Chronology of Ponutti's first year

On March 9 2011

Ponutti was born on 8th March 2011 at 11:17pm of a tuesday. Ever since, she has become our Little Miss Sunshine.She also came along with a strawberry haemangioma, a mark on her right cheek which thankfully left her by the time she was 4 months. She has never failed to astonish and stupefy me and still continues to do so. I  had wanted to write this post for a long time ; mainly for my own amusement in the future but to also share and cherish some of the most memorable and achievable times of Ponutti's first year.

0-2 Months:

Just minutes after she was born, there was this little incident that made my day for the very first time(it kept being made ever since). I was given Ponutti so that she suck away her first few drops of breast milk from me and while she was doing that; she abruptly stopped latching on to me and sneezed.The gesture after that was so amazing to me because I never realized babies knew how to do that. What Ponutti did was bring her hands to her nose and gently wipe them just like we do after a sneeze!! After we got back home from the hospital, Ponutti was 'all stare's at everything.(she had been doing quite a lot of it ever since she was born). Amma was commenting that despite the fact her eyesight was still working its way, Ponutti sensed that we were at a different place altogether; that we have arrived Home!!

At 45 days

By the time she was 1month old, Ponutti began to give her first smile. Man!! That was one of the most heart melting moment for me till date. She would wave her hands and legs and show us many interesting navarasas. There was a time when while I was playing music to her, she would make many mudras with her hands when the music played and hum along with the singer. She thoroughly enjoys music. Even to-date, when I play her music, she would rock herself gently. Thats definitely a sight to watch!!

At 2 months

There was another incident where we all stood shell shocked. It happened a week before vava was 28days. She has this habit of sleeping on her sides, which I guess most babies do , and then when we came back from work to check on her,we found her rolled over and fast asleep. The baby sitter we'd hired picked her up and put her back to the normal sleeping position , but after a few minutes she did the same thing again!! Her chettan (5 months older to her) hasnt even rolled over yet!!
The first two months were just the beginning to more exciting and amusing months ahead.

2-4 Months

Taken just after she rolled over :)

It was around this time that I started giving her baths and changing her diapers on my own. By the time she was two and a half, I handled almost everything concerning her. We arrived bangalore when she was 3months and got her new-found friend, our maid, who considers herself to be her second mother.It slowly transformed into our little happy small world, where I could cuddle and play with her without any pretences(I was very conscious earlier when I was in Kerala). We did have our fun moments and before I knew she had already rolled over just a week or so after she was 90days (even if I was waiting for it ever since she was 3 months). It was around this time when Ponutti began responding to voices. I would call her name from one end of the room and Ponutti would turn to my direction. One phenomenon I have noticed from that point; was that every time she got up from her sleep,  she would roll over and look at me. Soon enough, she started swimming around the bed ; eventually moving herself perilously to one end. This is usually done when I leave her to play on her own while I work. But, its always got my heart at my throat as she would always reach thr tipping point. Trying to feel and touch toys was another one of those activities she would do. But even before we knew; she started grasping toys and wanted everything she laid eyes on.

4-8 Months

This was the time period where everything was flourishing to a peak; the growth and development both in physical and mental terms. Ponutti had just achieved rolling over one month back and is now endeavouring to sit without support.She had started to rock herself in a funny,though cute, such that she would move backwards. This started when she was around 4 and half months old. By the time she was 5 months she had begun rolling both ways. It was around this time I began solid food for her and she totally enjoyed it. A little after she completed 5months , we conducted her chorunnu at the guruvayoorappan temple in bangalore ; but we also had another chorunnu in the guruvayoorappan temple in guruvayoor a week before she turned one year.

