Peter Varshavsky

Renate and I went to see the Nile Project perform at Princeton. She had been feeling under the weather for a few days. As we walked around Princeton before the show she felt tired a little nauseous. A few days later we decided to do a pregnancy test.

From 8:40pm to 9:20pm or so was a blur, but later Dr. Gardner said Marc was born at 9:16pm, and we have no reason to not believe him. This makes Marc about 14 minutes old here.

Oma Elfriede and Opa Edwin came to visit Marc at the hospital the next day. Бабушка Ира and дедушка Сережа also stopped by, but Irina had a cold and to not risk getting us sick they only stayed a very short time and we did not take any pictures.

After we were discharged, we took a cab home. Marc slept in the bassinet.

Marc is sporting an NYU Langone beanie and a blanket knitted by Shorey. The white rabbit was a present from Oma und Opa, and the bear from uncle Peter. Some days or weeks later Marc discovered that he could cuddle up to the rabbit's soft belly. Seven months later he learned that he could make the bear sing "Schlaf Kindlein, Schlaf" by pulling on the cord.

The next day after getting home from the hospital we bundled Marc up, left Renate to rest and went on a walk around our block with grandfather Sergei and grandmother Irina. Irina took the picture.

Sergei and Irina were afraid they might be contagious, so it took a little work to convince Sergei to take off his face mask for this picture.

Finally at six days Marc has met all of his grandparents. 

Karina and Irina visited us in Brooklyn. Irina stayed for a month and helped take care of Marc.

Irina gave Marc a few black and white board books that he really liked.

Social security card arrived in less than three weeks

We got a hand-me-down baby bath tub from Hicham, Aelfie, and Mirah a few weeks before Marc was born, but didn't try it out until he was about four weeks old.

A few weeks after Marc was born Renate started a weekly exercise class in Manhattan on Thursday nights. This was the first time Marc tried the bottle. He liked it, had his meal and promptly went to sleep, at which point I had a beer and sighed a sigh of relief. I was later told that it was a rookie mistake to wait to have a beer until after Marc was asleep.

Irina gave us this rattle on her first visit. It made a very melodious mellow sound. (Picture by Renate)

That was easy!

Renate and Marc surprised me as I was coming out of the 7th Avenue subway station.

We took a cab to the Austrian Embassy in Manhattan to apply for Austrian citizenship for Marc and stopped by the park before Renate and Marc went home, and I hopped on a bus to work.

We flew to San Francisco to visit grandparents

By a lucky coincidence Renate's brother Peter was in the Bay Area for work at the same time as us.

When we arrived in San Francisco we found that Marc's grown his first two teeth. I'm writing this in Bischofshofen. It is now early August, and there are three new upper teeth, with the fourth one coming any day.

We went to see the Brooklyn Bridge Park. Marc stayed awake through the subway ride, fell asleep as we were coming out of the subway, and then woke up as we got on the train to go home. Funny thing - first subway ride was about a month after first plane ride.

May 22, 2016. First painting. I bought some children's hand paint to make a card for Renate's first Mother's day (which was on May 8) and immediately proceeded to get the whole family sick with stomach flu. Card-making was postponed. Marc didn't mind the painting at first, but by the time we got to red, he decided he really didn't like it.

We went to Prospect Park Zoo in Brooklyn and saw sea lions, peacocks and pigs. We also met a goat.

We're going to Switzerland to the wedding of Stefan and Manu. Stefan is Renate's brother. They've been together for fourteen years and they have a two and a half year old daughter Sofie. On the flight I slept and Renate took care of Marc (who also mostly slept).

They met on Münsterhof in Zurich some half an hour before Sofie's parents got married in Zunfthaus zur Waag.

On Sunday after the wedding Renate, her parents, Marc and myself drove from Zürich to Bischofshofen, Austria (in the Pongau province). The trip took us about 6 hours and even crossed into Germany for some miles.

Renate's family moved into this house when Renate was 10. She has lived in this room until she left for college at 18. Renate and her brothers Stefan and Peter slept in this crib bed. (The first time really was the day before, but we didn't take a picture)

We visited Renate's cousins near Schloss Goldegg. Matea let Marc ride around in her car.