Niranjana, Melissa and Andy

Every time I looked up from washing dishes, the ribbon that Niranjana was absentmindedly playing with was in her mouth ... or her nose. Having already dealt with one afternoon meltdown, I simply didn't have the energy to be the enforcer on something that wasn't really hurting her. It's just something she knows that she's not supposed to do.

"Niranjana, that doesn't go in your mouth. How many times do I need to tell you?" I asked, in an exasperated mom voice.

"Four," she replied with the hint of a twinkle in her eye.

"And how many times have I told you?" I queried, now mildly amused.

Preschool finished up a unit on presidents this week, complete with Warhol-like crayon drawings of John F. Kennedy and George Washington. But the best part was the list on the board of each child's answer to "If I were president, I would ...."

- Niranjana: Give presents. (yep, that's our material girl)

- Several children had "give free money" or "give money to poor people."

- C. said "give people cars that don't speed."

- Miss B. wanted "free college tuition."

- I. would "bake everyone cupcakes."

"Ken, Cate and I are going to have a holiday tomorrow," Niranjana said on the way home from preschool today.

"What are you going to do on your holiday?" I asked.

"We're going to taste wine," Niranjana declared. Ahem, she must be planning for a holiday in 2025....

Perhaps she'll wear the T-shirt that Andy gave her for Christmas: "Future Wine Snob." Guess that's what you get when your dad is a wine journalist and judge.

Niranjana is really not that difficult of a name, frankly, compared with other Indian names — even with the other "Indian" names, like Sacajawea and Pocohontas. Sure, there is a minor pronunciation surprise with the neh-RIN-jin-ah, and few loved ones are still mastering this.

But learning to spell Niranjana shouldn't be THAT hard. Really, it's only five out of the 26 letters. And there are lots of children at our preschool with unique names. Ajia, Edy, Azat, Majia. I have blogged about this before.

Niranjana is in a dinosaur mood these days. It started when we watched Disney's Fantasia. Well, parts of Fantasia. Over and over.

Set to classical music, the herbivores are all placidly munching plants when suddenly a T-Rex appears. They run away. But the stegosaurus is the slowest. He puts up a decent fight, but ultimately loses to the T-Rex. Not gross, but it is scary. Lightening, sharp teeth gnashing, etc.

After watching this several times over the course of a few days, Niranjana declares sincerely, "I'm not scared of it any more."

Apologies for the time lapse between blogs. We had some significant technical difficulties with our home computer. Plus there was the birthday party aftermath, out-of-town visitors, chemo treatment for Andy, very busy days at work for Melissa..... At any rate, the computer issue is resolved so we'll be getting back into blogging.

"Excuse me, excuse me," the tiny voice called to the bakery worker. Niranjana was peeking around the counter at the grocery store, trying to get the baker's attention. "We need Jasmine cupcakes for my school."

The big day is rapidly approaching: Niranjana's 5th birthday. It has started to feel like maybe, just maybe, I am going a bit overboard.

Then again, it's the first real birthday party she's ever had. Last year was a small group of family and friends in our home. It was fun and special, with Indian take-out and cupcakes. But this year, it's an actual party. We're going to a local gymnastics center for an hour of play followed by a light lunch and cake.

"Brother made a Frosty the snowman who doesn't melt."

"Brother lives on the top of that hill."

"Brother wasn't a good listener today, let's call Santa and tell him."

Yes, Niranjana has a brother — well, an imaginary friend whose name is Brother. There is no way we would ever know if Niranjana has a biological brother. But this brother is part of our family. His birthday is exactly one year off of hers. Once I asked for Brother's name and was told "Cousin." The other day, his name was "Morris." But really, his name is Brother.

I don't consider myself to be an overly indulgent mother. I truly don't think we are completely spoiling Niranjana. But there are a few things that I've said recently that surprised even me.

1. "If you don't stop asking for chocolate, there will be no more M&Ms or fruit snacks in the car. You'll have to eat [Quaker Oats] breakfast cookies."