Congratulations Uncle Daniel and Tia Eli

Talya shouts to the whole world with great happiness that her Uncle Daniel asked Tia Elizabeth to marry him and she said YES. Boy, he is one lucky guy!

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!

This marriage proposal was one of a kind, involving a mysterious helicopter-kidnapping, a meandering cruise in a classy Miata, a mind-bogglingly cold, wet, and wave-crashing kayak ride to a deserted romantic island, candles, roses, sushi, and wine, and a midnight surprise party...perhaps most unbelievable of all, they're planning to get married over Labor Day weekend-and that's of THIS year! My mama tried to tell them that I'm not quite old enough to be a flower girl yet, but I am trying to learn to run, so I will hopefully have that perfected in the next couple of months. Watch out.

(This picture represents the foreshadowing moment of this week's proposal: a bouquet and garter caught at Uncle Drew and Aunty Rachel's wedding last summer)

First Word

OK, so they've always had a special connection...at least Talya has been trying her whole life to figure out a way to be connected to Xana's tail and ears, in particular...but really, her first word?! Aren't babies supposed to be more excited about their moms and pops? In the midst of baby madness the past few months, while we've been trying unsuccessfuly to find a more hospitable home for XanaKatt, Talya has become intensely and irrevocably attached to Xana. This of course now makes separating them a possibly unforgivable sin.

Here is how "gata" (cat) has come to be confirmed as Talya's first word:

Since I often speak to Talya in Spanish, I usually say "Gata" (female cat) or "Gata, Xana" in reference to Xana. This past week, Talya consistently exclaimed "Ah-Tah" or "Dah-Tah" whenever she saw Xana. I still wasn't sure if "Gata" was really her first intentional and intelligible word until today when we visited a friend who had a dog. When she saw the fuzzy, four-legged Border Collie (a perfect example of infant assimilation of a related concept into her existing schema of friendly, furry types), she excitedly pointed to it, saying "Ah-tah" and "Dah-tah".

Indeed, we are overdue for our first trip to the petting zoo where Talya will get to see lots and lots of "Ah-Tah's!" I can hardly wait.

(by the way, the pictures of Talya listening to Xana tell jokes on the futon are from last Fall, maybe at 2 1/2 or 3 months old...who knows, maybe she was sitting there smiling at the thought of learning how to say "gata" way back then...)

Avocado Cute

So, one question is whether the leftover avocado smeared on my cheeks takes away from or adds to my charm in these flower-and-grass-eating pictures. The other question is whether it's worth the risk of my ingesting flowers and grass (Daddy says NO-IT-COULD-BE-POISONOUS! and Mama says OF-COURSE-IT's-WORTH-IT!--and she's right!!!!) to let me explore my new crawling skills outside and look cute for these pictures. And, I say thanks to Aunty Tracy for having such a nice yard for me to enjoy.

Peru Travelogue V: The Sacred Valley

Above the Sacred Valley, near Cuzco, on a beautiful clear day.

Peru Travelogue IV: Planes, Trains, & Automobiles...and the Montreal Convention

A Lan Peru jet framed by the dramatic mountains around Arequipa, Peru's second largest city. Speaking of planes, it pays to know your passengers' rights under the Montreal Convention when something wrong happens, or as the case may be with us, something gets stolen from checked baggage. An Aeromexico employee stole a cell phone and camera cable from one of our checked bags while we transited through Mexico City (I know, I know, wrong idea to check valuables, but it was inadvertent). Usually it's hard to prove theft, but in this case, the person used our phone and left a record of calls (all international roaming, very expensive), internet usage and text messaging in Mexico. We just filed a complaint and claim with the airline with documentary evidence and asserted our right under the Montreal Convention to recover the replacement cost of the stolen equipment. The Convention preempts individual airlines' contract of carriage that may state they are not liable for valuables in checked bags under their responsibility (they are--but proving the theft is another matter). If all else fails, take the airline to small claims court. They hate this as they have to show up to defend the claim, it wastes administrative resources, and its usually cheaper to pay the claim than to defend it. Let's see how this saga develops.

Peru Travelogue III: Amigos de Talya

Talya seems to be the baby who never met a stranger. Among the many new friends she made on this trip, she wants to introduce a few to you.









Here she is enjoying a time of chit-chat in the back of the jet with her favorite Aeromexico flight attendant, catching up on the latest security policies with armed Peruvian policemen (dutifully guarding Colca Canyon at the time),
and touring the back of a small mountain restaurant with a new friendly waiter friend.

Of course, her favorite new acquaintances are always the ones closest to her size. She especially loved the fuzzy hat of this 8 month-old cuzqueno boy,

the colorful clothes of the little girl who lives on a floating island on Lake Titicaca,

and the excitement and energy of the MANY CHILDREN (there are over 11,000 total, but Talya didn't get to meet them all) who participate in the feeding and discipleship program of

Siloe del Peru.

The greatest highlight of all of her new friends was clearly the soft and snuggly ten day-old Alpaca in the mountains she met between Arequipa and Colca (she met this Alpaca on the day she bravely traveled to an altitude of 16,000 ft.). If only you could have heard Talya's squeaks of bliss when she met Annie Alpaca!

Peru Travelogue II: Machu Picchu

Okay, everyone goes to Peru for Machu Picchu, so we'd be remiss if we didn't post some pictures from there. More than obligatory--it is a phenomenal place with a scale that no photo can do justice to. Talya can also claim a diaper change in the ruins.

Peru Travelogue I: Xanacita Update

Xanacita ran away at a market on Day 2 of our trip. It turns out that her closest feline ancestors were Andean in heritage and she apparently wanted desperately to be reunited with her roots. Talya (missing her dearly, of course) insisted that we search high and low for her. Our search took us especially high (16,000 ft.) when we drove from Arequipa to Colca Canyon, when we searched the floating islands of Lake Titicaca, and when we combed through Cuzco, Machu Pichu, and the Sacred Valley. Unfortunately (or perhaps, fortunately for Xanacita who is now celebrating her ancestry) we did not find her. Here are a couple of shots of her last memories with Talya.

Talya and Xanacita

Aunty Karen and Uncle Scott gave Talya a kitty beanie baby. We named her Xanacita ("little Xana"). Now they're quite inseparable and heaven forbid we don't bring Xanacita with us to Peru. The real Xana, incidentally, snuck her way into the luggage like she has an idea we are taking a trip without her. We'll try to post from Peru.

Talya and Linda Blair

This picture somehow reminded me of the scene in "The Exorcist" where Linda Blair pukes up. Must be the green stuff (avocado). This particular breakfast was memorable.

Talya and Mei Xing

Aunty Ariel gave Talya a custom made doll named Mei Xing (her Chinese name meaning beautiful faith). Talya sleeps with Mei Xing every night, and hopes to have beautiful dreadlocks like her someday.