Shafeen with 4 teeth

Shafeen was 11 months old

Showing his 4 teeth

Very happy with this photo session by his uncle

Timothy Riecker

Timothy Riecker

My son controlled himself

Shafeen took this picture by himself

Today in the morning I told my son, we will go out for some shopping, please don’t ask for any toy or chocolate. He agrees. But while shopping, he couldn’t control himself, asked for kinderjoy egg. I gave him. Later on he didn’t ask for any toy, somehow he controlled himself. Because he knew that in the egg he will get a gift.

Everybody loves to have a Baby girl

Everybody loves to have a Baby girl, only because of social condition, they afraid to take one. Shafeen (my son), was second baby boy, to our sisters. So my elder sister wore him some jewelry as there was no baby girl. Shafeen was 9 months old and he was very happy. Now a day (3 years and half) he directly says I am not a girl so didn’t offer me jewelry.

Shamoly bus, business class

I don’t recommend you this bus. Recently I had ride on this bus. From outside it looks great. When you get inside you will like more. It has boxes at the top of your sits like airplane, to keep your small bags safe. They will provide blanket, if you want. Sits looks great, which are extra wide.

When we were waiting for the bus, in front of the counter, the bus suddenly came with speed that we had to run with my son. The bus driver quarreled with our other traveler that wanted to keep all bags in their favorite box. Later on, they shouted with every passenger who rides from different place. Even who go out for pee. This bus didn’t stop for even food or dinner but took 12 hours to reach Dhaka. Even they didn’t want to stop the bus in the first stoppages. Finally I lost my bag in the bus; either bus people or passenger took it.

All says our daughter in law don’t want to live with us

All says our daughter in law don’t want to live with us. No matter how hard I am with her. She has to tolerate all, keep smile in her face and ruin her life for us. Because she is not our daughter, she is our daughter in law! We will make very bad comment on her parents, she should not reply at all. She has to forget her parent and her parent’s house and live with us. After that, any time we will kick her out. She is not slave, but worse than that. No worry, no matter where she escapes, we will tell everyone, that she is a bad daughter in law, because she left us.

Shafeen’s walker toy

I brought Shafeen a walker when he was 5 months old. He chooses it by himself. Shafeen likes the toys in front of the walker till now, especially the green phone. From this phone re regularly calls me and talks with me.

The worst Eid that I ever had

Shafeen is eating food by himself

This year, I passed the worst Eid ul Fitre ever. Two days before Eid, I suddenly fell sick. And I was terribly sick for 1 week. I didn’t have the strength to wake up. If I was the only person to care, then I might not try to get up my head from bed. But I have a little kid. I just somehow managed to wake up and feed him. For one week, I couldn’t take a bath, nor could I give a bath to my son. Even on Eid day, I couldn’t do anything. I only somehow make myself change my son’s dress. The only celebration I could give my son is wearing a new dress.

My mom and sister gave me food. Which I share with my son; this way, somehow, I survived. Nobody communicates with me to provide me with Eid greetings. People who always claim that they love my son, wanted to see him, didn’t care even to talk with him, not to just say him “Eid Mubarak”. They enjoy their Eid with good food, and they celebrate with their relatives. Nobody cared about how my son was passing his Eid with a sick mother, what he was eating, or whether he went out on that very special day or not. Nobody. No phone call or no message and obviously no visiting.

One thing I realized in that week, only because of my son, my heart started beating again (it was stopped during the delivery of my son). Because, except me, nobody is there to think about my son, whether he is alive or not.

Shafeen likes feeder bottle very much

Shafeen is drinking milk in a feeder after taking a bath. He was 8 months old.

Shafeen liked his feeder bottle very much. He used to drink milk and water in the feeder. Even now (he is now 3 and half years old) he ask me to give him saline in feeder. He doesn’t like glass. But I stopped giving him anything in feeder.

Only for $3

Shafeen playing behind me on the floor and I am working on PC

You know what, when you are in need of money, you will work in low price and for long time. Yesterday night I was awaking and working whole night only for $3. I had terrible headache from the beginning, but I didn’t tell this to the client. Sometimes I thought I should have say NO or ask them to give me more money. But again I kept quite. Whatever I am getting, I really need those.

Shafeen lend (later broken) Tameem bro’s glasses

Shafeen on my lap with his brother's eye glasses, he was 1 year and 8 months old.

Shafeen, 2 years old.

Shafeen watching outside with glasses, 2 years old.

Shafeen with his brother Tameem (the owner of the eye glasses), Shafeen was 2 years old

Shafeen likes glasses from his very childhood (he is still a kid). He got this eye glass (actually made by plastic for kids) from his cousin brother Tameem. You can see how happy he is with his glasses. 

Hard working isn’t everything

If you want to succeed, then hard work isn’t the total solution, you have to work with brain. Otherwise it will take too long time to see any light of success and by this time you will be frustrated. 

Shafeen taking bath on bed

Shafeen taking bath, he was 8 months old.

When Shafeen was too small to stand up and take a bath, I use to give soaps on bed (on a plastic sheet) then put him into the big bowl. Every child loves to take a bath, only for getting chance to play with water. Shafeen is same also.

Need to do something with the roof

Shafeen in side an auto rickshaw

If you are living in Bangladesh, then you must have ride on a CNG auto rickshaw. And you must have noticed that in a hot summer the plastic roof isn’t enough to cover the sun hit. And the road of Dhaka city is fully mess up with traffic jam. In a hot day sitting inside the auto rickshaw in traffic jam, you can’t imagine how hard it could be. It’s like sitting inside an oven. Children can become sick with this situation.

Some CNG drivers add packing boards bellow the plastic roof. It helps to prevent the hit. I think all CNG auto rickshaw should do something to prevent the hit.

Shafeen started keeping his tongue outside of his mouth

Shafeen was 7 months old boy

Shafeen was 7 months old boy

When Shafeen was 7 months old boy, suddenly he discover a new technique with his tongue. He started keeping the tongue outside of his mouth. I couldn’t understand from where he discovered this. After few days, he again stopped doing this.

Planning is everything

Shafeen packing himself

When I had to pack my bag, first I make a plan, what I might need according to where I am going and for how long…. Then start thinking what are the things that I have to buy, prepare etc, and what are the things that I have to take just before I leave.  That’s it… finally it took very little time to complete my packing.

Otherwise if I start packing without planning and thinking, what I took what else should I take that actually takes much more time than planning. And finally when I reach the place, there are some important things left that I should brought.

Sky, in town

Baby’s environment thought

Shafeen, my son

I told to my son [3 years old], if u cut the tree, you won’t air to breath. He smiled, pointed his finger up and said, No worry, I will get air from fan.

Charger fan for load shedding (blackout)

Shafeen sleeping with a charger fan, he was 6 months 20days old

This is also a very common scenario in Bangladesh. We are always in short of power (electricity). Electricity production increases but consumer increased and increasing much faster, so that the production level never touches the need. So, we are very familiar with load shedding.

For my kid, we brought a charger fan; it gave at least 1 hour full speed fan. So, it’s very useful for us when my son sleeps. Before that I use to sit beside him at keep moving my hand fan, until power came. Sometimes I had to work like this for 3 hours… I did, for my son. You know, Bangladesh is in tropical country, in summer its really very difficult to stay without power or electricity.