Why Did My Papa Stop Writing?

Why Did My Papa Stop Writing?- is a question to which I have no definitive answers. But that doesn't mean I should not try and find one and undo the wrong.

So what could be the possible reasons.......If he was too busy- Naaaahhhhh despite his frequent travels- or he lost interest in writing- again, I don't think so- or he was not at his cheerful best to be able to write- possibly so, or not at his feeling best- again a real possibility.....Whatever it was, fact remains that blame for not writing/irregular posting for many weeks and months lies squarely on him.

So many posts died inside the cobweb, that his head has become following his act of quitting his job to follow his passion. Issues, unfound answers to competing questions, commercial exigencies and constraints and lack of time has not only taken its toll on his ability to concentrate his mind but health as well; so much so that a daily ritual that used to bring him joy and happiness stopped doing so and the urge to write was not at all forthcoming- not anymore- as he set about writing this post on his own.

He got up at 5 in the morning after going to bed with contours of a possible post in his mind- much like past two years. Perhaps his decision to pick up 'reading- few days back- spurred him on; actually it did after he picked up his long forgotten book- “The Difficulty of Being Good: On the Subtle Art of Dharma.” It became too apparent to him that he need to live up to his "Dharma" and "Karma" towards me, of which maintaining and treasuring memories is an all important part.

On my part, despite my current over-dependence on my papa to log these posts, I too will ensure that it (my over-dependence) doesn't result in closing down of this blog. And then, I would long for the day when I will take this over from my papa and start maintaining it in my own words; until then, he has promised to keep it going for me. I am confident of him living upto his promise, especially because both my parents also see this blog as a real tribute to my birth and development. And, believe it or not, my papa also feels indebted to me (no no I mean this blog) as it has catapulted and inspired him to follow his passion.

So, what all he missed posting since writing his last post, here is the list

~ My birthday celebrations in Dehradun as I completed 2 years on 3rd November.
~ My Rudra bhai's injury to the middle finger of his left hand after it got crushed between the doors.......He had to undergo emergency plastic surgery on his hand......
~ Our visit to Dehradun for my birthday and Deepawali celebrations.
~ My daredevil act of playing with fire-crackers when my Rudra bhai refused to do so.

I am sure, he is going to write about them in his next post.

It feels good to complete 2 years, you know! It actually does!

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Yesterday I Went.....

......to my papa's old office, MPS Tech as he wanted to meet his friends there....As soon as he entered inside, he took me into the cabins of his waiting friends telling me to say hello to them..... He also showed me his cabin where he used to sit....I was visibly happy and did lot of running around......pushed chairs.....turned switches on and off and made faces to watching Satya uncle........I also made it a point to use their rest-room and left my diaper there as a momento.....For my papa, going to MPS offices is always a homecoming of sorts.....that was the office he had joined when he was about to tie the knot with my mother- April 4th was his joining date and May 5th was their marriage.....It was really nice to go back to a place which my papa feels as his own even after leaving it 2 years ago.

Well this visit to his old office was planned as part of my evening car rides.....I was insistent on being taken out in car and that's when he decided to take us there.....you know when inside a car, I always demand that steering be handed over in my hands.....I love moving it with my both hands imitating my father.....my Ashu chacha who introduced me to this feels that my hands have lot of power as he had to push little harder to break my grip from his steering.....and you know what surprises them most is my direction sense....so when they say left, I move it towards left and likewise with right side; ofcourse they don't let me do that in a moving car.....Another notable feature of my car-rides is my ability to identity the type of vehicles that pass by us......i can identify car, bus, truck, auto with complete perfetion but one that brings ear to ear smile on my face is always a "rickshaw"......you got to see my smile to believe it as soon as I spot a rickshaw....... "Ickshaw" with finger pointing in its direction....... My love for rickshaw goes beyond sighting them as I love rickshaw rides .....and always prefer it over car; no wonder my mom uses my preference effectively every morning to make me get down from car just as my papa gets ready to leave for his office....... Another feature of my car-rides is that I always demand to be breast fed if its dark outside...... and my papa knows the trick to dissuade me from doing so midway through the feeding session- all he has to do is to say, "look look...there is something outside"......to find me up next moment just to be able to see outside.......he never fails to manufactures a story to support his move......

