Happy New Year 2019

2018 was a year full of ups and downs: unexpected good news on the personal front ~May and some scary news on the professional front in August. I am not sure if I am glad the year is over but I am glad 2019 is here.

Happy New Year 2019 to all the folks who follow or read my blog or accidentally landed on this page. I hope 2019 brings you happiness, good health, prosperity, good friendships, a lot of warmth and love.

... Its a Boy!

We welcomed our second bundle of joy, a baby boy, on November 20th this year. All that I had forgotten or romanticized about newborns came back with full force! I kept yelling at the Arien "How could you not remind me about sleep-deprivation, horrid diet etc etc?" while the Arien ignored my complaints.

Some days are good;
Some days, I want to curl up and sleep and wake up on my own - not because a lil one is screaming; Some days, I want to cry.

I wish for additional energy, strength, patience to support both my bundles of joy and the Arien, of course :D 

New Record -- More posts in 2016

Spent the morning comparing posts published per year. I found to my surprise that I had published more blog posts this year in comparison to the number of posts in the last four years. Yeah!! And the month is not over yet :) 

Even if I do not publish any more posts, 2016 has been better than 2015, 2014, 2013, and 2012. That implies that I have not ignored my blog too much this year :D Happy!

    

Trip down memory lane -- old Hindi song

It took me a while to get an auto, today. I kept walking and waving my arm to stop an auto but most were occupied and some refused to go where I wanted them to. I was wondering if I was going to reach office after lunch when one auto driver stopped. After arguing about the fare (an usual occurrence), we set off. He was playing some Hindi songs on his player and just like that, I was transformed into a school girl.

One song, I could recall and almost sing along was "Hawa Hawa". It was not a favorite but I was surprised I could recall so much of that song. "Hawa hawa" was sung by Hasan Jehangir (a Pakistani pop singer) and was a popular number in the late eighties and early nineties. If you cannot recall the song, you can check this video which you maybe hard-pressed to remember:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgkPsgm_d5w

I struggled to remember the actor in the video. I still cannot recall who he is. All I remember is that this was a very popular song. I knew most of the lyrics which is very surprising :)

Maybe the singer's video will help, it didn't help me though: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35hA0E5Vm5k

23 Posts out of 31 -- Not bad

I wondered how long I would last - not bad, I managed 23 posts in October, including this one. I had two more posts planned but it just didn't happen. Better than last time when I took up this challenge. An improvement! Not bad at all.

2 weeks completed -- Yeah!

When the Arien suggested we watch Kabali - the Rajnikant movie, I wanted to say No but I actually said Yes. The movie was not bad but was far from good or great. I really do not have the heart or the mind to review the movie and so kindly adjust maadi. I cannot believe I actually sat through two sittings of that movie. 

The good news is that I completed two weeks of daily posts!! Yeah!! Calls for celebration but not of Kabali variety :(

All about Kuku -- Birthday Month Challenge

If you are suddenly wondering why this month's posts are mostly about Kuku, its because it is that month of the year. Yeah Yeah - you guessed it right! Kuku is turning 3 this year in a few days. We do not have anything major planned. His school celebrates birthdays in a very simple manner and I like that. Kuku has been singing "Happy birthday to youuuuu" for the past couple of days and so the Arien asked the teacher what is expected of us. The Arien wanted him to bunk school so we could take him out. I do not want him to miss the school celebration. So, we are actually sending him to school on his birthday. 

Wordless Wednesdays -- Kuku at the Gopalan Mall

Fun Day at the Mall

Where did June, July, and most of August go?

June was busy to say the least. One significant happening was that Kuku started Play School. While I was heaving a huge sigh of relief on one side, I was also all senti and ready to cry when he was all dressed to go. The first day was a dream. Apparently, he did not cry at all after the initial shock when he realized we were not coming in with him. The teachers were so full of praise about his stoic persona that I could not believe my luck. Well, it lasted all of 1 day :D

That is a snap of him on his first day at play school before he walked in. Before the drama, I would have to say.

June was spent in tears, emotional hugs, falling sick, all achieved with a rapid frequency hitherto unheard of.

July, I started to slowly get back to a routine and was in office 4 days a week. This proved to be too much for Kuku. He looked at both actions as punishments - he was being banished to playschool and I was not at home when he came back.

So, July, was also spent in tears, and you know the rest.  To say that those two months were extremely stressful for all of us would be an understatement. I wondered if I should quit. I also wondered if Kuku should be removed from the current playschool. I knew that Kuku moving to a new school was going to be nerve-wracking for both of us- worse than the current one. I was not sure if my quitting would really change things for all of us. The Jury is still out on that though!

August was better than June and July. Kuku kinda settled - not great but better than before. According to his teachers, he participates in most of the activities.

