Le Avventure del Piccolo Rajiv

We are moving

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:21:00 +0000

Il blog cambia casa! Il nuovo indirizzo e' http://duefratellini.blogspot.com/ .

To celebrate the new arrival, we are moving to

http://duefratellini.blogspot.com/

The page is still a work in progress, but it will be up and running soon. See you there!

Announcement

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:19:00 +0000

Our son (name still under debate, so let's call him "Piccolino") was born yesterday night, June 23, at 9:41. I am just posting a few pictures here, a more complete account of the events might follow later on.

We succeeded in having a home birth, so Piccolino was born on our old trusted futon in our living room. The large night gown covered blob in the picture is the mom :).

Dad cuts the cord...

... and Piccolino gets his first check up. He weighs 7 lbs 8 oz (3.4 kg) and measures 20.5 in (52 cm), if I remember correctly.

There he is, warm and cozy!

And here are the two amazing midwives who helped us out during and after the birth. Piccolino is a bit hard to spot here, but he is snuggled next to his mom.

Appu con mamma e papa'

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 14:38:00 +0000

I haven't been posting for a while, but we have been really busy. There has been some major renovation going on in the house and maybe one of this days I will post some pictures of our lovely new attic. We have also made some rushed last minute arrangements for the birth, thinking somehow that Rohan/Rowan would decide to appear early, but of course here we are still waiting for him. In any case, we are ready now (right...).

There are loads of things I can say about Appu, he has really amazed us in the last month. He has his favorite cartoons now ("Kippo", and sadly "Dora"), his favorite book characters ("Gossie") and he has his preferences on almost everything. He knows what jacket he wants to wear, if he wants one at all, and so on and so forth. He loves puppets and has a lot of fun impersonating various animals. He remembers some words from his favorite books and fills in the blanks when mamma is reading to him. He can can more or less count from one to ten in both English and Italian and he recognizes the numbers when he sees them written (this is making his dad suspect that there might be a brain inside, after all... :) ).He is very very cuddly, as if he knew that these are the last days he gets to spend as the only cuddly baby in the house.

So, since I happen to have a couple of pictures of Appu with his parents - even a very rare one with the mom, self-taken of course, because who would do it otherwise - I thought this would make a nice last post pre new baby (says the mom who keeps hoping for labor to start... now!).

Isn't he so so so cute? And very tanned - sorry achamma!

Names - again - II

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Wed, 27 May 2009 14:01:00 +0000

A significant number of people whose opinion we value has suggested the name Rohan instead of Roan (or Rowan). As a matter of fact, that was our initial idea as well, but then I proposed we modified it to Roan to make it easier on the Italians who notoriously mess up their 'h's. I didn't even know the name Roan actually existed, but since it turned out that it does (and the variant Rowan is even the name of an actor that S greatly admires) then it seemed settled. I also like that Roan/Rowan comes from the name of a tree - now I couldn't tell you which one, but something that grows in Ireland and has red berries on it.

I guess Rohan is still a possibility, but in the last decade lots of babies have received that name in honor of The Lord of the Rings and Tolkien's shadow would always hang on the little one.

Anyway, I think we will put aside Niccolo', for the reasons I already mentioned. I don't think most people could pronounce it right and I wouldn't enjoy having him called Nick by all his friends. Nonna Laura seems to be very excited about the middle name Ernesto (her mother was called Ernestina, after an older half brother Ernesto who died in World War I, so lots of family history there), so we might keep that.

At first I really wanted an Italian name for this baby, but if we end up living in India I don't want one of them to always feel that he fits in less than his brother because of his strange name. I know it is not a big deal, but this is the kind of stuff that sometimes matters to kids, so why risk it.

So:

Roan Ernesto Ashok?
Rowan Ernesto Ashok?
Rohan Ernesto Ashok?

Names - again

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Tue, 26 May 2009 02:08:00 +0000

Please vote:

Roan Niccolo' Ashok
Roan Ernesto Ashok

or Rowan (S. claims it is pronounced exactly as Roan, but my Italian instinct to pronounce the letters I see makes me suspicious) with the same middle names.

or Niccolo' ... Ashok - and please feel free to fill the dots.