Enough of my car rides and now let me tell you something that I did when I saw my father enter inside after his latest Dehradun visit. With a big smile on my face, I exclaimed in excitement-"aaaalllloooooottt aaaaa gayaaaa" meaning Alok has come and started running all over the house.....he had to run behind me to pick me up....I was giggling with excitement......few hugs and pecks later, I took him inside into the bedroom to show him my new possession- my new shades.......Using hand gestures, I prodded him into sitting besides me.....to show my books and new dresses........As he was running late for work, he stood up for a quick bath.....and I was not at all ready for that rudeness......cried so hard that he was left with no option but shelve his immediate plans........played with me for next thirty minutes......sought my permission; which wasn't hard to come by now as I was happy.....My wait for car ride began as soon as I saw papa pack his laptop.......Standing on the door, I waited for him......was the first one to step out followed by my Rudra bhai and papa......mom came in later........one round of park and I let him head to office, happily so!

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Back, Refreshed & Rejuvenated!

......... well not me, but my mom- I have still not reached that stage where I need these refreshing and rejuvenating trips to recharge my batteries; they are always in a super-charged stage.........only my Rudra bhai can match my excitement level!

We came back on Sunday after spending close to 10 days in Dehradun. My mom has joined her office from Monday; leaving me with my dadee who has to come to stay with us for a while to help me adjust to my mom’s absence during the daytime- so, my dadajee is alone in Dehradun these days……….

In Dehradun, I was at my walking & running best- my legs have actually undergone all sorts of stress tests- walking on sand, grass lawn, on the heap of brick pieces, concrete and marble floor……..ground etc etc…..and I have passed most of them with flying colors- not injuring once! And, all those tests were chosen by me only- I love walking is no secret!

We also had a great time celebrating Holi in our Dehradun home - a first time for me as I was in Gurgaon during Holi last year! I will write a separate post about that. Rather, I feel it would be better to write it in a chronicle fashion…….

27th February 2010- It was bright Saturday morning when we left Gurgaon for Dehradun……Ashu chacha was driving the car with me, Rudra bhai, Shikha chachee, Santoshi didi, mom & papa seated inside. We took Ganga Canal route and stopped thrice en-route to Dehradun- firstly for taking a stroll towards the canal banks…….my Rudra bhai was as scared as ever, but not me……always eager and ready to jump inside the canal but for those strong grips! I was not at all ready to come up to the road and had to be forcibly taken out of the canal…………
After we came up, we saw something that is the wonder of India-“It Can Happen Only In India” type……..around 175 people seated on a poor truck- hats off to Tatas whose machine can carry this work load and to all those people who are seated inside…….do not forget to notice the colors and the smiles on faces and also those people who are waiting for their turn to get inside the front-cabin!

Our next stop was at a roadside eatery for a quick luncheon meal! I found something to keep myself busy…..a herd of cows……the old man shepherding the herd didn’t forget to bless me…….. another wonder of India- to give blessings to even those who you don't know!

Our third stop was at a place where Indian Army’s armoured division- another wonder of India; was undergoing its training with big giant battle tanks……I loved that sight; in fact each one of us was in complete awe of those great men and the machines- giant tanks and their high decibel sounds was a treat to our ears and eyes …….we didn’t take the picture for security reasons!

Soon thereafter we reached Dehradun to a welcome by my dadajee and dadee…… To be continued in next post!

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Papa or Daddy Is Out......

....... and, Aaaa-loke is in! Well, that's how I call my papa. And, he is certainly enjoying his name change from Alok to Aaaa-loke.....

The other day, I was playing with my mom in the bedroom when door bell rang. I ran towards the door and found my papa standing outside........I instantly broke into a laughter (I always greet him that way as soon as he returns home from work) and tried to open the door; but it was locked from inside. So, I ran back towards the bedroom and standing right at the bedroom entrance, called for my mom's attention-"aaaaaaye"......."Aaaa-loke" while gesturing towards my waiting papa using my fingers......Mom understood that papa is standing at the door......and papa was left smiling at the door; completely refreshened!

As soon he entered in, he threw his laptop aside and embraced me.......I bet, that he couldn't have asked for any better welcome than that!

And, he managed to find a motivation to log posts again!

