Tuesday 25 March 2014

THE Big ShiFt

So for all who still don't know.... (simply because Ive been too busy to tell you all plus my phone's been off for two days etc etc!!!!) my darling hubby has got a brand new job here in my favourite city... Bombay!!

Yes... we are back people!!!

It feels amazing.... I think we always knew we would come back, also I knew I wanted bumling's education to happen here... so at some point we would have to move back for that... anyhow here we are!!

Question is how is he taking it? not the hubby.... the hubby is super duper happy (see its exactly the kinda work he was looking for... the music industry!!) no no I meant the little baby boy.....

Lets see.. he loves being here and meeting his nani and mamu and mami... and all the various masis who come to pull on his cheeks!! (but haven't for a long long time now :(

But I think this time he felt a bit lonely... he started to miss a full house.. See back in jaipur we are seven family members, a full time servant, a part time servant and a dog.... so there is always some one or another...

Here suddenly one day Nani went off to jaipur (yes imagine the irony, she had an art fair happening there) and then Daddy went off for full days of work... and our everyday maid's son got sick... so its just him and me  and i think he got bored of me :(

Well more than getting bored of me, I think he just misses everyone else.

I can see it in his eyes... after a few hours of playing with me he'll go off to the other rooms, wait outside closed bathroom doors.... its heartbreaking :(

And he'll keep pointing to my mum's room or the kitchen and say "there there" and i''l take him there and he wont see anyone and he'll get all quiet. sheeeessshhh... at this age to be so full of emotions... I wouldn't have ever imagined...

Also its crazy to fill the day with activities for him.... BEcause he is now super active... he's constantly on the move... gets bored of things really fast...which mean every half an hour it has to be something new... and the heat of this mad summer thats dawning on us is driving him and me mad.

Our day starts at 8:00... luckily daddy is around till 9:45.... so while i'm getting his lunch and breakfast he chills with daddy. Once he's gone though immediately we have to have some toys ready... So we start with some color pens and some building blocks (which have this really annoying music) somedays he chills with me while i read my morning papers pointing at all the pretty actresses!!

Then we have our eggs.... after which we go for our shower because eggs equals a mess!! Somedays like today though he catches a short nap which gives me time to blog!!! His showers are a fun time... I have this small tub i fill and put some toys in and he loves it! His actual shower takes hardly ten minutes but thanks to the tub I can half an hour of the day filled....Usually post this shower he definitely goes to sleep for about forty minutes.

Once he's up I have to have some new thing ready for him... so i alternate between giving him some bowls and spoons, and his big jigsaw puzzle mat or his noisy truck.... if i'm in the kitchen he sits on the window platform and plays with all the utensils that are in the basket.... All activities are time based... I now know what activity gives me how much time to get something else done!

Its now lunch time.... another bane to my existence! What to cook!!! as bad as what to give him to play!! Daal chawal or roti and veggies or khichdi.... and then we play some more.... this is his only tv time in the day because hello I need to eat too...!

Luckily, maybe because of the heat, he catches an afternoon nap as well.... i try to get a shut eye too.... because by now i'm kinda exhausted...matching up to his energy levels its not easy...!!

Once the cook comes and goes... its the best part of both our days.... its off to the park... Its a really nice park, and its close by and the doc has recommended he get his bit of vitamin d from the good ol' sun! So with his shoes and mosquito patch on we get into an auto and go to the park.... He loves it there.... watching all the kids play.... playing with this ball i carry for him, somedays i put him on the slide and he goes nuts!!!! I carry some snack for him, a fruit or biscuits or a parantha...  we've even made a few friends there so its nice.... its a great outing...

We take a quick shower once we are back because I let him loose there... he crawls around, digs his tiny fingers into the mud.... So he needs a good clean up!!

This is the time he starts to miss people.... I think up until this time he is ok with just me... but post the park, he's done with me... He goes all around the house looking for someone... and when he realises there isn't anyone he gets a tad bit cranky...

I have to bring out the big guns now.... (mum stop reading here!!!!)

