22 October 2013 - Little Hero from Mom's Womb to Dad's Arms!

               I had been getting contractions since last 2-3 weeks and every time I wondered if today is going to be our lucky day to see you. There were a few days the pain was so regular that I even thought "today IS THE day!" But that didn't happen until our scheduled induction today. Our doctor Kristie Moss had thought of inducing labor to me this morning at 6 am. Yesterday we had an appointment with the doctor along with an ultrasound. Doctor checked and said that I was still 3cm dilated and on 22nd at 6 am she is going to induce pain to me. Because as per the ultrasound your weight is 5 pound and 10 ounces. That is below 10 percentile and doctor had to keep a close check on me to see if you are getting proper blood supply and to see if the growth has stopped because of any reason. After the check-up, doctor even said that I might even go into labor on my own even before tomorrow morning. 

               So that did happen. After coming home from the visit on 21 October 2013, I started getting very regular pain and the intensity was much more than the previous contractions. We slept at 10.30 pm, keeping everything ready for the next morning's hospital trip. I had a doubt about getting any sleep out of excitement. Today is going to be the last day we are going to have only one kid. Tomorrow it will be two!

             It was at 12.10 am, I started getting contractions every 5 minutes apart. I didn't want to immediately wake your dad up and trouble him. So waited for another 30 minutes to see if it is true. After 12.40 am, I had to wake him up and he asked me to wait for some more time. I even had a doubt of my water breaking. Meanwhile, your sister who was sleeping in the living room with granny started crying for "amma" and granny had to bring her in and put her next to me. I tried putting her back to sleep as your dad started getting ready. The intensity of every contraction was increasing and your sister was not going back to sleep. She must have got to know that her parents are going to leave her at home and go to hospital as soon as she falls asleep. She was now crying louder and was not willing to take her hand off my "karimaNi". I took off the chain and gave it in her hand. She tried to stick the  "karimaNi" back to my neck and cried even more. We waited for some more time, but when the fear of delivering you right there increased, we had to let her cry and get ready to hospital. Your dad put her in her cradle, tied the belt and started rocking her as I was getting ready. We waited till she fell asleep and immediately left home with the hospital bag. Your granny and sister stayed at home.

               It was 1.10 am and we had to enter the hospital through the emergency block as it was mid night. I was made to sit in a wheel chair and we were taken to the labor and delivery block through some other way. We were then admitted to the hospital and given a labor room. My nurse was Bethany. She checked if I was going to deliver right away, I was not. She attached cords on my belly to monitor your heartbeat and my contractions. After the check-up she called our doctor and told us that she will induce pain at 5 am. By then I was getting contractions once in every 2 and half minutes. Bethany pricked my hand and inserted the electrolyte tube. Your dad took out the tablet as there was hospital wi-fi available and I kept looking at your heartbeat and my contraction monitor.

               It was at 5 am when the pain was induced to me through the drips. And at 6 am, doctor came and broke the water bag. There after the pain was even more intense and it was becoming unbearable. Doctor had told me to ask for the epidural when I reach that point and I asked for it. The specialist came in at 7 am and gave me epidural. Your dad was sent to another room during the epidural. It took 15 minutes to do that. Later the lower part of my body started to feel numb and the pain faded away. I was happy and now I could smile and pose for the photos. I was asked to inform the nurse if I felt the urge to push you. At 7 am, the nurse changed from night shift to day shift and once again my new nurse's name was Bethany! Later nurse noticed that your heart rate was dipping and she was worried if you are getting enough oxygen as you had started moving down. She fixed an oxygen mask to my face and I had to breathe through that there after. 

After an hour when the nurse checked, I had dilated 6 cm. And at 9.10 am, I felt the urge to push you. Your dad had gone home to have his breakfast and to inform granny what was happening. The nurse came in to check and she said you were right there and I just had to push. But I was not allowed to do so, as the doctor was yet to reach and so was your dad. She dialed and gave me the phone to ask your dad to come immediately from home and she soon called the doctor. Your dad was about to leave home when I called him and reached within 10 minutes. But doctor still had to come from the clinic. My urge to push you was growing and then to stop it for a bit I was asked to press a button, which was somewhere connected to my body and that slowed down the urge to some extent. I had to wait for the doctor, but you were not willing to wait. 

               The bed was arranged for me to deliver, lower part of the bed was removed and a different part was attached favorable to deliver. Hospital pediatrician came in with 2 more nurses and someone to help me in cleaning. All were ready and it was at 9.25 or so when the doctor came rushing in. That's when I was asked to push. Doctor checked and said that you are going to be out in just a few minutes. Your dad was eager to see you as well. I was asked if I wanted the doctor to put you on my chest as soon as you come out. But I preferred to hug you only after they check you and clean you up. It was not that I wasn't eager to give you a big hug, but I was just scared. I wanted to first make sure that you are fine. With the next contraction, I was told to push you. With every contraction there after, I was supposed to take a deep breath and push for 10 seconds and once again a deep breath and 10 seconds' push and repeat it for the third time and then wait for the next contraction to do that again. That was what I had done with your sister too. With her, I had taken several such contractions and pushes to help her come out. But this time, you were right there and my job was done much easier! You yourself had done most of my work and it took me only one contraction with 3 hard pushes and I heard the loud cry of a tiny darling baby! 