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Outing To The Park

For a change Sunday gone by was different for two reasons; firstly my papa didn’t go to Dehradun for his spot scouting trips (something he is doing regularly every weekend over past 4 months with just one exception) and then more importantly he took me and my Rudra bhai out to the neighbourhood park. We took some time to cut loose as the Gurgaon greens were all new to us- you know we are only used to concrete, asphalt and cement in this city........

Then, my father threw a football at us and it took us no time to discover those hidden Ronaldo and Pele inside us.....

Our dribbling and running skills were tested to the limit....

Rudra bhai did a Maradona (remember "Hand of God")on me

It didn’t matter if it was Greens or no Greens; you got to pick it

Time to catch our breath as got tired of running....

Phone rang and I took it over from my papa- talking to my dadee

I don’t like to do the slides, I love climbing them.......



Those three pictures of me trying to climb the slide from wrong side is one of many dare-devil acts I love to indulge in!

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My Birthday My Day....

Completely unaware of the significance of the day, I started on a usual note. But, I was the only one behaving in a usual way; everyone else was greeting me differently today. It all started with an early morning call at 12.15 am from Uganda- my Renu bua was on phone to greet me on my birthday; she was the first one to do so. Next morning, I found myself under a flurry of hugs, kisses, pecks and birthday greetings with my mom, papa, dada and dadee showering it all over me......... I was enjoying all the attention and love......

My dada instructed everyone to get ready as our priest was due to arrive early for my birthday prayers (pooja) - my dada and dadee organised it. I was the first one to get ready and got busy with my “picking and throwing” routine.
Soon, our priest arrived and started performing pooja (prayers).

I kept shifting between everyone’s lap seated with folded hands.......
My dadee offered sweets and pakoras to the Lord. It is a Garhwali tradition to cook pakoras made of daal (lentils) and offer them to the Lord during prayers and celebrations. As soon as prayers got over, we assembled for our breakfast of delicious pakoras and parathas .

My dada and dadee left for market soon thereafter to fetch my birthday cake and my gift- a nice pink coloured blanket. As my nana- nanee, mausa- mausee and mama-mamee were planning to come over in the evening, my dada and dadee came back early enough to make preparations for dinner. My papa got busy decorating the house with balloons while my dada, dadee and mom cooked dinner; obviously with assistance from Santoshi didi.

Later in the evening, I wore my new birthday dress that my mom and papa had bought a day before my birthday. My nana-nanee and others arrived on time for cutting of my birthday cake.......I was visibly excited standing in front of my birthday cake..........
My papa captured my cake cutting ceremony on his camera phone........you must watch out for the sight of me eating cake from knife itself......


It would have been nice to have my Rudra bhai and Ridhima didi by my side when I had cut that cake but they made up for that by wishing me on phone. You know both of them were holding their papa’s phones to join me for my cake cutting ceremony over phone- a technological gift.......I got some real gifts too as my nana-nanee gave me a pair of ear-rings while my mausa-mausee presented me a beautiful dancing doll.....

It was time to serve dinner as my papa was scheduled to catch his train to Delhi at 11pm. For a change, I also ate my dinner sitting on the dining chair instead of my usual chair.......sign that I have definitely grown up.......

Oh yes! My unit of measurement of age also changed from month to year........

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Erratic Postings- Explanations

My blog-posting has been erratic for some time now; and my papa is to be blamed for that. For past 3 months, he has been travelling to Dehradun every weekend. Ostensible aim of all these trips is to drive/walk through the dense jungles and rivers in the wilderness around Dehradun............. But, I am sure that he is upto something with Sandeep and Rakesh chacha- his other two partners in this effort. Let’s see what do they come up with.......I hope and pray that their hard work pays off...... soon! I will keep you posted of the same. For now, my contribution in their venture is limited to seeing him off every Saturday morning with a smile......... He says that I am doing a great job with that!

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A Perfect Start!

Time: 6.50 am
Date: 23rd September 2009

Lying by my papa, I broke into a laughter; loud enough to wake him up from his deep sleep........and, before he could even open his eyes, I started touching his face.....gently and softly with my tender hands...... "Pleasantly surprised" was the look on his face.......lifting me up in his arms, he kissed my forehead........and uttered "thank you beta" in an emotionally choked voice!

