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Fiji

There are trips you take to escape routine. And then there are trips that quietly change your confidence as a family. Our recent holiday to Fiji was our first overseas trip as a family of five, and the first time we travelled internationally with our special needs daughter. It wasn’t spontaneous. It wasn’t carefree in the traditional sense. But it was deeply rewarding, grounding, and full of…

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Month 2 of Quarantine

Month 2 of Quarantine

Month 2 of quarantine went by rather quickly. The wins from this month are:

We are continuing with our bike rides: conditions apply though i.e. if we can finish off our work on by 4.30 as it gets dark quickly these days plus if the  weather permits.

We celebrated Mohan’s birthday. It was a virtual celebration at home with his favourite food cooked all day. From home baked walnut cake to besan…

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Week 4 of Quarantine

Highlights of this week:

Bicycles:We got a new bicycle for Atharv and me. He had outgrown his older one and I haven’t owned one in years. And I have been so excited to go for a ride but the weather has been a dampener. I haven’t ridden a bike in at least 15 years if not more but they say that you can’t un-learn how to ride. This is so true, all I had to do was get on that bike and in a couple…

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Savour the Moment

To start with I’m publishing an article after a very long time. I do write but don’t find time to edit and share it (sob sob). That’s how busy life is! I like busy. But off lately seeing my little one grown up into a handsome little boy has given me more perspective. And that is, that being busy is good, being constructively involved in different things is uplifting and intriguing. But what is…

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To my beloved Grandmother,

This time when I went back to India, it was because I was missing everyone. It was also my cousin’s wedding. But one of the main reasons I was visiting was whenever I spoke to my Nani (grandmother) she said tu bas mujhse milne aa jaa (you just come to India to meet me).

How much ever you wish with all your heart that nothing happens to your loved ones, the fear always stays there. Especially when you are so far away. And today my nani is in a lot of pain, might have to undergo a surgery and I’m so far away. Not that I could have done much if I were closer. But she is the only grandparent I have had since forever. She is my only connection to my fond grandparent-grandchild fond memories in short to the super pampered me.

I still remember how I used to hate eating home-made white butter because it was bland as opposed to the store bought yellow butter. She actually used to mince each bite of my parantha (Indian bread) with it so that I could get the goodness without recognizing the product. And frankly, no parantha has ever tasted as delicious as it did when you fed it to me. And that’s just one of the many reasons why I love her. She is truly a beautiful soul.

Grandmas, if you ask me are the mothers with a lot of frosting and sprinkles.. 😀

Anyway, I reach India and meet her. And you wouldn’t believe the first thing she said to me after we were done with the hugging and kissing and crying (because it was a surprise for her and everyone that I was visiting India) was “tu mere liye aayi hai naa” meaning you are here for me right?! And I was left speechless and more teary. So all I did was hug her and kiss her more because I didn’t want to give in to the fear.

So nani you better fight this little hurdle because I know you are a trooper. And I say this for all your grandchildren, we want you for all the milestones in our lives (far or away). We all love you and want you there with us forever and ever.

Get well very very soon 😘

Love you truck loads! 😘😘

Meri Pyaari Nani :* To my beloved Grandmother, This time when I went back to India, it was because I was missing everyone.

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Happy Birthday Baby Brother!

Today when I think of you, this incident that happened last year comes to my mind and makes me feel so happy and proud. I’m the first born child in my family. For a long time I didn’t have a sibling. Until then each Rakhshabandhan and Bhai Duj I used to tie Rakhi and put the tilak on my dad and Chacha’s (uncle) wrist.

Then came along my baby brother.. The pampered little brat that I was, got a…

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Keeping The Tradition Alive!

Today I woke up feeling “holi”. Each year a day before Holi mum would make meethi roti (sweet bread) for us to devour, a tradition started by my grandmother. The house would have that amazing fragrance of ghee (clarified butter) and sugar and wheat. Oh! How much I missed it.

Then there is that part of me that wants my bub to experience the same childhood as I did, collect the memories that I…

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Keeping the tradition alive!

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For the love of doing what you LOVE!

For the love of doing what you LOVE!

It’s been months since my last post! And I obviously miss it.. I love writing without a doubt. The last couple of months have been extremely busy.. First we were house hunting, trying to buy a house in Melbourne consumes all your weekends. Then we have a growing up toddler who is full of energy and always needs our attention. Oh! And we love that the most.. He is venturing into something new…

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The day he was born…

The day he was born…

I was having my contractions for the last two days, yes you read it right it had been two days and the doctors’ said that they would operate on the scheduled delivery date and not earlier. On the very early morning of Sunday August 17, we had to go and pick up grandpa from airport. I was in pain the night before but knew that the doctors’ wouldn’t operate and by telling grandma and daddy about…

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That time when he said Maa.. In the lead up to Mothers Day my bub starting saying mum again. Almost like a year back when bub had just started mumbling, he uttered mumma many a times but then stopped :\ He continued calling out to his Dadda but mumma was long lost.

