Sleep of the just? Just sleep…

Sleep… The final frontier… :)

Why does the expression “Sleep like a baby” exist? Babies do not sleep that well! And their fathers do not sleep well either.

I would like to blame it on Noa’s Roseola, but I believe it all started even before that…

Noa and Maya started sleeping fairly well at about 4 months old (after we transferred them from our bedroom to their own nursery), with an occasional waking up due to falling pacifier. However, in the past few weeks we’ve been experiencing crazy waking up sessions. It seems to be that it is mostly Noa who is waking up, crying hysterically, unable to relax. It started out a few times a night, and now seems to happen almost every hour or so. Sometimes Maya doesn’t seem to notice, but sometimes she does. Usually she notices around 4am so that the end of the night is the most difficult with both of them waking up and not always going back to sleep.

And you can imagine what it is like for the fathers to go on with not a lot of “good sleep”.

We actually managed to contain Noa’s sessions to shorter ones, by trying to catch it as early as possible, patting her back and shushing her. But it’s not always enough.

As a result, I find myself tired a lot of the time, going to sleep very early (sometimes even as early as 8:30pm) – trying to catch as much sleep as possible before the celebrations begin… But sometimes I make the mistake of watching Master Chef till 10:50pm and then find out that the night is more or less over…

Ronen on the other hand goes to sleep later than I do usually. He usually works after they go to sleep (although I can sometimes hear him listening to old songs on YouTube :) ). The lack of sleep seems to affect him less than it affects me, but he’s not immune to it either.

As a last resort we’ve decided to go to a sleep consultant. We hope she can give us some tips on how to make them sleep better and longer. I’m tired (pun intended) of waking up at 4:30am… I’ll keep you posted on how that went.

Lucky for them they are so cute and fun during “legal” waking hours :)

Besides, Noa already has 2 teeth, and Maya finally got her first one, and both started eating solids and enjoy it very much! But that’s for another post :)

♥

P.S.

Found a cool app for the iPhone that does Comic strip-like photos, so I’ll just post these latest creations :)

Have fun!

Swing fun at the park

Saturday mornings are fun at the park…

Enjoy this short compilation taken a few weeks ago :)

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My First Childhood Disease

It all started the night between Thursday and Friday (Aug. 12 2011) – Noa had a very high fever (40.2°c). She was very cranky, crying a lot and she didn’t feel so great…

We were sure it was just another tooth and treated her with paracetamol.

Friday morning we went to the pediatrician. He wasn’t very nice (our usual clinic was closed), and he said it is either a tooth, or a stomach trouble from something she ate.

We kept on giving her paracetamol for the fever and she rested a lot. Later on Friday she was in a better mood, and also Saturday morning, but then she started getting cranky again, crying from everything (from sudden noises, to Maya touching her).

She woke a lot during the night, crying her heart out. We were very worried.

This morning (Sunday) she woke up with a weird rush on her face. We decided to go to the doctor (this time our regular nice pediatrician). Within a few seconds of seeing Noa she was already able to tell it is Roseola (אדמדמת) and that there’s not much we can do. She needs to rest and stay away from the sun. Today the rush should get even worse, but tomorrow she will start to feel better.

Doctor Rita also said that such high fever is never teeth (above 37.5-38ºc is never teeth), and that roseola is the only rush that spreads behind the ears…

Maya will probably catch this pretty soon, so we’ll have a merry house :) Lucky for Ronen he’s going to Denmark tonight…

However, the weekend was not all that bad – we went to Tel Aviv to hang out in Rothschild blvd. and see the tent city and feel part of the protest. We had a nice lunch at a rice restaurant, and the girls were captivated by the waiter. I’ll leave you with a picture of the two of them trying to pick him up ;) [and you can also see Noa’s first tooth here… which reminds me today we saw the beginning of the second tooth right next to the first one…]

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Stuff you do when you’re 8 months…

What do you do when you’re 8 months?

Well, first of all you’re finally sitting nicely, you’re (more or less) steady, and it is time to start sitting in the high chair! Eating in the high chair is so cool! It makes eating a whole new experience… for everyone :) Eating is interesting, but so is spitting, trying to get whatever is on your sister’s tray, and coughing everything all over your father/grandma/the room…

Maya now likes to eat chicken meat balls.

Noa on the other hand likes soup.

And of course both like biscuits, fruit and… Bamba!