Yes! it's my papa's birthday today- his first one after my birth and he could not have asked for any better start than this- that's how he feels! And, this time he is right......

Happy birthday, papa!

Edited to add: I went back to sleep after wishing my papa!

Edited to add: Papa's Birthday Update My papa is richer by one more year and a new phone as well; Ashu chacha gifted him one on his birthday. It was my proud Rudra bhai who handed him his new phone saying- "Tau (Uncle in Hindi)- happy happy"..........

Sandeep chacha and Golee chachee brought him a delicious birthday cake; which he would cut with me and my Rudra bhai standing next to him......Later, we went out for dinner at I-Kay's , a fine dining restaurant at Mega Mall- Gurgaon........While they were eating their dinner, both me and my Rudra had fun........ total fun!

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Me & My Busy Papa

Being politically correct is the name of the modern game; hence this post coming right after this one on my mom. You know, I can't afford to antagonise either of my parents, and that explains my need to maintain a fine balance between them......

This post is my attempt to make my papa realise the importance of spending some quality time with me...... I know he is a busy man trying to focus his energies on building a credible future for me and our whole family. But, in that rush of madness; he is fast forgetting my need to spend and cherish precious moments with him......Still, nothing in my mind can lead me into believing that he is unaware of what his daughter demands from him........ Actually, he sees me demand this many times every day; and he never disappoints me........ Here are some instances:

~ My papa is preparing himself to tuck his shirt inside his pants; as soon as he starts, I know that soon will be his time to leave for work...... So, with an expression of love in my eyes, I extend my hands towards my papa. Lifting me up in his arms, he gives a peck on my cheeks followed by a big bear hug..........

~ Seated inside his car, my papa switches on his car ignition. As soon as car starts, my right hand goes up in the air; mom, who is holding me, tells me to say “bye” ..........and I wave back at him........obviously with a broad dimpled smile on my face......

~ Standing at the main door, he presses the door bell. First person to reach out to the main door is someone who is the youngest member of the house...Yes! I am talking about me. You should see me crawl at that time............. Holding the door firmly with my hand, I stand up on my feet and wait for Santoshi didi to open the door.......In enters papa and I demand to be lifted by him......He can’t refuse.......And, whenever he does, I know how to have him make up for his mistake in double quick time.

~ He is having his dinner; standing near his plate, I demand my share...... he hands me a small piece of chapatti and we both get busy with our dinner....

But, papa you must understand that this list is very small.....I don't like this situation; I want to expand on this list. I hope you know that only you can help me expand it........You need to spare more time for me from you busy schedule.......... And, I am not pleading before you; rather I am demanding something that is my right......... Note that no one can lay his/her claim on my time......... And, you don’t have any choice but to accept it!

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My First Rakhshabandhan

As mentioned in my previous post, we reached our Dehradun home at around 10.15 am; my dadee was waiting at the gate to receive us or should I say me! She took me inside while my dada took care of Rudra bhai.......My Renu bua gave me a bear hug; waiting next in line were my visiting Shivvi mamaji (papa’s maternal uncle) and my great grandmother (my dadee’s mother). Mamaji had come to visit my dadee for Rakshabandhan and also take my great grandmother along with him. They were supposed to leave early but decided to wait for us to arrive home; and left right afterwards.

After half an hour wait, my Renu bua directed her brothers to get ready for tying Rakhi on their wrists. And then came our turn......My Ridhima didi was visibly excited and so was my Rudra bhai while I was trying to make some sense of all the excitement. As soon as I figured it out, I too joined them........My papa managed to capture those moments in the following video......

I, being the youngest sister got the mandate to tie Rakhi on his wrist followed by my Ridhima didi.
Rudra bhai gave us a gold pendent each as our Rakhi gift, incidentally with same alphabet “R” inscribed in the middle. In order to maintain the parity, my Ashu chacha got one for him as well; and his too has “R” in the middle........By now you must have figured out the reasons for so many “R”s- Actually; our respective names begin with this alphabet only - Ridhima, Rudra and Reveda.

And that’s how I celebrated my first Rakhi festival with my family. Technically speaking, this was my second Rakhi festival; first one was mentioned here .......

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My Papa Is Not Well

....... and that explains my silence. His throat is too bad; but I am hopeful that he will be fine soon.....and will be able to resume blogging by tomorrow.....

