Sparkling Smiles

Ethan in his third month














A baby's first smile is precious and unforgettable.Ethan's first smile was captured on camera at just six weeks,his smile is charming and infectious. His smile brightens our lives and makes every day more fulfilling and complete. I've been reading about when and why babies smile, an article I stumbled upon at a parenthood website.In the article it states that just a few weeks after birth, that quick, small curve of the lips signals the beginning of a developmental journey that transforms an innate, spontaneous offering into a complex social expression of joy and invitation. Ethan has begun his journey of social connection,and smiles at people and things (mainly consisting of his favorite toys). With every passing day and week,Ethan's frequency of smiles seem to increase and we keep our camera handy to capture his every smile.

His laughter... sparkled like a splash of water in sunlight.
-- Joseph Lelyveld

Surprise Baby Shower-October Fourteen 2007.

All this baby talk got me thinking about pregnancy and no pregnancy is complete without a baby shower. We had a HUGE surprise Baby Shower organized lovingly and very thoughtfully by our Aunt,Uncle and cousins (Andrea and Alisha) and yes Deepak was in on it,he did a great job of not letting the cat out of the bag!

Our Beautiful Baby Shower

October fourteen a beautiful sunny Sunday and Dee decides its a perfect day to get a family portrait done.I love portraits so I don't question him further,I can't wait to get our portrait done in our ninth month of pregnancy.Around noon we drive by our friends place and Dee says he needs to drop off a book and I'm real concerned about being late for our portrait session; he assures me that it wouldn't be long.As I walk through the doors of the gorgeous clubhouse I'm greeted with the loudest "surprise"-and standing there were 25 of our family and friends.I was really surprised to say the least and after couple of minutes of being in utter shock,I was able talk to everyone and party on!

Opening Presents

The brother-sister duo

Our Baby Shower was a lot of fun,loads and loads of fabulous food,tons of desserts,beautiful decorations and fun activities.The party started out with a brunch-the menu included,idly-vada and sambar,kebabs, samosas and chutney,followed by lunch,the spread gets even better.Our Aunt who is an excellent,excellent cook-made the most delicious Biryani,Mangalorean Pork,Sannas,Mangi Style Beans(by Aunt Lyn) and for people who didn't want the spice there was some other delights like Lasagne and Wraps. Dessert included a spread of Indian and American sweets,there was Jelabis,Cheese Cake ( baked by Andrea) and Huge over the top Chocolate Cake.

Aunt Anita,Andrea and Alisha put together some real fun activities.One of which was to guess how big my belly was :everyone cut pieces of ribbons to a length they believe matched the circumference of my belly!

Measuring my belly!

This was such a beautiful baby shower,something we will always remember for a long,long time to come! We have loads to be thankful for,as we're blessed with a great family and awesome group of friends.

The Masterminds behind the beautiful Baby Shower-
L-R: Andrea,Deepak,Uncle,Aunt,Alisha & of course moi!

The Love Between Mothers and Sons

When my friend found out we were pregnant she couldn't resist getting us presents,baby clothes, jewelery (a silver bracelet which has mother engraved on it,in 8 different languages) and books.One of the books she got me,was 'The Love between Mothers and Sons'.Its a beautiful book which pays tribute to the very special relationship between mothers and sons.The book is a collection of quotes,and here's my favorite:

"It's such a powerful connection ; it takes me by surprise,I feel like theres a dotted line connecting me to my son."
-Sarah Langston

Ethan's Exploration

Research states that at birth sensations in the mouth are more highly developed than in any other part of the body. Thus the mouth is truly the baby's "window to the world." As Ethan explores his world,I watch and relearn everything I was taught in my Child Psychology course.

Ethan has begun to explore his new world,and was caught in the act of sucking his finger for the very first time.As a first time parent its fascinating watching Ethan learn ,grow and explore ,he still hasn't discovered his thumb,so I guess for now his index finger serves the purpose!

Ethan and Spike.

Ethan has a new playmate,a stuffed pup,lovingly gifted by his Aunt Amy.We have named our adorable multi-colored pup Spike.Ethan and I play songs and make merry music by squeezing Spike's legs.

Ethan loves to have long conversations with Spike,he coos, babbles, smiles, giggles and tugs at Spike's ears and nose.I love to watch our little eleven weeker at play.Here is a picture of Ethan with his new buddy Spike...thank you Aunt Amy we love him!

Ten tiny little fingers that always want to play,
That never stop exploring the wonder of today.
Ten tiny little fingers that from the very start,
Will reach out for tomorrow yet always hold your heart.

2008 Already.....!!!!

Well another year gone and we are none the wiser....!!!! Ok so I said what we were all thinking. All those resolutions to keep. Anyway back to that in a little, let me update you on whats been happening in our neck of the woods.

Christmas was a lot of fun, more so for our little man, Ethan. He decided to take on the world in his best baby duds and boy did he deliver. There was some discussion on whether he should wear something more Christmasy like a Santa outfit but it was decided that it was too cliche. We were down in long island for a family get together with of course a ton of absolutely fantastic food and some eggnog. I must say there is nothing like great home cooked Indian food, beats the pants off anything else......!!!! We even had some authentic kuswar (Indian Christmas sweets, or so I think...!!!). I must say our aunt really went all out and all her work was much appreciated.

~Our Long Island Family~
L to R-Alisha,Aunt Anita,Andrea and Uncle Tarcy

Aunt Anita,Mom and Ethan

Yay-Opening Presents-Deepak and Rohan

The trip to long island was the longest road trip so far for Ethan and he actually fared quite well. With a little help from his pacifier of course....!!!! I guess all the time he stayed awake at the party made him sleep in the car. He just would not sleep at the Christmas party, probably cause he was passed around like a little football. Everyone wanted to carry and hold him, at least until he produced a diaper disaster. Ethan seems to be liking being around people, he gets very intrigued with all the new faces and doesn't really mind being held. Not a bad deal when mom and dad need a break.

For Sharon and I, it was great to actually get out. As Ethan's doctor put it, we no longer had to be hermits.....!!!! Of course there wasnt too much spiked eggnog consumption on my part......you know, with setting a good example for my son and all.....!!!! I tried my hand, or I should say feet, at that dancing game they have for the PS2. The one with the floor mat of symbols that you need to step on based on the music and moves that come up. Ok so I should really find out what the game is called. I must say it was fun, I was no match for our cousins there but I did manage to beat a few other folks present.....!!!! (You know who you are.....:) I didn't pull out any of my travolta moves though, who knows what the machine might have done then.

So overall the Elias family had a jolly good time over Christmas. The rest of the Christmas week was low key. Low key meaning that a trip to the mall was the highlight of the week. I did manage to get out to driving range one day and promptly proceeded to hit the ball everywhere except where it should have been going.

New years was spent watching the ball drop at time square. Ok to be more specific, the ball dropped at time square and we watched it on tv.....!!!! Ok, ok so I set that one up. Ethan actually brought in the new years with us, but we shouldn't have been surprised cause hes a bit of a night owl. He can outlast the best of us, which is kinda like us going through some kind of navy seal training......!!!!

Anyway, thats an update of Xmas and New Years in a nutshell. Not a super bashtacular week but was awesome to have Ethan celebrate it with us. I hope you all had a great holiday season as well and heres wishing you all the best in the year to come.

I will leave it up to our in home photo editor (read as Sharon) to upload some pics for this posting so come back to check.