What is going on???

Kevalin and Amiya received a package in the mail
today. Kev got a cute little outfit and Amiya a stuffed bear all courtesy of Ms. Lori and Mr. Jim, great aunt and uncles (sort-of) to Amiya and Kev. Amiya so loves her new bear, an aquamarine Ty Beanie Buddie named Sherbet, that she calmly gave me Bear and told me to throw him away. Bear has been with her for her entire life. The earliest picture I can find of her with Bear is at 21 weeks, but I know he was around before that as I remember hauling him both to Rochester, NY and Minocqua, WI prior to her being four months old. I can't imagine that she really wants to part with this dear friend who has travelled all over the US and beyond clutched in her sweaty toddler hand. So, I'll hold on tight to Bear and keep him loved until she bellows out for him at 3 AM some night very soon. She may think Bear isn't as soft and cuddly as Sherbet, but sometimes Mommies know best.

Happy Blogiversary!

Today marks one year of blogging. 258 posts have been written to etch in bits (or bytes???) what Amiya and, to a much less extent, Kevalin have been up to. I started this blog because I'm a bad Mommy and had never updated Amiya's baby book past month four. I figured she needed something to look back on. I also started it because it was way too much to meet the demands of a few select individuals who wanted pictures every.single.day. Several times a day. So now, they come here, get their fill and we're all quite content. I'm happy to have stuck with it for this long - I didn't think I would. Happier even moreso that Vinay backs up the blog onto something that will be around for a really, really long time in case Blogger ups and quits on us. Amiya and Kevalin will have a way to read this because their Daddy is a good guy.

So, happy anniversary to the blog! Thanks for reading and especially for the comments which I love to get. If you haven't left one go ahead and do it - it's not hard. And if you have, thanks much and I look forward to many, many more. Someday when Amiya and Kev are reading through this they'll be able to pick out the quirky, fun traits of all of us (who will by then be gray-haired and middle-aged) just by what's been left in the comment box.

For Posterity

I tried to find if I have ever blogged about Amiya's favorite art medium: feces. That's right. She loves, loves, loves to play with her poop. It hasn't happened in a long time, but it happened yesterday and truly she was making the most of it.

She's been potty trained for a long time except for nighttime. Usually for her nap we put her to bed with big girl underwear and plastic pants on top just in case. Since Kev's been here she's been having a lot of accidents (thankfully mostly pee), so yesterday I put her down for her nap with a pull-up on. She pooped, took it off and started to play with it. I sat on the couch nursing Kevalin and reading a library book, completely unaware of the Maplethorpesque artwork happening in her room. I caught a whif of something foul and smelled Kev. Nope. Smelled the library book. Nope. Smelled my armpits. Nope. Fear began to set in. Set Kev down and walked slowly to Amiya's room. The smell became stronger and stronger. I figured I was in for a doozy of a pull-up and only hoped it hadn't leaked out the sides and onto the sheets (washed three times this week already). If only. If only it were "that bad."

I walked into her room to find Amiya covered with her "medium" from top to bottom, the sheets, quilt and pillow shams smeared, the headboard and wall behind her bed frescoed and, perhaps in her crowning touch, the letters A, M and I perfectly formed on the side of her dresser. She was getting ready to make the letter Y when I walked in. I couldn't believe it. On the one hand, I was livid with her as we've been over this before and she knows that poop is not to be played with. On the other hand, pretty damn proud of her for getting those letters in the right order and so perfectly formed. Usually her A has a flat top but this one was pointy and perfect. It crossed my mind to take a picture - not necessarily for your viewing pleasure but more for her Prom night. But, I couldn't stand the idea of our hard drive having feces artwork on it forever.

One cold shower later, one very, very severe scolding from Mommy (the likes of which she had never seen before) and one promise of a spanking if she ever does that again, a contrite Amiya sat in her old crib waiting to see what would happen next. Daddy came home then and Mommy was excused to clear her brain. Daddy handled it all very well and today is a new day.

It's a bit of a learning moment for everyone. Amiya has learned, quite emphatically, that playing with poop will get her in a lot of trouble. We assumed she knew that, but you know what they say about assuming things.... We learned that even if we thought we were giving her special attention right now, it isn't nearly enough for what she needs and we've got to step up to the plate.

Ugh.