It was during that week after her chorunnu that she met three wonderful milestones at a time; sitting without support, holding on to a bed post and raising herself to standing position and crawling. It was an activity hype then. What got to her interest most was holding on to the furniture and standing. She loved that more than anything else.Whenever we went to a friend's house, I would drop her at the sofa so she would crawl a little away from me to hold and stand . The photos shown below were taken on the day she did all this.

ever

Ever since then she's been immersing herself in holding and standing and crawling. Sitting and playing has never been her forte back then and even now. One trend that I have noticed in her was that whatever she had achieved at a particular period, she would reciprocate it whenever she got up from her sleep. For instance, when she had learned to stand on her own in bed (she starts doing everything in bed; for the first time!! ), she would do that immediately after wakes up from her sleep; as if on autopilot!!


At 51/2 months, Ponutti got her first pair of teeth. I didnt expext it to come so soon, but realized it only after I felt a sharp pain while feeding her and to my surprise when I checked, I found out two pearly teeth.I didnt even notice her teething as she showed the irritation. But later on she did,till her next set came out; which was at 10 months.It was a continuous process, ever since then.

By the end of 6 months, her crawling and getting to standing position with support got into a tremendous speed. She started holding on to the furniture and would take very tiny steps. We wouldnt realise that she had taken those steps until we find she had moved by a short distance.

It was during the choronnu time, she had started to babble a lot. She would let out some vowels.But the very first word she ever said was AMMA.She started calling me Amma from as early as 4 and a half months; but she had also uttered it a couple of times before(a little before 3 months); even if she didnt mean it that way.Then soon enough, it was the beginning of Ponutti being able to understand what we say; for instance, when I used to say'Good Girl', she would go mad and would be  happy to hear the appreciation from me.I would also sing nursery rhymes to her,whenever I would feed her.She used to love but after a couple of months she sort of understood that it was just a knack I use to feed her;especially when she doesnt like what I give.


She also love and still love playing peek-a-boo.By around 71/2 months , she would play peekaboo with me by covering her face with a blanket and taking it off when I 'kande'.She immensely enjoys this game. Around this time , she also developed other motor skills like clapping hands,waving,kissing and giving a handshake ; with giving a 'muttu' being the earliest(at 5 months).

It was when she was 8months old that she started to stand alone without support. It was on a weekend when I had gone to my power nap(which eventually was a 11/2 hrs sleep) and  Nikhil was baby sitting her.She did do it a couple of times before, but that day was when she stood alone the longest.The photo shown below was taken on that day.

She had also begun feigning to comb her hair and groom herself with lotion and use the powder puff for make-up.Whenever my mobile rings, she gets all excited and wants me to pick it up that instant. If its simply lying there, she would pick it up and pretend listening ; not to mention the throwing -the -phone; which is inevitable in her case.


9-12 Months :

It was during the first week she turned 9 months that she started taking independent steps. The first time she did that was ; when our neighbour's daughter(8 months older than her) visited our flat. While ponutti was crawling about happily , the other 18 month old toddler was walking towards her and  stood still. Watching her stand, ponutti got the urge to stand on her own and once they were facing each other, Ponutti took about three tiny steps towards that girl. My anticipation grew when she took about 5-9 steps towards our maid.That incident lead me to thinking that she would leave crawling altogether and pursue walking. But I was wrong. When we visited Dubai, I had to nearly coax her to walk in front my parents whenever she stood up. But ; yes, they eventually saw her walk a couple of times and got her a walker.

One weird behavior amma noticed around her, was that she would stay calm and obedient around her father but wouldnt stay still for a single minute with us.With her Achan, she had this pavam Ponutti look; enduring being with Achan even if he was on mobile phone for hours; not to mention not minding her!!

 Ponutti had by then learned to get down from the sofa or bed, and was badly trying to climb them; a feat she had achieved when she was 12 months.She had immensely enjoyed the walker that achachan bought her, during her stay in dubai for a month.

Taken at 91/2 months

Once we got back, she had taken to walking as her way of locomotion rather than crawling(which had reached the pinnacle in case of speed). It had eventually resulted in running. By the time she was 10 and half, I took a video of her walking, to show her paternal grandparents in kerala. Her achachan watching that video, commented that it was not walking that she was doing, but running!!

