November 2003

2nd: I’m going to Columbus tomorrow to babysit my sweet poloo. Shoaib kept kissing my latest framed pic of Aden. We all need Aden to stay sane! Little baby has NO idea. Rabia said he’s definitely recognizing some words, like ami, abu, baby food – starts leaning towards the high chair when he hears that! He also enjoys twirling around in his bungee, and sliding side to side. Can’t wait to see him!!

16th: Last weekend, our sweet cuddly darling was here. I picked them up on Wednesday. He’s SO CUTE that we now talk about him at least 10 times a day. Shoaib stole my framed pic of Aden for the weekend, and kept kissing and talking to it. Shoaib said at one point he’d been holding Aden and started mouthing off to Rabia, so Aden twists around and starts smacking his hands upside Shoaib’s head 😂 Humera says she was sitting with him at the computer, and he started to reach for the keyboard, so she lowered his hands onto his lap and he politely kept them there for the rest of the time. I love how trustingly Aden lays on our shoulders when we pick him up. Miss him miss him miss him ☹ They’ll be back Wednesday after next for Thanksgiving, and for Aden’s 8^th month birthday 😊❤

25th: Today was Eid – a relatively uneventful one. Our fifth without daddy, but our first with Aden in our lives. Maybe part of the uneventfulness with this year is that we had less of a need to fill a void – we have something (someone) to be grateful for, so the day isn’t so empty that we have to fill it with activity. Rabia took Aden to an Eid open house at Qamar Auntie’s house, and Aden kept smiling and holding his arms out to different women!

I had so many random thoughts today. Mama always tells me how much Choti Khala (her second oldest sister who passed away in the late 70s) loved me, and I always felt guilty for not remembering her. But then I was thinking today about my love for Aden, and if this time was all he had with me, how he wouldn’t even know how much I adored him. But then I realized that would be okay, because of how happy he makes me – and that having the present is fine, regardless of the future. I know now that I brought her joy with every smile, and a respite from worries, even if I have no conscious memory of it. Aden’s turned me into quite the philosopher ❤

30th: Rabia’s in-laws came to brunch on Saturday. Asim is SO sweet and thoughtful, and always shows up with bags of gifts – this time he brought flavored bread, oranges, blueberries, orange soda, and flowers. He’s so open-hearted, and keeps insisting that I take mama to the Whole Foods on Ponce because he knows she’ll love the vibe. He spent the whole morning trying to get into Aden’s good graces, but playing peek-a-boo and giving him sweet smiles. Aden was pretty cranky during the brunch, but then I took him to the basement, and he kept swiveling around in Humera’s room, and spent a long time observing the Star Wars poster in the media room. He loves his Exersaucer, and I’m happy that he has something he can associate with this house. Friday morning at 6:30, I could vaguely hear him crying – then realized he was crying his tiny lungs out ☹ I went to their room, and Rabia was holding him while Najeeb prepared his bottle. Aden had been crying for a while, and I offered to take him and maybe therefore distract him. Rabia said I could, but she doubted whether that would work. So I took him and laid him upright against my shoulder, and he instantly stopped crying. He let out some gas, then laid sweetly on my shoulder and started smiling at himself in the mirror! So sweet. Those odd night-time encounters are always the sweetest.

He loves it when Humera whistles, and he blows out spit in response.