So, I'm just a wee bit frustrated with our pediatrician's office. Not the doctor himself, mind you, he's fantastic. But the nurse assistants who work there. Kevalin has been for several weight checks there and each stinkin' time they pop him on a different scale (truthfully he's only been on two scales, but it may as well be four different ones). The first time (Scale A) he had a substantial weight gain in just a few days. Yay for my boobs! The second time (Scale B) less weight gain but no cause for alarm. Come on girls, get to work! The third time (Scale B, new nurse assistant) a weight gain of only three ounces in seven days. WTH Boobs? If you're on strike I think I am legally supposed to get notice of intent to strike. The fourth time (Scale A, third nurse assistant) just shy of one pound of weight gain in six days. You're gettin' a raise, Girls!

For those of you who haven't breastfed or been close to someone who has breastfed it can be a (bad word) harrowing experience. It's not always soft and cozy like in the magazines.* Breasts don't come with ounce lines on them like bottles and so us Moms get a bit freaked out from time to time. I know, I'm freaked out more than just from time to time but that's my nature and you love it so let's move on. Back to why I'm peeved at the doctor's office. I asked during visits #2 and #3 (when they used Scale B) to have him weighed on Scale A. "All the scales are digital so it's going to be the same." Really? I'm so tempted to take a can of beans in and ask for it to be weighed on both Scales A and B because let's be realistic - they can be off. I know my son (how fun is it to type 'son?') and I know the difference in his nursing and in my boobs was not enough in the span of fourteen days for a ten ounce difference in weight gain. Had they just weighed him on Scale A for all of these checks I wouldn't have spent the last six days obsessing over his little fontanelle, his pallor, his demeanor, etc.

All this to say that next week when we go for another weight check (the last one, mind you) he will be weighed on Scale A and maybe, if I feel like proving my point, on Scale B, too.

And finally, because I'm not without some fault in the whole situation, I present this picture of Kevalin's left leg.

That's a fat fold right there midway between knee and groin and another one around his ankle. He doesn't look malnourished and several people told me to relax. So, for just today, they have the right to say "I told you so." as many times as they'd like. I should have listened. I promise next time I might.

*That's not to say it's not amazing at times, just gotta get through the murk to get to the nice cuddlies. Kev hasn't smiled at us yet on purpose, but when he pulls off from nursing he's always got this look of dopey, sated contentedness on his face with a gummy grin.

Two in One Day???

My goodness. What is going on at the Gupta household that I can manage two posts in one day? Lemme tell you - I got a nap, Vinay came home early, we ordered pizza and he's now on the couch with a sated Kevalin on his chest and Amiya in the crook of his arm. They're watching Lady and the Tramp and I have ten minutes to myself. F.a.b.u.l.o.u.s.

So - for your perusal - I few new pics of the apples of our eyes, the sunshines in our lives, the pepperonis on our pizzas, etc.

Ack! I'd be swearing up a storm if I didn't have little ears. Blogger isn't uploading pictures again. And since I can hardly string together two coherent thoughts, I won't even try to entertain you with my sparkling wit. Guess we're all out of luck and once again my precious ten minutes have been gobbled up by Blogger. Had we not just purchased a brand spankin' new car you know I'd be all over Vinay about getting me my own domain name so this doesn't keep happening.

Alrighty, it's Wednesday now and Blogger is back to fully functioning (I think). So, here are the pics I promised. Above, Amiya cuddling Kevalin. There's a fine line between cuddling and smothering - that must be why everyone at the hospital warned us to never leave the two alone together.

To the left a sleepy Kev. His very favorite place to sleep is on anyone's chest. He emits six or seven squeaks while finding a comfortable position and then settles down with a final squeaky sigh. It's fantastically cute. We have officially given him the nickname of Squeaky - more on that when I figure out a bit of technology.



See this nifty little bed? Looks like some- thing a baby might have slept on in the pioneer days. It's actually a doll bed my Dad made for me when I was a little girl and now it's in Amiya's room for her dolls. We've found, however, that it works equally well for Kevalin. When he's not sleeping on it he's content to be gazing out the window at the green leaves of whatever type of tree that is in our front yard.

Happiness In a Corelle Bowl

By some bizarre twist of fate Vinay and I got to eat dinner on Sunday night all by ourselves. We had company over at 6:30 and wisely fed Amiya before their visit. Then they were out the door, Amiya went to bed and Kevalin was snoozing all by himself without being attached to me or resting on Vinay. The higher beings were definitely smiling on the Gupta household last night.

This was a meal that Vinay and I used to love to cook together in the pre-children days - even the pre-marriage days. There were nights when we'd cook together for the sheer happiness of being in the same space and working towards a common goal. I won't go so far as to say we'd crack a bottle of wine and try out one of Julia's recipes, but we'd chop, simmer, stir and serve for no reason but because we liked to do so as a team. Now our team cooking is driven by the need to have dinner on the table in four minutes flat before Kevalin revs up and in the hopes of getting Amiya to bed so we get a few moments of conversation before we nod off at 8:15.