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I’m terrified to the core.. And I’m not afraid to admit it. But when I give it a serious thought, I brace myself, dust myself off, and I move forward. If I’m terrified and I compromise my life because of that, then all those people responsible for creating terrors in our lives would win. And I can’t let that happen. They cannot win. The recent happenings around the world make me cringe to see the level us humans have fallen.

No religion in the world preaches violence or revenge in this brutal form. Killing innocent lives to make a point can only be a thought of a twisted mind, not a religious mind. No one with a sane mind would even ever think of hurting another innocent soul. Dhaka attacks struck me really hard, so much so that I was having nightmares. The mum in me is worried sick for the safety and well-being of her child. The more I read about the attack the more I couldn’t understand that how can kids in their late teens and early twenties from  affluent families who had probably not seen difficult times in their lives can fall to such a horrific level where they start killing innocent lives. People in a cafe enjoying a cup of coffee, out there on a vacation were just killed. And for what? Just to make a statement….!

And then came Medina and Dhaka again, where on Eid a festival widely celebrated people were killed by suicide bombers. Then came Kashmir where people were attacked by pellet guns which are non-fatal in nature but so many of the victims were left blinded.

And now it’s Nice. Many of you would have seen a latest picture of Nice attacks where a baby corpse is seen next to a doll. I was in a crowded station when I saw that picture and tears trickled down my eyes looking at it. A kid no more that 4 years along with 83 others lost their lives because of a crazy man. And what surprises me even more is that the truck driver killer has a family of his own. He has three kids and still he went on to brutally kill innocent families, kids, and babies. This is wrong.. totally wrong, no one can justify. No religion can support it, this kind of violence.  And today we have an 18-year old in Germany who shot 9 people mostly in their teens before shooting himself.

ATTENTION EDITORS – VISUAL COVERAGE OF SCENES OF INJURY OR DEATH – A body is seen on the ground July 15, 2016 after at least 30 people were killed in Nice, France, when a truck ran into a crowd celebrating the Bastille Day national holiday July 14. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard – RTSHZK8

We already have so many natural and man-made calamities where thousands loose their lives. We have typhoons and earthquakes, droughts and hurricanes, landslides and tsunamis, all these claiming thousands of lives each year. We don’t need terrorism to add to the loss. We don’t need people with twisted ideology, and those with political agendas to take anymore lives. Humans have become the worst creatures to inhabit the earth. Selfish and self-centered. If we keep going at this rate, the time would come really soon when the whole human race would be wiped off.

Mazhab nahi seekhta aapas mein bair karna.. No religion preaches animosity.

My heart goes out to all the families who have lost their loved ones in the recent attacks across the world. May their souls rest in peace. And may their families get the courage to overcome the grief.

This needs to stop. We need to learn to live and let live. We need to accept our differences and in no circumstances ever should anyone reach a stage where they start taking innocent lives. Each life is precious and NO ONE deserves to die this way.

When even dolls cried.. I'm terrified to the core.. And I'm not afraid to admit it. But when I give it a serious thought, I brace myself, dust myself off, and I move forward.

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Back to where I belong!

Back to where I belong!

So I recently joined the work force (full-time) after a really long break of over two and a half years. Yay me!! But with a heavy heart I say that it was way more difficult than I thought it would be. My bub is now 21 months and yes he a big boy but not that much. He doesn’t speak, can’t tell us if something is wrong or if someone is bothering him. He just makes a sad little face every time I…

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Donning a Saree in a Foreign Land!

Donning a Saree in a Foreign Land!

The other day it was Non-Resident Indian day in Melbourne and I was going to cover the event. So came the big question was what should I wear? It had to be Indian attire and my bet is always on Indian Suits as they are easy to wear and carry. But I didn’t have even one suit which wasn’t too blingy.. So I decided to pull out a saree. Now mind you I had never successfully tied a saree before in my…

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And He Completes Two Months :) :*

AND HE COMPLETES TWO MONTHS :) :*

With heartfelt jubilation I proudly announce that my little baby boy has completed two months. It’s a joyous moment for me as a mom. As it goes without saying that the love that I hold for my baby is immense and the time I have spent with him is priceless..

These two months have been a roller coaster ride. From delivery to holding this precious little bugger for the first time to growing up with…

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And he hits a Super Six 🎉🎊🎂✨💫 Yes it has been six months since this little angel came into our lives.. I really can’t believe that time has just flown..