playing around

So besides two new teeth(!!), the big new thing is that Zoë plays much more. She can sit and she can interact (communicate and understand-- or at least she seems to!). She chatters, she plays, she waves and claps. Everyday it seems there is a new and exciting action that she has picked up. Then sometimes she forgets the last new thing... she has forgotten waving, now. But she does the "Indian call" (horribly stereotypical and probably incorrect, but don't know how else to describe the call when you tap your hand on your mouth while make the "ahhhhh" sound so it sounds like "owowowowowow"), only Zoë has found her own method using the back of her arm to swipe across her mouth. I haven't been able to capture this on video yet, but maybe soon.

Here is a video showing her concentratedly playing with her toys, sitting up! Also, in preparation of her running wild... (aka: child-proofing) we have made her a play area. See?


This is a photo that Dadu (my father) took to resemble one of me and Ma... the circle of life and so forth.



Then we had a few other funny shots as we tried to take our family photos (courtesy of the timer option on the camera!) Enjoy!

I do apologize for merely glossing over Zoë's very busy life-- Thanksgiving was lovely. She ate mostly what we did... in her own version. Then there was the trip to Tennessee and visit from the Basu grandparents (Didun and Dadu). There are loads of photos from that-- we encourage you to visit the Picasa Album:

Halloween with Didun and Dadu

By the way, if you do visit the blog, please leave a comment. Sometimes it feels like I am talking to the computer. Which is not always a bad thing... but it is much less fun. And thereby, less motivating to keep up-to-date. Thanks :)

ooooh! Spooky ...

Zoë's first Halloween involved a trip to the Pumpkin patch, some jack-o'-lantern carving (ok, she was safely asleep during this dangerous task!) and trick-or-treating. We made it to 4 houses only, thanks to Zoë's impeccable diaper-timing. ;) She made a cute Little Red Riding Hood (Sarah-- your sweater has been a fantastic gift, extending well past its intended purpose!) and I decided she needed a Big Bad Wolf companion to complete her costume. Enter Mom ... in 10 minutes, I found enough grey to transform into a scary wolf-- it's a little frightening, actually, how convenient this was. And yet-- people complimented Zoë's sweater without realizing she was Little Red Riding Hood. Makes me wonder what they thought I was doing-- Did they think that I normally dress like that? Yikes!

girl in the mirror

Zoë has discovered the girl in the mirror. I mean she had seen her before, but now they play peek-a-boo and kiss. See?

The girl in the mirror has inspired Zoë to crawl over for a visit... and there are other such inspirations (such as the remote control), but these events haven't yet been caught on camera. Stay tuned...

a performance

These days Zoë does much more than eat, sleep or poop. She eats solid food, plays, babbles, practically crawls, mostly sits up unaided, almost stands, ... and the list goes on! In this latest video you will find her displaying her oratory skills while she manages to stay standing, complete with a bow at the end. If you find yourself applauding for this performance, feel free to send a check addressed to "Zoë's mom and dad" :) We promise to spend the $ on Zoë's continued education in such matters.


In other news, have you seen how Zoë's list of gourmet pursuits has grown? She also does weird things with her tongue, and the sound "lalalalala" was born. It is possible that those readers with Linguistics education might disagree somewhat with this characterization, but it is so.¹


Zoë also enjoys the National Gallery of Art very much. She completely ignored her drooping eyelids and nap plans in order to absorb as much of the museum as she was subjected to. She was fully overstimulated... by art. Which is a good thing. Bravo! The day ended with Simona Auntie reading her Harold and the Purple Crayon. (This long blog entry is in large part credited to the >2 hour nap that Zoë has been taking in order to make up for the fun had by all and lack of napping, during Simona's visit to DC).

¹Those with statistics and science backgrounds should be less compelled by the small data sample from which this conclusion is drawn.

carrots are so ...

FUNNY!!! We don't know why, but Zoe finds carrots ridiculously hilarious. I dare you... try NOT to laugh while watching Zoe eat her carrots and giggle. Her sillies are contagious.



Other than this, no other foods have elicited quite as strong of a response, and her experiences with solids foods has been very good! We are keeping a running tally of foods tried and enjoyed by Zoe on the side panel here. She's a pretty relaxed kid about food... except CARROTS. Why? Because they are orange... they have those funny green plants on top... they are teeming with Beta-Carotine... take your pick. Only Zoe knows why they are so special :)

In other news, Zoe is saying "Mamamamamama". Usually while hungry and bored. Go figure! She is also sitting up! With some help getting into the proper balanced position and getting herself into the "tripod". But she can hold the pose for quite some time. We are therefore eager to say she can *practically* sit up! Our little baby is growing up -- nearly 7 months old!

"Fathering"

We read a nice article in the NYTimes. It resonated with us... particularly with Zoe's daddy. Check it out!

6 months!