Noa

Maya

Now that we’re comfortable on the high chair, it is also a good way to enjoy a meal at a restaurant! It is much better than spending all that time in the stroller… So many attractions! The fun never ends!

We went to Moses and had a great lunch with good friends, and managed to enjoy it and make sure Noa and Maya enjoy as well!

Maya @Moses

Noa @Moses

But the best thing is going to the pool! Every Friday morning at 9:00am we go to the pool and have fun. Sometimes we also go to the pool on Saturdays. Maya and Noa just love the water (although diving is a different thing). Here’s a glimpse:

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So… What’s new?

Hya! Surprised to see us?

Yes, I’ve been lazy, busy, tired, whatever, but it’s time for an update…

So… What’s new?

It all started a few days ago (Friday I think) when Noa started teething for the first time. We’ve realized just how wrong we are – not documenting all theses things. So here’s a short list of what we’ve accomplished till now…

• At about 6 and a half months Maya started rolling over. For a few weeks she’s been rolling all over the apartment – getting wherever she wants. It took Noa another month or so to start rolling, and she’s still not doing it too often.
• Around that time Noa started sitting down very stable. She likes playing and can entertain herself for a while. Maya on the other hand can’t do one thing for longer than a few minutes (or less…) and she’s very active. It is sometimes very exhausting :) However sitting down is still not very stable for Maya and she keeps losing her gravity and falling (ouch!).
• At 7 and a half months Maya started crawling. At first backwards, but within a day or two she was already crawling perfectly. I already lost sight of her a few times in the apartment and then found her in locations like the computer room, Sushi’s (the cat’s) food plate and Sushi’s litter box (ewwww). Now we try to make Noa stay on her belly for as long as possible so she can catch up. She now crawls backwards, and soon she’ll be crawling all over I believe.
• They both like mumbling stuff. Maya sometimes mumbles “Tata tata tata” which we believe to maybe mean “Savta” (=grandma). Noa says “Aba Aba Aba” a lot (=dad dad dad). They are so cute!
• Of course they both started eating solids, we still try to get them to eat more, but they are getting there.

I’ll leave you with a current photo, and will upload some photos of the past few months soon…

♥

Knock knock, you there? :)
Maya (left) and Noa in the park
(picture by Ziva Vaknin)

2 Months

Wow!

Today we’re celebrating TWO MONTHS! Can you believe it?

I know I haven’t written in ages, but there was a lot happening, so I’ll give a quick recap of the past month or so…

At first we had to finish all the arrangements in India. There was some running to the Israeli consulate to get the twins their new passports (so inefficient…) and FRRO to sign the passports so they can leave India. towards the end we were pretty nervous because we already booked the Dec. 5th flight and wanted to make it. And we did!

The flight itself was better than I thought babies-wise. They did not seem to suffer from the pressure or anything, and were sleeping most of the flight. The crew on the plane were amazing and so helpful. They made sure we get the bassinettes and made sure no one sits in the adjacent seats. Of course when we got to Israel we had a problem with the twins’ passports not showing up on the border control’s computer, and they kept us there for at least 30 minutes at 4am in the morning with crying babies. And 2 nice stewardesses insisted on staying with us till we’re done.

Meeting our families was very exciting. They were very happy to finally see Noa and Maya, and we were relieved to see them after so long. This meant that we’re home now!

Ronen is taking the first part of the paternity leave, but I stayed home for the first week so we can do some errands and arrangements. Of course we also took some time to enjoy ourselves, went to eat some good food, and meet some friends.

Since then it’s been over a month. We got used to being back home. We do shifts with the twins at night so most of the time it is OK, and during the day Ronen is with them for now. It is not easy for me to leave him with them like this since I know what a hard job it is. But he tries to find someone to be with him whenever possible (friends, family…).

The girls are growing fast (as you can see in the pictures below). They are bigger and heavier, but besides it also seems they start to respond to us. They listen to our voices, sometime even smile. They seem to like taking baths (but dressing up afterwards is sometimes difficult). They like to hear songs, and sometimes also reading a book.

Last week we had an event to celebrate their birth (BRITAH). It was a great event for us, although I was nervous and also had to speak in front of everyone, which I never like. But it was nice, and I was happy to see everyone. And now it’s back to the “new normal”. I promise to update more now… See you soon!!!

♥

Noa 12.1.2011

 

Maya 12.1.2011

My first 10 days…

Hi, my name is Noa, and I’m here today to give you a short recap of recent events and stuff. I’m writing also on behalf of my younger twin sister Maya. She’s 1 minute younger, so she still has a lot to learn!