By the time she was 11 months, she started repeating one or two words we would say like 'ARAA', Ayoo','Ummaa 'etc. She had also begun to get more sociable and friendly, which was a huge relief to me on her birthday. It was during that kerala visit time, in thrissur, when she first began to rock herself to any song we play.She had done it in bangalore whenever I would play chamak chalo. But in kerala, it was for any song we play. During our dubai visit, ammama would play the 'kolaveri di' song and Ponutti would go gaga with her dancing ammama, it was such a smacking hit to her. She truely, deeply, madly loved the song!!

 At 11months, Ponutti got tired of walking the normal way,i guess, so she adopted walking backwards at times and on other times , she would close her eyes and walk forward; guess she is testing her knowledge on her own house.

By this time, her knowledge of words had immensely improved. She was able to follow instructions told to her , even in a casual manner, like 'Get amma ur shoe, Ponutti Or ' where is the rubber duck'!!' etc. She also developed a sense of cleanliness as she had a fair idea of what a waste was; and would pick them up to the wastebin. But then there were times when I needed those waste covers, and had to inevitably stop her from cleaning!!

Even after her first birthday celeberations, the fact that she turned one year on March 8th took time to seep into my head. While I write this blog( there are chances where I must have slipped the fine details ), my 15month old Ponutti is sleeping by my side and I keep wondering about the formidable speed of time; the three months that just flew by.Time definitely flies!!

The Help

All I could say was 'WOW' at the end of the book. This Kathryn Stockett astonishing coming-of-age debut novel is masterfully written and brilliantly crafted book. It is definitely a compelling , unputdownable read. The narration of the story is done by three pivotal characters namely Aibileen, Miss Skeeter and Minny. After every string of chapters the narrator changes. This narrative style requires not just the subtlety but understanding from the perspective of the character.The book is talked from the perspective of the coloured as well as the white people.That is where we come across the author's  sheer ingenuity in writing about their train of thought. Its a beautiful mixed bag of every element we look for in a story; whether it be romance, mystery,laughter,social issues etc. The characters in the book are so exquisitely essayed and are voiced with such unbelievable brilliance.The bondage between the southern white and coloured women is another highlight of the book.

The story begins with Aibileen's narration where she introduces herself as the help of Miss Leefolt's household who has 2 year old daughter named Mae Mobley. Aibileen and Mae Mobely are soon close that Mae considers Aibee her second mother and Aibileen dotes on her completely as Miss Leefolt shows very little affection and more of annoyance at the mere sight of Mae Mobley.It then shifts to the narration of Eugenia Phelan or Miss Skeeter who returns to hometown Jackson, Mississippi after completing college. When Skeeter ; an aspiring writer; is planning on chasing her literary dreams her mother is desperately trying to get her hooked up to someone. And then comes Minny, who works for Mrs Walters ; Hilly's mother. Minny who is sass mouthed hates Hilly and because of which she does the Terrible Awful Thing to Hilly resulting in not only losing her job but also gaining a tarnished reputation of being a thief. Aibileen later gets her a job in Missus Celia Foote's(wife of Hilly's ex- lover) household.Things begin to get complicated when Hilly announces her 'Home Help Sanitation Initiative' at the bridge games with Mrs Leefolt and Miss Skeeter.To this Miss Skeeter gives a flippant remark which sets the two of them into disagreeing terms.This is also when Jackson experiences several race riots and protests. The book then moves on to another level where Skeeter starts to engage herself in writing a book about the southern white women and their help from the coloured women's perspective like the difficulties they faced while working for white women and the pleasures. Aibileen is the first to support and help her with this initiative which started off when Skeeter was asked to submit original ideas by a senior editor of a publishing company she had applied to earlier. Eventually Minny and 10 other coloured women get ready to tell their stories about their bosses as they had been promised their names and the place would be changed in the book. All this was done in discreet fashion with Skeeter's secret meetings with Aibileen at Aibileens place. With the uncertainity of how the book would be received once published,and if anyone would recognize the fact that the book is about Jackson; then the consequences those coloured women have to face, not to mention Miss Skeeter, would be dangerous and horrifying. They were putting their lives at stake. Miss Skeeter alone struggles to understand what happened to her own black maid,Constantine who was very dear to her and who had left without a word before she got back from college.

