How do I notify you?

Dear Readers,

A few of you left comments on the last post stating that you would like the link to the new blog. PLEASE add your email, or at least a blog address where I can go and add a comment on your blog!

Anjali, I can't reach you...no email and no blog profile so I can't reach your blog either.

Ayesha - Same thing, when I click on your name it goes to profile unavailable.

You may email me at vavoom79@hotmail.com if you don't want to post your email on my comments.

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!! :-) Have written a few new posts on the newer blog, am excited to share.

Back

Okay so it's been a while, and I miss everyone.

And I realize that I need to blog so I can log Om's milestones, otherwise I get Mom Brain.

So I'll be writing up some posts soon and uploading. Stay tuned.

FYI

For those who's blog I read and leave comments on:

Changed profile handle.

Me = Chikki

Was my previous handle, am going back to it now. :D

Om Update! Long overdue

Om turned 8 months on April 18th. He is very mobile now, commando crawl and rolling all over the place. He also began sitting up by himself (before we would need to put him in the sitting position, but if he fell to tummy position he wouldn't be able to get back to a sitting position by himself).

He gets into everything...his curiousity is at its peak! He's eyeing the table tops and sofa cushions for potential toys. I don't let anything hang from tables otherwise he pulls the cords HARD and down comes whatever else was with it!

His eyesight is keen...he sees the tiniest crumbs on the floor that are camoflauged to my eyes (and then proceeds to insert nasty item in mouth). He notices and hears everything. If his Dad is upstairs getting ready in the morning and we are downstairs, he listens to the music coming through the walls and the sound of water going down the drain pipes. If children are playing outside, he tilts his head around looking for the origin of the sound. Birds are his favorite...the chirps that I have learned to tune out he relishes and looks toward the window in hopes of seeing said bird. One of his favorite activities is watching the crows eat crackers that I've put out in the backyard.

Om is such a little fireball. Set him down anywhere, and he immediately searches for something to play. We have attended a few playdates and storytimes, and Om is not hesitant to venture away from Mommy and explore the new world around him. He especially likes interacting with other babies and tots. He will grab their hair, ears, or toy they are holding without so much as a glance. The expression on the other babies faces is priceless...they are usually left wondering what happened to the toy they were mouthing and why was hair just pulled? During storytime at the library he sings his own words along with the rhymes...I have to bounce him to get him to quiet down so that we can hear what the storyteller is saying!

My favorite part about Om is his sense of humor...he smiles so easily....he doesn't hold any facial expression back. If a cashier is talking to him, he will gift her his toothy grin. If I am across the room busy in something, and then suddenly look up to see where Om is, he will display a wide mischevious grin and say "eeeeeeh" and then turn away in an almost shy manner when he realizes he's being noticed. Sometimes I just need to look in his eyes and laugh, and he will laugh back at the secret joke. One of our favorite games is to pretend that there is a baby stuck to my head. I take Om and put him on my head and say "there is a baby on my head! get it off get it off! eeeek!" and then Om giggles. Another game is blowing rasberries on his stomach....there is nothing sweeter than the sound of a baby's laugh!

Om's current favorite toys are his jumperoo and any container taken from the kitchen. He also enjoys watching Baby Einstein videos while sitting in his high chair and munching on crackers. He smiles and coos at the puppets. For eating, it is a cycle...some days Om will eat 16 ounces of baby food, and other days he will not even allow a spoon to enter his mouth. Last week he was 17.5 lbs, so he is gaining about a pound a month. Not sure if that is normal, but I don't know what else I can do to encourage weight gain...this month we have started full fat yogurt so maybe that will help.

He loves to take toys and wave them in the air. I think he is trying to determine how the toy works and what sounds it makes when bumped against something. Speaking of bumping, Om bangs his palms on any flat surface, such as tiles, hard wood floor, or table.

The worse part of this time is the seperation anxiety...Om doesn't last more than 5 minutes in any play area unless I am sittng very close. Stranger anxiety has also set in...he loves interacting with people from afar, but not necessarily when he is in their lap.

Om is blissfully continuing to sleep through the night. He goes to bed at 8pm, and then wakes at 6am without any feeding during the night. Sometimes he wakes up at 5am, which is when I feed him and then put him back down to sleep. He'll babble to himself for a while before going back to sleep until 7am. We attribute his good sleeping behavior to sleeping in a seperate room from us.

