Valyamma calls me…

I had done another post recording all the funny and cuddly names our little prince has got so far. This one is dedicated to Sid's vallyamma (my elder sis). Since she is in US and doesn’t get to pamper Sid personally, she does it virtually. The phone calls and the video calls --- Sid simply loves it all. Which kid wouldn’t like all the attention and the love pouring on him!

One day he was playing the pretend game with me; I am his vallyamma and he is himself. So, I was supposed to talk to him and cuddle him just like his vallyamma. The conversation was like:

Sid: Amma vallyamma, unnikuttan unni. (Mumma is vallyamma, Sid is unnikuttan.)

Me: Ok. <I started imitating my sister with a cuddly tone.> Vallyemende unnikuttan evide? … (Where is vallyamma’s unnikuttan?)

Sid: Vallyamma unnni ne unnikuttan alla vilikyaar. (Vallyamma doesn’t call me unnikuttan.)

Me: Pinne endaanu vilikyaaru? (What does she call you then?) <I couldn’t remember what exactly she used to call him.>

Sid: Vere endoooo aanu vilikyaaru. (Something else.) <He was thinking so hard.>

Me: Endaanu? Amma ippol endaanu parayendadu? <What else? What should I call you now?)

Sid: Shonnakatta paranjo. (Ok, call me shonnakatta.)

Me: Ok. Vallyamende shonnakatta evide? Shonnakatta endaanu chaiyenne? Vallyamma avide vannutte unninde pinnale oodeetu, unni ne ingane pidichittu, oru kadi angattu tarum to… <and so on> (Where’s Vallyamma’s shonnakatta? What is my cutie doing? When I come there, I will run behind you, catch hold of you, and will eat you up.)

So, the pretend-and-cuddle game was over. He started playing with his toys and I went to the kitchen and started cooking something. After almost 10 minutes or so, he came running to me in the kitchen and said, “Amme, Vallyamma enne ‘Unnani’ aanu vilikyaaru. Shonnakatta ammamma aanu vilikyaare.” (Mumma, Vallyamma calls me ‘Unnani’. Ammamma is the one who calls me shonnakatta.)

That was definitely an awwww moment for me. So, all this while he must have been thinking at the back of his head what does vallyamma call me. My little kid is definitely growing. I hugged him tightly, pretended to be his vallyamma once again, without being asked, and repeated the same sentence with the replacement “unnani”. And then I realized that I totally love the way she calls Sid.

He was now satisfied with this pretend-and-cuddle game and proceeded to play with his toys whole-heartedly, or should I say, whole-headedly.