Crawling, defined

First, the before-after shots from Deven's recent haircut. Hard to see in the photo, but Papa Yogesh has proudly pronounced Deven now looks "less like a rowdy kid" - I think that means he's less of a rascal...but we didn't cut much, and he still acts like a rascal, so I'm not sure how much good the haircut did. :)



Now for some other recent shots - friend Christie @ our house, with Tammi, Brian, and their girls Alex & Mia (who are HUGE!), and Deven inside his favorite new toy @ my parents' house (I couldn't upload all of 'em, or I would've - lots of cute shots coming of my sister, aunt, mom, and others with Deven):




Back to the point of the post: From the definition on the web @ Princeton, "A slow mode of locomotion on hands and knees or dragging the body; 'a crawl was all that the injured man could manage.'" Do you think he's accomplishing this? We do!

Click to watch the videos - yep, we're now officially behind in 'babyproofing' - the little guy is crawling!


(Yes I know I'm lame for taking a couple of the videos sideways - I keep forgetting it's not a camera that I can just adjust the shots).

Finally, I miss Baby Boot camp - my friends there, Amy & Kopal (the kick-butt instructor) - the warm mornings along South Beach Harbor. I haven't even seen them recently to give them the holiday cards I've been saving for each of them! Sigh. Off to work to alleviate some more Mommy Guilt now. :)

Working Mom's Guilt

...has set in. I wondered when it would happen. I have the best situation I could imagine:
- Healthy kid
- Great husband
- Fabulous mom-in-law
- Dependable, nurturing nanny
- Even have a biweekly housecleaner who does a great job.

...and yet, I read a blog by a friend-of-a-friend who's a SAHM (that's shorthand for Stay At Home Mom to those of you without a child under the age of 5), and there it was - all the well-said, properly-written, ingenious turns-of-phrase to describe how much FUN she and her 1-year old are having together.

It was a dumb move to read that, right before I tried nursing Deven again and he wouldn't do much because the supply isn't there. Supply isn't there b/c demand hasn't been there; I haven't pumped much and he's eating a lot more solids in general. I yelled at my mom from the stress of daily life (sorry mom); our washer broke (ask Yogesh why) and our house - despite cleaning it for a week WITH our Nanny's help - still is a wreck. Stresses both Yogesh and I to no end.

**SIDEBAR**
Last Friday was horrendous in the office: hurricane-force winds in my new office created showers inside - yes, I mean rain on desks, and not just mine - our so-well-planned fabulous retro-factory space turned out to have 1 serious flaw, in addition to the minor ones like no lights in the private rooms: The roof wasn't fully coated/caulked prior to move-in. This wouldn't ordinarily be a problem, because normal rain will just run down - but when the winds are 70+ MPH from the south, it forces the water up inside the roof, and down onto...our desks. We lost power; some overhead flourescent lights started smoking when water hit their ballasts, and the porta-potty outside tipped over pretty close to our entrance. Ieew. At least my chair wasn't dumped on, like others I saw.

The weather was so bad, we were asked to stay IN the office for some time while the gale passed over. It was the first time I felt a desperate need to be HOME - to be on the same side of the Bay as my son - and that I really didn't like having to cross a bridge to get to work (ok, it wasn't the first time I've hated the bridge commute).

And to top it all off, the Redskins lost on Saturday.

** back to the point of the blog now**

So, I read the blog and justified working by thinking how much I enjoy it (on a dry, warm day at least). Nursing didn't go well - Deven's not weaning, but he's not working very hard to keep nursing either, and frankly, *I* like it.

Later yesterday, Deven did something pretty cool - he took a few tentative crawls across the floor. Yogesh then told me the same thing when I wasn't there - does that mean I missed a major milestone? Sigh. Again, the guilt.

I'm trying to ignore it, but as I look at our nude Christmas tree, (ornaments are stored, but the tree is still not put away) the guilt doesn't want to go away.

Still can't upload photos - though we gave Deven his first haircut (just to get the wispies out of his eyes). Tips appreciated!

We Were "Those Parents"

Those Parents Who Can't Quiet Their Fussy Child On The Flight...

Had a nice visit back in MD, complete with a very tough flight back home. It wasn't as bad as other horror stories I've heard, but try to imagine:

- 8:00am flight out of Dulles, 55 minutes drive from my parents' house in MD
- Busy Sunday after Christmas
- 3 huge / almost overweight suitcases + 2 enormous boxes 'cause we couldn't fit all the stuff in the suitcases
- Mother-in-Law in wheelchair
- Baby awakened early for flight (1st night he decided to sleep in beyond 5am!)

