18 months

Joaquin is nearly 18 months, that means he is nearly 1 year and half, where has all the time gone?
Well he certainly is gowning.
He just had one wheetbix for breakfast with milk and his bottle (approx 200mls) before that, and now I am making some Vegemite toast for him.
I stopped breastfeeding approximately 3 weeks ago (the same time my rash came). I am very obsessed with this itchy scratchy ugly rash. Luckily through the day it does not itch just looks horrible. At night at about 4am it itches and I can't sleep.
He loves to play by himself but if I sit on the ground with him and play or watch him he comes up to me and gives me lots of kisses. How beautiful!
He loves to make trains out of the plastic blocks and push them along, actually he loves trains and loves Thomas the tank engine.
He is having his 18 months chickenpox vaccination next week, I hope he will be ok.
He had some diarrhoea last night and was not happy, even though he is eating well and I gave him some boiled rice with a tomato and cheese sauce and broccoli and zucchini.

Words at 18 months

Words he has learnt the last month.

moon pronounced moaon
Luna he knows it means moon but says mooan instead for moon and points to the sky
toash for toast
shower for shower
bath for bath
siiiii for yes (nods)
nooo for no (moves head side to side)
boohbah for boohbah the tv children's show
toomash for thomas the tank engine
bob for bob the builder tv show
shoosh for shoes
meow for cat
browobrow for dog
choo choo for train
tren for train
yummmm for yumm
mmmm for yum
agua for water (has known this since he was in Argentina)
mami for mami
da dad for dadi
nani for nana
poppy for poppy
abule for grandparents abuelos (he learnt that over 2 months ago in Argentina)
pan for bread
sombrero and hat, knows what they mean and touches his head
avion for plane
areoplane for plane
pish for fish
du for ducks
dotdotot (the horse gallop sound) for horse
pera for espera (wait)

At home on the balcony

This week J mum has come to visit and has looked after Joaquin while I go to uni and try to do things. But for me there is not enough hours in the day to do everything. The weather is starting to be nice and warm and after uni we played around on the balcony. Joaquin loves it outside and he has been a very good little boy for his grandmother (Nani).
It has been good for me to be able to go to the uni and get away a little, I still have the rash and I went to the gym and ran over 7km and the rash and little red dots got redder and very fired up. I hate this rash with a vengence. I think why me? But i guess it is relatively harmless and does not really hurt me or itch me.

Joaquin playing with chickens

Having fun in the garden.
Feeding the chickens, collecting eggs, playing with the trucks in the sandpit.
Joaquin loves being outdoors, without shoes on. I am trying to get him to wear his hat at all times when out, he is trying and a good little boy.

November in Scone

These are photos taken in Scone.
Jason is in the photos and Sophie, Joaquin's cousin who is 1 week older than Joaquin.

Joaquin at the beach

We are back in Sydney and Joaquin loves being with his dada.
I am still trying to talk to him in Spanish but every now and then talk to him in English. he was deeply immersed in spanish when we were in Argentina so I have to continue talking to him so he understands spanish and my spanish accent.
He does understand me I think.
He still says Agua, and avion. He says si and noooo.
He is now saying

bob

for Bob the Builder when he looks at his bob the builder socks, and he is so infatuated with Thomas the Tank engine and says

Thomas

in a very musical sweet way when he sees Thomas the tank engine on tv or in his book.
I have been taking him down to the beach and park in the afternoon and on Monday we saw whales I think Humpback whales down at the beach swimming south for the summer to Antarctica. There were a lot of seagulls out at sea and probably a lot of fish around. I could not believe there were whales out there and I followed them around the headlands to the park at the top of South Coogee. I wish I had binoculars with me.
There is even a whale festival here in Sydney.
This is from here so one can recognize the whales by their blows

Joaquin also loves looking at the moon and saying Luna.
yesterday at the park he played on the slippery dip by himself going down it by himself and climbing up it by himself (without shoes is so much easier thanks to our natural grip on our feet). He also let me swing him on the swing and he was on the swing for about 10 min while I spoke to the other mums from my mothers group. He normally is scared of the swings and does not want to go on them.
we are teaching him to go to sleep by himself (well he knew how to do this but while in Argentina we began to rock him and sing to him and pat him to sleep). Now we (Jas and I) are trying to let him fall asleep in his cot by himself like he did when he was less than a year old. Well last night we did the usual bed time rituals, milk, teeth brushing then hugs and kisses and Jas put him in his cot and left him there while we waited in the other room. He cried for 30 seconds and there was silence and i think he fell asleep shortly afterward. Phewwww what a relief, we had a bucket on standby as at times in the past he makes himself vomit when he is left alone to cry it out. I think he is learning again how good it is to go to sleep and to try to sleep by yourself. He is now 17 months and looks older than the other bubs. He is still very tall. Yesterday he was playing with a little boy at the park (a 10 year old boy) and we were all watching him, and the boy picked him up and walked over to some other mothers and said "Is he yours". We all laughed and then I went over to him and said "He is mine, thanks". How sweet!