I think we are quite in favor of Roan/Rowan at the moment, but not so strongly that we won't have changed our minds by tomorrow morning of course. It does however have the advantage of being easy to write and pronounce and it cannot be shortened into some dreadful American like nickname. My favorite name Niccolo' doesn't satisfy any of these requirements, so maybe it is time to abandon that idea. Thoughts?

By the way, cheer up! Only one month to go and then this name agony will be over. :)

From "Miano"'s Camera

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Mon, 25 May 2009 14:17:00 +0000

Un po' di foto scattate da Emiliano nel corso dell sua visita.

Our friend Emiliano has left yesterday and we already miss him a lot. Here are a few pictures of Appu taken by him during his visit.

The first ones were taken on the sidewalk in front of the house. We have been all trying to teach Appu to pedal, but he doesn't reach the pedals very easily, so he prefers to propel himself with his feet or be pushed - "push!" is one of his new words.

Sul marciapiede davanti a casa. Appena esce Appu si lancia verso il triciclo, ma non ha ancora imparato a pedalare, nonostante gli sforzi congiunti di Miano e dei genitori.

Appu with Papi on the couch is a classic, but always nice.

This one instead is from our day trip to Toronto. Mommy drove the car on a scary highway for the first time and we spent the day with Emiliano's friend Gaetano and his family. In the picture we have little Clara and Rajiv very seriously examining their books.

Questa e' una foto della gita a Toronto di lunedi' scorso. Abbiamo passato la giornata con un amico e la sua famiglia. Qui vedete la piccola Clara con il piccolo Rajiv, molto seri e concentrati sulla lettura.

Here we are back in Waterloo, at the children section of the local library. It is a great place for kids and there are lots of toys and activities, with cozy cushions to "read" and relax (as if a two year old knew what that means...).

Questa invece e' la biblioteca di Waterloo, nell'area dedicata ai bimbi.

In the next picture it is Papi again, and someone is ready for bed...

... but not tired enough that he can't produce a smile for the camera...

The last two pictures are from dinner a couple of evenings ago. Rajiv and his dad disappeared from the restaurant for a few minutes and came back with a new friend. We called him "Pingu", but Appu seems to prefer the name "Picu". It was love at first sight. Unfortuntely Appu had a bad cold last week and Pingu seems to have got the worst of it, but thankfully he claims to be machine washable, so he might go for a swim one of these days. It is the first toy that Appu has picked himself, by the way, and mommy is so proud of her big (but sssmalll, if you know what I mean) kid!

Nelle ultime foto fa la sua prima apparizione pubblica un nuovo amico, il pinguino "Pingu" (o "Picu", come dice Appu). Rajiv lo ha scelto personalmente e lo porta quasi dappertutto.

Tutto il compleanno minuto per minuto

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Tue, 19 May 2009 03:04:00 +0000

(A Truckload Of) Pictures from Appu'a birthday!

The day starts slowly, with breakfast on the couch, a soft blanket and a favorite video.

La giornata comincia lentamente, con colazione sul divano, una morbida coperta e uno dei video preferiti.

But soon enough little Rajiv is ready for action!

Ma presto il piccolo Rajiv e' pronto a fare sul serio!

This week Emiliano is staying with us, so we wait for him before opening the gifts.

Questa settimana Emiliano e' nostro ospite, quindi lo aspettiamo per aprire i regali.

Dad shows Appu how to use his new harmonica. Little success so far, but we are working on it...

Papa' fa vedere ad Appu come usare la sua nuova armonica. Con scarso successo, per ora, ma ci stiamo lavorando...

Buy wait, what is that in the bigger box? CARRRR!?! Let's open it right away!

Ma aspetta, che cosa c'e' nella scatola piu' grande? CARRRR! Macchinine! Apriamola subito!

It is hard work, but our chief engineer doen't give up.

Time to get dressed, holding the CARRR very tight of course.

E' ora di vestirsi, senza mollare la macchinina un secondo, naturalmente.

