My Lady of the Lantern

So, there's a crying bug that has hit our house over the weekend. Figzy ran a fever on Friday noon, and was cranky all day. She became settled by evening, after her fever disappeared with the medicine I gave her. She cried Saturday evening. I think that day's dinner made her colicky because she kept on waking up and crying through the night. She was cranky yesterday morning. She was definitely not rested.  I had an exam yesterday and she was with DH at his office till then. She took a nap of thirty minutes when she easily aces 2+ hours of sleep on Sunday afternoons at home. She was exhausted and had a meltdown in the evening. She cried right before bedtime.  She wants to wear everything herself with no help from either parent but is currently unable to execute her wish completely. This means that we could be crying in frustration after half an hour of failing to get into the diaper (she pushes both her legs in the same hole). When that point is reached, ju...

L doesn't go away from my mind. I mean, just cut the crap, I am not singing bleeding heart here but just saying she stays on my mind off and on through out the day. Day before yesterday, one of Figzy's cousin turned 3 years old. We phoned up in the night, and Figzy wished the boy "happy birthday". Before we phoned up, DH told F that we were calling her older brother, and she was asked to address him with that title. I hated it. I told Figzy to call the kid with his name. If L would have lived, all the cousins born that year would have been younger, and my daughter would have been the elder one. She would be the one receiving the title. Now my living daughter is the younger one.  And then to turn this glitch in my mind on its head, let me say this, that I hate the fact that Figzy will be the older sister of my baby.  Figzy was meant to be the younger sibling to L. She will have to bear the burden of being the older one, when it could have been another way.  Le...

We are done with bottles. Completely.  She still rues over the thieving crow, but does not whine at nap time or night time.  I hardly believed it could be so easy.  I washed her all her bottles one last time and let them to dry to on the kitchen counter. Today evening I will pack them and keep them away, and it feels like a huge achievement unlocked.

1. I have meant to post for a while now, but technical issues and time issues prevented me. 2. There will be ~~TMI~~ in some part of the post, so you have to be prepared for that. In the beginning of June, we made a short trip to our hometown. It was only a three-day visit, but quite a bit was accomplished in those three. We took care of some family thing at DH's side of the family, and I met SuperGyn. SuperGyn will be my doc for the last trimester and beyond in the current pregnancy as well.  That first week of June was significant also because I started 'feeling' the baby then. It was just fluttery, but I knew what that flutter was.  I had my Nuchal fold u/s in my hometown, and we saw the baby sucking his/her thumb, and then practicing for the FIFA matches. It was great to see that. My mother and Figzy were also there in the ultrasound room, and Figzy panicked. She thought the doctor was hurting me, and repeated told her grandma that the doctor was giving...

~TMI Alert~~TMI Alert~~TMI Alert~ I am just surviving in some sort of haze.  Nausea has again picked up. And my bowels are being rotten.  I woke up twice during the night yesterday to go poop. Today morning, I got up from the bed because I had to, not because I was feeling refreshed and ready to get up. - - -  I saw this video someone shared on FB of some daycare helper beating an infant like crazy. The infant was crying, and the girl pinched the baby, hit the baby and tortured the poor baby. The baby was not very mobile and was trying its best to crawl out the corner where it had been pushed to by this woman, and this woman just rough-handled the poor infant, almost throwing the kid everytime to the place in the corner.  By the end of the short video, the baby was just heaving, and yet this young helper would just not stop. I could see other children standing at the edges of the room but no one intervened.  My blood went cold and ho...

I have had a hard time staying away from aerated drinks this time around. I resist taking Pep.si, but the temptation for those kind of beverages is far too strong. I finally found a way. I brought a bottle of plain soda and then combine it with orange squash or fresh lime. It soothes my soda craving, and I guess it is way healthier than ingesting the commercially available soda-based drinks. My second issue was that I am a fast eater/drinker. The second thing especially was a problem because things go anti-gravity currently, and I couldn't control myself once the glass touched my lips. I used a straw, and decided to use a straw to drink up from the glass every time I decided I was too thirsty. That worked genius! - - -  Only recently has Figzy started saying "This is mine " or " I am doing this".  If one would ask her before, she would say - "Figzy is eating" or "Figzy wants this". It's a subtle but significant chang...

When I went for an ultrasound last Saturday, I kept insisting to my doctor that I was 8 weeks plus, when she informed me that I was 9 weeks plus. I asked her to recount from my LMP, and I was still not convinced. I came back to the office and prodded an online site to count how pregnant I was, and well it said I was 9w1d. Well, I have swept an entire week somewhere and I am not sure how I did it. Nausea came back, but without vengeance. If I can rest up a bit and/or try to check if there is something really arising in my throat, it kind of sets it right.  We share our bed with Figzy and I love this arrangement. However, I am now constantly aware and alert for any kicks in my tummy that I receive, and hence try to stick to a particular side position to save my belly.  I also feel very lethargic.  - - -  I did not have to bother with hiding and not hiding my pregnancy. I was supposed to be at the helm of an event happening in my office in August. I...