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About Ronak Singh Lamba
Ronak "The Blizzard" Singh Lamba was born on January 22, 2005 to Puneet Singh and Samita Kaur at the Lowell General Hospital (L.G.H.) near Boston.
He arrived at 9:03 p.m. just as "The Great Blizzard of 2005" (Axis of Logic), one of the most powerful blizzards to hit New England "according to statistics kept since 1892 by the National Weather Service," shifted into top gear. The blizzard "helped set a record for the highest monthly snowfall in 113 years" in the Boston area. (The Boston Globe, January 27, 2005.)
L.G.H. certainly lived up to its reputation as one of the best maternity centers in America (rated in the top 5% by HealthGrades).
Samita started experiencing labor contractions at around 6:30 a.m. on January 22 and woke Puneet at around 7. As the evening matured, Samita's labor pains became unbearable. Furthermore, the blizzard was due to get much worse starting around 9 p.m. Therefore, around 7:30 p.m. we got into our trusted Dodge Caravan and headed for L.G.H.
Having opted against calling an ambulance, we held our breath throughout the excruciatingly slow and hazardous drive from our home to L.G.H., arrived at the hospital at about 8:10 p.m. and, after completing formalities at the emergency desk, were in the delivery room by around 8:30 p.m.
Since Samita's regular obstetrician, Vijayalakshmi N. Swamy, was unavailable over the weekend, Ronak was delivered by Nonnie-Marie Lina Estella, who was on call for Swamy. When Estella first evaluated Samita around 8:45 p.m. we were all shocked to discover that Samita was fully dilated and there was no time for the planned epidural. A mere three to four pushes brought us face-to-face with Ronak, sporting a big pout. Samita delivered naturally without any painkiller whatsoever. Puneet cut the umbilical cord, thereby rendering Ronak an independent entity.
It took us a few minutes to realize how precariously close we had come to delivering Ronak in the van itself. Undoubtedly, we were greatly assisted by the fact that, as during Ria's birth, Samita's water bag did not break on its own.
Ronak, named after a Punjabi/Hindi word meaning liveliness, was born about two weeks early at 6.4 pounds and 18.5 inches. (The initial length measurement was somewhat suspect because ten days later, on February 2, his pediatrician Charles Cappetta's office measured him at 20 inches.) He started breastfeeding less than an hour after birth and, as with Ria, is feeding exclusively on breast milk. Samita and Ronak were discharged from the hospital on the morning of January 25. Puneet took a week off work to help out at home.
Whereas Ronak prefers to be in Samita's arms at all times, he is nevertheless soothed by personal contact, the sound of running tap water, music (both recorded and live) and a gentle rocking motion. His appetite appears to be larger than what Ria had at his age. Ronak's arrival has afforded Ria an ideal opportunity to play out her already highly-developed motherly instincts.
Ronak's first three weeks have taught us that crying, in the case of a newborn, is a very boolean occurrence. It is either on or off, black or white, with no shades of gray. Also, there's an aspect of inertia whereby a crying newborn will continue to cry, unaware of the original stimulus that caused the crying, until distracted. As the baby grows, however, it starts to develop nuances. Not every crisis is equal in weight.
Ronak's Record of Growth
March 15, 2008: Recites the entire ABC Song. Uses the song to complete the ABC Train puzzle. Recites the Twinkle-Twinkle nursery rhyme. Writes several alphabets. Is able to spell Thomas and Caillou and use these words to perform Google searches.
October 28, 2007: Completes a 24-piece playground puzzle (see picture below) on his own. Correctly recognizes most alphabets and digits.
August 12, 2007: Completes a 9-piece bulldozer puzzle on his own.
July 14, 2007: Counts to ten.
July 14, 2007: "I want to print caillou dot com."
June 29, 2007: "Mama put my favorite song."
June 25, 2007: Tries to repeat most words he hears: e.g. sandwich and museum.
