I remember sitting in this exact same spot an year ago writing about a recap of the year 2008. I knew I was pregnant then, but was not ready to share that information with the world. Now I have a little one who is my world.
Highlights of the year:
1) Of course you all know the best gift 2009 brought us :) He is upstairs right now sleeping like an angel.
2) I was able to celebrate my birthday this year with both my parents. That was after 10 years and it was great having them here. Also, it was great to show them around a little bit and I love it that they got some time to spend with their grandson and us.
3)We took a babymoon to Hawaii and spent a last "just the two of us" vacation. It was an amazing time despite all the aches and pains.
4)We found some new friends in another church and although we visit that church only occassionally, it is great to connect with them at other times.
5)Although it is not official yet, I am in the brink of a major life change and I am excited about it.
6)We rented a beach home in the Keys and spent a week with my sister and family and had a wonderful time despite some sickness.
It is nearing to be midnight and I want to sign off for now and wish all of you a wonderful year ahead. May God give you all the desires of heart and bless your families.
Happy New Year!
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Four months
Dear Neil,
You are four months today! Today your dad and I celebrated 4 years of marriage. One year ago we found out I was pregnant with you. It was the best anniversary gift ever. You are an even 15 pounds. Dr. C says you are growing according to the textbook :) Right now you are suffering from a cold and slight cough and that about kills this mamma's heart. It is so difficult to watch you being sick. I am just loving on you extra to make up for that.
1. You smile and laugh a lot now. Early morning your biggest laughs are enough to light up my entire day.
2. You love playing peek-a-boo. I had dreamt for years of being able to play peek-a-boo with my own baby and it was so sweet to do that.
3. You are improving your vocabulary every day and it is so fun to listen to you. Plus, you have expressions to go with it.
4. Now you don't seem interested in rolling over at all. You had put in a lot more effort last month. Now you just lay on your back and cycle hard. It is okay with me. I don't want you to grow up too fast anyway. I am just savouring each day with you.
5. If I call you sweetheart (or rather sweetheart in my mother tongue) you will smile just at the sound even if you are not looking at me. That is the sweetest.
6. We have a ton of fun with you. Since you are American by birth and me, your dad and grandma are taking care of you all the time, we say you are a Sheikh with three Indian slaves. So we call you Sheikh Agooboo, agooboo being what you say a lot.
7. You attended the Christmas banquet at the chapel and the ladies went ga ga for you. I was not sure if I would be able to get you back. You were being passed around like a parcel. All of them asked me if I was sure I wanted to take you back home :) You had on a bib which said flirt and you totally lived up to that :)
We love you so much and it upsets me to see you being sick or in discomfort. Your first Christmas is tomorrow and I have bought some special things for you. I know you won't remember any of it, but I love making memories with you. I know time is passing by and I won't get back any of these special times with you. Sweetheart, you bring so much joy in my life.
Love,
Mamma
You are four months today! Today your dad and I celebrated 4 years of marriage. One year ago we found out I was pregnant with you. It was the best anniversary gift ever. You are an even 15 pounds. Dr. C says you are growing according to the textbook :) Right now you are suffering from a cold and slight cough and that about kills this mamma's heart. It is so difficult to watch you being sick. I am just loving on you extra to make up for that.
1. You smile and laugh a lot now. Early morning your biggest laughs are enough to light up my entire day.
2. You love playing peek-a-boo. I had dreamt for years of being able to play peek-a-boo with my own baby and it was so sweet to do that.
3. You are improving your vocabulary every day and it is so fun to listen to you. Plus, you have expressions to go with it.
4. Now you don't seem interested in rolling over at all. You had put in a lot more effort last month. Now you just lay on your back and cycle hard. It is okay with me. I don't want you to grow up too fast anyway. I am just savouring each day with you.
5. If I call you sweetheart (or rather sweetheart in my mother tongue) you will smile just at the sound even if you are not looking at me. That is the sweetest.
6. We have a ton of fun with you. Since you are American by birth and me, your dad and grandma are taking care of you all the time, we say you are a Sheikh with three Indian slaves. So we call you Sheikh Agooboo, agooboo being what you say a lot.