Location, location, location(s)

Up until about 10 days ago, we were warm and cozy inside this woman’s belly. OK, so maybe a bit crowded, but it was still nice. After all we stayed there for 36 weeks and 4 days before we’ve decided to come out.

Then, on November 13th 2010 we decided we’ve had enough and wanted to get out. It was very bad timing since the nice lady (everyone keeps referring to her as the Surrogate) was on her way to the nice Hiranandani Hospital but then had to stop on the way in this Redkar “hospital” to give birth… Should have waited another hour I guess. Our bad!

I tell you – you should have seen the look on our dads’ faces when they saw us there, on the table, with the window open right above our heads with all the traffic and fumes outside. Luckily enough, a few minutes after, Dr. Aziz from Hiranandani Hospital came with an ambulance and took us there. 

When we reached the hospital, we were taken to the N.I.C.U. which was very nice. The nice nurses took care of us real nice there. The blue light was a bit annoying. Daddy said it is called Phototherapy.

Two days later, we were moved from the N.I.C.U. in the 2nd floor, to a nice room on the 10th floor of the hospital where we stayed with our dads for 3 nights. There were always nurses outside that came to check on us and see our dads know what they are doing. The nice Dr. Bijal also visited us twice a day (1000 Rupees each visit) to see we’re ok. On the day before last they started feeding us with Similac which was much nicer than that Lactodex-LBW crap they gave us at the beginning. Now we were able to sleep longer and better.

From the hospital we were taken directly to a 5 star hotel (Ramada). The room was also nice and our dads were happy, so we’re also happy. There’s nice food there, and a swimming pool where we go every day for some sun. Unfortunately I have to share a bed with Maya, but that’s OK. It’s only temporary…

But we actually can’t wait to go back to Israel. We want to meet the rest of the family!!!

Sisters

What can I tell you. Maya and I may be twin sisters, but we’re so different in some manners that it is crazy! Need some examples? No problem…

• Color – I am darker in skin and hair (and I have more hair). Maya is lighter in color.
• Temper – I am calm and quiet (can’t promise I’ll stay this way forever but at the moment that suits me). Maya is much more energetic and requires a lot of attention. If she doesn’t get her food right away you’re in trouble… And she can keep on going and going.
• Appetite – I consider myself as being aware of what I eat. I just eat what I need. Maya on the other hand eats and eats and is never satisfied. I swear – if she goes on like this she’ll have an eating disorder when she grows up :)


Maya and Noa

Reactions

I would also like to thank everyone for the warm greetings we got since our birth. It is very heartwarming for both us and our dads.

I do find it funny how everyone keep commenting on how I look like this dad, or Maya looks like that dad. I myself actually believe I resemble a young Suri Cruise. And Maya? She looks like a grandma with her wrinkled forehead and no teeth :) I’m just kidding! She’s amazing!

Noa

Friends

We may be young, but we already have some friends – even here in India!

We have Eyal and Izik who arrived a bit after our dads. They have also twins – Eleanor and Orion, but they are still in N.I.C.U. and we can’t wait to finally meet them!

Then we have Orly and Ronen. They are very good friends as well, they keep spoiling us, and they are waiting for the birth of their child any day now we believe.

We also have Swedish friends! Our dads met another couple of dads from Sweden – Daniel and Patric. They also have twins – a boy named Gimle (means “Paradise” in Swedish) and a daughter named Göta (means “girl from the south of Sweden”). They are lucky as they are going back to Sweden on Wednesday.

We have dinner with them (and all the rest) every evening at 7:30pm

We feel like these people are now part of our lives and we are almost like a family already!

Well, I’m going to rest now. I need my beauty sleep and we still have a lot to do here in India before we go back to Israel (eat, sleep, change diapers etc. but also some papers to fill and bureaucracy to take care of).

See you all soon!

Maya

♥

Nice to meet you!

Hi!

Please join me in welcoming our new baby girls Noa and Maya to the world :)

Beautiful babies Noa and Maya were born yesterday – Nov. 13th 2010 in a C Section at Redkar medical center in Mumbai, India.

Noa was born first, at 12:29 pm India time (8:59 IL time, 6:59 GMT) weight 2.580 kg

Maya was born at 12:30 pm India time, weight 2.140 kg

They are both charming and cute, and are at N.I.C.U at Hiranandani hospital. Tomorrow they will be released and we will move to the hostital for a few nights.