Hey everyone,

I'm 6 months old (and a few days)! I think I have mastered the art of giggling. I also love sitting with my feet in the cold water in the sink and playing with Ducky. He's a little tricky to catch but I can use my feet to hold him, better than my hands. Mom think that means that I will be a Kathak dancer since I am so talented with my feet. Anyway... one game that I love is hanging out in the bathroom with my feet in the sink (we call it "Spa time"), playing with Mom in the mirror. It's very confusing and cool the way that I see her playing with that other baby in the mirror and then she comes out of nowhere and kisses me! It makes me giggle. One day, Dad caught us playing this game and tried to video tape it... but I was too distracted by the video.



Also, I am really into big people food items. I never cared before, but now I like cups and spoons and bowls. When Mom and Dad eat, I try to see what they are doing by sticking my fingers in their food and also I think that cups are neat. One day, Mom spilled her juice on me because I pulled on the cup while she was drinking. It was funny. But guess what!? Now I get to eat big people food too. I got a sippy cup and it's more of a toy now, because I still don't know how to drink from it (personally, I still like Mommy's milk best). But the real big news is that I eat rice cereal once a day from a real bowl (sort of) and spoon! And... I like it! I gobble it down. By down... I mean down the front of my bib, but still I like it! Then we have bath time, which is also "spa time" and Ducky and I play while I get clean. Yup... life is good. Check out my videos!

Later!

whew.

Well... it's been a crazy hectic summer. We left NYC, we moved to Bethesda, Md. We went to CA for two weddings, and several other family events. We bought a car and have since learned that a certain person (initials are ZZ) isn't terribly fond of riding in cars. What else? Mom started working. Dad started full-time work in child development and house management, we call it "Zoe Studies 101" (except I think he's graduated to like the 200 series now). In short, we've turned our lives inside out and are still adjusting... sadly that has taken a toll on our blogging frequency :(

So dear readers, in the last few months, here's what we have learned about our little girl...

ZOE LOVES:
* kicking it at the capital,
* sparkly jewelry made by Didun (her grandmother),

* sweet cousins,

* reading,
* making funny faces with Dadu (her grandfather),
* dressing up pretty,
* Ratatouille (the movie caused her to stop feeding... for its entire duration!),
* the ice-cream and cake commercial for Baskin Robbins (go figure! I swear I didn't eat much of either while pregnant!)
* train rides (courtesy of Ninamashi)

Alternatively, ZOE HATES:
* riding in a C-A-R,
* car seats,
* new teeth (or rather, pain from ...)
* not being held or paid attention to ALL THE TIME!!! (thanks, doting people of California... now we are in BIG trouble.)

Hope the pics make up for the long absence. We vow to do better in the near future. As always ;)

busy, busy, busy

Hello everyone,

Mom's kept me very busy the last month or so and plus, there was the growing -- Boy! have I grown! So... I didn't really have the energy left to write or post pictures. I'll play catchup now. First, there was Mother's Day and I really wanted to write because it was my first! (and Mom's first too!)But the computer broke. Now it's ok again. We were all very nice to her-- she got a beautiful handmade earring and necklace set from her own Mother (my Didun) and Daddy made her a cake. It was his first cake ever! Lots of firsts... I guess. Here are some pictures.


Then there was Mom's graduation. I wore a really pretty dress and mom took lots of pictures of me. I loved the bright colors. She wore a funny costume. Some other little boy asked if it was Halloween but since I don't know what Halloween is... all I know is that it means wearing funny clothes. We also had to sit in a pretty room and listen to old, boring people talk. But then there was champagne and strawberries and in the end I got a quilt from Aunt Jen. More bright colors. I like looking at the quilt a lot. It's like a rainbow!



Then we went to Washington D.C. because we had to find a new home. Everyday there was some adventure. My firsts: I rode on a real train! I rode in a car! I left NYC! I think I was a pretty good kid, but sometimes I had to cry for some attention. I felt better once we went for a walk in Bethesda, near our new home, and hung out at the playground. That was my favorite part (but don't tell Daddy-- he thinks I liked the train ride the most.)

I'll try to write again soon, or maybe Mom will write for me if I get too busy drooling or kicking or giggling or smiling (those are my new favorite pastimes.)

Spring!

Last weekend was lovely! We have all been enjoying Spring in Central Park. Here are some more pics of our adventures. Zoë slept through most of it... but enjoyed the sun. Except when it was in her eyes, but that's where the oversized (as yet!) sunglasses come in.
Then we gave Zoë her first "real" bath. I swore never to take, post, share embarrassing naked pictures because sometime late in life they are cute to the parents and mortifying to the kids. But these are too cute. Really? Aren't they? and they are overall tasteful... not even intentionally. So I couldn't resist. Hope that 16-year old Zoë thinks so too! :)

good news!

Dear Friends,

I wanted to share my good news with you. Since I was in my mom's tummy, I managed to confuse and perplex the Drs. At first, it was kind of funny how silly concerned they were about everything... but then it became annoying. I was sick and tired of being poked and prodded. First it was a missing heart chamber (um, at 16 weeks of fetal life... like they know! Ha-- a smarter, heart specialist Dr. figured out I was fine, though. No worries.); then it was a missing kidney; then the kidney was there but smaller and abnormal; then it was there AND normal, but maybe swollen and possibly infected; the kidney specialist said it was fine but to check for reflux...; my pediatrician thought I had a dislocated hip joint... BUT!!! Yesterday, I had both an ultrasound for my hip and a HORRIBLE, mean, pokey type test for my kidney and it turns out... I'm FINE! Both tests said so. I'm a normal baby. Ha. I knew it all along. My mom did also. So did my dad. But they said we had to check anyway.

So not only am I normal, but I'm amazing! I can hold up my head. Mom put me on my tummy for a little while today and I liked it! I didn't let my head flop at all. Nope. For some reason, Mom was very excited about this and made me wait and pose for a picture. Here it is.






So, I celebrated by hanging out with my stuffed animal buddies (picture attached) and eating a lot. It was fun. Though the polar bear scared me a little. I'm better now. Ellie, the elephant, always makes me feel better though. She's really nice and she helped me figure out how to come out 'cause my parents had her in the house before me (I think she's a little jealous of me, though, sometimes.) Anyway, she gets crabby a lot when I cry or if I pee on her spot (Mom calls her territorial and Dad says she's an Alpha something). I told her that she should write her own blog, you know, so she can share all these feelings and not let it make her so upset. We even decided that it would be called "EZ", you know for Ellie Zych but also she'd be talking about her life being not easy, so that's funny. Maybe she'll do it after all. Oh-- she's also a little put off by suddenly having to share her space with all these other stuffed animals-- she calls them 'Little Miss Zoë 's stuffed menagerie'. Oh well...

I need to nap now. Love,
Zoë
p.s. The video is my attempt at telling you all about my day, but I think writing this blog might be easier.

Blue and Gold, Baby!

Make a Smilebox postcard

I found this cool application... still in a trial period. But here's Zoë sporting all the coolest Cal gear. Well, the socks and blankie are a present from Ninamashi, and the hat a handmade gift from Maria, the daffodils a present from nature and ... we're just having fun with the Blue and Gold. Go bears! :) no pressure, Zoë ... really!

Z 3

Last week Zoë 's Grandparents Zych visited. (Hence the cubing... though it's probably mathematically incorrect. But it's cute and writing out an equation like Z ² + 2Z seems weird. But for you sticklers out there... :) ) We had a fun few days of exploring New York in minor ways with Zoë . Spring has finally made it's mark-- there were a few warm days with sunshine and blue skies, allowing the daffodils to bloom and the shoots in the trees to finally burst with life once again. So we had a picnic and walk in the park. We had Dinner and Brunch out with Zoë sleeping peacefully in her sling (thank you, Linda, for that! What a life-saver this sling is!) We even went to the Mandarin Oriental for High Tea (the view was magnificent and so was the food & prices). You can find the pictures from these past events here.

Zoë has apparently grown quite a sense of humor. Her new trick is to fuss and need food exactly when her parents are eating. It is an amazing quality. She's sleeping and there's no sign of waking-- no amount of poking and prodding affects her. A few minutes later, we warm and arrange the food and Voila! she's awake! and needs to eat NOWWW!!! But the funniest thing that she did recently was this: her Grandpa was reading Scientific American cards, quizzing our knowledge of various physics. He asked: "What is a Sonic Boom?" and on cue Ms. ZZ answers with the heftiest burp. It was magnificent.

Happy April Fool's Day!

I can't seem to capture Zoë playing even though she's doing it more often-- perhaps she is camera shy? But this was a fun little session... Darn it-- the sound is not working on this file. :( Sorry... but just know-- she is babbling away!

power of prayer

It's been a tough few weeks for us. Mom's been sick, Dad's been sick, Zoë 's been sick (= lots of Dr.'s visits), grandparents left, Dad got the flu (but it seemed like the plague) and got quarantined while Mom took care of Zoë all alone (= hard!!!)... during this, electricity failed in the half of the apt that supported sanity (no internet, no TV...) But things are better now.

We all suffered to see Zoë struggling with her cold-- her little face would turn red as she used all her strength on a coughing fit. Then in fatigue her eyes would roll to the back of her head and she would recover to look at us with such a look of betrayal: "Why did you bring me to such a place of woe?!" As the coughs became more productive, she would be even more exasperated by the presence of the icky goo in her mouth. She would make a face of total disgust. Anyway, during one particularly miserable episode she put her hands in prayer ... and somehow we all survived this month after all.

But-- this month wasn't all bad. Zoë had her first smiles! Here's to the next month!

background...

eat, sleep, poop and scream... that's what I do!

Dear Loyal friends,

My name is Zoë, and I am 18 days old. People want my mother to show more pictures of me, but I just wanted to say that mainly I spend my days eating, sleeping, pooping, and screaming (in the middle of the night. It's very fun. You all should try it! But for some reason, no one wants to play with me then. Weird!) I also occasionally play a little. Oh! And I have some visitors sometimes ... they say I'm cute. I try not to scream then. Here are some pictures of me doing these favorite things (except the pooping and the screaming. Mom said those were inappropriate for this blog. She's no fun.)

Love,
Zoë

p.s. I have more pictures at this website.

Born on Valentine's Day

Zoë is our special gift of love, born on Valentine's Day. Her first series of pictures is on a separate website, here. But from here on out... check back here for the newest and latest photos and adventures of Baby Z.Z.