May 20, 2007: Recognizes and verbalizes several colors: red, green, blue, green, pink, purple, black. Delivers most phrases musically. Uses sentences longer than four words.
April 16, 2007: Uses four-word sentences: "mama more soda juice."
April 9, 2007: Refers to himself as "Nonnie" (Ronnie). Refers to Ria as "Ria." Commonly uses three-word sentences: "more soda juice," "papa car done."
March 11, 2007: Demonstrates a clear preference for the color blue. Says "ucle" (uncle) to refer to any male stranger. Can draw a short straight line when asked to write "one" and a small circle when asked to write the letter "o."
March 4, 2007: Spoke his first three-word sentence: "Mama, more choco-va." "Choco" is short for chocolate. The "va" suffix is Ronak's peculiar style of emphasising certain words.
February 10, 2007: Tosses a ball up in the air a few inches and catches it on its way down. Says "seep" (sleep), fall, bath, "canny" (Ria's white mint candy), mall, soda, hello, and push.
January 26, 2007: Regularly combines two words to make a phrase, e.g. "that ball," "mama up," "papa hat," "didi game." Uses the word "do" to indicate a desire to do something himself.
January 22, 2007: At age 2, Ronak continues to breastfeed and says "this," "that," "apple," "raita" (spicy plain yogurt), "rice," "cut," "money," "more," "gin" (again), "nice," "watar" (water), "sip," "see," "dog," "tooth," "pook-a-boo" (peek-a-boo), "back" (putting something back). Plays peek-a-boo (covers/uncovers eyes) and does pretend coughing with a fist in front of his mouth.
January 13, 2007: Says "no" (snow), "loko" (lego), "papa hat."
December 30, 2006: Is most obsessed with balls, cars, and the outdoors. Tries to repeat any short word he finds interesting. Utters many words perfectly including "sit," "come," "juice," "game," "key," and "fish" and some imperfectly including "brewsh" (brush), "dall" (doll), "hok" (hot), "keekoo" (cookie), "wee" (to express the joy of going fast), "em" (ice-cream), "num" (yummy), "dum" (the fun of beating something with a stick), and "phome" (phone). "Game" started off as a reference to Ria's computer games but has evolved into a reference to certain shows on television as well.
November 18, 2006: Says "didi" (sister, to refer to Ria) and "baby" (to refer to himself).
November 4, 2006: Says "book," "look," "bus," "soap," "soup," bathes his bath toys (applying soap and rinsing), winds toys, twists door knobs to open doors, and knocks doors with a closed fist.
October 22, 2006: Says "duck," "chip" (likes banana chips and potato chips), "hat," "hi mama," and "hi papa."
October 15, 2006: Says "chi-chi" for garbage, especially a clump of hair, which he finds truly repulsive. Also has been saying "up" (for upstairs or to get up on the bed), "nai-nai" (bathing), "cup," and "baa" (outside, his favorite place to be).
September 23, 2006: Climbs down a flight of stairs using the side wall as his only support. Does pretend counting. Says "doo-doo" (milk), "daa" (if something falls to the ground), "boo" (ball or anything round), "hi," and "caa" (car or anything with wheels). His various balls are his favorite possessions. He loves to throw them off the deck or down the steps and then request for someone to retrieve them for him. Rolls bottles or cylinders along the floor.
September 17, 2006: Climbs beds.
August 31, 2006: Identifies several animals (cat, dog, pig, horse, sheep, duck, rooster). Likes to get involved, e.g. takes clean dishes out of the dishwasher; brought over a glass that needed washing when he saw dishes being done. Points to his diaper when we wants to do potty. Waves goodbye when he is trying to be cute. Indicates preferences when dressing up.
August 28, 2006: Points to eyes and says "eyes." Both canines have appeared. Says "ba-ba" (bye-bye) and "icks" (thanks).
July 19, 2006: Nods his head to say "yes."
July 7, 2006: Scribbles on walls.
