Mia Rose Bouzakis Has Arrived!

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On January 13th, 2012 at 5:52 pm, my wife Kristi gave birth to our beautiful baby girl Mia Rose Bouzakis! Wow! We did it! She is here, and we couldn’t be more excited.

I was hoping to have this post out earlier, or at least closer to her birth date, but this baby thing is pretty time consuming. Funny how quickly you adjust to accepting the fact that you are not gonna sleep. I remember calling my mom after a few days and saying “The baby slept great last night, I think we got 4 hours of sleep!” 4 hours of sleep! That was a good night. I still don’t know how Kristi is doing it, but she is. She was born to be a mommy. I am so proud of her. Her commitment to breastfeeding and her patience is inspiring to say the least.

Mia was born 9 lbs 4 ounces, and 22 inches! That’s a big baby! We were definitely surprised, as Kristi was not showing like she had a 9 pound baby. I remember after going to one the sonograms at Dr. Solomon’s office, we kept saying how the baby was doing some crazy yoga like postures, now I know why. No other way she would have fit in there :)

So after month one, things are going as well as we could have hoped for. She is gaining weight, already up 11 lbs 2 oz, she is very alert and attentive, she does tummy time almost every day, she is starting to vocalize a bit, and the best is thing is that she beginning to smile at us, which as a parent is the absolute best feeling. Nothing like waking up and seeing your baby with a big grin on her face. Love it! Any of the issues that we have ran into Dr. Zatz, her pediatrician, has assured is normal for a baby her age, and that she is a healthy happy baby. So whatever we are doing, it seems to be working.

Want to keep this post short and sweet, so I will write more about this first month and Mia in upcoming posts, but for now just wanted to let everyone know, Kristi and I are so happy, doing great, and proud of our little girl Mia. It has been the most amazing, challenging, exciting, inspiring, scary experience. Being a father is awesome! Nuff said.

Okay, enough of me babbling, check out photos of the baby’s first month:
(For those of you who would like to download the photos onto your computer I recommend going to the flickr website to do so. If you click on a small photo below, it will pop up a larger version of the image. You should see a link under the image that says “view this photo in flickr“. Once on the flickr site you can choose to download different sizes of the image. There is an actions button at the top. Press that. From there you can download whatever size you want. If you have any question just ask me in the comments below.)

Update!
I’ve added the ability for anyone to order prints from the flickr website. So If you would like to order a print, you need to login into flickr. You can do so with your Facebook account so you don’t need to create a new one. Goto to http://www.flickr.com. Once there, click on the Signin link at the top right, and choose to sign in with your facebook account. Now back on my blog post if you click on the photo, and when it pops up you click on the view this in flickr, when the site takes you to flickr you will see an an option in the actions menu (which is above a gray button in the top left corner above image). You should see a link Order prints and more. Here you can start adding photos to your cart and order prints. Let me know if that helps :)

Happy New Year 2012

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Well friends, 2011 has come and gone. With the new year comes a time of reflection and direction. The past 12 months just came and went so quickly. I must say, however, I am not sad to see her go. A lot happened to my wife and I this year.  I started a new job (technically I started it in November 2010), got the wifey pregnant, she got her degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, we sold our house in Orange County, moved to Rockland County, I completely changed my diet and exercise regimen (more on that in future posts), and most importantly grew back my winter beard.

It seems we were not the only ones with a lot going on in 2011.  We saw close friends and family graduate from college, get married, get divorced, get pregnant, have a baby, move to the city, move across the country, move out of the country. This comes as no surprise of course, but nonetheless, something worthy of pointing out. I guess we are all finally growing up. It’s bittersweet and something you have to get used to as you grow older (and apart). It can be very inspiring to see everyone grow and change but all too often this comes at the expense of the time we get to spend with them.

We also lost a few people this year, a few to cancer and one to suicide.  Time is precious. We can never get back those lost seconds and minutes.  How we spend our time is something we should not take lightly, and is a direct reflection of what we value in our lives.  We assign, re-assign, reinforce those values every second.  The warped version of this line of thinking is the phase “Time Is Money”.  This just goes to show how much value we put into money.  I am not trying to say that money is evil, and that having a lot of money makes you bad person, but that having money is not our end goal.  How much money we make, how big our house is, how many cars/computers/clothes does not define us.  To me, life comes down to how we choose to spend our limited time, and the experiences we have and share with the ones around us.  Unfortunately, material obsession is seen as a short circuit to happiness.  How much we own shows and proves our worth.  We are all guilty of this to some extent, but we must ask ourselves, do the ends justify the means?  Is it worth it.

The funny thing about time is the phenomenon where life is experienced at the speed of light, while in hindsight appears to be in slow motion.   Deadlines always seem to pop up too soon, the seasons fly by… it’s winter already?  I just got used to fall!  What’s strange  is when you take a look back, the math seems to get all fuzzy.  The dates just don’t add up.  For Kristi and I, living in Warwick seems like the ancient past. We’ve been back in Nyack forever right? Yet, we just sold the house in August! How can that be? It’s been less than 6 months?  Another obvious example is the pregnancy. Our baby is due any day (it’s coming down to the wire here on the Bouzakis farm, we are getting close here folks). These 9 months have gone by more like 9 weeks, yet when I think of the time when Kristi and I found out we were going to have a child together it seems like ages ago.

I wrote in my first post, “It’s A Girl”, that new years resolutions don’t really mean that much to me anymore.  They seem so self obsessed.  I am having a baby dag nabit, who cares what I accomplish.   We gotta get this baby walking, laughing, talking, sleeping, etc … STAT!  It’s daunting to think that Kristi and I will be responsible for another human life.  I can barely take care of myself!  So although I have no specific 2012 resolutions, I need to keep things in perspective.  In addition to our new roles as parents, it’s important that Kristi and I continue to be individuals, and at the same time continue to be a couple.  That means, as it always does, it comes down to our actions.  We can blame other people and objects for what happens to us, but unfortunately most of these are out of our control.