Puppet show with Joaquin

Joaquin is saying a lot of new words
Agua
Abuelo
Abuela
He tries to say uno dos tres.
So he is learning spanish.I think he misses his dad alot and says Da da and wants his daddy to appear.
Jason, who is in Sydney misses him terribly too.
i think joaquin needs to see his dad
We went to a puppet show at 4pm at the Melipan yesterday. I really enjoyed it and so did Joaquin and my mum.
The show was called El Becado and was about a young clown that won a scholarship to a magic school. The teacher of the magic school was an old witch who ended up teaching him a few things and ending up finding love. There was scary part where the demon of dance starts to move and yell and blow fire, Joaquin was scared but watched the whole play from beginning to end.
He made friends with some of the little girls who had gone to see the play and when they called out his name he walked to them and hugged one of them.
Afterwards we went to the local Irish Pub, had a picada, Joaquin had some fritas and un tostado de queso y tomate. He loved being out and sitting in the booths eating, drinking out of glasses and watching the people practice tango.

He loves going out and playing in the garden, throwing rocks in the creek.

Joaquin en Esquel 16 meses

Joaquin loves hanging out with the bookcase in his pjs and trying to find a good book to read


He is also very curious and wants to be in the kitchen when La abuela is cooking or cleaning. He loves pots and pans and forks and spoons and knows which drawer they are stored in and when he takes them out he puts them back in.

the name game

I just found this post at Lovely Design and I have the same problem as Sharilyn and can relate to this.
Joaquin has his father's surname but not mine :(
I chose his name which is rather spanish but there are no indications to his russian-jewish roots in his name at all.

This is my brother, Joaquin and I at the carousel on Sunday night.


My parents, my brother Sebastian and Joaquin

Very busy busy

This morning I got up at 4am and so far since Jason has left I have been very busy and it has all been a bit chaotic here at my parents place.
My brother also left for Cordoba ( a very long bus trip away to the north of Argentina) on Monday morning and it is just me the little one, my parents and my great aunt, as well as Bondi the dog. Coogee the dog came back to my parents place a few weeks ago, after going missing for 6 months. But last week a family came past our place and demanded their dog back. She had been lost and ended up befriending another family who kept her as a family pet(they call her Perla). My parents decided to let her go as the son of this family was so distraught without her and was crying outside the house wanting his dog back. Even though it has been my parents dog since she was a puppy and my parents desexed her and look after her and have taken her to the vet and have her registered under their care etc. In the end it was like the classical tale from the bible where the baby is claimed by two mothers and the King Solomon says something along the lines of as you both can not decide who is the real mother then I will cut him in two and give you each a half. One of the mothers was so distraugt she said No, do not do this, give him to the other mother. So the king realises this is the real mother of the child, the one who does not want any harm to occur to her child, who would rather her child be alive and well with another, than not.

I am so busy finishing some proofs for a paper, about to start on the presentations for a conference. At the same time I miss Jason so much, and we are not organised here, with Joaquin who wants to get into everything and walks around so much all day.I have been trying to find out about childcare for him, or daycare so he can go and play with other children his age for a few hours and I can do some work and it is not so much pressure on my parents who have so much to do too.

Things to do today:
Send email about proof before 9am
Add corrections to paper before 9am
Make a cover letter for fax before 9am
Send fax after 9am
Go to secretary at the daycare center between 2pm-5pm
Start gym (was meant to go at 9.30am this morning)
Write to confrence about accomodation
Write to friends who are going to conference
Do presentations for conference
Buy ticket for conference
Organise meals for Joaquin
Organise myself