               All said "aww.....!" looking at you and all seemed happy and smiling. I looked at your dad and he had a broad smile on his face, he said "congratulations" to me without letting his voice out. He was rushing towards us to see you. He brought his camera which was kept ready from some time and you were taken to your check-up bed. It was just a few steps away from me and I could still see you from my bed. Your dad was busy clicking photos and all the nurses were around you as the doctor was pulling out my placenta. I could not give much attention to myself nor what doctor was doing, she was busy stitching me and the nurse was cleaning me. All were doing something with me, but I could not take my eyes off from that tiny bed and the crying baby in it. I felt relaxed when they said that the baby is absolutely fine, they cleaned you up and then brought you to me. You weighed 5 pounds and 7 ounces and were 17 inches long. Your dad was also there, he held you and I could see him being extremely gentle. It looked like he was holding a priceless gem! 

               Later once everything was settled and cleaned, all went out except my nurse Bethany. She was very sweet and here is her picture.

We were now waiting for them to provide us a private room and that took a little while. The nurse started the breast feeding lessons practically once you were brought in from the nursery after all your check-ups. You were doing good and we were happy. You got the hang of feeding too. After making sure that you are fine, your dad left to home to bring your sister and granny. When he was gone home, you were with me for an hour and then you were taken to the nursery for a detailed check-up for two hours. Meanwhile, they shifted me to a private room and I was asked to order food. I ate my veggie burger and drank some fruit juice, slept for a while and after I woke up, your sister and granny came from home with your dad. We were eager to to see your sister's reaction as well. They both saw you for the first time.

               Your sister kept staring at you and she neither cried nor seemed happy. She was just wondering who the new person was. She finally said "baaaaabyyy"! She was amazed to see you though she has seen other babies earlier, her reaction now was little different as she saw you with me now. And we kept telling her that you are our baby. She had cried earlier seeing your granny carry Anika baby and even when she saw me carrying Anika baby. But now when we carried you, she did not cry, but she kept staring at you all the time. Every now and then she peeped at your bassinet. It looked like she has somehow come to know that you are going to be with us here after and you are ours too! 

               You sister was bored at the hospital after a while, they had come here after her morning's nap. She didn't find toys at the hospital other than the few toys I had brought to the hospital in my packed hospital bag for her to play with. She was not allowed to roam around much on the floor too. That's why she was soon bored. The place was also new to her. Your dad and granny took her out for walks and unexpectedly, she crossed another new milestone of hers on the same beautiful day you came to earth. She took her first independent steps at the hospital and this was the same place she saw the world for the first time too. She walked a lot and had a smile of achievement on her face and kept walking a lot. She might have got to know that this is the time to be a little independent as her mom is going to be a little busy with the new one in the family. I am trying to give her equal attention as well as I don't want her to feel left out and get angry on you. As of now she has taken your entry quite well as she did not cry looking at you nor when we carried you. That was a good way of your sister welcoming you, much more than what we expected. I am letting her sit on my lap and roll on me. Here after, I can't really bother much about my pain or rest because all the time I get has to be divided between you both. 

               Your sister tried to touch your hand after some time and then she tried to pull your hand to ask you to come and play with her. But we couldn't let her pull you as even a gentle pull might hurt the just born! She spoke a few words in her language to you, we are not sure if you understood. We didn't, because we have forgotten the language she spoke. Your granny, dad and sister then went home to have their lunch. They took some time to eat, your sister and dad had little naps too and then came back to the hospital with granny. I ordered my food at the hospital.
               Once again your sister kept walking around in the hospital and staring at you. Your dad, granny and I enjoyed carrying and looking at the new, yet familiar, precious tiny member of the house. Later at night we had a video chat with both your grandparents, they were all too happy to see you. Already people were asking who you resemble whether dad or mom. We couldn't answer that question so soon, but were all happy that you look healthy. Your dad once again left the hospital with granny and Aadya, went home for dinner, dropped them there and came back to stay with us at the hospital. Since he came after 10 pm, he had to enter the hospital through the emergency entrance and walk a mile to reach our room.
               You were such a gentleman today, you didn't cry nor troubled your mom throughout the night! But woke every now and then to feed. (I have something to whisper in your ears - you are blackish red in color and quite too hairy right now; to be frank, you look like a baby mouse. But we all know that it is lanugo, grown to protect your skin like fuzz on a peach, while you were in the womb and it will fall off within a few weeks.) This is how the very first day of my Little peach went on and I am sure of treasuring every bit of this beautiful day's memory all through my life! You are an awesome gift your dad and I got today from Heaven!

17 October 2013 - Saw You Sucking your Thumb!

               After last weeks's disappointing ultrasound (with which I had a lot of excitement to see you and then got disappointed as it was not clear at all), I was not that eagerly looking for yesterday's ultrasound. One reason is because, I was not worried about your weight being below 10 percentile as it is very common to Indian babies. Even your sister was of the same weight when she was born and within no time people had started telling 'she looks big'! So I am quite sure that the same thing is going to happen with you as well. The second reason is because, I have realized that it is only in the second trimester that the baby looks clear. Later on, as the fluid level goes down and as the baby grows, the clarity of ultrasound goes down as well.

