Reflection

It's nearly Christmas and I haven't even gotten around to posting about Diwali or Thanksgiving!  It is such a busy time this time of the year.  One of my resolutions is to get better about the postings. I will catch up on Diwali, Thanksgiving, and Christmas but for this post I wanted to reflect on events this past week...

Last Friday, a gunman killed 20 children and 7 adults at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut.  In July of this year, a gunman killed 12 people, some including children, in a theater in our own hometown of Aurora, CO, not more than 20 min away from us.  This year alone there have been over 15 mass murders ranging anywhere from schools to temples to malls and theaters. We were all shocked and we grieved for the victims but then we moved on and after a few weeks or months, these tragedies became a distant memory. But for the families of the victims, this will never be a distant memory and this holiday season will not be filled with joy and celebration. None of them woke up the morning of the tragedy and thought for a second that this would be the last time they would see their child, spouse, brother/sister, mother/father.  But it happened and they must now somehow find a way to rebuild their lives. For the rest of us, we should take a moment from our holiday celebrations this season to reflect on what it important in our lives. 

For Kunal and I, nothing is more important than our family, particularly our two little boys.  It is so easy for us to get caught up in day-to-day routine and forget to stop and marvel at these two little magnificent beings.  In their faces, in the hearts, and in their souls they capture everything that is right in this world.  Their innocence is so beautiful that all we do is strive to preserve it. When a tragedy such as Fridays occurs, it reminds us that we are fighting an uphill battle to preserve that innocence but it's a battle worth fighting and we will never stop.  And we're lucky that our boys have their grandparents and uncles/aunts fighting along with us too.  They will grow up and inevitably they will see and feel the pain & suffering in this world but my one wish for them is that not a day goes by that they don't also feel loved.

So this holiday season, sit down and have a chat with your mother/father, remember that your spouse is your best friend, laugh with your brother/sister and most of all, hug your children a little tighter and tell them everyday how much you love them.  Life is too short to let these moments pass by.

 

How Old Are You? I'm 2!

Happy Birthday to you, happy birthday to you...Nikhil is now 2! We held his birthday party on the actual day of his birthday, October 13. Close family and friends came to our home to help us ring in the terrible two's. Nani and Raj Masi flew in from CA to help celebrate:

Nani & Dadi with the grandkids

One of Nikhil's favorite shows is Barney & Friends so we hired an entertainer to dress up as Barney and entertain the kids with some classic Barney songs. He was terrified of him at first but as the songs starting playing, he started to really enjoy himself:

Wheels on the bus go round and round...

We did Wheels on the Bus twice as it's one of Nikhil's favorites.

If You're Happy and You Know It.

High Five at the end!

Nikhil and his new best friend

Barney and all the participants

Family picture with Barney

Then it was cake time.  Nikhil loves blowing out candles now (although he had to get a little bit of help from daddy).

Blowing out the candles

Cutting the cake

He was fed so much cake that I don't know how he went to bed that night!  The cake was chocolate (his favorite) with strawberry filling. Of course, he never complained whenever anyone came to feed him. :) 

Overall, Nikhil had a great time at his birthday party.  We are so thankful for all the family and friends who made it for the celebrations.  We're also thankful for the many emails and phone calls received from family & friends wishing him a happy birthday.  Let's hope the two's aren't as terrible as they say!

The Life of an Infant and Toddler

It's been a few weeks since I've last published so I thought I'd give an update on how the two boys are doing. Kavin is growing so fast. He already sleeps 9-10 hours through the night. If he cries, it's either because he's hungry, tired, or gaseous. He loves looking around at his surroundings and when you talk to him, he has the most amazing smile and he often makes noises back as if he's trying to communicate. It's amazing how much he's changed in just two months...

Kavin - One day old

Kavin - 2 months old

Nikhil is his usual strange self.  I say strange because he has the wackiest imagination and comes up with the oddest ideas. On a daily basis, he makes us laugh.

Nikhil's play creation (and taking Elmo for a ride)

Wearing mama's shoes (and not liking being photographed). Note the shoes on the wrong feet.

A day at the park

 Nikhil's skip

I get asked a lot how do the two boys get along.  Amazingly, Nikhil seems to love his little brother and even gets protective of him.  Everytime he sees him, he gets excited. Sometimes too excited. Kavin stares at him most of the time and often gets afraid at Nikhil's excitement. But as someone said to me, in a few months, there will be days when Nikhil will be only one who can make him laugh. I have a feeling these two brothers will get along well...

Introducing Kavin Rohan Mehra

Kavin was born on August 1, 2002 (his actual due date!) at 8:25am. He weighed 7 lb 12 oz and was 20 inches in length. He was born at the University of Colorado Anschutz Hospital in Aurora, CO on a warm Wednesday morning. "Kavin" is Hindi for handsome.

Kavin just minutes old.