So I've started giving him a bowl of uncooked pulses to play with.... he loves the feeling of running his fingers thru them (don't you? I used to do it all the time when i went to grocery stores with my mum!!!) and I have even started teaching him to to sort the big ones and small ones into an ice tray... it doesn't always work... what does work is him pushing the grains under the sofa and me trying to retrieve them!!! I also give him some ice in a big parath (don't know the english word for it... the big steel thing we use to make our dough in!!!) he loves playing with ice!!

One time i gave him the red water I got after boiling a beetroot and a brush and paper... twenty minutes of messy heaven!!

So basically at this point he is allowed all things messy... its the only thing that helps!!!

we push and push thru the last hour till daddy is back.... 8:30 and ding dong bell!! yipee daddy is here... mommy can finally breathe again!!!

Poor daddy nobody cares that he may have had a long day at work.... siddy wants him because he's done with mommy and mommy wants him because she is done with siddy!! So he has no choice!!

Post Aadi being back its much easier... he reads his book to him, and plays with him while i get our dinner together... and by ten thirty we are all in bed... bumling isn't always up to sleeping by then... but I'm really trying to get the routine set... So its lights out, bottle of milk and knock out baby!!!

Because tomorrow we have to go thru it all over again!!






Monday 24 March 2014

TRavEl TipS....!

Things to remember during crazy travels like mine!!

Jaipur - Delhi - Amritsar - Delhi - Jaipur all in three days!!!

So bumling is still small, luckily I didn't need much to keep him entertained but here are some pointers nonetheless:

1. Dont worry if he doesn't eat. For each trip I carried daliya and aloo paranthas which he hardly ate. However, he loved eating fruits, bananas and apples and loved his cheese and drank lots of water and milk. I think so long as the baby is cheerful and happy let him be.... let him eat as much and drink as much ... because travelling could be a very different experience for him, so like Siddy whenever he is somewhere new or super exciting food becomes of less priority. But my rule is that if he isn't cranky and if he is taking in some amount of nourishment he is ok.

2. Be quick to understand if he is sleepy.... turn down the music ask everyone to quieten down and start your sleeping routine, be it singing lullabies or rocking him gently to sleep... What i realised with bumling is that he would be too excited to sleep but would also be too sleepy to stay awake and the fight he would have with himself was kinda funny but not really!! Kids are like that they don't want to miss out on the fun.... but you know if he doesn't sleep he'll just get cranky... So help him calm down and sleep.

3. Carry toys! always always carry toys.... some noisy ones, some soft ones... you'll need them all!!
But give them to him one by one... let him get completely bored of one before you give the other.... you need to keep them distracted for the span of the journey....Also give them empty bottles and newspapers (not for very long since the ink isn't good for them) and any other random thing you can find that can give you ten minutes of peace!!

4. Carry lots of hand Sanitizer! Especially if you have a train journey in your itinerary. My poor OCD Hubby went nuts cleaning Siddy's hands and face in the train! Can't wait for him to grow up and run around the train touching everything... then whats Aadi going to do!!!

5. Don't forget your basics... diapers, wipes, napkins, bibs, change of clothes, socks, shoes, basic meds you think he might need (like i always carry arnica a homeopathy medicine for when kids fall or get hurt it helps calm them down {please check with your doc don't go by what i say only!!})

6. If in a train or bus, walk with him... let him get out of his seat.... I realised since bumling had recently started cruising... he wasn't liking being in one space... So aadi kept taking him for these little walks where he would see everyone else in the train especially the other kids... he enjoyed that. And during th car ride, every time we stopped for food or chai and coffee we would let him stretch his chubby little legs as well...

7. Stay calm and Happy and automatically he will be calm and happy! Seriously, babies are super sensitive and intuitive to your emotions and state of mind. So if you get hassled and edgy he will get cranky and more cranky!!!

Chill, enjoy the trip, enjoy the journey... because it really isn't just about the destination you know... You can create some amazing memories about the travel itself!








Amritsar with the miracle baby!!