June 22, 2006: His lower left first molar has appeared.
June 14, 2006: Says "baa" for ball. Shuts his eyes momentarily to indicate an interest in taking a nap. Runs.
June 9, 2006: His lower right first molar has appeared.
May 26, 2006: Plays a game of holding two pens in one hand and throwing them back and forth with another person accompanied by the words "aye, daa."
May 22, 2006: 16 months. Asked to wear his sandals and willingly walked in them for the first time. Understands "put it back." Speaks in long baby-talk sentences into which he has incorporated tone.
May 10, 2006: Scribbles with a pen/pencil/crayon. Points to his nose, eyes, and ears. Has been pointing to his head for about a week.
May 7, 2006: Descends stairs while holding onto an adult forefinger.
May 4, 2006: Rides and steers his Fisher-Price Ride-Along toy forward and backward from one end of the living-dining area to the other.
April 28, 2006: Has been fond of humming for several months now and today hummed the tune of the ABC Song.
April 21, 2006: His upper left first molar has sprouted.
April 16, 2006: His upper right first molar has sprouted.
March 2, 2006: Points at items of interest to him (e.g. juice). Loves to push the play shopping cart around the house. Along his way, he collects treasures around the house and dumps them into the cart - baby spoons, toys, Ria's shoes, boxes, etc. It's fun to inventory everything that ends up in his shopping cart collection. Follows Ria around; tussles with her; protests loudly when he doesn't get his way. Dances to music. Throws trantrums by sitting down and setting his head on the floor.
February 24, 2006: Lifts his hands in the air to communicate a desire to be picked up.
February 3, 2006: His lower left and right lateral incisors (seventh and eighth) have sprouted. Eats fresh/whole strawberries, Oatios (cereal), and cheddar cheese. Picks things/food up and hands/feeds them to others.
January 25, 2006: Measured 21 pounds 1.25 ounces and 29 inches. Drinks lassi (salty, cool yogurt drink) with a straw. Turns while walking.
January 21, 2006: Crawled up an entire flight of thirteen stairs.
January 15, 2006: Walked a distance of about two meters. Regularly walks short distances (one to two meters).
January 14, 2006: Walked a distance of about one meter (8 to 10 steps). Enjoys drinking namkeen lassi (a refreshing salty yogurt and mint drink)
December 31, 2005: His upper right lateral incisor (sixth tooth) has sprouted.
December 26, 2005: His upper right central incisor (fifth tooth) has sprouted.
December 21, 2005, 6:00 a.m.: Took three tiny steps. Right, left, right.
December 20, 2005: His upper left central incisor (fourth tooth) has sprouted.
December 7, 2005: Uses Ria's small chair as a walker on the hardwood floor. Has been standing without support for five to ten seconds at a time. Took his first step without support. Shakes his head to say "no." Likes fruits but not vegetables. He demands a taste of table food, i.e. whatever everyone is eating. His upper left lateral incisor (third tooth) has sprouted.
November 11, 2005: First haircut, performed by Samita. Is able to slide himself off a bed/couch onto the floor.
October 30, 2005: Dances to music while standing with support by bending his knees and performing a sort of half jump. Moves from a standing position to a sitting position. Protests when something he really wants is taken away from him.
October 14, 2005: Had three non-breast-milk meals in a day for the first time. Also had vegetables (carrots) for the first time.
October 9, 2005: Has been crawling and cruising since early October.
October 1, 2005: Had organic whole grain oatmeal cereal.
September 27, 2005: Stood on his own for three to four seconds. His lower left central incisor (second tooth) has sprouted.
September 26, 2005: Enjoyed being in the doorway jumper. This was only his second time in it and he was jumping on his own.
September 18, 2005: His lower right central incisor (first tooth) has sprouted.
September 2, 2005: Measured 18.6 pounds; puts things in his mouth.
August 31, 2005: Says "dada" and "tata." Blows raspberries.