Until then, you take good care of yourself!

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My Voice Is Back

Cool climate of Dehradun seems to have choked my blogging voice! Not that I have stopped creating any situations for him to write; rather he has developed some sort of antipathy towards his laptop. Even that anticipatory look of the laptop screen or an invitation by the soft keys of keyboard would not melt his heart; the stubborn man didn’t budge at all.

Anyways, I have no complaints as poor guy deserves a break; a much needed one after having seen him do all the running for past seven months. When in Delhi, his, is a picture of a reluctant man fighting his own instincts to continue doing what he is doing; a job in the corporate world with relative success. An eerie but deceptive calmness oozing from his face is good enough to hide an ongoing war within from others, but not me. And, I can’t help but wonder how much he could achieve if he starts to love what he is doing. Or, should I say that a much easier option for him would be to do what he loves to do-All successful people do that only. Having said that, a logical follow-on question to this advice would be as to how one find out that elusive love....... To which, I would answer-Don’t look “without”; search for one “within”. And, I can definitely help my papa do that. So here is a small piece of advice for him:

Papa- based on what I have observed in last seven months, I know that you thrive in an environment that you can call as your own..........Dehradun is one such environment; so your best option is to either create Dehradun at your place or make Dehradun your place....................either way you will win! Doing what you love doing is a sure shot way to success but then one thing that you need to keep in mind is that success is not a one-way street. Rather, it is a continuous journey wherein you need to strike and maintain a balance between key variables- Passion, Hard-work, Focus and Persistence. The moment you lose that equilibrium; waiting “failure” takes no time to strike and hit back..... .........Last but not the least, money can never be a scale to judge anyone’s success; the only undisputed barometer of success is happiness; inner and outer. And you must strive for that!

With this post, my brief hiatus from blogging has come to an end......My voice is back; and back with a message.........it’s not me, it’s the environment stupid!

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My Encounter With The White Tiger

..... ....will remain etched in my memory for long and this post will certainly help.
But what brought me face to face with the White tiger (real one and not Arwind Adiga's) is what this post is about.

The answer lies in somewhat weird choice to visit Delhi Zoo on a bright sunny Mother’s day Sunday afternoon. What led my papa to choose Delhi Zoo over various other options will remain a mystery to me. But, in the hindsight, we all now feel that it was the best choice on that day. Our entire family (my dada, dadee, papa, mummy, Ashu chacha, Shikha chachee and Rudra bhai) left for Zoo in a hired Toyota Innova. Much to our surprise, we found out the place full of people. Actually, to expect lesser people at a public place in a country of a billion plus population is akin to asking for the moon.

After buying the tickets, we hired an electric vehicle for touring inside the Zoo. It proved to be a smart move as soon thereafter hot sun gave way to the dark clouds and rain came pouring down along with the hailstorm. Nature again proved its might by replacing the simmering heat with cool breeze in no time.

Our vehicle tour of zoo ended near the cage of the White Tiger. Rains too had stopped by then and the tiger was also enjoying the weather. You know, tigers have such an imposing personality; no wonder their writ runs large over the jungle populace. But it is sad to know that despite its entire prowess, tigers are faced with the threat of extinction at the hands of human beings.......

After our brief encounter came to an end, we decided to head out of zoo; but not before clicking this pic; my papa is behind the camera!
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After our zoo visit, we decided to visit Dilli Haat , a place that carries a special place in the hearts of my parents. They first met each other at this place more than 6 years ago. In fact, my papa narrated the whole incident and also showed us the exact spot where he first saw my mom seated waiting for him- A nostalgic moment! We spent close to two hours at the place, everyone had their lunch (mine was meshed bananas) and we came back home; tired.

It was a perfectly enjoyable Sunday outing.....but choice of Delhi Zoo is still a mystery to me!

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Happy Marriage Anniversary

.....to my dear mummy and papa. You both have completed four years of your marriage today. I know that on this day of 2005 you tied your nuptial knot. Naturally, I wasn't present there on that day but I am with you today to celebrate your fourth anniversary along with my dada, dadee, chacha, chachee and Rudra bhai.

I am lovin' it. Let me document this special day for my reading in future....

