First things first. I started teething while I was in India, I was about 6-7 month when I first started teething and now I have 7 teeths. Yea…time for some solid food now. This gives me enough choice. So I grab whatever comes in my hand and put it in my mouth. I know I know not a good thing but I am so curious to taste everything and since I am teething, I have this itchiness in my gums that I cannot avoid putting things in my mouth.

I was crawling for a long time and it’s time for me to stand up on my own and walk a bit. Of course I cannot balance myself but can manage few steps. I am enjoying my freedom. I am not reliant on anyone to move me from one room to another. Put me near steps and I will surely climb up few steps.

I can recognise people and often smile at them. Until now crying was the only way to draw attention but now I can shout. I am waiting for the time when I can speak some words and express my feelings.

That’s it for now. Will soon update you about my further progress….

Cheers,

Sanvi

Summer is not an ideal time to be in India especially in Mumbai. But there is something for which I wouldn’t mind coming back to India in summer. Any guess? Look at my picture…..

Yes you got it right. It’s mangoes. It’s so yummyyyyyy. I just love it. Especially alphanso mangoes. It’s one of it’s kind. At first my mom put a drop of mango juice on my tounge. I liked it so much that in the next few minutes to everyone’s shock I just grabbed it from my mom’s hand.

I have started eating almost everything now, of course not the solid food – mainly liquids like lentil soup. I am introduced to differnt variety of dal (pulses) every day. Not everything tastes good but I am being told it’s good for my health, so I have no choice. But of all the different variety of foods I have been introduced, nothing beats mango.

From far distance I could see that excitement in their eyes. As soon as I got near they lifted and gently kissed me. Ketli cute che (how cute)! were their words. Duplicate Prashant (I look like my dad is what they meant). After watching 3 idiots I thought may be they will say my daughter will be a doctor or a sports person. But nothing that sort happened . I think that’s either too filmy or they have changed over time.

I reached home in about 45 mins time and there were many more people waiting to see me. Everybody surrounded me and they all took their chance of lifting and kissing me gently. They all showered their love on me. But for me I had never seen so many people surrounding me. I got little nervous and started crying. At that time I saw a familiar face, my mother, coming around and taking me away from everyone and made me sleep.

The next morning, I met my cousin, Viraj. He was very thrilled to see me and right away started playing with me, trying to make me feel comfortable. We got into the chemistry right away. He knew how to entertain me.

I saw many more people come to see me in the next few days. But due to my jet lag I couldn’t meet everyone, yet I met more people than I imagined. People over here are very loving and I am enjoying every bit of my stay so far. More in next edition…..

The excitement grew as the days got near. I was very anxious to meet my grand parents, uncles, aunts and cousins. I have always heard their voices over the phone and seen them only in my imagination. And there comes the time when I meet them in person for the first time. I just couldn’t wait to be with them.

The nervousness scaled down when I got to know that my flight is a direct flight. This not only saves the time but also the landing and take off would happen only once. Phew!!! some relief….

Then came the day when I had to fly. It was a rainy day with gusty winds. We thought that the flight might be delayed, but luckily the weather cleared out before our scheduled time and the flight was on time. I had no problem on the flight and slept for the major part. I was very well behaved and did not create any trouble for other passengers. The journey was smooth and reached India on time.

Finally I met my grand parents and all other relatives. Everyone is so loving that I cannot describe it in my words. Its a great feeling to be with them. I am enjoying my stay here.

Stay tune to get my updates from India….

- Sanvi Shah

Today I am 6 month old and it’s also a holi so we celebrated holi by playing with colors. Everyone applied colors on my face. It was hard to recognize anyone as everybody’s face was covered with colors. After playing for a while I was given a bath and then went to bed.

It was an interesting festival and I enjoyed it thorougly.

Now for the bad news. I started having the acid reflux problem again. I had it in the beginning between 1 – 3 months and then it was fine for a month. But since past few weeks the problem aggreviated. I am prescribed antacid drug called Zantac. My doctors says that this is very common problem amongst the infants as the organs are not fully developed. The medicine is only a temporary relief and time is the only solution to this problem. I just wish to come out of this soon.

It’s hard to imagine how I would spend my day without her. Mom will have to spend more time in the kitchen now so I would have to find ways to entertain my own self. Sooner or later this had to happen and the sooner I accept this the better it is for me.

I am indebted to my nana and nani for all the love and care they showered on me.

Slowly the air filled with fluries of snow and it started accumulating on the ground. In matter of hours the entire ground was covered with snow. It seemed as god has spreaded a white bed sheet on the earth. It looked so beautiful.

It snowed all day on saturday until sunday morning. The sky was clear and the rising sun had its beautiful reflection on the snow. It was a perfect scenic beauty. I made my plans to go out and play in the snow. But it was little cold so I waited till the afternoon to get it little warmer.

In the afternoon I went out to play in the snow. It was fun but the wind was a spoil sport. The cold wind made it little difficult for me to play for a longer time. Nevertheless whatever time I got to play in the snow it was quite a thrilling experience. It was my first snow and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

Agreed, that I do not have to worry about anything. Everybody around takes good care of me. But that’s not everything. If you see mad people in mental hospital than you will find that they do not have to take care of anything. Doctors and nurses take good care of them. Would you say they are very happy or this is the best part of their life? Due to human rights, a criminal in jail is also well taken care of. Does that mean it’s the best part of their life?

Worry free life is good when it is accompanied by freedom. Worry free life is good when it comes with awareness. Worry free life is good when it comes with independence.

Neither do I have any freedom nor do I have any awareness. I am so much dependent on everyone for every small things like feeding, diaper change, burb, bathing etc. I feel very helpless for I have no control over anything in life. To me everyone’e life around me is better than mine because they are so independent. They can live the life the way they want.