Nikhil's Dadiji and Dadaji brought Nikhil to the hosptial for his first visit with Kavin. He was all smiles seeing his brother for the first time.  He must have thought Kavin was some new toy.  Even today, he likes playing with Kavin's hands and feet (and giggling as he touches them). 

Nikhil holding his baby brother.

Naniji arrived on the same day Kavin was born and together Naniji and Dadiji helped with Nikhil.  I'm sure he didn't even miss his momma when I was at the hospital with all the attention he was getting. :)

Kavin and I stayed two nights in the hospital and I was glad to leave and join the rest of my family at home. Not to mention, it was tiring having doctors and nurses constantly come in to check although they were all wonderful and I received some of the best care. As you can see below, Kunal chose the outfits for the home welcoming (University of Texas colors).

Arrived home from the hospital

Kavin has been a joy.  So far he's not fussy at all.  He cries only when he's gassy or needs to feed. He sleeps at night, waking only to feed. We couldn't ask for a better baby and feel blessed that we were given two wonderful and healthy boys.  We/re also blessed for our family who have all so readily offered and gave their help and support. 

1 week old

2 weeks old

Eviction notice delivered

Just wanted to give a little update on the new baby Mehra. My due date is next week Wednesday (just 6 days from now).  Everyone had predicted he would arrive early and he still may although he's showing little signs of wanting out.   Just to compare, I started experiencing contractions with Nikhil when I was 10 days from my due date and he was born 8 days before his due date. But as they say, you can never compare two pregnancies. My appoinments are weekly now and all of baby's vitals are normal.  So whether he's early, on-time or late, we should be grateful for normal. I'm not experiencing too many contractions and am feeling good (although tired most of the time). The baby is head down (in the right position).  Clothes have been washed, diapers purchased, and nursery room cleaned so we're all set and ready! 

Tomorrow is my last day at work and Nikhil's last day at daycare. Although I'm anxious for this baby to arrive, I'm excited about being able to spend some extra time with Nikhil before the new baby arrives. I stayed home with him on Monday and as tired as I was by the end of the day, it was wonderful to have quality one-on-one time with him. I worry how he's going to react to having to share his time with a new baby brother but I'm sure in time he'll grow to love having a brother. As always, everyone will be updated and posted about news of the arrival of the new baby Mehra!  Hopefully it'll be soon as I've just personally delivered him his eviction notice.

The Big Boy Bed

A couple of months ago we decided to transition Nikhil to the big boy bed.  He was already outgrowing his crib.  He moved so much that the crib was quickily becoming too small.  Plus we had planned on using the crib for his soon to arrive little brother so we felt it was time for the move.  We moved him into the adjoining guest room (connected to his old nursery by a jack and jill bathroom) and his "big boy bed" is now the queen bed that was in that room now with attached railings.  The bed sits not too far from the floor and within a month he has learned to slide off the bed when he wants out. 

Now occasionally Nikhil will wake up in the middle of the night and we bring him into our bed.  We have a king bed that sits fairly high off the ground. In the mornings, I will usually go to shower and get ready for work while he's still asleep.  He'll often cry to let me know when he's awake.  Lately however, he's been surprising me.  I'll turn around and there will be this quiet little boy standing behind me. I've been wondering how he's getting down from the bed since it's so high up so I snuck in a little video catching him in the act. 

He's also already learned how to open doors too using the handles. We have to make sure to always bolt lock the door from the house to the garage since he opens that all too easily.  This boy is growing up too fast. 

Dad, Dada, Daddy, Father, Papa...

No matter what you call him, there is always a special place in your heart for your father. In previous generations, it was the responsibility of the mother to raise and nuture the children while the father provided for the family. In latter generations, as more mothers took to the working force, fathers more and more took on the role of nurturing.  However, they still wanted us to be tough and independent. While Kunal and I look back at our upbringing and reminensce on how tough dad and Papa were on each of us, we now start to appreciate what they were trying to do. We both have graduate degrees and are fiercely independent, a lot of it thanks to our fathers who instilled in us wisdom, hard-work, and dedication. And we're proud to say that most of it was through example.

And now Kunal has become a father and is excelling at it.  It's only evident when Nikhil wakes up each morning and calls out for his 'dada' each day. Or when he sees a white SUV like Kunal's, he'll reach towards it, calling out 'dada'. While some days I think Nikhil is a momma's boy, a lot of days it's clear he's a dada's boy.  And who wouldn't be.  Whenever the two of them are together, they have a world of fun whether its kicking a soccer ball around, playing in the swimming pool, or just laughing on the sofa together. At the same time, Kunal is also being the disciplinarian, like his father before him, instilling in Nikhil good manners and behavior. I have a feeling Kunal and Nikhil are going to grow up to be more than father and son.  They're going to grow up being best friends.

