11 weeks

Phillip is 11 years old, and Ivan is 11 weeks today. :-) Like his brother, little Ivan is a natural communicator - he "coos" and makes a variety of sounds, like "ba", "da", "ga", and his favourite "agoo"! His eyes follow an object from right to left and up and down. When he sees something particularly interesting, like a bright toy or a new face, Ivan's eyes widen (like on the photo). He takes a moment or two to process the image, and if, for example, the face is familiar, Vanya smiles with the cutest toothless grin.

One thing that Ivan absolutely does not like is to lie on his tummy. He only lasts 30 seconds or so (I think that is when he is figuring out that he has been (yet again!) put in this awfully uncomfortable position :-)), and then lets us know that he "objects"!!!

Metric update

11 weeks tomorrow - already 7 kg!

Brothers

Anyone who has loving parents, two sets of proud grandparents, two brothers and a dog can be considered lucky. Little Ivan has all that. But he is particularly fortunate to have Phillip as his brother. Last week, when Mike was gone on his first business trip since Vanya's arrival, Phillip stepped in and tirelessly catered to Ivan's every wish (well, almost every wish). Phillip would fetch Ivan's pacifier, assist in bathing slippery Ivan, and even sing Vanya's favourite nursery rhymes (Phillip definitely beats his Dad in singing). Ivan always smiles when he hears Phillip sing "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" or "Mary Has a Little Lamb", whereas Mike's repertoire of old Russian military and folk songs is no such hit. Phillip is simply the best! :-)

10 weeks

2 months

What a day... Ivan has survived his first set of shots, with great help from Dad (I chickened out and could not observe the dreaded procedure). This is Ivan before his trip to the pediatrician. :-)

On a happier note, Ivan has celebrated his 2-month birthday yesterday by extending the time between the feeds from 3 to 4 hours. We are not sure whether it is his new "schedule" or just a "festive" nice gesture on his part. We'll see.

Ivan's measurements, by the way, are setting new records. He weighs 6.66 kg (or 14.6 lbs) and is 62 cm (24.4 inches) in length. Yes, Ivan is over 2 feet tall. On the boys' growth chart, this puts "Uncle Vanya" in the 97th percentile. Keep growing, Ivan!