August 30, 2005: Walks a step or two with support. Had his first taste of apple sauce.
August 27, 2005: Had his first taste of rice cereal.
August 13, 2005: Moves items from one hand to the other. Starting to pronounce consonants. Says, "atay." Stands with minimal support. Looks for objects upon dropping them.
August 10, 2005: When sitting, lifts arms in anticipation of being picked up. Likes the "ABC" song and Mukesh.
August 9, 2005: Gets up on his hands and knees and rocks back and forth.
August 6, 2005: Likes to move from sitting to standing while holding onto fingers with both hands.
August 3, 2005: Measured 16 pounds 15.25 ounces and 26.75 inches.
July 27, 2005: Strains neck to find things, especially people.
July 17, 2005: Sits for several seconds without support. Drinks pumped breast milk from a sip cup. Says "ma-ma."
June, 2005: Rolls over from back to front (belly).
May 27, 2005, 4:19 a.m.: Rolled over from stomach to back.
May 26, 2005, 9 p.m.: Sat without support for a few seconds.
May 15, 2005: Started moving his arms to grab.
May 11, 2005, 4:43 p.m.: Laughed when tickled.
May 3, 2005: Squealed in delight.
April 28, 2005: Makes a lot of eye-contact. Chews on his fingers. Likes to be made to sit.
April 18, 2005: Laughed out aloud.
April 8, 2005: Measured 11.14 pounds and 23.5 inches.
March 11, 2005: Holds head steady when held upright.
March 10, 2005: Started to sleep through most of the night.
February 13, 2005: Like Samita, Ronak likes to cover his eyes when sleeping. Accordingly, when cradled in Puneet's arms he buries his face in the area between Puneet's elbow and armpit.
February 9, 2005: Measured 7.6 pounds and 20.25 inches.
February 4, 2005: The stump of the umbilical cord dropped off at 2:45 p.m.
February 2, 2005: Measured 6.6 pounds and 20 inches.
January 25, 2005: Discharged from the hospital at 5.11 pounds.
January 22, 2005: Born 6.4 pounds (i.e. 6 pounds and 4 ounces) and 18.5 inches.
Lohri, New England, 2006
Archive of older photos
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Apr. 15, 2008
Ronak, playing with his favorite Duplo Thomas & Friends train set. Duplo is the version of Lego for kids up to the age of five.
Ria and Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Dec. 22, 2007
Ronak's first snowman, with help from Samita and Ria.
24-piece playground puzzle (Ronak completes this puzzle on his own) - Lamba Homestead - Oct. 28, 2007
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Sep. 19, 2007
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Aug. 10, 2007
Ronak - Whole Foods Market, Bedford, MA - Jul. 7, 2007
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - May 2007
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - May 2007
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Apr. 2007
Ronak, with Ria, on his 2nd birthday - Lamba Homestead - Jan. 22, 2007
Ronak, with Ria, celebrating Christmas - Lamba Homestead - Dec. 24, 2006
Ronak, opening a Christmas present - Lamba Homestead - Dec. 24, 2006
Ronak, dressed for Diwali, the Indian festival of lights - Lamba Homestead - Oct. 26, 2006
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Oct. 22, 2006
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Oct. 9, 2006
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Halloween 2006
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Aug. 5, 2006
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Jul. 1, 2006
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Jul. 1, 2006
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Jun. 11, 2006
Ronak - Home Depot - Jun. 11, 2006
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Apr. 30, 2006
Ronak and Ria - Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, The Netherlands (Holland) - Apr. 19, 2006
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Feb. 22, 2006
Thirteen months.
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Feb. 22, 2006
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Feb. 22, 2006
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Jan. 31, 2006
Ronak and Ria - Chuck E. Cheese's, Lowell, MA - Jan. 22, 2006
Ronak's first birthday.
Ronak - Lamba Homestead - Jan. 9, 2006
The 'little tikes' piano is one of his favorite toys.