Devil vs. Angel

He just can’t decide- is he a little devil?
Or a little angel?
Well, let's put it this way- nights he has slept through this week- 4 of 7, times he woke us up Halloween night- 5, times he falls over laughing every day at something silly I've done- countless. He's such a good audience! The things he thinks are the most funny lately are tickling him with my foot, having a crawling race with him to get a toy, and putting anything and everything on his head and pretending it's a hat. I just love that he thinks it's so funny that his secret little dimple in his right cheek makes an arrearance. And he has some new tricks that I am particularly proud of. First of all, he can now use this little semi-spoon utensil to scoop up his oatmeal and get it to his mouth- with my help of course, but still I am impressed. He also will drop his binky (pacifier) into his crib after his nap when I ask him to. And he has this 'more' sign down pat. Now, anytime I am eating or drinking anything that he thinks looks interesting, he gives me a very insistent MORE sign until I cave in- I have to reward him for not screaming, right? And he has been making all kinds of interesting sounds now too. For a while, he made a little kissing sound which was cute. Then he started making a clicking sound with his tongue which was nice because I always knew where he was since I could hear him clicking around the house. And now Peter has taught him how to do the American Indian war whoop thing- you know where you use your hand to make it sound like "WaWaWaWa"? Except Rinat does it with the back of his hand. Whatever, he thinks he's really cool. And Halloween was really nice. We went over to our friend Jen's house and all of the kids played. Rinat was an alligator by the way- isn't he adorable? Have a great weeekend! -m

Our Little Pumpkin

Hi everyone! I know, I know- long time, no post. Sorry. I don't know what I've been doing... Oh yeah, raising a willful adorable and loud ten month old. It's so fun that I forget that there are other things I should be doing too besides sitting on the floor letting him stick his fingers in my mouth. So things have been going really well with our little sweetie. He has his fourth tooth coming in which makes for some wakeful nights but he's a trooper. And so is Peter who, more often than not, will offer to get up and put him back down so I can sleep. He's the best. Also, our little troublemaker has figured out how to open the sliding doors to the office so we blocked that with an ottoman (until his little arms get long enough to reach the doorway anyway). He figured out how to open the under-the-stairs storage so I blocked that with some dumbbells (until he gets strong enough to lift them). He also figured out how to open the kitchen cabinets so they are now baby(and me)-proofed. And he figured out that the cat sleeps under the bed so it's my daily entertainment to see the face-off between the two of them. Rinat always wins and the cat jumps up to the bed (smart cat, right?) to escape. Poor MassieCat is actually pretty tolerant of Rinat grabbing handfuls of his hair but looks at me while R's attacking him like "Could you do something about this please?" Rinat has gotten pretty good at playing by himself which is fantastic because it means I get to cook again (which I love to do). We have gotten some fantastic fancy toys but our boy's favorite is of course the box and ribbon. He also really likes to hijack a tupperware from the dishwasher and stick it over his face and yell "DADADADADA!!!!" into it at the top of his lungs while sitting under the dining room table. All I can do is laugh. It's so ridiculously cute. And have I mentioned he is obsessed with the bus? Everytime that I am trying to feed him, the bus goes by at least three or four times and he will come close to falling out of his highchair because he's craning his neck to look out the window and watch it stop at the stop sign. I swear that's going to be his first word- not Mama or Dada- but BUS. And, of course, all of the family think he is just as cute as I do. Last week, we had GParents Pete and Nancy visit on Monday, GParents Geri and Lamar on Wed/Thurs, and Cousin Cara+Bfriend and Cousin Kevin on Fri. And we took a superfun trip to the pumpkin patch (complete with hayride) with Mer/Lynd/Caroline on Sunday. It was a good week. This week, we have NO VISITORS at all. I can't believe it. Anyone want to come? The guest room is empty! Until next time... -m