Life really does come full circle... And one such circle got completed at the beginning of the month when we took little bumble bee to the place where I knew the magic had started... The Golden Temple in Amritsar! 

Even today, more than a year later, I can remember that exact feeling I experienced when I was there in June 2012... Our family trip.. And when I sat behind the Guru Granth Sahib and I touched my belly and I knew that something magical had taken place.. 

Aadi and I always wanted to take siddy there before he turned a year old.. We were close .. It was a week later... But then since it coincided with Aadi's and my fifth wedding anniversary it was worth being a bit late!!! 

Yup five years of being married and ten of knowing and loving each other... This year is a milestone year!

So we decided to drive down to Delhi and catch a train to Amritsar the next day... Visit the temple and leave the same day by train again... And drive back to Jaipur the next day... That made it a three  day plan... Short and sweet!! 

Short yes.. Sweet... Hmmmmmm! 

And if it wasn't enough to be travelling with a one year old... We decided to take granny as well!!! We wanted to make this trip special where the great grandmum takes her great grandson to the temple! 

We left Jaipur around twelve thirty on the 28th... Luckily we had the driver so it was  comfortable. I had carried a parantha and some daliya for siddy... And granny had carried lots of fruits for him. We also had his nan pro powder at hand. 

You know he was surprisingly good for a one year old considering it took us about nine hours to reach Delhi...:( it was raining and was cold... And both Aadi and I were fully in cribbity crabbity moods .. But this one was good to go...

Sometimes in my arms and sometimes in granny's and he was happy! 

He ate all his meals and drank lots of water. We stopped twice to change his nappies.. Then to have coffee and once to visit the loo at the midway... Here I convinced Aadi to buy him a cheap toy!!!! It's a really cute Dino that moves on a key! 

Siddy loves it! 

In Delhi we stayed with a very close Aunt and uncle.. They were so happy to see bumble bee and he was super happy to finally be able to move around!!! Poor thing must have been so cramped in the car... He took it upon himself to inspect every corner of their house!!! 

The next day again i packed two paranthas and some daliya .. He refused to eat both... There was so much travelling that he didn't feel like eating.. So he has lots of cheese and milk.... I didn't stress him or myself because he seemed happy and cheerful all the way thru. 

The train journey he mainly slept, considering we had  a very early departure 5:00... But it was good because it got us to Amritsar by 1:30. 

The times he was awake we walked him up and down the train a bit so that he wouldn't feel cramped. There were other kids in the compartment and he enjoyed watching them all play!!! 

We touched Amritsar and it was all rush rush... Also because there was this strange rainfall happening :( I mean it's March for Godsake!! )

Well we got an auto .. Then took a cycle rickshaw all the way to the temple entrance.... On the way a man selling patkas gave siddy a lovely orange colored one which we made him wear. 

Ahhhh the Golden Temple.. It always gives me this sense of "ahhhhh"  It's just so majestic and beautiful ...and peaceful!

Because of the rains though the queue was crazy... We had to do something because we had a train back at 5:00... So granny the cutee went up to one of the guards and requested him to let us in... There was a bit of haggling and negotiating... They were allowing only one parent with the baby... but granny didn't give up and finally we got in... ! 

Because of the crowds Aadi had strapped Siddy onto him with our baby backpack.... and he and granny went into the main gurdwara with him.... i went on my own a little later since we had a big bag to protect...

While waiting for Aadi granny and bumling, I went to the exact spot i was sitting in last time when i knew that he was in my tummy... then i even knew it was going to be a boy!! It felt great... it felt like I could ask for anything here and it would come true!!!

Once we were done paying our thanks for the little bumbling we decided to rush out and eat because we had our train back to delhi at 5:00. So we ate at the first little dhaba just outside the temple.... You know everyone talks about this famous dhaba and that famous dhaba... but honestly I feel everyone in amritsar can make mind blowing kulchas and channas!!!  We had a great meal, I tried to feed Siddy his daliya but with no luck... I've come to realise that when lots is going on he is just not interested in food.... not a good thing but what can you do? So i gave him cheese in the auto ride to the station.