7. You attended the Christmas banquet at the chapel and the ladies went ga ga for you. I was not sure if I would be able to get you back. You were being passed around like a parcel. All of them asked me if I was sure I wanted to take you back home :) You had on a bib which said flirt and you totally lived up to that :)
We love you so much and it upsets me to see you being sick or in discomfort. Your first Christmas is tomorrow and I have bought some special things for you. I know you won't remember any of it, but I love making memories with you. I know time is passing by and I won't get back any of these special times with you. Sweetheart, you bring so much joy in my life.
Love,
Mamma
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Three Months
Dear Neil,
You are 3 months old today! Quarter of an year old!! The time is just flying by. You are getting ridiculously cute by the day and your Daddy and I just want to eat you up. You are just surviving by the skin of your teeth, baby.
What are you upto these days?
1. You are growing well, you are at the 50th percentile for your weight and 10th percentile for height. But we are not worried because you are not a white, midwestern, formula fed baby and it is not right to compare you to such babies. You got 3 of your vaccinations and you were such a good boy about it. You only cried a little for the shots.
2. You put your whole fist into the mouth and suck on it while you play by yourself on the mat. It is the cutest thing ever.
3. One day while you were nursing, you stopped right in the middle and looked at me and smiled. You just couldn't stop smiling. And I started crying. I know, it wasn't a fair exchange.
4. You smile a lot more these days. And you have the biggest smiles when I talk to you or when you see me. I am selfishly very pleased about that. It is impossible to get a smiling picture of you though.
5. You and Daddy spent a day together while I took Ammachy to Universal.Daddy has his own games that he plays with you and you two have the best time together.
6. You still sleep sandwiched between us and you nurse throughout the night on and off.
7. You had your first trip to the zoo and first stroller walk this month.
8. You lie on your mat and coo and we talk back to you. A goo goo is what you say mostly. Is that baby talk for More milk please? If then, I am sorry I say a goo goo back to you. It must be very confusing for you. If we talk back in your language you get louder and more animated. It is WAY TOO MUCH FUN.
9. You almost rolled over and with a little help you turned your head. You have been holding up your head during tummy time for a while now, but it was exciting to see the whole thing anyway.
10. I make up the most ridiculous songs for you and when it is just the two of us in the car and you can't see me and start crying, I sing these to you and you calm down. I think you recognize the sound of my voice.
You are so lovable and squooshable and so much fun to be with. Your eyes are beautiful, so expressive and full of wonder. We look at you and wonder how we created someone as cute as you! It is so much fun to see you grow up and see you interact with your world.
I love you.
Mamma
You are 3 months old today! Quarter of an year old!! The time is just flying by. You are getting ridiculously cute by the day and your Daddy and I just want to eat you up. You are just surviving by the skin of your teeth, baby.
What are you upto these days?
1. You are growing well, you are at the 50th percentile for your weight and 10th percentile for height. But we are not worried because you are not a white, midwestern, formula fed baby and it is not right to compare you to such babies. You got 3 of your vaccinations and you were such a good boy about it. You only cried a little for the shots.
2. You put your whole fist into the mouth and suck on it while you play by yourself on the mat. It is the cutest thing ever.
3. One day while you were nursing, you stopped right in the middle and looked at me and smiled. You just couldn't stop smiling. And I started crying. I know, it wasn't a fair exchange.
4. You smile a lot more these days. And you have the biggest smiles when I talk to you or when you see me. I am selfishly very pleased about that. It is impossible to get a smiling picture of you though.
5. You and Daddy spent a day together while I took Ammachy to Universal.Daddy has his own games that he plays with you and you two have the best time together.
6. You still sleep sandwiched between us and you nurse throughout the night on and off.
7. You had your first trip to the zoo and first stroller walk this month.
8. You lie on your mat and coo and we talk back to you. A goo goo is what you say mostly. Is that baby talk for More milk please? If then, I am sorry I say a goo goo back to you. It must be very confusing for you. If we talk back in your language you get louder and more animated. It is WAY TOO MUCH FUN.
