Ping Pong Balls

We’re back in Newport. I wasn’t kidding when I said we are soaking up every single second we can with the family before heading off to Chicago.

Ankur has had super long days, but he’s off tomorrow so we’re headed back to Moreno Valley in a few hours.

We’re like ping-pong balls, me and Ishu.

It’s not the most fun making the trek, but seeing his face light up – whenever we reach either place – makes my heart melt all the freaking time. His huge grin when he sees his Nani and Nanu in Newport. And his big smile and squeal when he comes back home and sees his Ba-pa.

I’m just the poor soul that has to suffer through the screaming in the car. Not always. But sometimes if we get stuck in traffic, it is ZERO FUN.

Which is why we are leaving in a few hours. Gonna wait out that morning commute traffic. There’s only so much Baby Shark that one can play before this baby says THAT’S NOT ENOUGH.

Recycled Photo. (You can tell cause Starbs doesn’t make those lids anymore!)

Anyway, yesterday, we left the house around 7am. There was no line in the Starbucks drive-thru so it was an obvious stop.

We got stuck in a tiny bit of traffic and Ishu was a tiny bit pissy about the sun in his face. I don’t blame him. Luckily, the minute we got on the 73, we got that nice marine layer to cover the sun up and he was a happy little clam saying, “Nananananana” in the back. Knowing he was going to see his Nani and Nanu shortly.

Once we got here, I unloaded the car and both of us ate breakfast. And then I put him down for his first nap. I attempted to cut his nails while he napped. And failed. And also messed up his nap so he ended up waking up after a half hour.

Womp womp.

So I packed up the diaper bag and took Ishu out for a long walk to the park. The same one we went to over the weekend.

There was another little baby playing there near his mama. Ishu saw him and said, “baby” as he started walking over to the little guy. I started talking to the mama and found out the baby was just 15 months old, similar enough to Ishu.

We haven’t had any play dates and he hasn’t been around other kids his age. But somehow he was interested in engaging with this little guy. Maybe because he was the same size as Ishu and that’s probably pretty cool. The rest of us are all giants living in his world and it probably felt pretty fun to see someone like him.

Watching him interact with the kid for those few minutes made me feel like he is going to be a-okay at daycare. I am probably going to be the one leaving home in tears with snot running down my face. And he’s likely gonna be JUST fine.

Speaking of daycare, Bhav got us these fun cups for Ishu to try. And they’re going to be the cups he uses at daycare so it will be nice to try them out so he can start getting used to them! (Thank you for being so thoughtful, Bhav and Aishu Didi!)

Also, I got a job interview with Chicago Public Schools next week so this whole daycare thing is starting to feel real. Not that I snagged the job yet. But it’s all coming together real fast real fast.

It’s making me feel like I really need to pay attention these next couple of weeks and soak up this 1:1 time with my baby. I will certainly miss the flexibility and freedom in our day. I will miss watching him explore every little thing.

After the playground, we went and got a few groceries and then made a quick stop at Menchies while we waited for my mama to pick us up.

This is the third time we’ve eaten frozen yogurt with/around him. And he seems into it at first bite. But then he’s kinda like “eh, I’ll take it or leave it” and it’s really confusing me because, HELLO, ARE YOU EVEN MY KID?

Whatever.

More for mama, I guess.

(For real. I got myself a cup and Ishu a cup and since he wasn’t really into it, this mama got to have BOTH cups).

Which was perfect because we were celebrating my Hemie’s birthday in the evening over Zoom. And I was just doubling down on the dessert because it was a special day to celebrate!

Now I think I’ll take Ishu out for another walk. The weather is gonna be in the 90s in Moreno Valley so I’m going to take advantage of the better weather before heading home!

Happy Hump day to all!