The train ride back was amazing... we had first class seats and trust me they are awesome... even better than a plane. The seat size the leg room and oh my God the food they keep serving!!! It was a shatabdi and they kept the food coming! The soup and breadsticks were delicious!

Bumling made friends with the guys sitting next to us, who were so fascinated by him that one of them gave him his spectacle case to throw... and throw he did... and he was so thrilled that no one was stopping him!!! Till i got really worried in case the damn specs broke... I doubt they would still be fascinated by him!! ha ha ha!!

We got to Delhi at 11:30 in the night..... it was an exhausting exhilarating trip to say the least... and the craziest part was we weren't done... we had to still get back home to jaipur the next day!

So more daliya and parantha and cheese packed and we were off to jaipur. The drive back was shorter and more fun... some how for the first time i was looking forward to getting back home putting the poor baby flat on his own bed. He'd been mainly sleeping sitting in my lap for most of the journey :(

We stopped at Haldirams for some mouth watering chole bhature and later for some coffee at cafe coffee day.

It was really a fun trip.... And to have granny with us made it super special.... She was so much help with Siddy.... chatting with him, feeding him, playing with him.... a few times he even knocked out in her lap...

And Siddy... man that kid is some kinda special... He was so calm all thru the trip... he howled only once... and that too because he saw his daddy standing outside the car and probably thought he wasn't coming back in!!! Boy how he cried and cried, Aadi had to actually sit with him after that and to make him feel like he wasn't going anywhere!! It was too cute!

But apart from that not one tantrum... and we were quick to understand when he was hungry when we was sleepy when he simply needed a change of person...!!

I think we will be going to amritsar once a year for sure...but we'll stay one night!! Its just such a beautiful place... and I want to take Siddy there at night, when its really calm and quiet and you can literally hear your own heartbeat!

Last time i heard two!!


Little rockstar saying good bye to everyone on the Jaipur Delhi Highway!!


Making faces at granny in the train to Amritsar..


At Amritsar station


Family Selfie!


Selfie in the auto!


My two favorite men!!



Monday 17 March 2014

Sleep.... I need my afternoon sleep.....!!

Have you ever been soooooo sleepy while the little one is sooooo wide awake? 

You're eye lids are so heavy that they keep shutting but he keeps pulling out one one toy from the basket.... 

All you want is ten minutes of quiet shut eye...all he does is play his blasted alligator piano ( who the hell bought him that toy?)

You try and try and try to keep one eye on him but next thing you know you slept for two minutes and when you open your eyes and he's at the other end of the bed... Threatening to jump off!

Once you're got him safely in the corner again you give him all his soft toys... And keep distracting him with them just so you can actually sleep for ten minutes... It seems to be working, he's distracted enough to not move around... You finally start to doze off... And yank... He's got a fistful of you hair and is tugging at it just because!!! 

So you decide he needs to sleep... You get his mulmul... Put him on the swing and start swinging real fast thinking that will make him knock out real fast... Not working so you sing... Two songs, three ... Five songs down you are getting sleepy hearing your own lullabies!!! 

You warm up his milk out him in bed and decide to feed him to sleep.. This has got to knock him out.... He's drinking but with eyes are wide open... Instead you're holding the bottle and next thing you know you've fallen asleep... 

You open your eyes suddenly and see him going for the switches..

Grab 

Pull

Great save!! 

But now you give up... Sleep is not happening... Come to terms with it... Because it's already five... Time to make his next meal.... 

Ahhhhhhh...... !!! 

Maybe tomorrow afternoon!!! 


Saturday 15 March 2014

My show monkey

I used to laugh, usually with embarrassment when I would see mothers tell their kids 'beta sing and show Aunty' or 'dance and show everyone' 

I mean the poor kid... ! 

But all our parents did that no? Put us up as the evening entertainment... Or basically just showed us off...

As most people my age I swore I would never do that to my kids....

Until my bumling started doing the cutest things on cue... 

One of Aadi's masi made that sound where you lightly beat your palm on your mouth (like the red Indians or Bengalis at weddings!) and he loved it.... Next thing you know he wants to do it all the time!!! 

