Astrovelo

Adit getting ready to go to the waterpark.

Adit turned 7 month old today. This last month will be remembered as the month of big changes. He started going to daycare, started eating solid food and starting to enjoy the vertical dimension. He has been sitting up a lot longer without falling down and is more interested in sitting and playing with toys. He knows what toys he wants to play with and gets upset when that toy is taken away from him. This happens a lot as Ashwini tries to control what toys Adit gets to play with and he doesn’t like her intervention at all.

One of Adit’s most favorite toys right now is the ‘taggies’ blanket. Many of you must have noticed that kids like to play with the labels on toys, especially stuffed toys. This smart person came up with an idea of making a little blanket with different kinds of labels all over its edges. Adit just loves to put this unlimited supply of labels in his mouth. He also likes to play with balls.

It was easy to get Adit to start with solids. He liked the idea of eating from a spoon after making a mess a few times. He started off with rice cereal and he loved it. He is just opposite of Ashwini in terms of speed of eating. He is finished in just a few minutes while Ashwini needs to read books, listen to stories to eat her food. Adit’s stomach handled carrots very well too. The next thing we tried was sweet potatoes and they just wreaked havoc on his tummy. All those diaper changes has left him with a bright red diaper-rashed butt. Hopefully, it will get resolved soon.

Adit is learning to make different sounds and is getting very good at complaining when things don’t go his way. He still doesn’t make any baba-dada sounds, but is getting close. Screaming (learnt from his sister) is his sound of choice. Many times he carries on conversations with lights, ceiling fans or trees that he sees outside the window.

Adit is getting acquinted with “Dora the explorer” and “Blue’s Clues” at an early age because of his sister. Ashwini hardly watched any TV until she was 2 years old.

We had a fun half day at the waterpark. Adit couldn’t play in water as much as his sister did, but I took him for a tube-ride down a canal. He had a blast with all the water splashing onto him from fountains, jets etc.

Adit still doesn’t sleep all through the night and wakes up at least once to drink a bottle. If we listen to his pediatrician, we will just close the door, put a pillow over our heads and let him cry to sleep by himself, but I don’t think that is going to happen very soon. He still seems very small and delicate to us to be treated that way. One day will come when he sleeps through the night and we’ll share our celebration with you all. A couple more photos of the big guy…

Sir Adit John

Over the last couple of days, Adit started eating solid food. He started out with rice cereal mixed up in formula. He seemed to like it very much and gobbles it up. I think he just likes that we put a spoon in his mouth on our own. He doesn’t care much about the cereal as long as the spoon goes in his mouth.

Adit sitting up with “The Hungry Caterpillar”

Adit turned 6 months old today. Half an year zoomed by since his birth. It just seems like yesterday when we made our trip to the hospital. Here is Adit’s monthly progress report.

Adit is
• very vocal. He still doesn't make any dada-baba sounds, but screams and coos to show his happiness and discomfort.
• still very smiley. Within 30 seconds after getting 4 shots at the Doctor's office today, he smiled through tears when the nurse said goodbye to him.



• sitting up with help. He likes to stay sitting and play with toys.
• turning on his side to reach for toys, but can't roll over completely.
• holding the toys in his hands to take them to his mouth. He manipulates them with his fingers and passes them from one hand to other. Sometimes he throws them and picks them up again. It is nice to see how he is learning new motor skills.



• usually busy trying to put everything within his reach into his mouth.
• not sleeping through the night. Wakes up at least once and wants to be fed.
• getting ready to start eating solid foods. Today, he ate his first few spoons of rice cereal.
• very happy to be outside the house. Likes to go for evening walks in the stroller. Over the weekend he sat on the swing for the first time. Guess who was eager to push him on the swing.

Just like his sister, Adit starts to feel hot very easily and gets uncomfortable. This leads to him scratching his head and pulling out his hair. To keep his head cool, we decided to give him a haircut. He absolutely hated the buzzing sound of clippers and I had to do a rush job.

It is not the best of haircuts, but it sure is keeping his head a little cooler. According to our friend, he looks like a new army recruit. She also came up with an apt nickname: “Bheem”

Laughing out loud.

Here is Adit’s monthly progress report:

Adit ...
• continues to be a smiley, happy baby.
• is very vocal and much louder than Ashwini. Shouts and screams when he gets excited.
• is much more physically active than Ashwini. His legs are kicking and his hands are grabing for something all the while he is awake except when he is gazing intently at his sister.
• pulls his head up while lying down on his back as if he is doing crunches. If he keeps up with this, he'll probably have washboard abs by the time he turns 1.
• likes to be on his tummy.
• likes to look at books and to watch TV with his sister. All the colors and flashing lights are very interesting.
• tried sleeping through the night for a few weeks and decided that it was not fun at all. He wakes up at least once every night to drink milk and many times, he thinks that it is play-time after drinking milk.
• puts everything that he can find, into his mouth. When I hold him, he even tried to get his jaws around my cheek or chin or even shoulder. Once he starts crawling, our whole house will be covered with his saliva.
• starts to feel hot when temps go above 70-72 F. We either will have to pay big electricity bills or keep him just in a diaper all the time through the summer.

Another picture of the Laughing Buddha.

five months old

Adit turned 4 months old on the 28th. He is a handful and keeping us busy.

Wearing his sister’s crown.

Here is Adit’s monthly progress report:

Adit ...
• is a smiley, happy baby.
• is eating well, pooping infrequently and farting a lot. Hopefully, this will change as he starts solid foods in a couple of months.
• has figured out the use of his hands. He uses them to hold on to the animals on the playmat and also to grab onto his big sister's hair. He likes to put the whole fists in his mouth when it is not occupied with other things.
• has developed a loud voice for crying or just for complaining. We can hear him anywhere in the house without the monitor.
• likes to be on his tummy and lifts his head up quite well. Then, he sees his hands under his chin; they are so enticing that he forgets about keeping his head up and tries to eat both of them.
• loves to take a bath. He is happy as long as he is in the water. Doesn't like all the drying off and wearing clothes business.
• likes to interact with anyone who is willing to smile at him or talk with him. If we are talking with each other or even on the phone while holding him, he thinks that he is a part of the conversation and starts making his chatting noises.
• likes it when Ashwini reads books to him.
• just adores his sister. If she is in the room, his eyes are just fixed on her. He doesn't mind anything she does to him such as squeezing his cheeks, forcing him to hold her fingers or tickling him with her hair. I can't wait to see how they play together once Adit grows up a little.

More than 3 months after his birth, Adit’s room is finally getting ready for him. Finished with wallpapering and installed his crib, yesterday. He slept in his new room last night very peacefully. No problems. The room still needs some decorations on the wall, but that will happen when his procrastinating parents (father, in particular) find some time for shopping.

Animals on the wall


Adit’s musical mobile


Adit in his crib in his room.