No Pain no Gain

The first one came without much fuss.

But the second... oh the second...its breaking all pain barriers for me. Cant sleep, cant eat and cant play with the same free spirit.

I have been largely restless over the last 3 days or so. I have been bloated too and have had to sleep face down to provide some relief. I have also been running some fever since last night. Mom had to pick me up early from nursery because my fever wasnt letting up. Oh..a tooth ..a tooth... a kingdom for my second tooth.

I just wish I am in good shape to go and visit my friend Vivan.

Picnic in the park

Yesterday was end of summer bank holiday.The weekend was bright and sunny, as summers should be. Unusually, this year has been one of our wettest summer ever and hence, a weekend of sunshine was really a pleasant surprise.

After the botched attempt to go out on Saturday, Mom and Dad decided that today was going to be spent outside. On Saturday, they had set out after a long delay to visit my new friend Vivan, who was born 3 weeks back. However, the train went only as far as Weybridge and then turned back to Woking wasting more than an hour. All the enthusiasm to visit someone was gone by then and so we returned home disappointed.

Back to yesterday, Mom quickly packed up a nice lunch for everyone - a salad of grilled vegetables and halloumi cheese, cheese sandwiches,strawberry yoghurts and a bottle of White Zinfandel. For me, she packed some juice and fruits. The 3 of us set out for a nice relaxing picnic to the park, which is not far from our place.

Once we reached the park, we found a nice spot for our picnic spread. After tucking into the wonderful spread, we started playing with the ball. I really enjoy huge spaces and I was all over the place. Mom and Dad went crazy with the camera capturing all my moods. I even stood straight without support for a minute or so - which is very encouraging.

After a while I began to tire. Dad and Mom took the cue and wheeled me around the garden. We took a small detour and passed my friends - the duckies, who were quacking away in the pond in the park. I even got to see some swans up close and personal.

That was pretty much the last thing I remember as the cold breeze and comfortable pram rocked me to sleep. The smile I had from this picnic stayed with me through the day. I look forward to more such fun activities with my parents.

Teething

For the past 2-3 days, I had been chewing on things a lot along with some heavy drooling. Mom feels my jaws everyday to see if there was any signs of tooth and finally yesterday morning, she struck gold. I have a small tooth emerging from my bottom jaw. Its such an exciting development.

Mom even got a toothbrush for me and teething gel. I didnt take to it immediately, but after a couple of attempts I liked the idea of chewing on something like this. This morning Dad and I brushed teeth together.

I use my tongue from side to side to feel my tooth and end up making funny sounds too. Today we plan to go to the park for a picnic. Will write an update on it tomorrow.

Like a diamond in the sky

Thanks to the solid food I eat and chew, my jaws are strong. Apparently, this means that I would be able to speak / form words better. Not quite sure if its great news for my parents.

The noise decibel levels are unnecessarily high in the household ever since the party thanks to the imaginative gifts by Dad's friends. From Vidya aunty's Noah's ark to Seetharam uncle's xylophone, all my gifts could easily fit in Cacophonix's orchestra. Mom has in fact packed a few away and will release them slowly into the household for the greater good.

Anyways, back to my talking. Its old news that I can say things like "Ta" to mean bye and "Ter" to mean water. I can even say "Garden" now. I recognize the rhyme "Twinkle Twinkle" and also make a diamond shape when I hear the words "Like a diamond in the sky".

I had my 3rd set of injections yesterday and I felt a little ill after that.Thankfully Mom was around to comfort me. Just in case you missed my birthday and wanted to be a part of it, here's the video.

A little wiser..

.. yes I have completed 1 year of my life and it has been a great ride so far. Dad's company use a technique called the retrospective, which means you look back at the past events and draw important learnings from it.

