Conversations with Anya

A bilingual household means a bilingual kid! I'll try to translate most of the conversations but sometimes its not that easy. Hope you’ll excuse that :)

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After Bilal explained to her that we shouldn't call anyone batameez (literally, ill-mannered, in Urdu) and that its not a good word.

Anya listens carefully: Phir kis baat peh batameez kehte hain, batao. (Then when can I say batameez tell me)

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In the car one day 

Anya: Baba, say snowman.

Bilal: Snowman

Anya: Good job. See AP ne seekh liya hai snowman kaise kehte hain. (See you have learned how to say Snowman.)

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I took her to an open house for an indoor play gym, where they had a character with a big head called Buddy that would show up on the screens around and the kids would run towards it. Anya kept calling it Body as I tried to explain to her how buddy meant a friend and that’s why it was called that.

Till Anya told me: Uss ka body hee nahi hai iss liye uss ka naam body hai. (He doesn’t have a body, that’s why his name is body).

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Anya asked about something and if Starbucks had it or not and Bilal told her they may have it.

Anya: Might kehte hain, they MIGHT have it. (You got to say might, they MIGHT have it)

Bilal and I: OMG. 

This came wayyyyy sooner than we expected. And then I prepared this whole lecture on how our English might be different for her sometimes because we were more used to the British version, but how its perfectly fine too! Lecture to use at a later time of course! :p

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Anya, scared one night: Monsters mere room mei fire lagaye ga (Monsters will put a fire in my room)

Me: Yeh kahan dekha apne?? Monsters aren’t real and Allah mian dekh rahe hain, He wont let monster do anything. (Where did you hear that?? Monsters aren’t real and Allah is watching, He wont let them do anything)

Anya, after thinking a little: Allah mian apne laptop mei dekh rahe hain? (Is Allah watching on His laptop?) 

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Anya loves the Frozen song of course like every other kid, except she thinks the song is Merry Go. I know! And determined that she is, she won’t hear otherwise.

Telling me loudly over the song playing in our car, Anya: See, uss ne merry go kaha tha uss ne L-E-T I-T G-O nahi kaha tha. (See, she said merry go, she did not say L-E-T I-T G-O)

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Anya: Baba, do you know why I love you?

Bilal, feeling all loved: Why?

Anya: I don’t know.

Bilal: !

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Anya jumping around me as I opened a package, and I scolded her because it would break like that.

Anya: Mama jab bhi mei school se aati hoon ap mujhe daantna shuru kar deti ho. (Mama, everytime I come from school, you start scolding me)

Me: ?!

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Anya, telling me at bedtime one night: Why are you being so grumpy?

Yes I am very loving for the first five minutes at her bedtime, after that I AM totally grumpy. Hmph!

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Thoughtful in the car: Mama jab mei big ho keh baba banoongi, to meri bhi daari nikle gee? (Mama, when I get big and become like daddy, will I get a beard too?)

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At home she mostly talks in English and I constantly have to remind her to use Urdu, at school or random places, of course she chooses Urdu. My poor baby is still learning!

Anya excitedly to random girl in library sitting next to her on the computers station: Apko pata hai mere pass bhi yehi show hai!! (Do you know, I have the same show at home)

Random girl, smiles blankly!

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At dinner table today.. after saying Nooo to everything i offered her to eat…

Anya: Mama mujhse kha-raa nahi ja-ra, mujhse pee-ra nahi ja-ra

Me: Mera dimagh khaya ja raha hai?

Anya: Yes!

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Frustrated with her hair clip one day, Anya: Itna fazool sa clip hai yeh

Me, in my head: that is totally how I talk!!

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More posts in this series here.

Thanks for reading, and lots of love.