Then we taught him to point at things... The fan, his papa his dadu his dadi.. Dadima, the hulk (Nitinbh!!!), Puran chacha... Mylo...

And we taught him how to bark!!!! So we'll say 'siddy what does Mylo do?' And he says 'bhau bhau!!' 

Granny and Ma taught him to do satsriakal every morning... So when they say satsriakal he puts his palm together!! And when they take him to the mandir he says 'baba' for 'babaji' 

Ma also taught him to give and to take... 

And when you ask him 'where you wanna go' he'll point in a direction and say 'dere!!' 

And we taught him to shake hands and give hi fives!!! 

And we've taught him to say bye bye and wave his chubby little hand.... Which he loves doing... So much so that even when he meets someone the first thing he'll say is bye bye!!! 

And very recently he started doing the cutest thing... So he puts his cheek on his shoulder and gives this super cute smile... Very like 'I'm so cute looks at me!!' So I started saying 'siddy I'm so cute' and he connected the two and started doing it on cue!!!! 

Now automatically when friends come or family I'll tell him 'siddy what does Mylo do?' And wait proudly for him to bark or say ' siddy I'm so cute' and watch how everyone coos around him!!! 

So is it because you think the sun shines from your kid... And expect everyone in the world to think so as well! Or is it because just seeing that tiny little thing respond and react to things makes you so happy that you want to share it with everyone in the world?! 

I think it's the second one.... Just seeing my little bumble bee do the cutest most adorable things it's so much fun and so so entertaining that yes I am totally going to show him off!!



Ps: my mum recently taught him to say flower which comes out more like 'fla va' I'm going to take a video and put it up soon!! 


Thursday 6 March 2014

Funny story!!

We get back from the doc and I'm telling everyone how bumling is doing good with his weight as height... 

And granny goes " height toh Kum hain beta... " (his height is less)

Me " nahin nahin doctor ne toh kaha ke bilkul thik hain" ( no no the doc says it absolutley fine) 

Granny.." Ek kaam karo isko na latkao!!"
(Do one thing ... Make him hang)

Me (shocked beyond words but still manage to say) " abhi toh ek saal ka hua hai... Kuch dus saal baad latkauingi"
(He's just turned one... Maybe in ten years I'll make him hang!!!!!!) 



 

The Mommy Baby Connect!!!

Sometimes I wish the bumling wasn't as connected to me as he is....

I wish that he would sleep just as quickly with his dad as he does with me...

I wish that he would eat his meals just as peacefully with his grandma as he does with me....

I wish that he would stop crying just as happily with his grand dad as he does with me...

Sometimes I wish that he would not find me in a room full of people and come charging for me in his walker while I'm trying to have an adult conversation with someone... Or jump all over me while I'm trying to watch tv... Or curl up and bury his head in my arms while I try to read my book...

Sometimes I wish I wasn't the only one in the world who can understand which cry he is crying ... Or exactly what toy or sound or song will make him stop.... 

And that 'sometimes' lasts exactly a second every week!!! 

It's only the days I'm terribly exhausted or sleepy or feeling a bit down... And even then, that feeling lasts for just a second

Because then he smiles and that makes me smile and I thank God from the deepest, most sacred place in me for letting me be that person whom he loves so much... 

Because even though it isn't easy (at all) living your life with someone being so dependant on you...with your every thought, your every plan having someone other than you being the center of it.. Even though it's THE most tiring and trying time of your life...

At the end of the day being a mommy is seriously the most fulfilling feeling ..... It gives you this sense of achievement that makes you feel complete and happy more than anything else ever could.

Seeing that little monkey's face light up when he sees you. watching him play with everyone, charming everyone… and knowing that you get to take home this amazing thing with you. its a high!!

Being a mom is a high!!!

And so I take back what I started this post with!

"Everyday I am soooo happy the bumling is as connected to me as he is!!!! "

I am happy he loves me putting him to sleep… I am happy he eats his meals the best with me and that when he cries, its me who know best how to make him smile his adorable smile again!!!