It's cold outside, so we head for the most obvious indoor playground we can think of. It's going to be lunch at McDonald's.

Oggi fa freddo fuori, quindi optiamo per un parco giochi al coperto, cioe' McDonald's.

Healthy food first...

Prima si mangia...

... and then weee!

... e poi si va sullo "scivo".

Mom got a workout too, climbing up with Appu to the highest slide and protecting him from the exuberance of the bigger kids. Then it was time to go home and nap.

We don't have photos of the afternoon, but it involved some time playing at home and a short visit to the bookstore to browse and play with the train table. Our friend Chanda brought us a pie in the evening, but Appu seemed disgusted by it, so the parents and "Miano" had to sacrifice themselves and eat it all. :)

Dopo il parco giochi, dove la mamma si e' fatta onore difendendo Rajiv dagli attacchi dei bimbi piu' grandi lungo la scalata verso lo scivolo alto, siamo andati ha dormire. La giornata e' poi proseguita con giochi in casa e una breve visita in libreria per far giocare Appu con i trenini su un bellissimo tavolo con i binari. La torta c'e' stata, portata dalla nostra amica Chanda, ma Appu l'ha rifiutata categoricamente e cosi' abbiamo dovuto fare questo sacrificio e mangiarcela tutta noi.

We conclude with a very boring video of Appu moving a track back and forth on his new road set. Only redeeming features of the video are a short but remarkable singing performance by Emiliano and a guest appearance of Appu's granparents on Skype.

Concludiamo con un video girato la mattina subito dopo l'apertura dei regali. Appu gioca con il suo cicuito nuovo e i nonni gli fanno gli auguri tramite Skype.

Get ready:

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Sun, 17 May 2009 11:38:00 +0000

The terrible twos start...

...NOW!

Happy birthday little "terrible" Appu!

Buon compleanno piccolo Rajiv!

Let's try again:

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Sat, 16 May 2009 03:11:00 +0000

Rowan Niccolo' Ashok?

Birthday alert

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Wed, 13 May 2009 13:42:00 +0000

Il compleanno del piccolo Rajiv si avvicina! Speravamo di festeggiare con un picnic nel parco, ma sembra che Domenica sara' l'unico giorno freddo della settimana. Sob...

Little Rajiv's second birthday is rapidly approaching and is finding the mom completely unprepared. A new cool toy has been wrapped and set aside (as if we didn't get him new toys all the time, anyway: I doubt that he will notice the difference), but no other preparation has been made. I am really bad at this and I confess I was hoping that the nice weather we have been enjoying recently would allow us to celebrate Appu with a nice picnic in the park, which is probably what our little one would enjoy the most.
However, please take a look at the weather forecast:

See that temperature dip? Right on Appu's birthday date? Sob...

How does it sound?

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Sat, 09 May 2009 16:39:00 +0000

Niccolo' Ashok

Note that Niccolo' is pronounced with the stress on the last 'o', like you would in a French word for example. Clear as mud? Well, the pronunciation issue is one of the things that worry us about the name.

But mostly, we are not sure if the name goes well with the last name. Opinions?

Another point is: will the brothers find a way to feel treated unevenly over this? Like: why didn't I get an Indian name too, or vice versa. More opinions?

As an Indian alternative we have considered Nikhil, which has the "nic" sound that the mom likes, but I don't feel so good in giving again a name that has no Italian history. Anyway, thoughts about Nikhil?

Ok, I think you have enough homework for now. More later. :)

It's a boy!

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Thu, 07 May 2009 15:07:00 +0000

Or so it seems... the ultrasound technician said it was quite clear. (This should disprove once and for all the flat belly/ pointy belly theory.)

Of course now we are having second thoughts about the name, so suggestions are welcome and we will keep you updated on our indecisions.

E il responso dell'ecografia e'... e' un maschio! Un piccolo fratellino per il piccolo Appu. Siamo di nuovo indecisi sul nome, quindi suggerite pure.

Bellies

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Mon, 04 May 2009 13:26:00 +0000

This was belly #1, the first and original, 2007. Six months and a half along.