               Still somehow the thought of seeing you had made me happy. We were called to another ultrasound room and there was a different specialist to do the ultrasound this time. She was very good and explained everything to me as she tried to check if you meet all the required criteria. Your granny was trying to understand it as well. She had to check if you practicing to breathe and you were doing that well. She then checked your blood flow from 4 different places and all the blood flow looked fine. So, the biggest worry of proper blood supply is now gone. She tried to check your gender once again, you were not in a favorable position for some time, though she showed me something stretching out and said that there is possibly nothing else stretching out right there and it has to be your gender indication! As we were laughing, you changed your sleeping position and sowed very clearly that you are a boy! Immediately she took a big snap shot of it and gave me the print later, though I feel little embarrassed to show it to others, I have kept it safe! What made my day was, that we were lucky enough to see you suck your thumb! It was not that clear, but after she pointed out your nose and lips and the way you stretched out your tongue like a lizard (comparison used by the ultrasound specialist herself!), it was clear enough to recognize. Your lips and nose looked cute and I have even got a print of that with which later we spent one hour analyzing it checking if you look like your dad or me! 

               I had been bugging your dad to join me in searching a name for you. He had been taking his own time and I had no patience to wait. He sat with me a few times searching names in different sites, but no names got shortlisted and no names sounded that good either. And finally few weeks ago, I lost all the patience I had and made a list of 42 names by myself. All those 42 were the names I liked, though I liked some of them more and some less, I would be fine with whichever name your dad likes and picks from the list. All of them are cute names according to me. I can't type all of them here, but I can show you the list once you grow up. After a few days, your dad finally made himself free to go through the list and made a short list of 8 names from it. The first preference were - Advay, Advaith, Aniketh and Pratham. The second preference were - Anshu, Avaneesh, Adithya and Chitayu. 

               Whenever I saw your dad playing games, I started bugging him again to further bring down the names count. He had emailed the list to both the families, your Ashok mama had suggested 3 more names - Abhinav, Arav and Arnav. Your paternal granny had suggested Amay. All these 4 were already there in my list of 42 names and your dad had not chosen those. Finally your dad brought the list down to 3 names - Advay, Aniket and Adithya. Then the next day he took 'Adithya' off from the list. So as of now, there are two names to choose from - Advay and Aniketh. I am happy with both and I have started asking him to choose the last name - either bhat or Sharma whichever goes with the name. 

               We have now reached 38 weeks and 4 days. I have been getting a few contractions per day since last 4 days. They are not regular, so I consider them as Braxton Hicks. I got 2-3 contractions each on the 12th and 13th, but didn't any for the next 2 days. After the check up yesterday the doctor told us that I have dilated 3 cm and might deliver naturally by this week end. I am worried that you might not be grown completely if you come early, but I feel happy and excited to see you sooner. Yesterday night I got many contractions, may be it was because of the check up yesterday and every time I get it, I feel happy instead of the pain. I am eagerly waiting to see you now and the doctor said, in case if you don't come out by Monday, I will have another ultrasound and that she will induce pain on Tuesday, the 22nd of October. 

               I had been finding it a bit difficult to breathe since last few days and it felt as though all the Oxygen in the world is getting consumed by others. I feel like going close to the trees and breathe some fresh air and if I actually do that, I wonder if the trees have stopped producing Oxygen! But today all of a sudden I felt that there is enough air for me to breathe and it felt much lighter. I was worried and didn't know what was happening to me. Then when I checked in the mirror, I noticed that my bump has dropped. I clearly see my belly button come down by at least 4 cm. It feels much lighter now, but I am getting some marks below my baby bump because of my pant's elastic. Even your dad and granny noticed my dropped belly. So I see all the signs of you coming out sooner and I am totally prepared for it and looking forward to see you!

10 September 2013 - 4 Days to Go and you will be One Year Old!

               We need to wait for another 4 days and you will be one year old! I really can't believe how fast the time flew. I freshly remember the day I calculated your age in hours and later we told it in days, then it became weeks and till now it was in months we spoke about your age. And the time has come where even you have joined our group where we call our age in years. So its not even a week's wait for your first birthday. I want it to be a special one, not a grand celebration though. I don't want too many guests, but I want smiles on everyone's faces. Most importantly I want you to be special and enjoy the day. First birthday is always for the parents, since you will not remember even a bit of it. But I want to show you the pictures when you grow up and make you happy. I had been thinking of the place, food, guests, return gifts, cake, decoration, your birthday dress and everything ever since you turned 11 month's old. As of now, I have stories to tell about you since you completed 9 months. 

               You have spoken many meaningful random words so far including ambate, table, angi-gubbi. But you spoke them only once each without even realizing that you said them nor knowing the meaning! So, can't consider them to be your first words. I had been waiting to listen to your first word till you completed 10 and half months. And finally the first meaningful word you spoke knowing the meaning of it was 'baby'. Every time you see a baby picture or see a baby on tv, you have to say the word in your own cute way and I love to hear it. 'Ta ta' was learnt before that, but can't consider it to be a word. But both the words sound like music when it comes from your mouth. Every person who comes on video chat is now "ajja" according to you and every person at home is "abba" for you. Pain and hunger is called "amma"!