photos from Esquel Sunday

Waking up after an afternoon sleep on Sunday



Playing on Sunday afternoon


Merry-go round in the Plaza

Sunday morning in Esquel

Joaquin is sitting quietly in his high chair having some vegemite toast (wholemeal bread made lovingly by my mother every morning), he already has had his oats and his bottle of milk and his morning breastfeed at 9am.
The racing cars are on tv, something my dad watches religiously every Sunday morning. Joaquin is watching the cars while eating his toast. He just said Dada and I think he misses his daddy.
He calls his grandfather ta-t-ta, after my dad yelled one day "Los perros se quedan afuera" (the dogs should stay outside) and Joaquin tries to mimic him but only gets ta tat ta ta ta ta. Now every day and moment he sees his granddad (abuelo) he says Ta-ta, so maybe my dad will be known as Abuelo Ta-ta.
Abuelo Ta-ta said he will take Joaquin down to the Arroyo Esquel with his tricycle after he has finished his breakfast and as it is sunny outside I think it is a good idea. I am trying to catch up on writing and finishing my proof for a paper that is about to be published. Jason is in bed hopefully sleeping well after arriving this morning. Jason has written a beautiful email and I miss him so much.
I am feeling not too good, with a sore blocked ear and remnants of a sore throat and Joaquin woke up during the night crying and I tried to breastfeed back to sleep but he breastfed then I put him in his cot and he cried and as I am sleeping in a bed next to him he sees me there and calls out for me. So i finally got him to sleep by moving the cot with my hand, rocking it and he actually liked that and went to sleep.
I think he is still tired this morning, as he was upset when I opened the door of tha cabin with the keys, he wanted to have the keys and open the door himself. He then walked over to the car and tried to open the boot with the house keys. He is such a funny little boy, very persistent, and he knows what he wants. He is very creative and wants to learn about his world around him so much. At the same time he is cautious about what he does and actually thinks about things, you can tell by his facial expression and his eyes.

Friday the day you went away

Jas has left on a bus to Bariloche (4 hours) and then will be flying to Buenos Aires, then to Santiago in Chile, then to Auckland in New Zealand and then to Sydney in Australia. What a long trip and I miss him terribly. I do not know how I am going to handle this time apart, I do not know how Joaquin will handle it.
I would like to write something every day about Joaquin so Jas can read it and find out what his little son has been up too.
When we got back from the bus station we were all very sad, Joaquin has been saying dadi dadi quite a bit, he waved to Jas as Jas was on the bus, and later Jason has confessed to me how upset he was as the bus left the station on the way to Bariloche.
Once at home we gave him a bottle and I put him back to sleep in his cot. He slept till 10am and then all day I spent in front of the computer waiting and watching the airports web pages the arrivals and depatures of each plane that was carrying my Jas further and further away from me.
He caught all his planes well and should be arriving at 7pm (Saturday night) Argentinian time in Sydney. We miss you Jas get home safely please!!!

in patagonia with Joaquin

In Patagonia,
In Esquel, with my family.
Joaquin is asleep in the cabin, he is sleeping only one sleep a day but I think he is still very tired. He does sleep well at night, going to sleep at 9.30pm and waking up at 9am already full of beans.
He is a very funny little boy, he loves to put crayons together and likes to pile things of similar structure together.
Yesterday he was playing with the crayons on a cushion and lined them up together.
He can hold a pencil and we all saw him walking around with my mother's notebook and a pencil making notes holding the pencil in his hand as if he was taught at school, yet he is only 15 months old. He knows how to draw with crayons on paper as well.
He is eating well and still enjoys veges with tomato based sauce.
Jas and I think it is so cute how he calls Jas "Dadi" with such a strong English accent. Were does he get that from?

15 month mile stones

We are in Esquel... Patagonia visiting my parents los abuelos.
These photos were taken the other day just by the Arroyo Esquel (Esquel stream) that is 50 meters from my parents house. It has been very cold and there is a lot of snow on the mountains around Esquel.
Joaquin is nearly 15 months old, time is passing so fast.
He is walking very well nearly running.
He is also saying a few words.
As of today he can say
Dadi(for Jas)
Mumi (for me)
Tatatatata (for el abuelo y to say Los Perritos se van afuera)
nana for banana
ba for bath
Abue (for Abuela y Abuelo)
Nan for Grandma Gemma
Mia for mine (mia mia mia)
He can build a tower of more than two block
He throws out the toys of the bath when he sees me with a towel about to get him out of the bath.
He is scared of bowling balls and any bowling show on tv (We were watching a movie with Woody Harrison and bowling and an Amish bowler and he got scared and Sofovich on Argentinian tv with a bowling show and he cried when he saw the bowling ball knock over the pins.
He knows how to do high fives or dame un cinco
He shakes hands
He loves to dance
he loves to twist around and turn on one leg.
He loves to kiss himself in the mirror.
He is learning to blow kisses with his hands and also by putting a one finger to his mouth and blowing a kiss
he loves kissing mami and dadi good night.
He hands over his milk bottle when he has finished to mum or dad.
He knows how to change channels and work a remote control.