Pancione #1, 2007, sei mesi e mezzo di gravidanza.

This is belly #2, as of today morning. Seven months and one week. Let's forget how huge I am and instead focus on the joy of being finally able to wear spring clothes. Even here, winter eventually comes to an end!

Pancione #2, questa mattina, sette mesi e una settimana di gravidanza.

Tough life

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 22:02:00 +0000

Il piccolo principe si era appena svegliato dal suo riposino pomeridiano, un po' di cattivo umore e probabilmente affamato (non sia mai!). Con prontezza abbiamo messo in atto le misure di emergenza: comoda postazione sul divano con coperta a portata di mano, video preferito con la mucca, orsacchiotti giganti (entrambi soprannominati PA-PI per qualche strana ragione), pasta col pesto avanzata e riscaldata ma non troppo (qui trovare l'equilibrio giusto e' un'arte). Aggiungiamo poi un servizio fotografico completo e la possibilita' di fare varie smorfie e rivederle sullo schermo. Vita dura eh, piccolo Appu?

Our little prince had just woken up from his afternoon nap and he was dangerously cranky and hungry from having almost skipped his lunch. Emergency measures were immediately taken: comfortable seat on the couch with blanket at hand, favorite farm-themed video (COW!), giant teddy bears (PA-PI!), left-over pasta with pesto (PAS!) reheated but not too much (otherwise it's OT and then one has to spit it out, right?) . Add mom taking pictures, giving the chance to try different poses and grins. Tough life, don't you think?

Conversations before bed

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 14:47:00 +0000

Appu- NEEN!
Dad- Well Appu, for someone who spent the first year of his life saying GU, you could say GREEN, or at least GEEN.
Appu (happy)- NEEN!!
Dad- No no, Appu. GEEN.
Appu (still happy)- NEEN! NEEEN!!
Dad- G-G-G-G... GEEN!
Appu (very happy)- G-G-G-G-G!!
Dad- GA-GU-GU-GA-GU... GEEN!
Appu (ecstatic)- GA-GA-G-G-GU-GA-GU... NEEN!

Bye Bye Bed :(

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 23:22:00 +0000

In preparation for the arrival of the new baby we have decided to substitute our trusted Ikea futon bed with a king size bed (american terminology only, maybe? it just means a larger bed). This was an absolute necessity if we are to sleep in four in the same bed. Already now most of the space seems to be taken by just one person, with the other two pushed to the edges of the bed. No need to say who that person is... Anyway, as of tonight, we are sleeping on a regular bed, like everybody else. No more mattress almost on the floor, with frame as mere decoration at 3cm above the floor. I feel sad, although Appu and S. don't seem to share the feeling.

In memory of the older bed (Picture from 25/02/08, ages ago!):

We have a winner!

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 23:05:00 +0000

Abbiamo pensato al nome per un maschio e - ci dispiace nonna - il nome non sara' Atticus. Che cosa ne diresti invece di Niccolo' Kabir? Attendiamo commenti.

We are still a bit undecided about the girl's name, but for a boy we would like to propose

Niccolo' Kabir Ashok

Comments?

The Great Canadian Spring

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 17:21:00 +0000

This however, should be the last big snowstorm of the season. Soon Appu should be able to start riding his "carrrrr" more regularly.

La primavera ha fatto una breve apparizione e poi ci ha lasciati sotto la neve. Presto comunque non ci saranno piu' ostacoli tra Appu e la sua macchinina rossa!

Note: These pictures were taken today morning. Since then many more centimeters of snow have accumulated and we don't seem to see the end of it. But as I said, this is the last one, so cheer up!

Time to empty the memory card

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 01:31:00 +0000

Un po' di foto dell'ultimo mese e mezzo circa. Nelle prime due siamo a Torino e Appu indossa felicemente le bellissime scarpe verdi della mamma.

The first two pictures are from our Italy trip last month and Appu is happily walking around in his mom's beautiful green shoes.

Ancora a Torino, Appu con il suo papa'.

Do we need to comment on this one?