               This happened a few days ago when you were almost 11 months old. Every time you grabbed something you are not supposed to, like a plastic or a phone, I took it away from you, kept it behind me and told you "ille" turning my hands like it is gone. I didn't know that you were noticing my action and the word "ille", because you only stared at me and never repeated them. But after a few days, one morning when you were full and I was still trying to feed you that last gulp of your formula, you got fed up, took away the feeding bottle from my hand, kept it behind yourself and told me "ille" turning your hand and in the same tone I used to say it! So that was your next meaningful word. Then came the word "light" though you pronounced it "thet", you loved the word and everytimne you said it, you poiunted at the light. Later Sunita aunty taught you the word fan along with the action. You did it, but didn't like it as much as you did with light.

               You love going "ta ta" and after 10 months, every day you kept going near the door and say "ta ta". That in fact is the first word you say in the mornings as soon as you open your eyes and in the evening when you see your dad back from the office. You know that your mom doesn't take you out. I do feel bad about it, if I could, I would have taken you out somewhere. But with my heavy tummy with your brother kicking me hard every time I carry you, I am not able to take you "ta ta" other than Sunita aunty's house and to the swimming pool. But even that is quite tiring for me because my 7 months stomach is quite big! And you don't stay calm in my arms, you try to wriggle and get down from my hand at swimming pool and that is dangerous if I can't hold you at one place. And you are an energy ball! Your dad had joined landmark course and he came home only after 11 pm several days and there are 9 more such days to go. It was really hard for me to manage you and do my household chores on all those days. Giving you a bath alone is hectic, and cooking, cleaning and your constant plea for "ta ta" actually gave me hard days.

               One Sunday when you were 11 months old, you wanted to go "ta ta" and you knew that for "ta ta" you must wear different clothes. So you took a frock of yours, held it on your head and pulled it behind you. You had noticed how your mom makes you wear one. So you were trying to wear it yourself and you looked puzzled when it didn't stand on your body. You tried it the same way for more than 10 times and your dad and I had a hearty laugh looking at the smart you!
               It was with great difficulty I dressed you up like baby Krishna on the "Shree Krishna Janmashtami" and I could hardly click a few photos before you pulled out everything. I put clothes on you and when I was combing your hair to put a fountain juttu, your clothes were already kicked off. When I was making you wear your bangles, your juttu was pulled out. When I decorated your hair with peacock feather, your bangles were already pulled out. Finally after maintaining everything in its place, when I pulled out camera to click a photo, you ran out from the place. I grabbed you again and put you inside the cradle so that you can't escape and switched on the camera to click a photo and the peacock feather was in your hand! Finally I struggled for almost 2 hours to click those 4 photos of you in Krishna's costume!

               You have been walking with support since your 9th month. After 11 months, you started standing without support for a brief time. And you started walking a lot with support like holding either wall or anything you see around. Sometimes the objects you catch for support are not stable and you end up falling down. Earlier you cried often almost every time you fell down. But now you have got used to the falls and you don't cry unless you really get hurt. Small hurts don't matter and you continue to play. You now talk to strangers a lot in your own language, wave them "ta ta", smile at them and catch their attention and make them laugh. Standing on the balcony, few days ago you were even calling everybody passed through that way and talking to them. You use a lot of nasal sounds these days and that sounds funny.

               I wanted to bake and decorate a cake myself for your birthday. Wanted to make it very personal specially for you. Because the first birthday is probably the only birthday we parents get to celebrate the way we want. Once you start growing up, you might want to choose your favorite colors, your designs, your cake and the people you want for your birthday! I have seen your Anvi akka do that for her 4th birthday. Since I have never baked a cake so far, I started researching a lot on cake baking and decorations. Every time I went to a shop, visiting the baking section has become my new hobby. I even baked a few cakes to practice and become perfect before your birthday. But now after a few flop attempts, I am thinking of dropping the idea. And your dad is totally against the idea of my cake from the very beginning. I had thought of somehow change his mind with a few self baked and decorated cakes. But it's not working the way I thought it would and getting constantly laughed at by your dad. :P
             Your sleeps at night are so funny these days, you sleep either like an Ostrich with your head inserted into our blankets or with your butt up in the air! It looks so cute and we never find you in the same position you slept at night. The positions keep changing every 10-15 minutes and you get enough exercise throughout the night's travel. You keep moving from our head to toe! We find you at our feet and the next minute you reach our pillow. We pull you to your place several times at night, it must be mother's instinct, somehow I wake up every time before you fall off the bed! Your dad and I get at least 50 kicks each at night and some 20 kicks go to your brother as well!
             It is fun to be with you these days and you have started showing all kinds of emotions these days. You choose who you want to be with and who you want to play with. You wave proper 'tata' at your dad every morning now and repeat saying 'tata' till he disappears from your sight. And sometimes the tata continues even after he leaves from home. I find it difficult to carry you around, but have no other option that taking you out at least once or twice a day. I feel bad when you plead for 'tata' every time. The pure joy and excitement you show when I pick you up for 'tata' is priceless!
               You love my baby bump, you kick it, you pat it, you hit it, you kiss it, you hug it, you lick it, you poke it and you use it as your very own personal pillow. You rest your head on it every now and then through out the day. And you love to roll on it. Your brother kicks you from inside as well though I am not sure if he is getting irritated or giving high-five to his sister! But it's fun to see you both get along in your own way. I show you my baby bump and try to tell you that there is a baby in it and you don't understand what I say.
               If you bang your head to the wall while you are busy playing, the sound grabs your attention. The wooden wall makes a big sound. Whenever that happens, you stop playing and hit your head once again to notice the sound. Then again to hear it. You end up banging your head to the wall over and over again to understand that sound until we get worried and stop you from doing it! There were times you got scared of that sound and cried as well.
               You now stand without support.Especially when you are lost watching tv or playing. Sometimes if you are holding some toy or any such object, you take it as a support to stand up and in the process you actually stand up without support.
               Every time I say something that you don't understand, you give that particular puzzled funny cutest look, very clearly showing how confused you are and you immediately say something that doesn't make any sense and smile at it indicating how much sense I made to you! I can't control my laughter at such situations and you join me in laughing! You are the cutest funny kid I have ever seen and totally proud of myself for manufacturing you! :)

