GoodBye 2008 !

2008 started as weak cloud .. ended like a hurricane .. !!!(good one though...without much damages !!)

It has been one of my best years !!!!!!!

Even though VK was born in 2007, we started having fun with him only this year.
He rolled over,crawled and started walking all in this year !

Had a great first half with 3 months in Chennai (well I had an excuse !!! I cant go for another year, when I start work)
Got back to work in July..
VK went to child-care for about 3 months... couldnt bear to see him and hence called paati and thata to take care of him.
Bid a tearful good-bye to my first car.. well she was getting too old and expensive to maintain. CRV has now replaced her...
Hubby changed jobs... 3rd in three years.. !!!
Celebrated VK's first birthday with great pomp and fair.
Hubby's Mom stayed with us for 6 months.
My parents joined us in September and will be with us for a few more months!!! (boo..hoo... !!!!)
Started reading blogs one day when was too bored at work.. loved them all.. couldnt resist the temptation and started one and joined the Mum's gang !

and finally to top it all.. we bought our first Home !!!
after years of me cajoling Hubby to do it, we ventured this year and were successful in about 4 weeks.!

2007 was quite a bad year for us with lot of tragedies, emotional turmoil and financial crisis. Nothing was good except for Vk's entry !

Looks like 2008 was here to wipe the bitter memories of 2007.
Thank God for that and hope it stays this way for many many more years to come !!!

On a final note...
Wishing you all a very HAPPY NEW YEAR and a Funtastic year ahead !!!
May God Bless us all and make all our dreams come true !

Dear Hubby,

If someone had told me nine years ago,

That my best friend would be my better half, I would have shrugged it off...
That I would have a love marriage... I would have laughed it off...
That I would break all barriers and fight it out with my parents to be with you..."No Way...Stop that crap!" would have been my response..

Well as destiny would have it, all of this did happen.

Yup...Same day, nine years ago you walked into my life!!
( I know.. I know! You are bad with dates and can’t remember... hence this post!!!)

So much has happened in these nine years...you have had heaps of promotions from a stranger to acquaintance to a best friend to life-long companion!

You turned my life topsy-turvy....you changed me from a docile, silent girl to a rebel! (At least according to my family)

On the positive side, you have supported and encouraged me even when I was not sure and doubted myself...stood by me and for me through thick and thin.

As much as I hate to admit it, I really don’t know how my life would have been if not for you!!!

Happy Anniversary Buddy!

Happy Karthigai

Had a nice time last evening... after a long time, lighted lots of candles around the house.. dint have to worry about the carpet !!!!

This is one of my favourite festivals... was more fun when we were young.. My sis and me used to have a routine... wash the agal vilakus (this was done in morning by Paati when we were ate school.)We used to come home ,quickly freshen up then start the job...keep kumgumam and manjal for each one of vilakus... then had to put thiri and oil .. we had to hurry as well.. Amma used to say.. Goddess Lakshmi will come to the house where the velakus were lighted.. hence earlier the better..after the basic routine of placing agals in all rooms, used to decorate our balcony which has a criss-cross grill !! and then go downstairs (we used to live in 1st floor ) and enjoy the beauty of our decoration !!

I really miss those days.... dint have to worry about agal and thiris last night.. candles were handy and with no carpets in this house, lighted candles to my heart's content...
though couldn't match the beauty of agal vilakus..But I guess cant complain... something is better than nothing !

Confused !!!

Amma and Appa take care of VK all day.. and ofcourse all the daily routine which includes washing, cooking , cleaning etc.

I am really in a dilemma.

Should I come home everyday from work and take everything over from them and let them to rest? (they really need it after a full-on day with VK)
Wouldn't it be rude to do it.. as if saying, thanks but I shall take care of my house and my son from now on..

Or Should I sit back and relax when I come home and let them do what they were doing.
That's rude too and just not fair..they would be tired too !! (and they are not here just to work for me !)

Either way, I know they would be OK about it ... However this has got me thinking for quite sometime now....don't want to be a nasty person letting parents work while I sit back and relax, at the same time don't want to be rude and ask them to mind their business while I take over..

First Award !

Proximity Award


I have been awarded by Art.
I am new to the blogging world and to get an award in 2 months feel great !!!
Thanks Art.

This award is given to a blog that invests and believes in PROXIMITY - nearness in space, time and relationships! These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind of bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers! Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award.
I have to pass it to 8 people (not sure if I will have 8)

The people/blogs I read have all been writing for a long time and are good at it.
I am not even sure If I am good enough to pass iton..
However the people below make my day and hence passing it to them.(some of them dont even know me.. However I enjoy their blogs and they perfectly fit the bill.)