Le scarpe di mamma hanno tanti utilizzi, per esempio possono servire a contenere la collezione di macchinine. Purtroppo non ho una foto di Appu in queste scarpe, ma vi assicuro che lui cammina benissimo anche con i tacchi alti.

Still in Torino, mommy's shoes put to a more creative use. Appu liked to wear these ones too, but regrettably I don't have photographic proof of it. Nor do I have pictures of the party here in Canada when a girl made him wear her high heeled boots...

Le altre foto invece sono tutte dal Canada, fresche di ieri.

The remaining pictures instead are from Waterloo, and specifically from our kitchen, taken yesterday.

Appu gioca co il suo "tu-tuuuuuu" (sopra) e con la sua "bak" (sotto).

Appu plays with his "tu-tuuuuuu" (above) and with his "bak" (below).

E questo e' tutto per ora. Saluti dal Canada innevato.

That's all from now. Greetings from frosty Canada.

Le prime Superga

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 01:12:00 +0000

La caccia al nome e' ufficialmente aperta!

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 15:29:00 +0000

(English below)

Sembra che per una serie di imprevedibili circostanze non avremo la possibilita' di sapere se la piccola nocciolina che si prepara a vedere la luce sia un maschio o una femmina. La risposta a tra tre mesi... Quindi dobbiamo essere preparati con ben due nomi. In linea di massima vorremmo una combinazione di nomi indiani e italiani per un maschio e invece nomi inglesi e italiani per una femmina.

Qualcuna delle nostre idee:

Nicole Laura Ashok
Nicole Audrey Ashok
Nicole Martina Ashok
Audrey Anna Ashok

Federico Rahul Ashok
Niccolo' Abhay Ashok
Nicolas Kevin Ashok
Kevin Guglielmo Ashok

etc...

I commenti sono benvenuti, anche da parte dei lettori silenziosi che non si sono fatti mai sentire :)

---------------

It seems we will not be able to find out the sex of the baby before the birth this time, so the little peanut needs to be ready with two names. Probably we would like to stick with Indian and Italian names for a boy, but English and Italian for a girl.

I really like the names Nicole and Audrey for a girl. So we thought of the following possibilities:

Nicole Laura Ashok
Nicole Audrey Ashok
Nicole Martina Ashok
Audrey Anna Ashok

For a boy, if we want to lack imagination we can go with

Federico Rahul Ashok

Otherwise,

Niccolo' Abhay Ashok
Nicolas Kevin Ashok
Kevin Guglielmo Ashok

are also on our list. Sujay really likes the name Abhay (or however else you like to transliterate it), but it seems too difficult to pronounce to keep it as first name.

Comments are welcome, although they will probably be disregarded in the end, but you can try... ;)

New Appu Words

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 14:02:00 +0000

If you want a chance to read the table, please click on it.

Cliccare sulla tabella per ingrandire.

Back home

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 12:05:00 +0000

We are back in Canada! The temperature is acceptable, the snow is thin and the house is still where we left it. We had a better than expected trip by plane, so we cannot complain. Internet is again available and fast, so I can venture to promise more posts coming soon...
Bye for now!

Sadness

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 09:17:00 +0000

Siamo in Italia da una settimana. Questa e' una visita che non avevamo in programma, ma purtroppo mia zia e' stata molto male ed e' morta lunedi'. Siamo riusciti ancora a vederla e a passare un po' di tempo con lei. Sono contenta che lei abbia potuto rivedere il piccolo Appu, a cui era gia' molto affezionata. Il funerale e' domani e poi saremo in Italia ancora per un paio di settimane.

As I had mentioned previously, we traveled to Italy last week to see my aunt. She died on Monday, but we still got to see her for a few days. I am happy that she could meet again little Appu and see how well he is growing, because she loved him very much. The funeral will be tomorrow and after that we will need to stay in Italy for some more days, maybe a couple of weeks.

Oh no....

noreply@blogger.com (e.) — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 03:54:00 +0000

...I cut Appu's hair!! :)

Primo taglio di capelli casalingo ad opera della mamma. Non un gran che'...