A Day in My Life When Aadya is 9 Months Old

               Though I said Aadya is 9 months old, I am writing with a little delay. She is 9 months and 24 days old today. I have stopped breast feeding her during the day. When she turned exactly 9 months old, her time table at night was different. She used to sleep for 3 continuous hours in the beginning and then she used to wake up for milk. Formula feeding never worked at night. She wanted only breast milk, but there was no milk. So through out the night she kept trying to get some milk and ended up sucking for 6 continuous hours until morning. Every time I felt like turning to the other side for comfortable sleep, she cried aloud. Every night, I made her cry for a few minutes when I went for a quick bathroom visit. And every morning I woke up with my right leg, right arms and right side of my entire body aching as I slept in the same position through out the night! But after experiencing it for 2 weeks, I could not bear it any more. So whenever I wanted to change the sleeping position, I lifted her and put her on the other side and continued feeding and sleeping at the same time. But even that was too tiring, she never left my side through out the night. 

               So finally when my husband got 4 continuous holidays for Independence day and the week end clubbed together, the first thing we wanted to do was to completely stop the breast feeding. I had been dreaming about the whole night's sleep I was going to get for those 4 nights when she will be taken care of by her dad. Stopping the breast feeding totally was a success. But my whole night's sleep was not! Whatever I said and dreamed, I could not sleep in the next room. I put my comforter right below their bed where she could not see me. The crying was quite bad as we had expected for the first two nights and so many times I felt the urge to just grab her and feed. I could not see her cry so much and also her dad struggling to console her. I could have slept, but I kept staring at them every time she woke up and cried and kicked her feet and screamed her lungs out! Aravind had all his patience gathered together to calm her down. The next two days were comparatively better, though the temper tantrum was still bad. 

               Two more nights have passed after all this. Now everything seems little better. So the day goes like this :

6.00 am : Aadya is up crying. I pat her slowly, she changes her sleeping position, lifts her legs and throws them on her dad, kicks him and goes back to sleep. I go to kitchen and keep rice in the cooker, come back and go to sleep.

6.35 am : I hear the cooker-visil, slowly take Aadya's arms from my neck and keep it down. I pull myself back and get up without making any noise and walk to the kitchen. I start cooking. Aravind gets up too.

7.10 am : I am busy in kitchen and I hear Aadya talking alone from the bedroom. 

7.15 am : I still hear her talking and now the voice is coming closer. I turn towards the bedroom and there she is - smiling and crawling towards the kitchen, calling us "dha..! dha..!!" I say "Hello, Good morning magalu..... Who is that cutie pie coming to the kitchen?" Her dad grabs her by then. They have their hug exchange and talking. He does his works carrying her and then leaves her near the toys. But she comes to the kitchen, holds my legs and stands up. I pick her up, kiss her, talk to her. She slaps me a few times with love, pulls my hair, bites my cheeks and drools on my clothes. Lovely! I somehow enjoy it. She is back to her toys.

7.30 am : I am done with cooking and packing food for Aravind. He is eating his breakfast with Aadya on his lap. 

7.35 am : Aravind leaves to office. Aadya and I go near the door to say bye to him. I keep telling her to wave "ta ta" to him and she does it after he leaves! She calls him "baa baaa...!" But he can't come back to her now.