Our meal involved nothing more than fresh tomatoes, shrimp, olive oil, garlic and pasta. Plus leftover salad from a meal a friend brought over. Back in the day I would have had a better shape of pasta for the sauce and we definitely wouldn't have eaten a salad slathered in ranch dressing, but I have to tell you this has honestly never, ever tasted so good. I didn't have to cut up Vinay's shrimp for him and he didn't have to cajole me to try just one bite of tomato. To be honest, we were very much like one of those old married couples who go out to eat together and then never say two words. The silence was beautiful and neither of us felt the need to intrude upon it. In our inexpensive Corelle bowls and our kitchen whose stainless steel sink is certainly not stainless at the moment, a little glimmer of happy reality that maybe our definition of normal has changed from the early days of shrimp pasta dinners but it's changed in a very lovely way. We just need to savor both the chaos and the quiet.

Excuses, excuses, excuses

I tried, I really tried, to update the blog earlier this week but blogger wasn't working. And then those three free minutes were gone and Kev wanted to nurse again. Until I get better at typing one-handed (mind outta the gutter!!!) updates might be sparse.

First and foremost - we got a mug in the mail today with a picture of Amiya and Kev from snapfish.com. It's very cute. But we don't know who to thank for it - so if you sent it and you want to not be known - thank you very much! If you want to be known, drop me an email so we can thank you properly. Amiya is enthralled with it and thinks that it's hers.

Nursing is going ok. I can't say well anymore because he's not really gaining weight like the books and the charts say he should be although he is gaining. Our pediatrician (Indian man married to a caucasian woman, thus the same as our little family) says that mixed kids, especially Indian/caucasian, gain more slowly so I should calm down. Awfully hard to do though after our nursing experience with Amiya. So, I'm on two different types of herbs and I'm even drinking tea (blegh!!!). If it helps, excellent. Kev has his one month check-up on Tuesday so we'll get more info. from the pediatrician then. And if it doesn't work out then you're all going to have to remind me that Amiya's just fine as a formula baby because I'll probably need a stern talking to. If only dirty diapers were the only important standard - Kev's a super star when it comes to poop.

Grandma and Grandpa have gone home now and things are slowly returning to normalcy, although their visit was very nice. It didn't feel like we had company for a month and that's mostly due to their having their camper and giving us lots of evenings just to our little family.
Amiya misses them most acutely, of course, as Vinay and I just don't have the energy to bounce around with her the way she is used to. Soon, Mia, soon!

If you can't tell from the pictures, it's pretty evident at this point that Mia is definitely Grandma's girl. She loves Grandpa, there's no doubt, but Grandma just about hung the moon.
There was no shortage of activities for these two during this trip: gardening, shopping, cooking, somersaulting and even window cleaning. Sometimes the Queen and the mini-Princess would deign to let Grandpa help (see window cleaning) but mostly it was just a lot of girl time and that suited Amiya just fine. Don't feel too bad for Grandpa though, he's got Kevalin and in just a few years Amiya will be completely grossed out by things like putting a worm on a hook and

her little brother will love it! And then Mommy and Daddy will leave the Gupta Duo with Grandma and Grandpa and spend a few weeks in Provence. See? This works out well for everyone?

Happy Birthday Amiya

Today was Amiya's third birthday. Seems unbelievable that this little dervish has only been with us for three years. Lately Vinay and I have been tired and so cranky with Amiya more than she had merited. And she's been more strung out and needy with the arrival of a second little Gupta. Today was a good day for us to remember exactly what is magical and special about Amiya.

And now, back to reality. It was also a day for her to have three servings of ice cream and cake, to tantrum over the most mundane details and to crash during naps and at night as her blood sugar slows back to normal. All in all, it was a very nice day. She had 18 friends over (18!!!) and their parents, too. Daddy had the absolutely fantastic idea to rent a bounce house after our park plans went awry. Amiya didn't bounce in the bounce house, but she did sit and talk with her good friend Tyler's Mommy for a long time. Amiya opened lots of fantastic presents and can't wait to play with all of them.





Amiya and Aubrey checking out the bounce house just as the party was starting.







To the left we see Amiya and Gabe relaxing and sharing a quiet moment. I love this picture - it reminds me of two old married people sitting together and watching the young'uns at a family reunion.

To the right - the inside of the bounce house. See those Mommies? I think they liked it as much as the kids. In the lower right of the picture you can see Amiya chatting up Miss Kim. Amiya won't bounce and she won't ever stop talking!

