Week five

One more week has gone by. Rohan's neck is getting stronger and so are his screams. He still doesn't care much for play, but he can now follow a moving object with his eyes so he is entertained by mobiles and S's juggling balls. We still haven't found a good pet name for him, so we just call him Rohan and his brother calls him "Roran". You would have to hear this to know how cute it is...

My mother arrived yesterday and she will stay with us until the middle of August, almost three weeks. I really hope that Appu can bond with her in this time, unfortunately he doesn't get to see her very often. He seems comfortable with her though and is already calling her "nonna".

Both kids are sleeping now and if I stay up to blog instead of going to bed I will deserve what I get... so goodnight!

Week four

We almost made it to a month. I would say this with more enthusiasm if I weren't so tired and sleepy, but overall things are still going quite well.

Noteworthy events include:

• We got the PIO cards that we had applied for in October!
  
• And I just received a few minutes ago Rohan's birth certificate (which could have taken several more weeks to come, so this is close to a miracle)...
• ... so it seems we are actually going to be able to leave the country at the end of August. Yay!
• We found some daycare for Appu in a really nice place, with his friend Kalena, and it is likely that the same center will accept him when we come back after my maternity leave. It is walkable from both home and the office and it is the most peaceful daycare center I have seen in my short but intense career as childcare seeker. What else could we ask for?
• In the meantime, while Appu starts transitioning to the new center, we keep taking advantage of all the summer activities that Waterloo has to offer to desperate moms with toddlers. Last week it was the music class, this week it is the swimming class. He was scared of the water at first, but we already made a bit of progress, so perhaps he will not be stapled to me like a clam for the next two weeks... The high point of the class: we learnt the "fishy" version of the Boogie Woogie song. "Put your left fin in, put your left fin out...

My favorite photos from the past week:


Appu trying to pretend he doesn't care about the camera while keeping a dignified silence and a very serious expression. This was some sort of protest, but unfortunately for him I have no idea what the problem was.



This instead is a variation of the classic measurement problem, aka "you cannot capture on camera a peacefully sleeping baby - especially if you are using a flash".

Delusions

Questa mattina Rohan mi ha sorriso: lo stavo tirando su, lui ha guardato verso di me e ha fatto un grosso sorriso. :)

I think Rohan smiled at me today. I mean, it could have been just a coincidence, but all evidence points to the contrary. He was a bit uncomfortable so I went to pick him up and when I was lifting him he looked up, towards me, and exploded in a gigantic smile. So maybe he likes me...

Week three

We just came back from Rohan's three week appointment. The midwife said the jaundice seems to be almost gone and the weight is good: 9 lbs 2 oz, about 4.1 Kg. The little one is beginning to cry a little more, but we are not scared yet. Mostly he moans a lot, especially in his sleep, which is annoying but harmless. Today he lifted his head for a couple of seconds during tummy time and if that had not been exciting enough, he also sucked his fist (yes, the whole little fist) for the first time.




Appu is still being quite nice to him and he is being very patient about the constant noises that disturb his sleep in bed at night. In an unexpected twist, he has developed somewhat of an obsession for Rohan's socks. He tries every trick to convince us to put them on him. The words "too little" still don't ring a bell, I'm afraid.

Today it was the second day of Appu's music camp. We go for an hour in the morning to sing and make noise with a few other kids, then we have some coloring and some music listening and play to do at home. Rohan comes to class with us in the sling and so far he has slept through it all. I'm quite happy with the whole experience so far and Appu seems to enjoy it. He has fun with the musical instruments (today we got to use a really cool drum with beads inside) and he is very interactive. The only part he doesn't like is when everybody gets up to dance holding some colorful scarves. Somehow that scares him and I end up having to carry two kids in my arms, while waving the scarves around, so that is now also my least favorite part... :)

The sweetest thing

Oggi Appu ha insistito che suo fratello venisse a fare il bagno insieme a lui. Poi hanno messo il pigiama insieme e abbiamo letto un po' di storie (Rohan era un pochino distratto, ma lo scusiamo). Un buon segno, no?

After dinner we told Appu "bath time!". He pointed at his brother and he said "Rohan", then he went nearer to where Rohan was sleeping unaware and said "Rohan too!". So we woke up Rohan and we all went to the tub. I think the dad had tears in his eyes...

Domenica mattina al parco

These pictures are from last Sunday. We went to the park with our little neighbour Kalena and her dad, who brought along a couple of kites to make the most of a windy morning. The kite flying part wasn't very successful, but both dads and kids had fun and the photographer managed to get a few shots with the kite in the air. Rohan was sitting cozy in his sling, asleep for most of the time. The outing was then concluded with a stop at our usual brunch place for eggs and smoothies - and milk!

Happiness is ... washable markers

Felicita' e'... pennarelli nuovi con un sacco di inchiostro (lavabile!)