Here are some of their first pictures… :)

Day 1

Noa

Maya

Day 2

Noa

Maya

Days 14-18

Nov. 6-10

We’re not alone here anymore. 2 new couples arrived this week.

First, Izik and Eyal arrived. Their twins were born a bit early and they are now in N.I.C.U. Finally we had more people to play ping-pong with, to share a table at dinner and breakfast… It’s nice.

Yesterday, Orly and Ronen arrived. We’ve met them before at Alon’s appartment when Alon and Doron briefed us about India.

So now we have a table for 6.

We’re still working, and still waiting. Unfortunately, my computer died last weekend. We tried to fix it but it seems that the motherboard is dead and and the IBM lab is on the other side of Mumbai…

Yesterday we finished week 36. This is very exciting, and this means the delivery can be any day now. We’re counting on tomorrow since it will be a cool date (11.11). Friday will also be nice (12.11.1o) but whenever they arrive will be good! :)

In the meantime we’re watching TV and I’m already addicted to MasterChef Australia :) there are also a lot of reruns of Friends, and Modern Family which we always like to watch. They have so many reruns here… Only today they shower Catwoman TWICE! and every day there are 3 reruns of every show… You can’t miss it :)

Anyhow, sorry for not writing as often as usual but the fact that nothing much is going on combined with the fact that my comp died makes it difficult. You’ll forgive me I hope…

Kisses and good night. And please don’t call us after 20:30 IL time! (last night we got a call at 1:22am and were sure it’s time to go to the hospital…)

♥

 

They are showing Aladdin on Saturday, so I just felt like it :)

Days 11-13

Nov. 3-5

Another work week is over. This makes 2 work weeks we’ve spent in Mumbai.

Weather is getting a bit colder, and it has been raining every now and then in the past 2 days (especially when I want to go to the pool…). Last night we decided we’re not eating at the hotel restaurant and treating ourselves to some pizza in Hiranandani. We went out and noticed it was raining, the road is slippery and we really don’t trust those crazy motoriksha drivers. So we turned around, played a few rounds of ping-pong and went to eat at the hotel. Later we went to the bar at the neighbouring Ramada and had a KingFisher beer.

Doron and Alon called us last night and told us that today another couple is arriving to our hotel. Their surrogate went into early labor and their twins are 29 weeks old. He asked if we could help them get settled here and see that they are ok (after all we’re already locals here…). So they should arrive in about an hour or so. I’m all hope that the babies are alright and will be healthy and strong.

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Next week another couple is coming, and Alon should also be arriving sometime soon. After realizing that there is no Similac anywhere in sight here, we asked Alon if he could bring us 2-3 cans of Similac from Israel, and being the nice guy he is he immediately agreed and said there’s no problem (after all – his adorable baby girls are already in Israel so he doesn’t need to carry too much…).

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Today we went to Hiranandani and did some errands. We started at the Hospital store to see if they have Similac. They don’t. But they do have Pampers size 1 which no other store seems to have around here… (They also have bottles, pacifiers and almost anything you need for a new baby… Maybe other couples do not need to buy everything at home and carry it over here…).

Then we went to have the pizza we didn’t have last night at Papa John’s. It was good (we’ve had too much Indian food lately).

And then we went to DΔMart which is a discount supermarket with almost anything you need. Ronen found a yoga mat, I got a Masala Box, we got some snacks…

But the most important purchase we did today was definitely… PLAYING CARDS! :) The forecast for tonight – Shithead! :)

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Seems like nobody in India knows anything about their Diwali… Some told us it is a 5 day holiday and it starts today. Another told us it started a few days ago! Another said it is only 2 days and starts today. So I don’t know who to believe… According to Wikipedia it is 5 days and starts today. That doesn’t explain all the drumming and fireworks in the last few days…

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This morning I went to the pool and wanted to dive a little bit. I left my sunglasses by the side of the pool and had my fun (there’s usually no one else there so I wasn’t worried about the sunglasses). When I came back to pick them up, one of the arms fell off and the screw was missing. I went back to the room and tied it with a string I had but it was just hanging there. When we went to Hiranandani, we found an optic shop and we went in to fix the glasses. I must say it took the girl ages to fix this one screw. But… When she finished she gave me the sunglasses and smiled. We asked “How much is it” and she replied “One big smile”! Ü

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Many shops decorate the floors with colorful powder in honor of Diwali… Here are some samples: