When I saw Aadi, our little baby boy, he was a cute gurgling bundle. He didn’t do much all day. He fed, pooped, peed, gurgled, blinked, fed some more, pooped again and peed endless number of times. We would sit and watch him and wonder “Doesn’t he get bored doing nothing?” We learned to bathe him, feed him, get him to burp and put him to rest on his back. All he did in return was blink.

Slowly, our blinking bundle started exercising his limbs. Very soon he was waving his tiny paws and cycling with his legs. He even started to converse in his baby language that we kept trying to decipher. Peeing and pooping continued the same amount. But he never cried. Not unless he was wet and we delayed or he was hungry and we took our time to fix his feed. We learned early never to keep him waiting when hungry. There he had inherited from both his grandmoms and Mommy. Tempers flared if the feed was late.

He started to hold up his neck and survey his surroundings. He started following Mommy when I was in the room and moving about or talking to him. He smiled his cute toothless baby smile from time to time. He slept on daddy’s tummy and tried to grab Goofy’s paws (our puppy who inspected him in regular intervals). He would wake up early in the morning and just after his feed would start his Gym sessions. It was a treat to just watch him punching and kicking the air, getting rid of all the demons.  He would continue his conversations with the angels and sometimes include Mommy and Daddy in the chats too. All the while he kept trying to pull himself up or turn over.

One day he did manage to turn over but then got stuck. He had yet to learn turning back to his original position. He learnt a lot of protest phrases which sounded like war cries to our unpracticed ears. One such cry sounded like ‘Tuckoooo’  and we decided it was from the hours of Gothic sessions we used to have during my pregnancy. He sounded like the scavenger bird from the game we played for hours on end as we were out of options with my growing tummy.

As soon as he mastered the art of turning around he started his attempts to sit up and crawl. We were at a loss then as we were running out of pillows to keep him from toppling off the bed and couch. Crawling was closely followed by sitting up. Though he had quite a bit of struggle to do both. But the little mite was tenacious and obstinate. He learned the arts and mastered them well without much help. Even though he had to hunch on all four and will himself to move from the swaying motion, he started to crawl pretty fast in no time.

In the mean time he had won Daddy darlings heart all over again what with saying “Babba” as his first word. They were closely followed by “Pappa”, “Dadda” (this was only for Goofy), and finally “Mamma”. Mommy was a wee bit jealous, but too happy about the important words Aadi spoke to bother much. All the while he gained more knowledge and experience in how to be from naughty to naughtier. He gave special importance to this training. His advisors here were “Babba” and “Dadda”.

By the time we were getting ready for our annual trip back home, Aadi could pull himself up and stand while holding o to things. He enjoyed his trip immensely but disappointed the ladies there. He took to both his grand dads like he knew them for ever but when it came to the grannies he refused to indulge. We thought he may be scared with so many people or overwhelmed or may be hiking up his price. Or may be he was just unsure what kind of a garb a saree is and why the women insisted on wearing it (Unlike Mommy).

He had a lot of firsts in this trip. First flight, first train travel, first time meeting Grand Dad (Mommy’s Daddy), first ime visit to both his actual homes, first taste of rice (which they didn’t give much), first taste of fish, first swing ride. There were also innumerable new aunts, uncles, grannies, grandys’, and of course Ginnie Mashi (our dog in Kolkata, India).

Obviously Aadi being the charmer that he is, didn’t keep his grannys sad. He accepted them, saree and all, towards the end of the trip, which made them sadder to let him go. He had an immensely enjoyable time back home.

Back home he settled back in no time and started working on his assignments to get from naughtier to naughtiest. He has learnt to raid Goofy’s food, ask to be fed our food, and make his nanny run around the house to get one spoonful into his mouth. Over the months I have sang ‘Aati kya Khandala’ may be a million times. Now I am so tired of the song that I refuse to sing it but use a recording. But baby sometimes insists I sing along while he eats and I have to indulge. His second favourite ‘Hattima tim tim’ without which he cant seem to fall asleep. No other poem or song will do for him but just that one. I have sang it enough number of times to have my nannies humming along now.He has also learnt to shake his tiny booty if he hears the title song of ‘Friends’ or ‘CSI’. Foot tapping numbers get him excited enough to stand and rhythmically move his little behind to the music. We are hoping he ll be a dancer or musician along with all else. His aunt already believes he ll be a great dancer, while his grand parents have decided some of his future professions too.

Just a week back he has started his wobbly walks. His first few steps were from the couch to the TV stand to get hold of the remote. But, now he indulges Mommy and Daddy if his mood permits and he isn’t too busy. If others call he prefers to crawl instead of wasting his energy. His wobble is getting stronger by the day and I plan to tape it before he breaks out into a normal walk. In the mean time he continues to break vessels, steal food, and use the telephone wire as reins to his invinsible horse.His two rabbit teeth and one other tiny little speck on the lower jaw are growing well too giving him a new weapon… bites.

He never ceases to amaze me. If I could, I would leave all my work and be with him so as not to miss a single second of his activities. Early morning waking up ritual are the best time of my day. Aadi drinks his milk and sits on Mommy’s head to look outside the window, or fishes out Mommy’s mobile to make secret long distance calls, or pokes daddy to wake up, or just sits with Goofy and talks to him while Goofy listens, fascinated, till Aadi decided to tug at his tail and ears.

Life will never be the same for us who know what we have been missing. Now that we have it, its never enough. I wonder why I ever had all those doubts and worries. But, then I had not met the love of our life – Sourjyas and Mine. He is the feeling that we ever felt for each other and was always present as the love in our hearts. Now that he is with us he makes us even stronger, no more as a couple, but, as a family.

God bless ou my little angel and may you find happiness in all that you do, all through your life. Love you forever.