We get to the airport; where Daadi was somehow taken away in a wheelchair as we were unloading the car - leaving Deven in his carseat wide-eyed in the middle of Dulles ticket lines. We figure that out, get the bags checked, get thru security (where they find a bottle of water in Daadi's bag and my belt wouldn't stop screeching the sensor); and right onto the plane with not a minute to spare.

Deven fussed throughout - I think his ears bothered him.

HORRIBLY rude stewardess on United flight (she doesn't deserve the more modern "Flight Attendant" title) - really ruined the flight despite the other nice flight attendants. She accused me of changing Deven's diaper on a jump seat in the galley (huh?!?) - was so aggressive and even said "I have witnesses to your attitude" - WTF lady, you're the one accusing me! Made the whole rest of the flight very uncomfortable...at best.

Getting luggage wasn't fun: I had to leave Deven & Daadi outside while I gathered the 5 pieces (3 huge suitcases + 2 heavy boxes). 1 box split open badly (wierd - not on a seam but diagonally on its side) and Deven's toys were strewn around the luggage turnstile. UGH.

Finally got in, got home: Yay! Cat Mr. Idea was no worse for wear; and we spent New Year's Day with our nanny helping us CLEAN HOUSE!

We're still not quite done cleaning; but it's better. An update on the snotty United agent: I just registered a complaint through their Survey syste = we'll see if that does anything. Humph.

No photos again; I don't even know where the camera is.

Gave Deven a haircut -snaps coming. He already looks like a little BOY!

Merry Christmas!

First Christmas with the family - all went well, so far. All except the technical difficulties that continue to plague my computer: Now I can't download photos from my mom's chip into my laptop - why? No idea. So, enjoy the family photos here!

People:
Front row:
Kelly Chase (cousin), Lil' Katie Logan (Bernie's daughter), Bernie Logan (cousin), me, Yogesh, Deven (pouting)
Middle row:
Matt Logan (Bernie's son), Nikki Orthner (cousin), Aunt Anne, Mom, Heather, Aunt Ushi, Daadi
Back row:
Troy Logan (photographer, looks a bit wide-eyed b/c he had to run to get into the shot!), Sebastian (Nikki's Significant Other), Carleton Chase, Uncle Joergi, Dad, Tommy, Arthur, Uncle Art (partially hidden), Lauren


Deven & Matt, above; with Matt's sister Katie, below. All the kids were hugged, kissed, and generally pinched because they were oh-so-cute, by all the Aunties and relatives.


It was Daadi's first Christmas with our family - I think she was thrilled to meet more of my family, then amused by our singing carols before we opened gifts. I love Christmas, and I hope Deven grows to love it, too!

What's in a Name? Shoo Flea!

We're at the swings in Dolores Park last Saturday after Baby Boot Camp, and Deven's giggling with every push. Nearby, a dad with a ~ 3 year old girl and tiny infant in a stroller walks up, and starts pushing the girl. At one point he says to the girl "Watch out for Deven!" - and I realize he's talking to his daugher about the infant in the stroller. Soon thereafter he says "Maia, you can push yourself if you want."

Huh. What's so fascinating about this is not that he has an infant named Deven and daughter named Maia, but that if Deven had been a girl we'd have named him Maia, too!

I'm intrigued, so I ask him: Is the infant named Deven? Yes, he says. Is it a boy or girl? Boy. I tell him that the little guy swinging with me is Deven, as well. Yogesh walks up at that point, and the dad asks "Are you Indian?" to Yogesh - because the dad (Western/American) then says that his wife is Gujarati (Indian). Just like us, they wanted to name their children names that worked in both cultures.

We didn't bother the dad further, but maybe we should've. On the way home, I realized that we live in a very special place here in San Francisco, where being a bicultural family is so completely normal, that we randomly met a family whose children are named precisely what we'd name our children. I also realized that our choice of "Deven" for our little guy wasn't so unique after all. I decided this is OK - because great minds think alike.

Now, about our cat, Mr. Idea: He's sitting on top of the cabinets ABOVE the refrigerator. Why? We think it's because he's so bothered by Deven and the general hubub at home, that this is his new hiding place. He's up there all the time lately!
This would be fine, except that last week we noticed a couple of fleas on Deven. Yogesh didn't think this was such a big deal, until our friend Caroline (a friend who's currently in vet school @ UC-Davis) said that the fleas you see are < 5% of the fleas lurking in our home. Ick. After vacuuming like maniacs, putting nasty flea-powder down, and dousing the cat with over-the-counter stuff, we realized that Mr. Idea is still Patient Zero in our fleabag household. Luckily we know Caroline, and she sent the good stuff over: "Advantage" flea control. We promptly applied this to Mr. Idea. He seems better already, but we're watching the house carefully.