So here's my very own retrospective

Things that went well

1. Seeing nearly all of my relatives since my birth even though I have not visited India. I especially enjoyed Yash and Harsh's trip to the UK.
2. Moving into a new house - I have enjoyed the ample space it offers me
3. My eating habits - I weaned early and then I have consistently maintained good eating habits (see here and here). It's the one thing that no one ever complains about me.
4. My communication skills - Dad and Mom have been able to understand everything that I wanted to convey and thus, attend to my needs
   
5. Being loved and cherished by everyone.
6. My learnings. I have picked up things very fast and have shown good progress with everything (see here, here and here)
7. Having my own personal weblog...:-)

Things that did not go so well

1. I dont have great sleeping habits ( see here and here)
2. Although I am quite healthy, I have had more than my share of illness (see here, here and here)
3. I wish I could have met some of my fans like Anju Masi, Kalpesh Kaka, Vikram Mama etc to name a few - but dont see it happening for sometime.

Things that puzzle me

1. Do I want to spend time at nursery or do I wish Mom /Dad stayed at home with me ?
2. Do I want to live in the UK or do I want to be close home to my cousins ?
   

The buzz is in the air...

My birthday is fast approaching and the preparations seem to be going great. As reported previously all the party food, drinks and cake has been ordered. Most invitees have accepted as well - so I am expecting a sizeable turnout. There is even a demand to "webcast" my birthday party for my family in India.

Dad has got some new clothes for me - a nice black jeans with suspenders and a couple of t-shirts to wear on my birthday. I am also going to wear Dhoti and Kurta for some time - the ones that Fia gifted me. I feel like I am doing a shoot for a Hindi movie song - changing clothes as often as blinking eyelids.

I must admit that in a lot of ways this is overwhelming and humbling. It is a privilege to be loved and to be popular. Thank you everyone for making me feel special.

Happy Birthday Fua

I have an award winning Fua. According to Dad, Fua deserves every award available for bravery, courage and patience. After all he is married to Fia and is also a father to Harsh and Yash. He has survived the 3 pronged attack for years now..

So to my award winning Fua - wish you a very happy birthday. You share your birthday with Pakistan - which Fia would agree is not entirely coincidental..:-)

Enjoy!!

Lucky Mascot

Dad thinks I am a lucky mascot for him. Yesterday, until I awoke and sat in front of the television, Arsenal were losing 1-0. I sat in dad's lap on the 80th minute and soon things changed for Arsenal. We hit 2 in the last 10 minutes thanks to a penalty and a last gasp strike from Hleb. Now Dad has promised to buy a Theo Walcott t-shirt for me and ensure that I wear it for every game.



We even won the cricket series today after a gap of 21 years - hmmm... lucky me !!

Eventful 2 weeks

Apologies for not posting enough over the last 15 days or so. Things have been happening rather rapidly for everyone around. I list them here

1. My room is ready. Yes, its been painted in a nice zesty lime green colour, and the decor such as new lampshade and wall clock have been purchased. A wardrobe would soon complete the look. I expect I will move in there before the end of this week.

2.I have a new laptop, mobile phone and a drum. I had spoilt dad's hard disk by banging on his laptop.So in response they bought a new toy version of laptop hoping that I would leave Dad's one in peace. Fat chance !!

3. I can stand up on my own with minimal support. Over the last few days, Dad and mom have awakened in the night to see me standing in my cot. I can get up by rolling over sideways and lifting myself up.

4. Dad is changing jobs. Yes, he is leaving a cushy job in a consulting firm to go and work for himself. He already has a nice contract and is reasonably excited.

5. I can say things like "Ta" to mean I want to go outside and "Ter" to mean water. You can see where my priorities lie. Dad predicts that I will be a world explorer.

6. Child safety gates are no longer optional in my household. I crawl to every nook and corner. I have a particular penchant for things which should be out of my reach.

7. I am having a birthday party next week. Yay !! The catering is arranged, invites have been sent and even the decor has been arranged. I cant wait to get my first taste of cake.

8. I know how to open door handles, switch on the television, switch on the light and even how to open a closed laptop. As soon as I have enough strength, Dad and mom will have a new worry in their hands.

9. My grandparents (Daada, Naana and Naani) will now be able to see me every week live. They have now got the internet connection sorted. Daada is an expert with Yahoo messenger already.

10. My trip to India in October is now effectively postponed. Sorry guys, you will have to continue seeing me on the webcam and website for a while longer.