9. You almost rolled over and with a little help you turned your head. You have been holding up your head during tummy time for a while now, but it was exciting to see the whole thing anyway.
10. I make up the most ridiculous songs for you and when it is just the two of us in the car and you can't see me and start crying, I sing these to you and you calm down. I think you recognize the sound of my voice.
You are so lovable and squooshable and so much fun to be with. Your eyes are beautiful, so expressive and full of wonder. We look at you and wonder how we created someone as cute as you! It is so much fun to see you grow up and see you interact with your world.
I love you.
Mamma
The weekend
Last Friday, Neil got 3 vaccinations and by God's grace he didn't get fever. He was a good boy throughout and only cried a little while the nurse was giving him the shots. We stayed put at home that evening to give him rest.
Saturday morning hubby and I went to the gym and did a workout for 1 hour. We came back and decided that instead of taking an afternoon nap, we will do some work. We gave baby a bath, put him to sleep in the swing and set to work. Hubby had some work stuff to finish and I set about to reorganize our bedroom closet. I tried on lots and lots of clothes and decided what to keep, what to bag for goodwill and what to pass on to my niece. I got one bag for goodwill, two bags for my niece and was able to finally close the suitcase which was lying open for the last three months.
I was only planning to arrange and close the suitcase and purge the clothes in the hangers. But one thing led to another and I ended up cleaning out the entire closet.
No, I don't have a before picture.
There are some clothes I hold onto for sentimental reasons. These are two which has survived many purges. The red one was the top I wore when I first came to US in 2003. I was all of 87 pounds then and my sister when she saw me said I looked like I came from Somalia. The jeans which I wore with that has since gone to where all good jeans go. Man, I loved those jeans and literally wore it to tatters.
This white top is what I wore for our first wedding anniversary dinner in Greece. It is one of those What-was-I-thinking-when-I-bought-it deals. Seriously, I just barely fit on it then when I was 89 pounds and now when I am... well, never mind.
Moving on.
These are my wedding shoes and I keep it in my closet since I don't wear it everyday or any day for that matter.
Now the shoes and the two tops are residing together in the corner of the closet where the good memories are.
Then, there was a big shopping bag full odds and ends . There were a lot of greeting cards inside and I started going through them. I figured it was a waste of time especially when time is so scarce and I needed to finish tasks soon. Anyway, I started going through those. A lot of them were from hubby for birthdays, anniversaries etc. Then there were a lot of Congratulations cards from our wedding 4 years ago. I was going through all of that occassionally smiling, laughing out loud, tearing up and then suddenly inside a card, guess what I found?
A $50 gift card from Bed, Bath and Beyond.
Yes, from 4 years ago. And it is still valid. I called and checked.
Then I started going through all of the cards once more hoping something else will turn up too. It didn't, but still what a find, huh?
And then in the evening, hubby made batter fried vegetables, so yummy.
We went for a walk in the night after that and did some errands as well.
Sunday morning was the Lord's day and after church we had lunch at Chipotle and went for a walk. On the way back, we stopped at Babies R us to shop for some extra Medela nipples. They had some clothes on clearance and since baby outgrew most of his 3 month clothes, I decided to get him some 6/9 month clothes. I got 6 of these cute brand new clothes. And guess how much I paid for those?
$6.00
With a gift card a friend had generously sent us for the baby.
The Lord owns the cattle of a thousand hills, and he generously provides for us.
So, it was a great weekend to say the least. How was yours?
Saturday morning hubby and I went to the gym and did a workout for 1 hour. We came back and decided that instead of taking an afternoon nap, we will do some work. We gave baby a bath, put him to sleep in the swing and set to work. Hubby had some work stuff to finish and I set about to reorganize our bedroom closet. I tried on lots and lots of clothes and decided what to keep, what to bag for goodwill and what to pass on to my niece. I got one bag for goodwill, two bags for my niece and was able to finally close the suitcase which was lying open for the last three months.
