chichi
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