My dada and dadee were the first ones to wish my parents followed by a sms message from my Renu bua. She had sent it last night but my papa managed to read it this morning only. I too woke up earlier than usual and wished them in my own way. I liked it when my dadee said- "Reveda-you would have been three today had you come out early." I told my dadee- "I agree but then my parents are to be blamed for that. Apparantely they were in no hurry to bring me into this world earlier than when I eventually did.

Later in the evening we all (my dada, dadee, mummy, papa, chacha, chachee, Rudra bhai, Anil mama and Shubham bhai) went our for dinner. Incidentally, it turned out to be my first restaurant outing as well.

Before I end this post, I again wish my parents on their Anniversary. This day is very special for me too as but for this day, I would not have been here.......at least by Indian standards!

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Creating Magic On Keyboard....

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45rtgfbv uhujng v,’ 45rtgfbv uhu ” ,/.
Iuhgetd .[scd[ vgrdbv



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6R36R321Q AZ 13qq1ZA

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...and that’s what I came up with in two shifts (gap of around 30 minutes)......completely unedited! If you are successful in decoding it, let my father also know.......

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My Annaprashan Ceremony

Day came and went but not before leaving memories that I am going to treasure for the rest of my life. The significance of this day began to sink in only after I wore my new dress that mom got stitched for the occasion. I was basking in the glory of that dress with happiness written all over my face.
As you know Annaprashan ceremony is about food, so my dadee first cooked the rice-pudding (kheer) for the prasad (first bite of solid food that I will eat once rituals are complete). After my dadee finished cooking kheer, my chachee took charge of kitchen for cooking the rest of the lunch.

The ceremony started at around 11.30 amidst chanting of sacred hymns followed by a Yajna or Havan . Here is the picture of Havan... It went on for 1 and half hours and I slept through it to wake up in time for my moment. As soon as I woke up, the priest placed a book (symbolising interest in learning), currency note (symbolising interest in accumulating wealth) and a pen (symbolising wisdom) in front of me. I chose book as well as pen leaving the currency note behind. Now, what does this signify; time alone will tell!

Soon afterwards, the priest asked my dadee to give me my first bite of solid foods. This is how the prasad plate was looking with kheer, puree (fried bread), choley and paneer (farmer’s cheese).

My dadee used a silver spoon (that she gifted me along with a silver glass for the occasion) to feed me the prasad. I would eat all the rice pudding off the spoon as soon as she brought it closer to my mouth. Here is the moment as captured by lens........ After this, it was my dada’s turn to give me the prasad followed by my nanee, mummy, Mamta mausi, Sunil mausa, chachee and papa. I was enjoying the taste as well as the attention that I was getting. This day will always remain special to me.

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Our Sunday Chef

They say that DHA (Docosahexaenoic acid) intake is good for the development of brain and eyes of a kid during their formative years. It is further believed that algae and fish are the best source of DHA. So, my father used to cook different types of fish for my mom when I was inside her womb; something, he hasn’t done that once since my birth. But, my mom can’t say that anymore as he decided to don the role of a chef again today; after a long time. What he cooked was grilled fish (of white Pomfret ) and Goan fish curry (of Salomon fish). Sandeep uncle and Pallavi aunty joined us for lunch and they enjoyed the taste (that's what they said). My mom is already fond of fish that my papa cooks for her. Cooking fish is always a nostalgic experience for my father, simply because it always reminds him of my Renu bua; she loves eating fish.

For now, I can't eat fish directly but then I am already eating it indirectly- through my mom’s feed. Needless to say that that was the basic motive behind the effort.......Thank you chef!

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Coffee & My Pram Ride

As mentioned earlier, my mom bought me a pram sometime back. And yesterday was the first occasion when she got an opportunity to fully test its utility. We were out Sunday evening; first went to Sandeep uncle and Pallavi aunt’s place followed by a visit to Mega Mall. Once inside the mall, I roamed around lying happily in my pram. Nothing could escape the attention of my eyes; they were busy transmitting all the happenings within the mall to my brain. My constant smile, laughter or giggle was a testimony of the fact that I was enjoying every moment; I didn’t cry once during that 4 hour outing.