Mommy Coupons

See this?
That's a Mommy coupon. That's right, a Mommy coupon. It's "seventy dollars!!!" off of a new Mommy. Amiya pulled it out of the coupon section of the Sunday newspaper. When Vinay asked her if she wanted a new Mommy she replied, "No Daddy, I have the best Mommy!" Aw. Just about melted my heart.

The Napping House

Don't we wish???

There's a classic children's book called The Napping House. It's a delightful book all about a Grandma who sleeps with a dog, a cat, etc., etc., all upon her tummy until something happens that wakes them all up. That's a bit what it's like around here when I've got good karma coming my way. Witness:

Ok, so we're not really napping. Instead we were just having a quiet cuddle watching a Little People video before her bedtime. Amiya's been dealing with shared attention and less time so well - really, much better than I'd expected. She absolutely adores "Kevvy" (her nickname) and always wants to be right next to him. She's full of soft touches and softer whispers and if I turn my back, it's almost a sure bet that she'll be kneeling next to the playpen watching him sleep.

And then there was this. Amiya, Kevalin and Grandpa all lined up on the couch for an afternoon slumber. Notice, if you will, that again the Divine Miss A is not sleeping. Ah well, two minutes of pretend sleeping means two minutes of blissful quiet (minus the fake snores). We'll take what we can get.

Kev is a champion nurser - he is now 7 lbs. 1 oz - that's 7 ounces over his birth weight. Go, Little Man, go! Mommy and Daddy are proud of you but if you could just concentrate on eating during the day and sleeping more than 2 hours at night, we'd have more of our wits about us to celebrate your nursing successes!

And finally, if you're keeping score, it's now Kevalin 11, Mommy & Daddy 0. That's how many times we've been peed on by his little acorn. Today we were at the pediatrician's office to get his belly button checked since his cord fell off and he's been bleeding a bit. No sooner had we gotten him off the scale and over the exam table (vertically, still in my hands) than he unleashed a torrent of two very different bodily fluids (because we all know breastmilk bowel movements aren't exactly solid). Good times, good times. Happily, there is ample hand sanitizer at a pediatrician's office and we just about used it all up scrubbing the table. We're not sure what he'll be good at when he grows up, but he's already demonstrating proficiency in keeping Mommy and Daddy knee deep in laundry.

Baby Madonna

It makes no difference if you’re black or white
If you’re a boy or a girl
If the music’s pumping it will give you new life
You’re a superstar, yes, that’s what you are, you know it

Come on, vogue
Let your body move to the music
Hey, hey, hey
Come on, vogue
Let your body go with the flow

All the musicians we listen to, ten months of all sorts of different stuff and the kid chooses Madonna???

Grandpa's Pictures

Grandpa is quite a photographer. It seems to run on the male side of my family - my Grandpa, one of my brothers and hopefully Kevalin, too. Maybe there's a Hounsell scholarship out there that I'm not aware of because none of these guys use point and shoot cameras - it's all pretty fancy. Anyway, Grandpa's pictures came back from our very first hours with Kevalin and here are a select few:

Our first family photo. Sorry about the bare shoulder - morphine'll make a girl do crazy things!

Kevalin's first kisses from his Didi. Doesn't Vinay look absolutely miserable?

This isn't that exciting, as photos go, but he just looks so sage and alert here. One day soon we hope he'll look like this about 8AM and save the sleepy, droopy eyed stuff for the PM.

Makin' Pancakes

Amiya's been down and out with the flu since Saturday, but she's on the mend and is her usual sprightly self once again. Grandma got a cold, too, so both of these ladies have been more horizontal than vertical but before all that, they were busy together. Witness:

Oatmeal pancakes are a two person job. Grandma measures the ingredients, Amiya dumps them in the food processor. Grandma secures the top of the machine, Amiya pulses until smooth. At this rate Amiya and Grandma could have their very own show on the Food Network. They've got no quirky catch phrases like EVOO or Bam! but they're both pretty cute and they made delicious pancakes for all of us.

In other news, Amiya has finally gotten tall enough to pedal effectively. We've had this bike for almost a year. We had such visions of her pedaling around the block - we thought if she were up on a bike we might be spared the eternal acorn scavenging. But we were foiled by the combination of Gupta/Hounsell genes - her legs are only as long as her genetics allow. She's grown into her bike (but not into the helmet) and can now pedal all the way from our driveway to Mr. Chris' driveway. It takes roughly the same time as the Tour de France, but she requires no champagne when finished and we all get big hugs so the wait is worth it.

Enough is enough.

Grandpa's tired. Exhausted. He just can't take it anymore. Two grandkids to cuddle and hug and rock. Somebody. Anybody. Please. Send in reinforcements.