Lastly, in honor of father's day, here are some celebrity quotes I've found (some of them a little too true).  Enjoy!

"A new father quickly learns that his child invariably comes to the bathroom at precisely the times when he's in there, as if he needed company." - Bill Cosby

"Man, if I can get a burp out of that little thing I feel such a sense of accomplishment." - Brad Pitt

"When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years." - Mark Twain

"I've always felt sorry for Jesus 'cause you know no matter what he ever did, he could never live up to his father." - Gilbert Gottfried

"By the time a man realizes that maybe his father was right, he usually has a son who thinks he's wrong." -Charles Wadsworth

 

Happy Father's Day!

 

Enjoying the hot sun!

Although it's not officially summer yet, it sure feels like it with the weather.  Lately we've been having temperatures in the 80s and 90s.  After picking up Nikhil from daycare, it was still in the 80s so we decided to let him have some sprinkler fun...

He doesn't like the sprinklers when it's too high.  But he enjoyed the low ones! He loved pushing down on the gecko sprinkler and making the water rise higher.  Here's a video of Nikhil playing with the sprinkler:

Happy Mother's Day!

It's odd but whenever I think of Mother's Day, I think of honoring my mother, mother-in-law, and aunts who have all been mothers for a long time. It's odd that I am now included in the celebrations. It's almost has if I haven't paid my dues yet as a mom.  What I'm looking forward to most is the day Nikhil and the new baby are old enough to celebrate Mother's Day on their own.  I look forward to the homemade cards and the hugs and kisses.

My Bhua Jin had sent an email on Mother's Day that was really touching and really encompasses the progression of a mommy to a mother. Some highlights from the email:

The Images of Mother

4 YEARS OF AGE - My Mommy can do anything!

8 YEARS OF AGE - My Mom knows a lot! A whole lot!

12 YEARS OF AGE - My Mom doesn’t know everything!

14 YEARS OF AGE - My Mom? She wouldn’t have a clue.
.
16 YEARS OF AGE - Mother? She's so five minutes ago.

18 YEARS OF AGE - That old woman? She's way out of date!

25 YEARS OF AGE - Well, she might know a little bit about it!

35 YEARS OF AGE - Before we decide, let's get Mom's opinion.

45 YEARS OF AGE - Wonder what Mom would have thought about it?

65 YEARS OF AGE - Wish I could talk it over with Mom.

So to all mom's out there, I hope you had a wonderful Mother's Day that you all deserve.  I have had so many role models growing up including my own mom, Grandma, Bibiji, Chachi, Bhuas, Mamiji, and Masis.  I've also married into a family with so many more role models including my own mother-in-law.  I hope I can be as wonderful a mother to my own two boys as you were to your own children. 

Happy Mother's Day!

Time to face forward

A couple of weeks ago we decided it was time for Nikhil to transition to the forward-facing carseat.  He's previously been in the Graco Snugride 35 which is rear-facing.  The recommendation was changed a year ago to have children stay rear-facing until they are 2.  However, Nikhil was outgrowing his carseat.  The straps were too tight, his knees were constantly bent, and worst of all, he couldn't see anything.  So voila...he got his new carseat and look how happy he was on his first day in the new seat...

We purchased the Britax Frontier convertible carseat.  He has two cup holders so now he can carry along his favorite drink.  And he can see out the window.  He loves pointing to cars and trucks.  He calls them "ke".

Recently, after a conversation with his Masi and hearing Rocky's name (the family dog), Nikhil began telling Rocky "back" and signaling it with his hands.  He learned this from our recent trip back to CA last weekend.

As for his old carseat, it's been cleaned and adjusted and is now waiting the arrival of Baby #2.

Trip to Cabo

We took our annual trip to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico from March 4-11.  Our last vacation was to Hawaii when Nikhil was 9 months when he could sit and crawl but not walk.  Now, he was about 17 months and what a difference 8 months make! This kid just wanted to explore everywhere.

 One thing Nikhil is learning is how to go up and down steps. We loved our balcony because of the amazing view of the pool and ocean.  Nikhil loved it because of the small step at the railing that he could go up and down on all day.

View from balcony

We stayed at Villa Del Arco which had an amazing pool.  What we were happiest about was the kid's area with large boulders and fountains. Nikhil loved this pool area and had his favorite fountain that he played with...

Nikhil playing with a fountain at the pool.

The beach was a stone's throw away from the pool area. Although the weather was in the 80s, the water wasn't too warm so we stayed mainly on the sand. Nikhil, being the neat freak he is, didn't like sand on his hand and feet but he did enjoy playing with the sand toys...

Where's my Pina Colada?

 We purchased the all-inclusive package which included dinner with nightly themes.  We attended the Mexican Fiesta and the Carnival theme night shown below...

Carnival theme night at Villa Del Palmar.