So this year, I plan on doing my best to spend my time wisely.  A lot of that time will be spent with my daughter.  Watching her grow, learning how to be father.  This means more time with  friends and family.  More time meeting people with similar interests.  More time being social.   Less time will be wasted on things that do not make me grow, or keep me stale.   Less petty gossip on how other’s choose to live their lives.  Less time worrying about other people’s judgement.  Less time worrying about things that we can not change.

In 2012, I want to spend my time creating, loving, evolving, and playing.  It really translates into being in the moment, honoring and respecting my time.  The year will go by quickly, and before I know it I will be writing a Happy New Year 2013 post, but I also know that a lot can happen in year.  Yes, I understand we all have to work but maybe it’s also time to view our job situations too and how we choose to experience it.

So here is to a happy healthy and well spent 2012!

It’s Getting Real

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Yesterday we got the baby seat installed in both of our cars, bought our Christmas tree (real of course), and decorated it!  The year is almost over, which means the BABY IS COMING!  It’s getting real… real fast!

We are in the home stretch everyone.  We have successfully completed our “Natural Childbirth with Birthing Wisdom” classes by certified childbirth instructor Pauline Nardella. She was amazing and Kristi and I both came out feeling confident and well informed. Thanks Pauline!

We have put together the baby’s crib, dresser, and stroller.  Our next step is to write our birthing plan for the hospital, which we already have a good template to start from.  We still have a few other things on our to do list, and I’m sure there a few (or several) I am forgetting, but overall I think we are in pretty good shape.

The next few weeks are going to go by so fast with the holiday’s coming, although I am sure those last few days might seem like an eternity, especially for the wifey.  This time of the year is always special, but for us, it comes with a new twist… it is our last Christmas together alone… forever!  It’s incredibly powerful when you think about it.

Here are some photos of the babies room.  Happy Holidays!

It’s A Girl

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As most of you already know, my wife and I will be expecting our first child, a baby girl, this winter (baby is due January 4th, 2012).  The both of us are so excited and eager to meet this little lady and begin the next installment of our life.   After just selling our house, and moving back to Nyack, timing could not be perfect.  How exciting to start the new year with a new baby!  It definitely puts things into perspective.  Things like “new year resolutions” just don’t have the same weight and meaning to me anymore.  This is that point in life when the number one thing in your life is another human being!  Intense.

For my wife, her experience is quite different. Obvious I know, but what I mean is that her perception of these two events are much less discrete.  Instead, she has and continues to go through a metamorphosis.  Her body, constantly changing and adapting to the little creature inside her.  She feels the baby everyday with her kicks, twists, turns, acrobatics, break dancing, crazy yoga posturing, and whatever other crazy movements she decideds to make.  To her, life has already changed.   These two events are blurred together, and the transition is less blunt.

One thing I have noticed, being “the man”, is that there is a tension between two important junctures in my life.  One data-point being the present – with life basically the same and life moving along per the usual.  The other being the birth of my daughter and the genesis of a new little family.

So for me, it appears people need to make me mentally aware of this fact.   As we begin the third trimester I increasing get asked “You nervous?” or “You ready?”. It’s very odd to make something that is supposed to be so natural and instinctual a cerebral process.   Having a child is one of the few things left in our lives that is still attached to nature or forces us to remember that we are still animals, no matter how silly or crazy that sounds.  We have pretty much disconnected from what it means to be human and be a part of this earth.  Our daily lives are far removed from what our paleolithic ancestors went through.  Some of this has been for the better; some maybe not.

So yes I am sure there will be times when I get a bit freaked out, or think I really should have better prepared myself, but at the same time I look at it as a chance to acknowledge the amazing process that is taking place right now inside my wife’s body.   She is carrying a new life form!  She is part of creation.   She is a creator.   What other type of event will give me a peak into what it is like to really experience a pure form of life?   I do not want to over think this, nor should I have to.  I think we tend to over-analyze everything… I know I do.

I want to be a good great father.  I really believe that nature wants this too.  Our society and modern way of living, on the other hand, is what distorts this instinct and masks our environment making it appear at it being an uphill battle.   So, to be the dad I want to be I need to take a holistic approach.

The relationship I will have with my daughter will be a constant work in progress.  At times very rewarding and other times challenging, not to mention overwhelming.  I need to be humble, to draw from multiple sources of inspiration and knowledge.  I will need guidance, support, and love.  At the same time it will be up to me.  Oh yes, there will be mistakes, a good amount of them too, but our relationship will be my responsibility. I owe it to her to be in her life no matter what, and to accept her for who she is, not who I want her to be.  As long as I keep the lines of communication open with my daughter, and present to her a honest, sincere, and loving father figure with unconditional love I know we will be in a good place.

I am not trying to say this is going to be easy, far from that.  I just don’t find the need to take something as beautiful and natural as having a child, and morph it into some scary, anxious, worrisome, life altering event that I end up dreading because of a fear of failure.  There is no test to cram for, and there is no way to fully prepare myself.

It’s a girl… and I am gonna be a daddy!   I can not wait.

Its A Girl

Welcome To My New Blog

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This is my brand new blog which I intend to use for my personal usage (unlike PaulBouzakis.com, which I have for my web developer adventures).  Look for random posts on my life involving my wife and daughter, nutrition, music, physics, the mets, well anything I fancy really.  Anyway.. more coming soon!