I don’t know why I’ve been uninspired lately.  I have a lot going on, trying to juggle work and home, but that’s nothing new, is it?  I’ve been more present with the kids.  We’ve done more activities.  I’ve been sleeping more at night (yeah, um, ignore the timestamp of this post). The kids are laughing, playing, getting along together–at least most of the time.

Hang in here with me.  I’ll find my voice again.

In the meantime, I’ll leave you with this:

I knew my two boys were different from the first day Daryoosh was born.  Today was just another reminder.  I had to go into the office for a little while with Daryoosh in tow. I used to be able to take Yago to the office for a couple of hours with no worries.  He would be content to sit on the floor by my desk or at my calculator and calculate away. Not Daryoosh.  No way.  Today he left my side within minutes and began to wander the building.  He entered every office and peeked into every cubicle, and he got upset if he was not acknowledged immediately.  When Yago was younger, I wished away his shyness. Now I realize its utility.  I certainly don’t want to change Daryoosh and do not wish him to be shy, but it makes me realize that I miss Yago’s shyness–especially since shyness is often mistaken for good behavior.

Karaoke time.

I had heard horror stories of jealousy by firstborns.  A friend of the family has three boys, the oldest of whom is about 4 years younger than I am.  Several months after the second son was born, the mother noticed that the baby would start blinking rapidly every time the firstborn would walk into the room.  Their mother found this odd.  One day she happened to be in the other room and peeked in to watch the two sons interact.  She saw that the older was poking the younger in the eyes!  (hence the blinking!).  The mother of the boys also had other stories to tell and shared them with me before Daryoosh was born, so I was expecting the worst!

And what did I end up with? A great big brother!  Yago is gentle with his brother.  Every once in a while he shows a hint of “she was my mother first” when I’m breastfeeding.  He’ll sit next to me, point to the free breast and exclaim, “Yago’s,” and point to the occupied one and say “Daryoosh’s.”  This concept started in the hospital when Yago first saw me breastfeeding Daryoosh.  I was expecting Yago to want to go back to breastfeeding (he had been weened 5 months prior) and I was relieved that he never asked for it.  When he saw me holding the baby and feeding him, though, he insisted on sitting in my lap/beside me on the bed.  He looked at me and said very matter-of-factly, “Mameh, share.”  [mameh means breast] Everyone got a kick out of it.  We weren’t sure if he meant that they were his and he would share them with his brother, or if he insisted that his brother share with him…either way it was hilarious!

Big brother Yago is a great big brother already, but he’s in for a big surprise once his little brother gets a bit older.  Did I mention that his little brother is already 13 pounds?  He’s a big little brother and he’ll soon be terrorizing little big brother Yago.  Here’s a preview of what Yago has in store!

Little brother Daryoosh is already at it!

I also bought a stendig calendar for 2009 and I’m looking forward to those monthly photos too!!

Stendig Calendar

Here’s a picture from yesterday’s “photoshoot”

I don’t want either one to grow up quickly, but at the same time, I can’t wait until they can play together!

They already have some of the same mannerisms and facial expressions:

There are a lot more pictures of Yago and I’m sure that there are some that are almost identical.  I’ll have to go through the archived pictures to see what I can find.  In the meantime, here’s a sample:

It’s fun to think back and compare the first days with Yago and the first days with Daryoosh:

Yago: Easy-going, smaller, sleepier, easy delivery, had to wake him up for feedings

Daryoosh: Lets me know when he needs something!–be it a diaper change or hunger! bigger, better eater the first few days (of course, milk came in faster too), easy delivery (less than effective epidural not his fault), wakes up to let me know he’s hungry!

I didn’t think there could have been an easier baby than Yago–and we’ll see what happens beyond the first two days we’ve experienced so far–but honestly, he’s been a great baby so far!  (and maybe some of it comes from experience).

For a little more Yago vs Daryoosh, here are the pages from a powerpoint presentation that Santi’s sister Paloma put together comparing first photos of the boys:

I updated the family website with pictures from the first few days!

http://www.ledesmadani.com/Yago/About_Me_(Daryoosh).html