Playtime ...

Milla is greatly enjoying her new playmat ... she always smiles at the little animals flying over her head. And she really likes Chris, her teddybear (thanks again Christian!) ...

New York Marathon 2008 ...

Against all rumors neither Morad nor I were really running it .... but we had great fun watching the marathon again like last year! Here are a few pics from the event! ... and by the way, it is getting really chilly here :-(

Milla's first Halloween

She clearly is too young for "tricks or treats" ... but we took her to the parade and she peacefully slept through it carried around by Morad. We did not quite make it to get some costumes, only Milla had the appropriate gear ... Thanks Nico for the great socks!

Bathing is starting to be fun ...

Milla is starting to enjoy her baths ... and so are we :-) it is really good fun to watch her. Here are a few pics of her!

A fun visit from Lee and Sue

Mid October Lee and Sue were visiting us and we spent a great weekend together! A little bit of streetshopping in Soho, dining and wining ... Thank you for visiting us!

Little feet and hands ...

Soooo cute!

Just 10 weeks old

Milla is getting more and more alert and starts to observe her little world. Hard work for a 10 week old little girl ... to recover she likes to take her little naps at warm places ... both the sunny lounge area and Daddy's belly are preferred places :-)

Early Lounging

Many thanks again to Karen for her fabulous gift ... the lounging chair! Milla is really starting to enjoy sitting in there and observing what is happening around her ... and ocasionally for a little nap!

The proud grandparents "Oma und Opa Bistensee"

In the 2nd half of September my parents flew in from Germany to visit and to meet their granddaughter, what an exciting and long awaited moment! New friendships were made over a bottle of milk ... and we had a great time strolling through New York and enjoying some of the last warm days for the year!

September & an imminent storage crisis

Time flies and by now Milla is over 7 weeks old. We still haven't managed to make a proper passport picture, for one because it is not simple to make the 'perfect' and compliant shot, and also because we are so busy learning to deal with Milla.

The nights are sometimes long but overall we seem to be getting closer to a rhythm for food and sleep and diapers, and we hope that she will indeed sleep for longer stretches sometime in the next 18 years... keep your fingers crossed.

On another note, my deepest fears have been confirmed. Not only has my daughter more clothes and gear than I do (that was already the case after week 3), she now has more than Maike... and myself combined! The storage crisis is now imminent in our appartment!

Jokes aside, thank you all very much for the continuing gifts and baby-clothing donations, especially Ingrid & Peter & Isabella.

Here are some pictures from September, I hope you enjoy them.

Houdini

Swaddles, piece of cake to get rid of... You should see me performing with chains and under water!

Furniture

This is my first, personal piece of furniture. Yes, it's mine. Me, Milla! (A big Thank You to Maike's colleagues at L'Oréal Professionel).

Little miss beautiful, three and a half weeks old.

Passport picture... first try

Time to get travel documents for this new little citizen of the planet. Documents with an S at the end, indeed, as she will get US and German passports to get started, and later probably also Iranian papers. Anyway, this means taking pictures for the passports. Have you evert tried to take biometric pictures from a newborn? Independently from the absurdity of the requirement, each the US and Germany have different ideas of what biometric means. But from a practical perspective, good luck with holding her still!!!

Milla and her zoo...

Everybody loves babies. Since we got Milla, every visitor brings presents... for Milla. Here is the animal farm, a sample of her presents so far. A big Thank You to the many generous friends and family.

More Milk

A couple of visitors...

Milla already hat a couple of visitors, both at the hospital as well as at home. Early visitors included Marjoleine, Nico, Karen and Petra, but we also had some this week-end: Alex and Nathan, who were here on Friday on a stop-over in NYC after their year-long world tour; and my aunt Tanni from D.C. who was here yesterday. As usual, there were gifts, for Milla. I guess that is the new way: it's all about her now, and I better get used to the art of selflessness.

Alex looks quite comfortable with Milla...


... while Nathan was happy just observing the happening...


A proud great-aunt with her grand-niece...

Video: Milla's first day at home

Milk Passion

The favorite pass-time (when awake) is all about milk and mommy...

The favorite spot for a nap...

... is the day-bed in the lounge corner of the living room.


Daddy's chest is however a good alternative for an afternoon nap, too.

Coming Home

August 15, Day 4. Maike and Milla are discharged from the hospital. Milla gets the benefit of mandatory special transport, a car seat... she is so small in it!!!


Soon after arriving home she gets to test her new bassinet for the first time...


...and a couple of minutes later, she looks happy enough in it and is blissfully asleep.

Day 2 - August 13

The Beginning...

The place: NYU Langone Medical Center, 8th Floor, Manhattan, New York City. The date: Tuesday August 12, 2008. The time: 3:52am. The team: Maike, Morad and half a dozen doctors and nurses. The outcome: Milla Sophie Khosrow Shahi, 5 lbs 7 oz, 19.5 in.