hardworking mothers

Inspiration of a hard working successful mother:
J.K. Rowling, author of the best-selling Harry Potter book series, delivers her Commencement Address, “The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination,” at the Annual Meeting of the Harvard Alumni Association.
Listen or read here speech here

I found that link here at this blog about another hardworking mother who writes from Australia.

super woman supermum

I wish I was able to write well, elegantly, even eloquently, without spelling errors and more than anything to tell my story in a short easy entertaining way. Well it probably ain't going to happen any time soon, so I will stick with the way I know, and hopefully one day if i have time I can do a creative writing class. Something I was thinking about doing.
Anyway instead of writing well, I am trying to be a better mother everyday and trying to do paleontology but that is not working out too well being a mother and all, looking after a growing 13 month old, nearly 14 month old.
It is very hard, maybe I am not as passionate. I do like paleontology and looking at bones and teeth and learning something new everyday but I have no one really to help me look after Joaquin when I am at uni.
I did take him to family day care but after last week I am taking him out of there.
I do have a friend that comes over on Friday to help but somehow I stay at home with her and hang out instead of going to the uni or sitting on the computer to do work. I am hopeless. But I love my little son who is walking now, more than 10 steps at a time. He is growing up, and I know he would be proud to know I did paleontology while looking after him.
But It is so hard.
Like Alicia Keys sings so beautifully in her song I am a superwoman

Just a bit of venting here when I should be in bed waiting for the little man to wake up and in the arms of my Jas.

Saturday night

Last night was quite good out. We went to the pub with a few friends for another friend's party. Joaquin had a ball, he flirted with women and even got to play the pokies. Not not really! However he did hang out with my friends, and was very smitten with a particular lady who we all just met: N boyfirend's flatmate. She was playing with him on the lounge and talking to him and he just talked and hugged her and forgot about his parents "Mama and Da Da".
He was walking around a lot, thankfully instead of crawling on the dirty pub carpet. He really wanted to walk to the poker machine room, even though children are not allowed inside. I wonder WHY?, bright lights from the poker games may attack children to want to play and live the rest of their life gambling in a smoke-free alcohol ridden establishment. RRRrrrrRR isn't that want pubs want? Future gamblers, future drinkers.

We had dinner at the pub. Joaquin had fish and chips, from Jas's plate. I on the other hand tried to go a bit fancy and ordered noqui with pesto, olives and chicken and realised "Never order anything that is not pub food at a pub, no noqui, no pasta, no fancy shmancy, just chips, fish, burgers, steaks. When in Rome do as the Romans. I keep forgetting that. I do.
Well Joaquin was very sociable with everyone and had rosy cheeks and a smile on his face most of the night. My friend latter confessed to me that my son "is a credit to me and my partner, as he is confident and sociable and really happy little boy". Ahaa that is nice, makes me feel good in the tummy... nice.
I hope he is happy, I hope we are good parents. Are we good parents taking our little boy to the pub on a saturday night where there are drinks and pokies and drunk people swearing and screaming? I do not know. No se. I honestly do not know.
We stayed at the pub till 9pm and at 9 Jas volunteered to take Joaquin home and get him ready for bed. He is a great dad and I on the other hand stayed at the pub and drank a gin and tonic and tried to enjoy myself sans family.
I did have fun reminiscing with my friend about our youth but I did secretly yearn to be at home with my two favourite boys, snuggled in bed. In the end I got a lift home with a friend and was at home by 12. Not a late night but it was good to get out. Joaquin was already sleeping and Jas was up watching a movie hanging out with his Iphone. He does not need me now, he has his beautiful black Iphone.

at home on saturday

Today was a beautiful winters day, the sky was gorgeous blue and the sun out but a cool southern wind was blowing bringing icy cold air from the southern oceans.
I have been sensitive lately, and upset about little things. I try to keep the house clean, look after my son, I am trying to run and get fit and trying to do some paleontolgy.
I have so many things to do but in the end the pile just keeps growing just as the laundry. I even have began to iron Joaquin's clothes, and Jas mocks me saying that he "does not want me to be a domestic goddess". I do not know why I have started to iron, I guess I do not want to see my baby in wrinkly clothes nor for that matter do I want to see any family members in wrinkly clothes, but if someone has to take it for the team I guess I will stay in wrinkly un-ironed clothes and my two boys can be wrinkle free.