7.40 am : Aadya drinks her formula lying down on my lap and grabs a few toys in between, shakes them and hits me several times in the process. And the last gulp is sprayed on my face! When I try to warn her, she laughs with her mouth wide open and I can see some more white formula left in that little mouth. I leave her down before she sprays it again and go to the kitchen to clean her formula bottle.
7. 50 am : We switch on the laptop and check if someone is online. There is no one today. She tries to type and when I hold the laptop far from her she wriggles herself from my grip and follows the laptop wherever her mom takes it. We fight a little for the laptop and then play with her toys.
8.40 am : I am still eating my breakfast with Aadya around. She tries to pull my plate, eats a few tiny pieces of my breakfast when I feed her. I started eating my breakfast half an hour ago. I have been roaming around with my plate to keep it away from her and swallowing a few mouthfuls when she is busy with her toys.
8.50 am : I am finally done with my breakfast. Aadya's sibling kicks me from inside because I am full after the breakfast. Aadya and I continue to play.
9.50 am : We have been playing together and now I go to kitchen to prepare Aadya's manni. She follows me to the kitchen. As I prepare her food, she opens the cup boards, pulls out things, spreads them all over the kitchen and cries holding my legs to pick her up. I pick her up and continue cooking with one hand.
10.15 am : Aadya's food has cooled down, I put her in her chair and tie the belt. Tie a bib around her neck, give a few toys in her hand and feed her manni. She sings as she eats and talks in between. Makes a little fuss to empty the bowl, sprays the food a few times. I take a wet tissue and wipe her face and the chair and the flour every time she sprays her food.
10.30 am : We are done eating, I clean the place, take Aadya near the sink and wash her face. Keep her bowl and spoon in the sink, bring her back to the rocking chair and try to put her to sleep. She is yawning, but trying to shake her head to keep herself awake! I sing for her. She laughs aloud every now and then to grab my attention. I continue to sing in a monotonous voice as I rock her to sleep.
10.50 am : She is off to sleep. I take her out from the rocking chair and gently take her to the bed. She rolls as I keep her down, I sleep next to her and she grabs my chain and holds it tight.
11.00 am : Aadya is totally off to sleep, her grip on my chain is now loose, I slowly get up and go to the living room. I pick up my laptop without making any noise, mute the laptop as it is starting. Quietly check my face book. I do some of the household chores with as little noise as possible though I can't wash the vessels now.
12.10 pm : I hear Aadya crying from the bedroom, I rush there and pat her. She once again grabs my chain and holds it tight. I can not move from there now.
12.28 pm : Her grip on my chain is still tight, she is making some crying noise in sleep as she tries to roll with one hand on my chain. I continue to sleep next to her and I lightly doze off.
12.40 pm : I get woken up with Aadya's cry, I pat her back to sleep and she is still holding my chain tight.
12.55 pm : Aadya is wide awake, she is not crying now, but starts to talk aloud. I keep my eyes closed and she tries to poke them giggling to herself!
1.15 pm : I prepare some formula for Aadya and feed her as she plays and hits me.
1.35 pm : I heat my lunch in the microwave and keep it out of Aadya's reach. She tries to jump and climb my legs to pull my plate down. I try to eat my food and she cries. She climbs my lap and tries to pull my plate down. I end up keeping my lunch plate on the kitchen shelf and eat it standing in the kitchen as Aadya cries and troubles me.
1.45 pm : I am done with my lunch, put my plate in the kitchen and try to wash a few vessels. Meanwhile Aadya tries to open the cupboard doors and pull out the dustbin and the things from the dustbin. I try to leave her in the living area, she doesn't stay there, screams and comes following me back to the kitchen. I take a vessel, wash it half, keep it down in the sink, quickly wash my hands and run to hold Aadya from playing with the skin of vegetables from the dustbin. I take the vessel back to my hand, wash it with water, wash my hands and run again behind Aadya to take off the laptop charger from her hand. I take another vessel from the sink to wash it and run again to pull Aadya out from under the chair before she bangs her head into it and screams. I continue to wash the second vessel and run to take the shoe from Aadya's hand. I finally give up the idea of washing vessels and sit with Aadya and her toys! Her dad calls from his office, I put him on loud speaker and Aadya talks to him with a big smile on her face as she is familiar with that voice.
2.45 pm : I cut a few vegetables, take its skin off, add some rice, dal and keep it in the cooker for Aadya. Once the cooking is over, I wait for it cool down as we both continue to play and she continues to do her mischief!
3.25 pm : I put Aadya's food in the mixie and pour it to a bowl, put her back in her chair with the belts on her and tie a bib around her neck. I switch on the tv and nursery rhymes for Aadya as I feed her food. She once again sprays some on the flour, some to the chair and some on me!
3.50 pm : I am now rocking Aadya to sleep after cleaning her face with wet tissues.
4.05 pm : Aadya is off to sleep, I leave her in the chair slanting it backward. Because she usually takes light naps in the afternoon, wakes up every now and then, I can easily rock her back to sleep. I go back to my works with no sound. She wakes up, I rock her and continue with my household chores like folding clothes or wiping the kitchen. She keeps waking up and I keep rocking her every now and then.
5.30 pm : Aadya wakes up again for the sound of the door knocking. She talks aloud as I open the door for her dad. She smiles at him and stretches her body after the nap. Her dad picks her up from the chair and she immediately grabs his ID card and starts playing with it. They go to the bedroom for dad to change his clothes as Aadya sits on the bed playing with the ID card. I cut a few fruits and keep snacks ready on the table. She goes to the bathroom with her dad and stares at him as he washes his legs and face. Laughs at his white soap face!
5.45 pm : Dad and the daughter come to the dining area to have their snacks. Aravind puts a few tiny fruit pieces in her mouth and she tries to munch them with her few new teeth. I give her formula bottle and dad feeds her.
6.00 pm : They both play as I wash the vessels and clean the kitchen.
6.50 pm : Aadya and her dad go for a walk and I cook dinner.
7.40 pm : Aravind and I take Aadya for her bath and she continues to play with her toys as we give her a bath. She cries when we pour water on her head and she hates the head baths!
8.00 pm : Aadya smells fresh and I feel like eating her. Aravind eats his dinner as I sit and play with her.
8.30 pm : It's my turn to have dinner and Aravind's turn to play with Aadya.
8.45 pm : I prepare Aadya's cereals and feed her as her dad entertains her with his songs and toys.
9.10 pm : All the three of us are done with our dinners. Aravind tries to put her to sleep and she keeps crawling all over the house. She giggles, hits her dad's face, visits me in the kitchen, plays with her toys, sings, talks, does all kinds of mischief as I wash the vessels in the kitchen and keep everything ready for tomorrow's cooking.
9.50 pm : I go for bath and I still hear Aravind trying to put her to sleep and she troubling him.
10.15 pm : Aadya is off to sleep, I am done with all the work for the day, Aravind is tired.
10.25 pm : We put Aadya to bed and sleep as the two body guards on each her sides. She keeps rolling, twisting and turning through out the night. Wakes half up crying 3-4 times and goes back to sleep when we pat her. Kicks her dad and me a hundred times till morning. We pull her back to her place from near our feet a few times at night. Grab her down to the bed from our pillow a few times! I wake up once or twice to go to the bathroom and when I wake up, either I find her feet near Aravind's face and head near my legs or her head inserted inside Aravind's blanket like an Ostrich and her butt up in the air or her left leg on me and right leg on Aravind!
6.00 am : I hear Aadya crying. It's morning again after the regular long cute night with one mischievous bundle in between us! :)