Our house is filled with the sound of "Daa daaa dadada" all day long...I don't think Om knows what he is saying, but it's his favorite word, and it is usually associated with some material thing (toys, household items). He also blows rasberries frequently. I think the rasberries are associated with pretend play...he takes a toy and then holds it up and blows a rasberry...maybe he's mimicing a sound that he imagines must be coming from the toy? :-)

Om and his best friend Jovin. You can tell which one is Om hehe.

You are my Baby Love

Om turns 6 months old today, February 18th. Here are some photos of updates from the past month or so. And yes, we take almost all the pics on the same couch!





G and I before attending a wedding. I'm posting this pic because it's a rare nice pic...most pics usually come out at some weird angle, with stray hair, double chin, and wires and diapers in the background. This one came out pretty decent! Oh and I usually don't wear saris.



This pic is screaming Valentine's Day with all the red. This year G and I left Om with Grandma and went out to dinner at Calabria, an italian place, in Kirkland, WA. Om behaved well while we were gone and was asleep when we returned. On Saturday I attended a Moms group coffee date and we all attended a wedding. Then on Sunday we ventured out to North Bend outlet mall for some shopping. Om was on good behavior all throughout. I found hats, shorts, and diaper covers for Om that will be useful when we travel to India this summer. (Why is it that a variety of hats is so hard to find in stores?).

This would have been a great pic, I look decent (for once)...but Om would not look directly at the camera! Argh! I wish I had more pics of him and I together that I actually like!

Om's hilarious passport pic. This boy's hair is NEVER settled. Love the crazy poofy hair!

Om stylin' before going to a birthday party. Notice the diaper in the background. Of course! LOL. Oh and I love baby pants...they look so grown up wearing miniature khakis and jeans!

This outfit (minus the pants) was stitched by grandma. Love the baby bonnet type hat!

Lots to explain in this pic - First, Om's hair is in a mini "bun" because we were trying to make him look like a little Sikh child (sardar kha bacha). For those who don't know what Sikh is, they are the religion that wear turbans. We are not Sikh, but just thought it would be funny to dress him up like one and show off to relatives in India. Second, Om's wearing pants knitted by Grandma. I love the rainbow print. Third, Om's favorite toy is his hairbrush, despite the state of his ever poofy hair! He loves to gnaw on the handle and we have to take it away from him lest he chew on the hair infested bristles.

Gotta love this pic, the lighting is perfect. And Om has his mouth closed! This boy breathes through his mouth so it's a rare sight (unless he's sleeping) to see him with his mouth clamped shut.

This pic is from a friend's baby shower. I like this pic because we look so natural! (Thanx Namita & Deepak). I'm holding a little mouse. LOL We decided to give his Halloween costume one more use before we gave it away.

For milestones, I don't even know what to write. He loves eating all sorts of sweet fruits like banana, pears, apples, sweet potatoes, and butternut squash. I enjoy feeding him even though he makes quite a mess and can be pretty fussy. It's so cute to see his facial expressions as he swishes the food around in his mouth. At times he'll stop and stare up at your face, which is soooo adorable. We tried spinach and carrot mix, which he refused to eat! He also has 4 teeth now...the two on the bottom came out at 4 months, and the top two are emerging.

He's so antsy ...wants entertainment and something to play with all the time. When he's sitting in my lap, he'll twist his head around to see who's holding him....LOVE when he does that! He's almost sitting up...he tends to lean forward or back so it affects how long he can stay in that position. He rolls around a bit, but not as much as other infants his age because he imagines his brace is still limiting his movements. Nevertheless, he's trying really hard and can hardly stay still.

Om went to his first baby playdate this month. All the babies were 6 to 8 months so he fit right in. :-) I've joined a Moms group and have so far attended a playdate with Om and a Moms only coffee date. I really enjoy meeting new people and especially enjoy getting advice from fellow Moms.

February and the end of Jan were chock full of social events such as birthdays, baby showers, weddings, and get togethers. I love attending, but at times I was missing some down time on the weekends to get stuff done (especially things that required G). I've been studying as much as I can, mostly just reading outlines. Am still waiting patiently for the date of my examination to magically appear in the mail box. Once that date is set, I will have more direction and focus, because there is so much to memorize that it doesn't make sense to implant it into my brain now and then forget later. (No I'm not rationalizing!)

G and I are excersising as much as possible. I feel sorry for G, his work schedule and commute time doesn't allow for much gym. But we are trying! And my first goal is to get into the 150s for weight. Be gone darn 160s!