How do mothers do everything? How do they keep their clothes wrinkle free is a mystery to me. I should research this but then I would probably spend hours in front of the computer looking for blogs about ironing and women.

Anyway today was a great day. We started the day with scrambled eggs on toast made by J. S. A and Joaquin seemed to enjoy his. I do have to spread it on his toast so he mistakes it for vegemite, but I also was able to give him some in a spoon. He loves eating and watching morning tv JJJ (the music video show with the doctor) listening to music and dancing along in his high chair. He loves music.
After breakfast I managed to get an appointment with a hairdresser for Jas. Yes he was gay but his salon was around the corner and like I told Jas, "I would rather have my hair cut with a gay man than a woman", gay men have so much more style.
While he was having his locks treated, I stayed at home cleaning and trying to get over our little fight over putting clothes away. I asked Jas to put his clothes away and he said something to the extent "that I am bossy woman and why should he do as I say". Anyway after I threw all his clothes around the house in my hysterical fashion I calmed down and he was able to put his shoes on and go to the hairdresser, while i stayed sitting on the lounge feeling sorry for myself.
I was then able to get out of this ridiculous state and clean up and get ready to go outside with Joaquin, who was just playing on the ground unaware of our fights, well not really I am sure he knows when we fight and get upset.
In the end I texted him and we met up and I said sorry and asked him to also apologise for not listening to me or doing what I ordered. I just want a clean house, a clean bedroom that is my reason for being a cranky old fart.

After we said our sorrys we went for a walk up the road as I had to buy a friend a birthday present. Jas actually looks younger with his hair cut, clean cut and nerdish.
On our walk, while taking about how bad a person i am, and how Jason's hair looks Joaquin managed to get so bored with our conversation that he fell asleep and slept in his pram and we then managed to get to a cafe (Bellagio Cafe) and had lunch. Joaquin woke up and started to eat all my pumpkin salad even scoffing down some of the baby spinach. We ended up buying him a chicken and cheese sandwich on turkish and it was really good. I told Jas "this sandwich is way better than a subways one. The truth is, there is no comparison. Bellagio vs Subway, go with the one with the wanky name!
We are so pleased Joaquin is eating well now, I am so pleased more than anything, I think it is the Jewish mama coming out in me and I just want my son to eat and eat and eat!

We had a lazy afternoon walking home in the wind. At home Jas played with his Iphone and like Dooce says in her blog:
"Interestingly, I have received a dozen or so emails from male readers of this site that said something to the tune of yes, sex is good, but it doesn't come close to the iPhone. And then the signature of the email would say SENT FROM MY IPHONE 3G. Ladies, I think I just stumbled across our salvation".
I think Jas likes his Iphone more than me at the moment, he plays with it in bed and then when he turns off the light then he hugs me.

At 4.30pm a friend came over with the excuse to use my toilet as she was in the area. She played with Joaquin and I was just about to put him down for a sleep, he became super excited and then I handed him to Jas and said "Byee! I am going for a coffee with my friend can you put him down for a sleep?" See I am a bad mother. The truth is I felt a bit liberated being out without my little one, sometimes it is good, sometimes it feels as all my legs and arms and organs are missing when he is not there. In the end Jas told me how hard it was to put him down as he just wanted to play and then when J took his toys away from his cot he cried and roared like a lion until he fell asleep. He is going through a faze, fighting any time he has to sleep in the afternoon. As he is more mobile, he is walking and I think may be thinking " I can walk now, why should I sleep like all the other babies during the day? Let me play Mama and Da Da, I do not want to sleep!"
I may have to start to put him down for a sleep a bit earlier say 4pm and not 4.30-5.00. He is overtired by then and just does not want to sleep, he wants to play and smile and talk in his cot. We have to hold him down as he want to get up and stand up in his cot and sleep. I read in the baby bible that at 13 months they do need a few hours of sleep through the day and the best option if they are not wanting to sleep is to get them obviously in a routine, wine them down before they go to sleep such as reading a story in a darkened room, and then put them down at the same time every day and if they want to play then simply just take away their toys and let them cry. Well Jas did that and he slept over an hour in the afternoon and we were able to get ready to go down to the pub for my friend's party.

pjs in Sydney

This is Joaquin in Sydney in his pjs, they are getting small on him. He loves to play on the ground and always has something to do. He is starting to walk well but keeps his arms up while he walks for balance.