I was only planning to arrange and close the suitcase and purge the clothes in the hangers. But one thing led to another and I ended up cleaning out the entire closet.
No, I don't have a before picture.
There are some clothes I hold onto for sentimental reasons. These are two which has survived many purges. The red one was the top I wore when I first came to US in 2003. I was all of 87 pounds then and my sister when she saw me said I looked like I came from Somalia. The jeans which I wore with that has since gone to where all good jeans go. Man, I loved those jeans and literally wore it to tatters.
This white top is what I wore for our first wedding anniversary dinner in Greece. It is one of those What-was-I-thinking-when-I-bought-it deals. Seriously, I just barely fit on it then when I was 89 pounds and now when I am... well, never mind.
Moving on.
These are my wedding shoes and I keep it in my closet since I don't wear it everyday or any day for that matter.
Now the shoes and the two tops are residing together in the corner of the closet where the good memories are.
Then, there was a big shopping bag full odds and ends . There were a lot of greeting cards inside and I started going through them. I figured it was a waste of time especially when time is so scarce and I needed to finish tasks soon. Anyway, I started going through those. A lot of them were from hubby for birthdays, anniversaries etc. Then there were a lot of Congratulations cards from our wedding 4 years ago. I was going through all of that occassionally smiling, laughing out loud, tearing up and then suddenly inside a card, guess what I found?
A $50 gift card from Bed, Bath and Beyond.
Yes, from 4 years ago. And it is still valid. I called and checked.
Then I started going through all of the cards once more hoping something else will turn up too. It didn't, but still what a find, huh?
And then in the evening, hubby made batter fried vegetables, so yummy.
We went for a walk in the night after that and did some errands as well.
Sunday morning was the Lord's day and after church we had lunch at Chipotle and went for a walk. On the way back, we stopped at Babies R us to shop for some extra Medela nipples. They had some clothes on clearance and since baby outgrew most of his 3 month clothes, I decided to get him some 6/9 month clothes. I got 6 of these cute brand new clothes. And guess how much I paid for those?
$6.00
With a gift card a friend had generously sent us for the baby.
The Lord owns the cattle of a thousand hills, and he generously provides for us.
So, it was a great weekend to say the least. How was yours?
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Baby Outfit Daddy Style
I asked the dear husband to get baby ready to go out.
Here is the result
1.A 12 month onesie too big for him
2.Yellow bib for a blue outfit
3.Purple socks
4.And the crowning glory? Socks for mittens...
The upside is baby doesn't care. Then again he wouldn't care if I put a Cindrella outfit and a tiara on him.
I think I should be just grateful for a Daddy who helps out with the baby.
Here is the result
1.A 12 month onesie too big for him
2.Yellow bib for a blue outfit
3.Purple socks
4.And the crowning glory? Socks for mittens...
The upside is baby doesn't care. Then again he wouldn't care if I put a Cindrella outfit and a tiara on him.
I think I should be just grateful for a Daddy who helps out with the baby.
Monday, November 16, 2009
Writing thank you notes is not something I did as a child. But I love it a lot now. There is something really sweet about sitting down and writing a note and also receiving one in the mail. I have of course made slip ups especially to couple of people while I was recovering from delivery. I even wrote them, but I couldn't find them anywhere. Lost, vanished, disappeared without trace. And now it has been 3 months!
Speaking of thankfulness, I wanted to write about two gifts we received for Neil since they were super special.
One was from a lady who attends my sister's church. I don't know her at all, but she apparently does from when she saw me ONCE 6 years ago!!! So when she heard from my sister that I had a baby, she bought these two cute outfits and a set of wash clothes and sent it. How sweet is that?
I LOVE it that it is a onesie and a pant and not a shirt and pant since that exposes their little tummies and backs. And it has "Here comes trouble" on his butt :)
And this one with a little coat? How sweet? It is perfect for the occasional cold Sunday here in FL.
I sent her a thank you note and she told my sister that she gives gifts to many many people and this was the first time someone sent a thank you note!