Dr. Visits, Visitors, Giggles

Hi everyone! Things are good here in DC. We have Auntie Kate in town for a few weeks for the Solar Decathlon down on the Mall (she's in architecture school and they are participating in an eco-friendly design competition) and it has been really fun. Sweet Baby has also been really busy lately. Wednesday was the eye surgeon and decided we'll be having the cyst out sometime in January. Thursday was the pediatrician. He is very healthy and over all of his illnesses. He is now 18 pounds/29 inches tall and got blood drawn for a lead test and 2 vaccination shots- he was soooo mad. And the doctor was really impressed with him. He said that not only is he on target cognitively, but has the intelligence of around the 15 month mark. I knew his name would rub off on him! I did a little research on how the people in Kaz name their kids and found that they name them after attributes that they hope their child will have like grace or strength or things like that. His name means 'scientific revolution' so I guess that means he'll be a scientific genius, right? Only time will tell but I think he's on the right track. Then on Friday, Aunt Ann came and we went to check out Kate's cool house that they built. Then on Saturday we went and had lunch at Mer's house with Mer/Caroline and Margarita/Chrissy. He was a little cranky for some reason but guess which toy of C's he loved? The stacking buckets. Yup, he's consistent anyway- it's always the stackers. And here are some milestones he has hit this week- cruising the furniture, clapping, getting a tooth (and I think maybe even two) on top, and yesterday I think he signed the word 'more' when he wanted more hash browns. And the cutest thing he does lately is play the Where's Babycakes? game. He crouches down next to the sofa that I am sitting on, and I say "Where's the Babycakes?" and he pops up and laughs. He'll do it for as long as I can deal with it. Soooo cute. And Kate got to hear his belly laugh when she showed him Hot Potato. He found it highly entertaining. The other time he does it is when I let him play with my teeth. He's obsessed with them and he loves to watch me brush them too. Don't you wish you could be as easily amused? Anyway, that was our week- wonderfully calm. Oh, and he slept last night from 8:00 until 7:00 this morning. It was heaven. More next week! -m

Lots of Vistors this Week

Hey! Wow has this week just flown by! Last weekend was really busy with my my mom, brother, sis-in-law and their two kids in town. It was so much fun. And on Saturday, we had a little mini family reunion with all of us plus my mom's sister & bro-in-law in from Texas, and my cousin & her boyfriend from NYC, and my other cousin & his gfriend (who live here in DC). It was so great to be able to see everyone. And then we went to the zoo not just once but twice- once on Sat and once on Sunday. Gotta love that everything is free in DC. Peter had a great time with Nephew Sam who was just so adorable with Rinat- he is so excited to have a boy cousin. And we got to see how big Niece Sara has gotten now that she is a year old. One night we threw them all in the tub for a Cousin Bath and it was so adorable. Then on Mon&Tues I still had to serve on the jury which was not fun but it was nice to have Mom here to watch Rinat. Meanwhile, after dropping Mom at the airport, Peter took our little guy to the doctor on Monday afternoon for massive diaper rash and we found out he also had Scarlet Fever. Oops. So anyway, one more trip on Friday for the rash that wouldn't leave and he is now almost back to normal. But you really wouldn't even know that there was a thing wrong with him because he is just as happy as a clam. He loved getting all of the attention from grandma, cousins, aunts, and uncles. And I was done with jury duty as of Tuesday so it has been really great finally being able to get into a routine. Again, I am just so amazed at how well he is able to just roll with the punches. Of course he was really confused when I brought him into the guest room on Thursday to say good morning to Peter's sister Kate who is staying with us for a few weeks. I think he was wondering where Grandma Shay went and who was this new person. But it only took him a second to break into a smile. And I know exactly what he was thinking "Aha! A new person to adore me. Awesome.' Have a good week! -m

Busy Busy Busy!

Hey All! Rinat is a crawling fool these days but he doesn't want to leave anything behind so he has started carrying them in his mouth like a dog- especially his cherished bottle of water. He's so funny. I hope everyone has been doing well. We sure have! My mom is in town which has been really great. She has been a huge help to me and of course Rinat thinks she's the greatest ever because she'll play with him 24/7- unlike me who has laundry to fold and dishes to wash and dinner to cook. And it has been especially good timing that she is in town right now since I got picked to serve on a jury. I didn't defer because I thought the likelihood of actually getting placed on a jury was pretty small and I might as well get it over with. But no, I am actually having to serve. But it's been good because Babushka Shay has been here to take care of him while I'm there doing my civic duty. But we have been doing lots of fun stuff too like having a picnic in the park and just playing nonstop. He's such a good little guy and I am surprised at how quickly he has settled in. He is consistently sleeping through the night, and he goes down easily for 2 naps every day, and he eats nonstop. I bet he's gained at least a couple of pounds in the last few weeks since we've been home. And he has come to love his stroller and he likes to go to the park and watch the other kids. He is just unbelievable. He can also climb the stairs and is starting to cruise the furniture. And he talks constantly (dad must've rubbed off on him). He spent a good part of yesterday screaming "DADADADA!!!" at the top of his lungs just for the fun of it. And his little tooth is all the way through and I get a glimpse of white protruding from his gums every time he opens his mouth. For all you parents out there- Hyland's Teething Tablets are a godsend. I think 2 of those do more to relax him than my 5:00 martini does for me. He really is just wonderful. Every once in a while, he has some kind of issue (like diaper rash) that causes him to wake up too early in the morning but I have to admit that I'm secretly happy about it. Peter goes to get him and changes him or gives him a bottle and then when he won't go back to sleep in his crib, we bring him into bed with us and when I hold him he falls back to sleep in seconds. It the best way to start my day and the entire rest of the day I have that Jack Johnson song running through my head that says "When the whole world fits inside of your arms, do you really need to pay attention to the alarm? Wake up slow, mmm, mmmm, wake up slow". I hope all is well with everyone out there. Until next time. -m

