Miles to roll before I crawl

The last couple of months have been full of fesitivties, fun and frolic. What else do you expect when you have Halloween, Diwali and Thanksgiving holidays all lined up together along with Arhan. His presence has truly sparkled this whole festival season for us.

Dressing up Arhan for Halloween was a memorable experience. More than wearing the clothes, he wanted to touch, feel and "taste" them. For him it's simple, anything is only as good as it tastes. We had to shoot his pics when he fell asleep!!.

This is Arhan's first Diwali so we wanted it to be special. We took him to all the temples in the area lit 101 diyas and candles. The next day we took him to a firework display.

From festivities to activities, Arhan (has been on his toes and) has kept us on our toes too these days. He turned 6 months old earlier this month, yes the little champ is close to cutting his first birthday cake. It seems like time is flying away too fast and Arhan is growing faster than time. Early this October, on the 11th when I was feeling sleepy and lazy (as any other noon), Arhan had something exciting in store. While lying down something caught my eyes, Arhan was on his tummy. I turned him to his back and to my surprise he was on his tummy again. I could hardly believe myself, he was rolling!! We were pretty excited, so much so that we kept waiting for hours to see him roll again, and he sure did keep us waiting untill next day. After around 3 weeks on the 21st he could roll from his tummy to his back. Since then there has been no stopping him, he just loves being on the floor. Leave him on the floor and in no time he's on the other end of the room. He rolls like a ball - effortlessly. He now gets to go where he wants, chase his toys (a few years before the girls come into picture!).

Now a days he has been trying to crawl. He does pushups to generate motion, stretching himself perfectly with his palms and toes. Arhan rocks and squeals with jubiliation to express his inner joy. His dedication amazes us, even at 2 in the morning when we are fast asleep he would grope around the bed trying to crawl banging himself into us. Our apartment will not be the same, every little thing from the shelfs, center table and entertainment center is going to pulled out. Mess it will be, but we cant wait for it be messy!!

I've got mail!

Hands on my side, what is this mine?

Arhan is 5 months old today and we are having so much fun. His energy and enthusiasm has given a new dimension to our life. He wants to laugh, play, hold things, eat things (literally) and every thing that you can think of.

Earlier this month he figured out what those tiny hands were for. It was like he discovered this great tool with which he could do anything that he ever wanted. He would catch his own feet mid air (quite a feat isn't it), he could grab his rattles and the yellow ducks in his bath tub. He could even scratch papa's beard and no longer needed mommy to hold bottle. And, you could tell that he was on top of this world. His hand coordination has become so much better now that he has started to use his blanket, as a toy, to hide himself. It's amazing to see him play this way and sometimes he will shyingly look at you and smile to tell us that he is so thrilled to be around here. We love you baby.

His improved dexterity has also lead to an increased curiosity level. There is nothing that he wants to miss. You want to play peek-a-boo with him, he is game. But, be prepared to loose, as his twinkling eyes would follow you no matter where you hide (James Bond..) He want's to touch and taste everything, the rough wall of our apartment, no problem. The laptop (..Bill Gates is old). He even tries to un velcro his diaper (I kNOw Casanova). His favorite sport is self admiration on the mirrors, he gets super excited seeing himself in the mirror (Tom better go Cruising).. You can catch this little ring master doing tricks at any time of the day (without tickets).

It's a delight to see Arhan grow. We wish we can freeze each day of his life so that we can relive them whenever we want. But, this is just a beginning and we know that there is so much in store for us from this little wonder. God bless you little Arhan!

Vacation

Our Vacation at Los Angeles,Las Vegas and Grand Canyon.

Vacation

Rakhi

This Rakhi was the first festival we celebrated after Arhan was born. It was really exciting to see the rakhi's arrive. There were so many of them, we were so happy to see them in beautiful colors and hues. Vikash's bhua, Shaarda Bhuaji, had sent a rakhi that had "Cadbury's Gems" on it. Guddi didi had sent a beautiful silver rakhi but the coolest one was the Spiderman rakhi that Monu didi had sent. And just a couple of days back we got something from Simran, she made an amazingly cute card for Arhan, it had Dolphin's, flower's and a very cute tiny Rakhi, just enough to fit his tiny wrist. We also liked the rakhi's that Riddhi and Sakshi had sent for their youngest brother.

It was so much fun to see all the rakhi's, but it would have been great if they all were here in person, to tie the bond of love. We surely missed them all. Hope, we all will be together to celebrate Rakhi the next time.

Wow..

Wow... look at Arhan he is 3 mths old ..

The Big Smile

Back from the hospital with our bundle of joy, I was trying to bond with Arhan, attempting to understand his personality.
The first few weeks were really tough for all of us.
It was hard to guess what he wanted from his cries,whether he wated to be burped or wanted to be fed or just wanted to be cuddled. My mother-in-law rescued me,guiding me patiently and relentlessly.
Vikash and me were trying to get adjusted to waking up in the night.The entire ordeal seemed quite large both emotionally and physically.
Then on the 17th of June, about five and a half weeks after he was born we saw the 'Big Smile', Arhan was responding. It was really awesome , to see the tiny one smile.

I feel rejuvenated and my fatigue vanishes whenever I see Arhan smile!!

Arhan - the name ..

While searching for Arhan on google, we found this article that explains the meaning of the word..

"Arhan (Sanskrit). Also pronounced and written Arhat, Rahat, etc., "the worthy one", lit., "deserving divine honours". This was the name first given to the Jain and subsequently to the Buddhist holy men initiated into the esoteric mysteries. The Arhat is one who has entered the best and highest path, and is thus emancipated from rebirth."