Now I understand the meaning of the phrase – Grass is always green on the other side. This would be my next lesson in life. If you consider grass to be greener on the other side you would miss the important part of life. You would never enjoy the green grass on your side. You would never enjoy what you have got and would always envy others.

So let me enjoy the green grass on my side and not worry about the grass on the other side and hope you too would enjoy the way things are….

In the last post we spoke about what are vaccines, why do we need vaccines, shots that needs to be taken during entire childhood and it’s schedule. The information was little boring and overwhelming but it is also very important to be aware of different kind of vaccines.

Let us continue to grab some more in depth information about these vaccines:
source:  What to expect – guide to immunizations.

Hepatitis B (HepB)
Hepatitis B is a liver disease that is spread through contact with the blood or other body fluids of an infected person. Those who become chronically infected with the disease can have serious problems such as cirrhosis (scarring of the liver) or liver cancer. Nearly 5,000 people die from complications of chronic hepatitis B each year.

What are the symptoms of acute hepatitis B?

Acute hepatitis B is the period of illness that occurs during the first one to four months after acquiring the virus. Only 30% to 50% of adults develop significant symptoms during acute infection. Early symptoms may be non-specific, including fever, a flu-like illness, and joint pains. Symptoms of acute hepatitis may include:

fatigue, loss of appetite,  nausea, jaundice (yellowing of the skin and eyes), and pain in the upper right abdomen (due to the inflamed liver).  Rarely, acute hepatitis damages the liver so badly it can no longer function. This life-threatening condition is called “fulminant hepatitis.” Patients with fulminant hepatitis are at risk of developing bleeding problems and coma resulting from the failure of the liver. Patients with fulminant hepatitis should be evaluated for liver transplantation. Small studies suggest that the drug lamivudine (Epivir), may be of limited assistance in these cases.

The vaccine. Hepatitis B vaccine is made from one part of the hepatitis B virus. Since the three doses of the vaccine usually confer lifetime immunity, vaccination beginning at birth or shortly thereafter means your baby will probably never have to
worry about catching hepatitis B.

The dose. Three doses of the vaccine are needed. The first is usually given at birth (though it can also be given between birth and 2 months); the second dose is given between 1 to 4 months; the third is given between 6 to 18 months.

Rotavirus:  Rotavirus is an intestinal virus that is extremely contagious, spreading easily through contact with contaminated hands or objects and through the air, and infecting nearly all children by the time they’re five years old. The disease commonly appears between the months of November and May. Before the vaccine was approved, rotavirus triggered more than 400,000 doctor visits and more than 55,000 hospitalizations for diarrhea, vomiting, and dehydration each year in the US. Rotavirus can even be fatal, accounting for 20 to 60 deaths each year in the US. Symptoms include fever, upset stomach, and vomiting, followed by diarrhea that lasts from three to eight days.

The vaccine. The rotavirus vaccine was added to the immunization schedule in 2007. It is an oral vaccine (a liquid given in the mouth) that contains live (but weakened) rotavirus virus.

The dose. Depending on the brand your doctor uses, either two oral doses are given at 2 and 4 months, or three are given at 2, 4, and 6 months.

 Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis (DTaP)
Diphtheria is spread through coughing and sneezing. It initially causes sore throat, fever, and chills. It can also cause a thick covering to form over the back of the throat, blocking the airways and making breathing difficult. If it isn’t promptly treated with the proper medication, the infection causes a toxin (poison) to spread in the body that
can then lead to heart failure or paralysis. About 1 in 10 of those affected will actually die from diphtheria.

Tetanus is not a contagious disease. Instead, a person typically becomes infected with tetanus if tetanus bacteria found in soil, dirt, dust, or manure enter the body through a wound or cut. Symptoms, which can take up to 3 weeks to
appear, include headache, crankiness, stiffness of the jaw and neck, and then painful muscle spasms throughout the body. There are about 30 reported cases a year of tetanus in the US, and 1 out of 10 people who get the disease die from it.

Pertussis (aka whooping cough) is a very contagious airborne bacterial infection that causes violent rapid coughing and a loud “whooping” sound upon inhalation. Infants who contract the disease often need to be hospitalized. Between 20 to 40 children under the age of 3 months die from pertussis each year in the US.

The vaccine. DTaP is a combination vaccine protecting against three diseases: diphtheria (D), tetanus (T), and pertussis (P). All three components of the vaccine are “inactivated”– meaning they are killed and incapable of causing the disease. The “a” stands for “acellular” which means that the pertussis part of the vaccine contains only parts of
the pertussis bacterium, not the entire cell.

The dose. Five doses of DTaP are needed. The shots are given at 2, 4, and 6 months, followed by a booster between 15 to 18 months, and then another booster between 4 to 6 years old. Since protection can fade over time with this particular vaccine, the Tdap booster vaccine is recommended for adolescents between 11 and 12 years of age.

Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib)

Hib disease used to be the leading cause of bacterial meningitis in children under the age of 5. In the 1980s before an effective Hib vaccine was available, 1 in 200 children were infected. Among those children, one in 4 had suffered permanent brain damage, and about 1 in 20 died. The disease is spread through the air by coughing, sneezing,
even breathing. If the bacteria gets into the lungs it can spread to the brain and other organs.

The vaccine. The Hib conjugate vaccine is made from the sugar coating of the Hib bacterium (in other words, it’s made from just one part of the bacterium).

The dose. Four doses are usually recommended, given at 2, 4, and 6 months, and again between 12 and 15 months of age (though one brand of the vaccine calls for only three doses, at 2 and 4 months and between 12 and 15 months of age).