The book also gives glimpses of incidents of the 60's when its written about the space explorations, assassination of J.F.Kennedy, teachings of Martin Luther King ; even the bestseller 'To Kill A Mocking Bird'. This book provides you with immense pleasure in the end just so because they do exactly what they wanted to do even when they knew they would land in trouble.The author eventually suceeds in pulling some heart strings as well. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone.With such bold characters and a very different writing style, its a book that not just tells a story of those times but also keeps you thinking and engaged in a different way. Stockett has weaved a story out of such a creative combination of fact and fiction ; that it is truely a modern classic. Definitely a book to treasure.

Trivial things-ponutti at 13 and 14th months

“If only there could be an invention that bottled up a memory, like scent. And it never faded, and it never got stale. And then, when one wanted it, the bottle could be uncorked, and it would be like living the moment all over again.” -Daphne du Maurier

This is what I keep wishing when I see her do little things like humming and smiling while I put her to bed. Ever since her bday, ponuttis' been climbing anything she lays eyes on. She has even learned to point out things like dog,book,egg, dress,duck,head from a book; that I bought for; which was one of my happiest and exciting moments these recent times as physical endeavours like sitting,walking climbing has been achieved earlier. Yesterday when we went to a party, she saw a dog on the street and was saying 'ah-boo'.She is slowly adding words to her vocabulary which is the next thing that Im seriously looking forward to.

 Today when I closed the bedroom door leaving her alone, I'd peeped through the keyhole to check what she was upto and to my surprise, she was lying there on the bed watching underneath the door to confirm if I were there or were my footsteps fading. I sometimes wonder how her little brain works because today evening while I was adding scoops of milk powder chanting 1 scoop ,2 scoop ; all of sudden from nowhere she said 'THEE' emphasising the words even more ; letting me know that she has added another feather to her cap of achievements while I stood there stupified!!

Eating in front of her has become next to impossible, without giving her fair share of the food. She keeps asking maamum or aamum when she needs the next bite especiallywhen we eat something that we dont have on a regular basis like chocolate,chips etc. I remember a time when feeding her cow's milk was a herculean effort eventually resulting in a milk bath.But she has also learned to assert her independence in many ways . She would nod her head 'no' when she doesnt want anything in particualr ; especially if its food. Not that she is a picky eater,she just wants to emphasise her say on things around her.

After having recently send her to a daycare, our visit to kerala was not so good, as expected, especially amidst the wedding preparations. Ponutti almost dreaded the thought of being with her relatives even in our presence.She was inhibiting too much of herself that at one point when we were just the three of us in the car she nearly let out a sigh of relief and was her usual self. I guess, she was relieved that we were, atleast for awhile, in our own 'Small Happy World'. Guess the book Im reading on her currently was right after all about the seperation anxiety these toddlers experience from 14-18 months.

One of the fun times we have now is the chase game that we play. She would chase around the crib or dining table and I'll not give up,like I was playing with my old buddy,and she gets all excited by this.She makes this funny noise,more like a laugh,when she is super happy.Our day ends with ponutti helping me brush her teeth which also helps her indicate that its bedtime, to my relief. There are these few indications like this one and another one where when I put her in her feeding chair,she knows she'll be getting food soon and will be less cranky.These help us understand each other and the message is sent clear as well. It also helps build a sense of discipline, hopefully!!