Our unplanned visit to the mall left my papa poorer by few thousands rupees as mom decided to buy clothes- a pair of a white tee-shirt and blue denim for me, a dress for my Riya didi (my Mamta mausi’s daughter) on the occasion of her birthday, trousers for my Rudra bhai, pair of shirts for papa and a shirt for mom as well. As my shopping exhausted mom needed a coffee, so we went inside Cafe Coffee Day choosing to prefer it over Barista. Once inside the cafe, my “screaming out of excitement” riot started. The attendant thought that I am hungry and murmured something to this effect to my mom......to change his views later when he saw me- .”I think she is enjoying it” is what he said afterwards. Yes! I was. And soon, Mocha and Cappuccino gave way to me and I became the centre of excitement.Here is the picture from Cafe Coffee Day.
And yes! Happy Birthday Riya didi.

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Happy 5th Monthly Birthday

to me as I completed 5 months today. A brief of the month gone by:

1. Learnt to turn on my own; now they can't expect me to lay on bed on my back.....I turn, I raise my head with my entire weight on my stomach. I cry out of frustration when I am unable to move my hand stuck under my stomach but then I rejoice as soon as I manage to do that.

2. Learning to crawl- I pedal my legs and manages few inches of displacement from the original position to feel tired soon afterwards. Drooling off my mouth, I lay my head to rest for few moments and catch hold of my breath to start the process all over again; and continue it until I am completely exhausted. As a result, I manage to cover quite a distance- my achievement for the effort. With that, one more self learning exercise in my pursuit towards full scale crawling gets over......Next one will start at my will as per my convenience.

3. After they call my name, their wait for an eye contact with me equals the time that I take to be face to face with them........I follow their voice, move my neck to be able to look into their face and smile.....they forget whatever is worrying them.

4. As soon as I see my milk-bottle, I reach out for it; hold it to drink the milk off it. Not only this, I also reach out for the objects lying around me; if I manage to hold them, I rejoice in my achievement but if I am unsuccessful I cry zillions.

5. It is normal to see me use my fingers (or knuckles at times) in my fight against my hardened gums- all my fingers inside my mouth is a common sight these days.

6. I fully recognise my family members; but a stranger to me is bound to get a cold stare initially. And, when I see recognisable faces, my arms reach out for their embrace with a smile on my face.

7. I see off my papa every morning with a smile to return it again in the evening as soon as he is back.

8. When at my playful best, I often imitate the sounds that I hear.

9. I now have my own pram and a big green bath tub.

10. Last but not the least, my first hand to move is always the right one.....so unlike my father who is a natural lefthander. He still has hopes that I will be a lefty too.

All these achievements of mine were celebrated by cutting a cake. My mom ordered it and my Rudra bhai helped me slice it down the middle. The chocolate cake was surrounded by 6 jelly filled coloured candles. My mummy, papa, chacha, chachee, Tinku chacha and Rudra bhai were present there while my dada and dadee joined in over phone. My papa will upload the pictures later as he is unable to locate the chord.

As I said earlier, the beauty of time is that it just flies without anyone coming to know of it- it just occcured to me that winters are gone, so is spring and now blistering summers are knocking at the doors. And with those changes in the seasons, this small kid is now a 5 month old..

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Delayed Post

My busy papa couldn't log this post on yesterday as he arrived late from work. He told me that it is that time of the year when he is most busy......end of financial year.....I don't know much about all these things as of now but I will be an informed person in next couple of years...... By the time he turned up at around 11pm, I was already fast asleep. But he would wake me up from my sleep as he is kind of used to seeing me first the moment he enters inside the house.....surprisingly so I didn't make any hue and cry of his act of waking me up early.

I am now going to mention something that will embarass my father- his short temper. He tends to loose his cool on petty issue these days...even an unwanted phone-call by a telecaller is enough to make him loose his cool. Apparently he is feeling the heat of pressures at work or he is stressed ....or it is just weather; but something is bothering him. I know he is bit concerned about me as my mom has to join her office full time in a week's time. His disenchantment and disapproval of the backroom maneuverings in the corporate world too has something to do with it. Actually few days back his one time mentor and ex-boss left the company he started 4 years back as a result of dirty corporate feud. It is about time my father do something which makes him happy; perhaps work on his dream project- A Play School. I am gonna be his customer, mentor and a model too... So, relax papa and take it easy....

Last but not the least, I have completed 5 months today. Time just flies.........and it is flying every other moment. More about my 5th monthly birthday in few hours from now....

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