8 Months: Wow.

Who do YOU think he looks like? I think he looks like a lot of people in our family! He's standing on his own now (see photo of him SO PROUD of pulling himself up on his crib), babbling like a brook, and almost crawling. Definitely scooting himself around the floor (meaning we can't leave him on the bed unattended any longer).








Today is Deven's 8-month 'birthday' and I can't believe it. I walked in to Daadi's room this morning (where I'd left him @ 6:30am so I could get ready for work), to find him holding his own bottle. When did he learn that? I knew he'd been close to holding his own bottle for a while, but wow. These little guys learn fast!

Wish my brain still grew that fast...but as long as my hips don't, I think we're OK.

Click the "Play" button in the video screen below to see some recent videos!

No Photos?!?

...because the chip we took TONS of good snaps on isn't uploading correctly now! Aah, technology.

I'm reminded of the time my parents had one of those old 110-film cameras. Yeah, the kind where you couldn't tell sometimes if the roll was done or still in use. They developed what they thought was a mostly-blank roll in the late 80's, and found photos taken from the late 70's. We all got a laugh out of the shots of my sister as a toddler (she was a preteen, and I was a teen at the time so any chance to rib her was welcomed).

I hope this chip leads to something like that...NOT that we've just lost all the cute photos of Deven's first Halloween, visit by Laura, etc. etc... :(

Had another business trip to SoCal last Thursday-Friday; missed the little guy terribly. Good news is that again, the TSA was surprisingly pleasant in their understanding of my carryon bag containing liquids while I was sans-bebe. I suppose the breastpump in the x-ray gives it away. :)

My parents are coming out for Thanksgiving - looking forward to having a fun time with them here. Deven's in full-on "PLAY WITH ME NOW" mode (e.g. don't ignore me for a second or I'll scream!)- so Naani's presence will be welcomed.

Snap here was taken on the roof by my friend Chris this weekend. I'd better get back to that Baby Boot Camp more often!

Is it crawling if...

...they're totally up on their hind legs and pushing along, but dragging their lips along the rug & leaving a drool-trail like the cutest slug ever? Or, if they're up on their arms and rolling over to the nearest dangerous-thing to grab hold of and bring it to their mouths?

Deven's firmly @ this stage now. No teeth yet like his little Playgroup buddies, but he sits up, bangs blocks, and has just started the oh-so-cute Peek-a-boo game.

I talk to other non-working moms on occasion and I feel really lucky to be working. Nothing's perfect, but we're OK here.

7 Months Ago...

...I was a new mom. And now Deven is sitting up, cooing and gurgling like a bubbling brook, and grabbing anything within reach to put it in his mouth.


Goodbye, St. Luke's?
I just learned that the hospital where we gave birth, St. Luke's, will no longer offer obstetric care (beginning in '09 I think...that leaves us little time to get busy for #2!)
Homestyle Midwifery, the incredible mom- and baby-centered care that brought Deven into the world naturally, will have to find another home. I could cry...but what did I expect? It's too expensive to offer excellent care to this, the "poorer south side" of San Francisco. Huh.


Work is going well for me, busy but well. Deven has his own room now (the teeny 3rd bedroom); that was harder on us than on him. He is growing SO fast, and I just think back to the hard beginning and am SO glad he came into the world naturally. So much more I could say on other topics, but I don't have time. Work and baby await. *grin*

Oh, photos: Cousin Rachna (Booaji to Deven) visited us from Portland - Deven loved meeting and giggling with his Booaji! Uncle Supreet also visited, and I think the Turbinator scared Deven...he (Deven) kept frowning for a while, until he warmed up (finally!).

What I want for you, Deven Reid Sharma

On the eve of Deven's 6 month birthday, I thought I'd share something I wrote the day he was born. I hope he reads it someday and smiles.

I want you to lead a life that is happy, healthy, and fulfilled.

To be kind, hardworking, creative, passionate, and loving.

To learn how to light up a room when you walk in - in your own way.

To not accept peer pressure when young,
and to battle injustice when older.

To find something - or 2 or 3 or 300 things - that you love and believe in and get passionate about...
and to work hard to improve those things.

Maybe I'm just saying that I want you to succeed at something(s) that you love.

To communicate well...it will take you far.

I want you to learn, and learn, and learn, and love learning.

To travel, adventure, and return to tell me and your dad the stories.

To take calculated risks - whether on your bicycle, or in your portfolio.

To love your cultures and respect others.

To love yourself, and to know that your parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles love you very much, too.

Happy Birthday, my son.

- Katherine Reid Sherwood, April 5, 2007