Pregnancy II Pictures

8 October 2013 - Granny has Arrived and Mommy is Nesting

               So your grand mother has finally arrived to the USA to welcome you. She has brought all the food items and goodies safe. She reached here on 23rd and we have been eating a lot since then! In fact you are getting treated well now. Your sister has got a new companion and your granny and she keep playing all the time and now finally I get to be with you all the time. I pay full attention to your kicks and enjoy it totally. Your granny missed your sister's birthday, but you attended it though people haven't seen you yet. Your sister loves to hug you, pat you and kiss you already and some times she even hits you. Almost every time she falls on you, you try to kick her off.

               We had an appointment with our doctor yesterday and I was very excited about this appointment and was waiting to see you. I had told your granny that we were going to get to see you and even your dad was quite eager to see you. But we all ended up being little disappointed because the ultrasound this time was not at all clear. We could not even identify where your hands or legs were! Your sister was bored to be there in the ultrasound room and she was going on grumbling and trying to wriggle herself free through out. 

               I am 37.2 weeks pregnant now and you looked comparatively smaller. You weighed 5 pounds yesterday, that is 2.26 kg which is very normal in India. But here in the USA they said you come under 10% baby weight. So they have asked for us to take another ultrasound even next week. I hope your weight increases a little more by then. And we are not much worried about your weight, as it is common for Asians to be smaller. Your sister was lesser than 6 pounds when she was born and within 2 weeks her weight had gone up to 90th percent! You are after all her brother and we are sure that is going to happen with you as well. 

               We were supposed to get an appointment for next Monday, but the doctor is not available on that day. So we scheduled our appointment for the next Wednesday and I will be 38 weeks and 3 days pregnant then. Doctor told us yesterday that she is planning to induce pain when we reach 39th week and not going to wait until the due date. So you are arriving one week before the due date and I getting happier that I can hold you and see you sooner! Little worried at the same time, wondering if you will be fully grown by then. I hope everything goes well. Doctor said that I am 2 cm dilated and if the fluid level goes down before that, we might have to go for delivering you even before. 

               Since yesterday morning, I had been feeling the urge to see you and I had automatically started nesting. That is, preparing to welcome you. I have been feeling restless and as soon as I woke up yesterday, I picked up the laptop and started searching for the baby names. And even in the evening after coming back from the hospital, I made your dad sit next to me and started searching for a name and short listing. So far, there are 4 names in our short list - Advay, Adwait, Ayush and Pratham. I am still not happy with these names we got and going to search for more names to add to the short list. The thing is that I can not short list the names by myself, I want even your dad to like the names. Want us to do it together, but your dad is not available most of the time! 

               I referred a few sites and packed my hospital bag yesterday, took out all those cute little clothes we had been buying for you, removed their tags, washed them. Took out the new cotton comforter we bought for you, folded it and put it in your new cradle. Cleaned the cradle, put a new baby blanket on it and then covered it with a cloth, so that it remains clean from the dust. I took out all those little clothes of your sister and checked if I can use anything for you. There was a pair of white socks unopened which I can use for you. And there are a few fresh baby blankets we didn't use for your sister. Don't worry, we are not going to use the same clothes your sister wore, they are all pink and purple. You have everything in blue, green or yellow. But the car seat is neutral and we are going to use the same car seat your sister had used for 11 months. We washed the cover well and it looks like a brand new one now. Though there are a lot of clothes which still look new, I am not going to use them for you. You will have most of the things new. Though there are enough bath towels, bed sheets, clothes, caps, mittens, socks and everything for you, we have got everything new for the new little baby! :) But you both will have to share your toys with each other and you can't fight for that. 