Tharini
Boo
Nitya
Mumbaigirl

and ofcourse Art
She is a real darling and one of my biggest inspirations !

Thank again !!! I am truly honored !

Vk 13-14 month update

I was planning to write about Vk 13 month update and then got completely stuck with work and the moving didn’t help much either. He is going to be 14 months old (young!!) quite soon, hence decided shall do a combined update...

Well where do I start??
He has become so naughty these days and we have 4 adults in our home and we still can’t seem to stop him!!!I was worried with the house moving and thought maybe he would have trouble adjusting to the new place... well... he proved me wrong..
He loves the new house... I think it was love at first sight for him... he was so happy and excited... the reason for his happiness...more room to move around as compared to a 2 bedroom unit and more stuff he can keep his hands on. !!

He probably will become a marathon walker when he grows up (no pun intended!!!)
He walks so much all day everyday!!
From the minute he wakes up to the minute he sleeps.
And runs out of the house, once the door is opened... he is quite cheeky though...he makes sure (by turning back every few seconds) someone is after him while running out and give his famous smirk!!

He needs everyone near him and no one can go the rest room... The minute someone goes to the rest room or even in that direction, he runs behind them. When the door is shut, he gives a big wail!! Sits near the door and cries till the person comes out and lifts him up... Other people in the house can’t lift him... just slips from their grip and keeps crying. (I guess all kids do this at some stage... read in a few blogs)

Everything just drops (thadaaar!!!) from his hand. Nothing is placed down in a soft manner. When he find something interesting, the stuff which was on his hand, cease to exist. They are either thrown or dropped with a “Do I care attitude"

L, my friend got him a nursery rhymes CD and he never had inkling for it.
However suddenly he seems to love it and that is all we get to see all day, everyday!!(Pity amma and appa!)

Will do what we ask him not to do... very clear on that... the minute we say "No... Don’t do it "... he decides he has to do it ... no matter what!
One observation though... if we try it politely, he sometimes (yes sometimes) listens and lets the TV, TV remotes, toys rest for sometime.
Most times though, wants to touch the TV, throw the remote or the toys.

Kitchen seems to be his favorite place... withers wants to meddle with the boxes of pulses and dals or wants to see what’s cooking. Well, half of my box of kidney beans went missing and when we cleaned the house over the weekend, found them under the fridge, tea table, entertainment unit and where not!!!

On the brighter side, he has started talking. Rather jabbering heaps now...
Loves the Christmas lights and keeps says "taith" for light!
Can point at moon and say "Moo". Can shake hands and give Hi-If
Says Ba-ba (interpreted as Bye-bye) and waves bye when going out or when he decide he wants to go out.

Last update said he ate well and loved fruits... its all changed now!!
Big tantrums during eating time!!!!

He already is an individual. Has his own opinions and ideas!
very clear on what he wants.. even if he cant say, he will point to it and make sure he gets it !
This post sounds more like a rant than an update... Cant do much though... this is how he is at this stage!!!

Conversation !

We went out shopping last nite..On our way back, hubby decided he wanted to eat some spicy food and hence drove the car to the new Indian restaurant in our area.
It was past 9 pm and all of us were sleepy and Vk was quite tired and half asleep. Still was naughty trying to stand on the high-chair and was reaching for our food.
I am digressing..
Anyways halfway through our dinner Amma announces, I am going to ask these people if they want some one to do Dosas for them (this was a north indian restaurant which was quite big).
"I shall take a corner and just do dosas".. I start smiling as I always hear this from her.She has this great aspiration to do some business. Being a great cook, obviously Dosas seemed a viable option to her and she always keep telling me that I should open one and she can help me.
Below is our conversation after that

Me:nee nirutha maata ila ma !!(translated ..You will never stop isnt it...)
Amma: ila.. kandippa ethavathu pannanum ( No.. should definitely do something)
then looks at hubby and goes..
Amma: (hurriedly)..Yaarumae enna entertain pannala .. ilana na periya aala vandhurpen .. (No one entertained me .. otherwise I would have become a big Businesswoman)
Me(calmly):It is " No one encouraged you ma.."
Naanga unna romba naala entertain pannindu thaan irukom( We have been entertaining you ).. Appa for so long.. paati for 33 years and Vk for a year now.(by this time we were laughing loudly)
Amma : understood only after minute and then goes.. you know what I mean !!(Still with quite a serious look!)