Alive and Well

Hi Everyone! Here's a photo of our sweetie in the tub. He's just so cute you want to squeeze him all the time, don't you? Me too. I can't believe we have been home so long- and that I haven't posted in almost a week. Time is just flying by and we are getting more and more into our little routine every day. We have had several doctor appointments and several groups of visitors and Rinat is doing fantastic through it all. I am constantly amazed by him and his ability to adapt to new situations and new people. He is also wearing us out- but in a good way of course. Spending the entire day with him is wonderful but I just about crawl into my bed at the end of it. Today was especially tiring as our little sweetie is finally having a couple of teeth sprout up. I kept thinking that it had to be sometime soon with the amount of drooling and chewing on things that he has been doing. Today he was extra fussy and I just assumed it was due to the diaper rash that he has developed since I am weaning him off the Kazakh formula. He took a big chomp on my finger as he always does but this time I felt something. I thought maybe it was a crumb or something that he had picked up off the floor, but nope. It is actual teeth! His bottom right one is coming in a tiny bit faster than the bottom left. And I can't even tell you how amazed I am at his skill at standing. Now, not only does he pull himself up on things and walk his hands from the sofa to the table, but today he bent down, picked up a toy, and stood back up while holding onto my pants leg. Wow. I was impressed. Anyway, it is 8:40 which is sadly now past my bedtime so I am off to get some snooze time before he wakes me up in the a.m. I hope all is going well with all of you and I swear I won't let so much time go by before I post again. Oh, I forgot to tell you that one of the appointments that we had this week was at the eye doctor. They took a look at the cyst by his eye and reaffirmed what all the other people said- that it is nothing to worry about but that it will grow over time so we should get it taken out before it affects his vision- sooner rather than later. So we'll have to put that on the calendar asap so that he can heal up before the holidays hit. And they also did an eye check and told me that he will likely be just a little bit nearsighted (as am I). How can they tell that already? I thought it was sort of amazing. Alright off to bed. Have a great night! -m

Getting Settled In

Hey everyone! Today is a momentous day. Sweet Rinat slept an entire 8 hours last night which made Peter and I very very very happy. He still woke up at 4:00 but he is sleeping, thank goodness. And he definitely needs it because poor baby has a runny nose, hacking cough, and yesterday he even lost his voice. I think maybe he's sick, what do you think? A warm bath with Johnson&Johnson's Cold and Flu bath seemed to help a little bit or at least it distracted him from not feeling so great for a few minutes and maybe the humidifier helped too. But we are actually headed to the doctor for our first visit this afternoon so I figure he can give him the once over and make sure there's nothing to worry about. Today is also fantastic because it's the first time that I have put Rinat down for a nap and there has been absolutely no screaming whatsoever. And it only took 4 minutes- I checked my watch. And he is slowly learning that just because we walk out of the room for a few seconds doesn't mean that we are gone forever and he doesn't need to start crying every single time. I yell to him "I'm still here! I'm still here!" over and over and it seems to help. But all of us are definitely getting a bit more comfortable with our new lives and it gets easier and more wonderful every day. He does still scream his head off but the second that smile comes out, it makes me forget that he's not perfect. Because right then he is. Oh and I am going to figure out how to use the fancy new camera that our sweet family got us so maybe I'll have some cute photos on the next post. Hopefully he'll smile for the camera and you can see that our perfect little sweetie is happy in his new home. Love to all. -m