               I hope that I get to see you clearly in the next ultrasound and waiting for next Wednesday!

15 September 2013 - Lovely First Birthday Baby!

               So you are already one year old!!! It just feels like a few days ago I told people your age by hours, later by days, weeks and then in months. Who turned the calender so fast? Here after your age will be said in years. I just can't believe that you have become one among us to calculate your age in years! You were an infant a few days ago. I didn't even realize it when you changed from 'infant' to 'baby'. And now all of a sudden how can I call you a toddler? And you are even getting promoted as a big sister in another month! I am still forcing myself to believe that you have grown to the next level. 

               We have bought a new cute birthday dress for you, you are going to look gorgeous today for sure. We have booked the restaurant "Rangoli Indian Cuisine" for the celebration, guests are invited and we are expecting 40 of them. Menu is already decided and decorating items are ready. Cake is ordered with the princess crown in it. The return gifts were packed and ready for each house. You have no clue about any of it and you don't know that you are going to be the chief person for today's celebration. Neither are you going to remember this day in future unless you have an extra ordinary memory power. 

               I was hoping that you sleep well before the celebration begins. I kept your solid food and formula ready early in the morning. Packed my diaper bag with some of your toys, so that we can somehow manage to keep you happy through out the day. You dad had visited the restaurant for confirmation again. We gave you a good head bath, got ourselves ready and left to the restaurant at 9.30 a.m. - the earliest possible. Your Prasanna uncle and Sunita aunty came with us to help us with the decoration. You were not yet wearing the b'day dress, because I was yet to give you your food and put you to sleep. Also, I didn't want you to feel hot, exhausted and get irritated even before the party began. 

               As soon as we reached there, your dad's colleague Murugan reached the restaurant. He had all the decorating stuff and as I started feeding you, they all started decorating the place. The balloon pump unfortunately broke in between and your dad and Prasanna uncle went from one shop to another searching for a pump. It was a Sunday and some of the shops were closed and some didn't have a balloon pump. Murugan decorated the entire place with proper color combination and Sunita aunty was his helper. She gave him all the decorating items one by one. I was trying to put you to sleep meanwhile after feeding you. I tried for more than one and half hours and I was getting worried that you were not willing to sleep. You kept looking at the decoration with your eyes wide open and you knew that something nice is happening around. 

               It was almost 11.15 a.m when your dad and Prasanna uncle finally found a balloon pump and came back to the restaurant. The guests were told to be there by 11.30 and there were 50 balloons to pump and decorate the walls. Finally it was 12 when they completed the work and already there were a few guests. They too helped them in decoration and you were still awake. I changed your clothes and you just looked like a little princess in that pink long dress. You wore your silver anklets for the first time and you liked the sound of it. I tried to make you wear the matching head bands with flowers in it and you kept pulling and throwing it. So finally I had to give up the idea of making you wear the head band. 

               I was totally surprised that you didn't cry through out the celebration. And you were enjoying your day totally, you were not cranky though you had not slept. You didn't even look tired, you smiled and went from one person's hands to the other. Nobody kept you down and the little birthday girl was the center of everybody's attention. I was really happy to see you happy and your dad and I could enjoy the day as well. We were totally proud of you. There were exactly 40 guests including the little babies. And a few of them had messaged us in the morning that they will not be able to attend the function. Still it was a great success and everyone loved the food. Your Ashwin uncle and Anvi akka had brought the cake from the shop to the restaurant. The menu had Tomato Soup, Veggie Pakodas, Kachumber Salad, Naan, Dal Fry, Malai Kofta, Chana Masala, Jeera Rice, Vegetable Biryani, Raitha and Carrot Halwa along with Chocolate Cake and Soft Drinks. People told us that the food was delicious and we were happy. Your dad and I had our food at the end. 

             You ate cake for the first time and stared at us when your dad and I ate the happiness brought by you in our lives indicated by the cake. At 2 p.m everything was almost done, people started leaving the place after wishing you and giving you gifts. We gave them packets of sweets and thank you cards and gift for the little ones for adding joy in our special day with their presence. Your dad and I were really happy to see smile on your face and on the guests' faces. All our friends had helped us and at the end our little one was hungry. You drank 8 ounces of formula and kept quiet on our way back home after cleaning the party hall. Our living room was full with gifts and the balloons. We later stuck all the balloons to our bedroom wall for the colorful celebration to continue. As soon as we came home, I changed your  clothes and you happily slept off. We were tired too and even we took little naps and later in the evening we went back to the restaurant to settle all the bills. 

               Altogether it was a beautiful day, going to remain in our memories forever. We recalled the day of your birth and there was a smile on our faces as we proudly held our little mischievous bundle of joy in our arms. You truly are a gift!