Being that I was 4 months pregnant at the time, we didn't do too many water activities but we did manage to catch a boat ride to the Arc and to Lover's Beach.  Nikil loved being on the boat and having the wind against his face...

Riding on the water taxi to the Arc. 

 We had so much fun in Cabo and we're looking forward to our next vacation when there will be two boys (well, three if you count Kunal). :)

Lessons in Eating

One day a few weeks ago, Nikhil started a tantrum as I tried to feed him. I didn't know what he wanted so I ended up setting his spoon down and walking away.  Lo and behold, he grabs the spoon and begins happily attempting to eat on his own.  Now, it's nearly impossilble to feed him as all he wants is to explore himself.  Here are some pictures from the early days of him feeding himself.  Please be warned: the pictures are not pretty.  Luckily, he's getting better (and less messier) with practice!

Nikhil's Mundan

On January 14th, Nikhil had his mundan ceremony. For those of you that need a little bit of education on what a mundan is, here it a description from BabyCenter:

"Tonsuring (mundan) is an important ceremony in Hindu communities. Muslims too shave or trim the baby’s hair. Some Sikhs perform kesi dahi ceremony – equivalent to the mundan ceremony performed by Hindus -- by putting curd in the hair of the newborn baby boy.

Among Hindus, the mundan ceremony (also known as Chaula or Choodakarana) is performed during the first year or in the third year of a child’s life. The first haircut is an important ritual and it is believed that shaving the hair rids the child of his past life's negativity. Some believe that a mundan bestows a long life, a better future and also protects the child from the evil eye. In some communities, the hair on a newborn’s head is considered impure and it is believed that only a mundan can cleanse the child’s body and soul.

Some believe that a mundan helps release excess body heat and keeps the baby's head cool. Some also believe that a mundan helps relieve headache and pains associated with teething. It is also a common belief that shaving off the hair stimulates cells and improves blood circulation, which may help in the growth of better and thicker hair."

We hired a barber to come to our home who performed the mundan ceremony. Being the person who hates anyone touching his hair or wearing hats, he wasn't too pleased with someone cutting his hair but he was trooper: 

We were all so worried how he'd look after his mundan, but he was as adorable and cheerful as ever. He reminded me of a little Buddhist monk:

Afterwards, the proud Dadaji and Dadiji hosted a luncheon at Star of India restaurant.  He was the star of the event in his cute outfit.  Here is is with his adorable cousin, Rijul who had her own Mundan down last October:

Where do they learn these things?

It's amazing what kids learn at such an early age. After watching his mommy and daddy on their smart phones, Nikhil now grabs our phones and begins tapping away at the touch screen as we would do.  He has no idea what's he's tapping but he taps away anyways. He also loves the phone.  He knows that sounds will emit after pressing the buttons.  Recently he even puts the phone to his ear and has imaginary conversations.

Nikhil talking to ???

It's amazing how fast kids pick up technology.  He's fascinated with pressing buttons and turning knobs.  Do we have an engineer in the making?

Merry Xmas and Happy New Year!

First of all, I can't believe the holidays are over (insert sad face). We've started taking down our holiday decorations.  Only the sad, lonely tree remains. But what a great holiday season it was. We celebrated at the home of Roger and Maya Arora on Christmas Eve followed by a wonderful dinner on Christmas Day at Mom, Papa, and Nitasha Bhua's home. There was good food, good music, and great company.  Of course, Nikhil got spoiled the most for Christmas.  Can a kid ever have too many toys? As a parent, I say yes although I'm sure Nikhil will disagree.

We took Nikhil's Santa picture on Christmas Eve (yes, this was the last day to take pictures):

Nikhil and Santa Claus

And yes, he kept the hat on! He did surprisingly well. He didn't noticed that he was in Santa's lap initially.  We kept him preoccupied while his pictures were taken so he wouldn't turn around. After the last picture was taken, he suddenly turned around and saw who was hold him.  In about 0.324 seconds, he went for a content little boy to a screaming, raging, out-of-control child. Luckily, we got the pictures we wanted.  Although, I must say we didn't care much for this year's Santa Claus.  We'll let the pictures explain why.

In between Christmas and New Years, Nikhil and I paid a visit to California once again where he got a chance to visit his Nanaji, Naniji, Masi Raj, and Mama Tej for a couple of days. He's still afraid of his Mama Tej but we're working on it.

Then it was New Years Eve. We celebrated at the home of Raj & Anjli Giri with a little more than a dozen other people.  The setting and atmosphere was perfect.  Nikhil went to bed early in his pack n' play and we enjoyed the rest of the night with great friends.  So hard to believe that 2011 is over.  But here's wishing to a better and brighter 2012.  Our 2012 wish is for new additions to the family in the form of husbands (ahem, Masi and Bhua) and maybe even babies. Above all, we wish all our family and friends good health and prosperity!

Happy 2012!

Love, Kunal, Navi & Nikhil