A while back, before baby was born, I was researching options on baby transportation. I was not planning on buying a stroller immediately. For one thing, I wasn't thinking of taking him out anywhere soon after birth. Plus, we have a convertible car seat that we could not use on top of the stroller. I looked at Maya wraps and slings, but they were putting more pressure on one side of the shoulder and I knew I would give up on that soon.
Serena did a series on breastfeeding at that time and she had mentioned babywearing in that article as something she is passionate about. I emailed her to ask her opinions and she graciously replied to all my 127 questions. Then I searched her blog and read all she had written about baby wearing and then emailed her some more and finally decided that a mei tai was the best option for me. I was all set to buy one online when she said she will sew one for me!!! As a gift!!! That was so incredibly kind of her especially as we don't know in real life, I was just a complete stranger she met online.
We are so very grateful for that gift as it allowed us take him with us places without carrying a stroller (this fits in the diaper bag).
R loves it and finds it very easy and comfortable. I do have a threshold though. It does hurt me if I walk like 2 miles with it. And baby? He absolutely LOVES it. He loves looking at the world from inside it facing out. And when he sleeps, he loves facing me/hubby resting on us.
I love it that it frees my hands and I can do cleaning and some computer tasks while I have him on me. Just a bit of walking and he is out like a light.The only downside is that Neil throws a fit when we take him out of that.
Neil being our first baby has been the recipient of a truck load of gifts. We have been completely overwhelmed by the amount of things we have been blessed with. (and is still continuing to get!). My boss has been out due to an emergency surgery since I joined work and today he stopped by the office just to give me this!
Baby is trying to open it with his mouth like a little pup.
Speaking of thankfulness, I wanted to write about two gifts we received for Neil since they were super special.
One was from a lady who attends my sister's church. I don't know her at all, but she apparently does from when she saw me ONCE 6 years ago!!! So when she heard from my sister that I had a baby, she bought these two cute outfits and a set of wash clothes and sent it. How sweet is that?
I LOVE it that it is a onesie and a pant and not a shirt and pant since that exposes their little tummies and backs. And it has "Here comes trouble" on his butt :)
And this one with a little coat? How sweet? It is perfect for the occasional cold Sunday here in FL.
I sent her a thank you note and she told my sister that she gives gifts to many many people and this was the first time someone sent a thank you note!
A while back, before baby was born, I was researching options on baby transportation. I was not planning on buying a stroller immediately. For one thing, I wasn't thinking of taking him out anywhere soon after birth. Plus, we have a convertible car seat that we could not use on top of the stroller. I looked at Maya wraps and slings, but they were putting more pressure on one side of the shoulder and I knew I would give up on that soon.
Serena did a series on breastfeeding at that time and she had mentioned babywearing in that article as something she is passionate about. I emailed her to ask her opinions and she graciously replied to all my 127 questions. Then I searched her blog and read all she had written about baby wearing and then emailed her some more and finally decided that a mei tai was the best option for me. I was all set to buy one online when she said she will sew one for me!!! As a gift!!! That was so incredibly kind of her especially as we don't know in real life, I was just a complete stranger she met online.
We are so very grateful for that gift as it allowed us take him with us places without carrying a stroller (this fits in the diaper bag).
R loves it and finds it very easy and comfortable. I do have a threshold though. It does hurt me if I walk like 2 miles with it. And baby? He absolutely LOVES it. He loves looking at the world from inside it facing out. And when he sleeps, he loves facing me/hubby resting on us.
I love it that it frees my hands and I can do cleaning and some computer tasks while I have him on me. Just a bit of walking and he is out like a light.The only downside is that Neil throws a fit when we take him out of that.
Neil being our first baby has been the recipient of a truck load of gifts. We have been completely overwhelmed by the amount of things we have been blessed with. (and is still continuing to get!). My boss has been out due to an emergency surgery since I joined work and today he stopped by the office just to give me this!
Baby is trying to open it with his mouth like a little pup.
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
My darlin' punkin'
Because there are a lot of posts in my head and I have no time, here is a picture of my pumpkin during Halloween. Get ready for some gratuitous cuteness.
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