That is a picture of him on blue day playing with a blue ball :)

He still cries unpredictably and throws tantrums left, right, and center. He is also into behaving quite irrationally - I know, I know - He is a baby. There are days when I really doubt it :P There are days when I want to lie down flat and kick my feet in the air shrieking like a banshee whenever things do not go exactly as I want them to :)

Anyway, now I am back. Hopefully, I may manage one more post before August is done! Well, that is hoping for a lot :)

Wordless Wednesdays -- 300 Posts -- New Milestone -- Yeah!

Image Courtesy: www.z90.com

Chop Chop Chop -- Snipe Snipe Snipe

Anyone who knows me, knows that I do not experiment with my hair - at all. So, when I uploaded my new look on social media - I knew everyone would be quite surprised. At that time, I wondered how long I would be able to maintain the same.

Well, not as long as I hoped... While I liked my previous  look, it was too much of a hassle and the length was totally in the way. In April, things just got out of hand with Kuku acting out, the weather which made me wonder why I did not chop off my hair, office stress, general irritation etc. So, I chopped off my hair in April. I did not go back to my old hairstyle but now have shoulder length hair. I like a no-fuss, easy hairdo for myself.

Now, I have hair that is easier to manage while not as long - Some folks did not like this look much - but, it is easy maintenance and so I am def happy :)

Eureka!!

So, the other day I was cribbing to the Arien about how the number of blog posts per year seems to be going down steadily in my blog. In fact, I mentioned that it may reach zero soon. I must have sounded really upset because the Arien offered to share his pics and play the role of a guest blogger in times of need.

Yesterday, I shared one of his latest pictures for my Wordless Wednesdays post. The pics I share are usually always taken by him and so its not such a big deal but still -  that was enough to make me go - Eureka!!! At least, my blog will not be starved of posts in the eventuality that I (in spite of resolutions) forget to write/post.

Oh and Happy Sankranthi - Happy Pongal Folks! Have a nice one :)

17 out of 31 -- Not bad -- XVIII

Well, well, well.... Ok, so I could not post everyday but 17 is not too bad. In fact, as far as I know, its my highest number of posts in a month. A new record, if you really think 'bout it- Yeah!! Time for the Bing Dance :D

Well, I am glad I tried. It makes me believe in myself.

Now, I should really set realistic targets and work towards them. Starting off with daily posts for 1 month may have been a bit unrealistic considering I had not blogged in almost a year. But, 17 is not too bad. Am I saying that too much?? Hmmm..

It could have been better but who am I kidding - I am so glad I got 17 at least :D

I have a new plan for November. Fingers crossed. You'll hear from me soon. Tada!

Double Birthday Celebrations -- Kuku's Birthday - XVI

Because of a number of reasons, Kuku ended up having two celebrations for his first birthday. One reason is that he shares his birthday with his oldest cousin on his dad's side and so we had a joint big dinner celebration on the 17th. Kuku, officially, not allowed to eat cake, threw a tantrum as he watched the cake make the rounds and soon insisted on eating a bit from everyone. When everyone settled down to eat dinner and he had to have his Ragi, he threw his second tantrum and spat out the Ragi on me. Again, insisted on eating from everyone, while I stared aghast :(

The second celebration was a lunch celebration on the 18th and cake had been ordered on this day as well. As usual, he tasted as much of cake as possible. He tried and tasted most of the dishes we had all ordered and generally had a great time. I was a little worried about his digestion but he threw such awful tantrums when I tried to stop him that I knew I was fighting a losing battle.

This is a new him, I notice. Earlier, he would eat anything offered, occasionally scrunching up his eyes or crying to indicate displeasure but eating it all the same. Now, its like 'NO' without actually saying anything and totally and completely refusing to eat whatever given. Its like he will choose what he will eat and it better be what we are eating and not his usual stuff :( 

Completed one week -- Yeah! -- IX

It was not so long ago that I mentioned I was feeling all gloomy gus and ready to curl up and die because I had ignored my blog. Well, that cute dog sums up exactly how I felt.

Image Courtesy: http://flyingpistachios.com/page/2/

 And while I was wondering what I would post today, I realized that today, I complete 1 week of my four week challenge. Not bad for a person who has gone weeks and months without even thinking about her blog.

So, in celebration, I took to doing a bing dance :D

Of course, by the time I managed to post it, Kuku had disturbed me thrice and it was nearing 12 at night.

But, 1 week - Yeah!!

Image Courtesy: http://lastocean.wordpress.com/2011/07/18/the-real-happy-feet/

Did you take up some challenge and feel awesome because you completed a lil portion of it? Share your thoughts!

Wordless Wednesdays - 5 Year completion bouquet from my org

... It's a Boy!

We welcomed our bundle of joy, a baby boy, on October 17th this year. Life as we knew it, does not exist anymore. Sleep-deprivation is the order of the day. TV, books, newspaper, and other forms of entertainment have been pushed so far that they barely exist for us. Food, the stuff I like, has been removed from my diet. The Arien, at least, gets to enjoy food from outside. Are we complaining? Yeah... But, would we wish it otherwise - NO WAY!

To new learnings, new beginnings, and an exciting experience.

The Arien is Back!

Yes.. the Arien has relocated back to Bangalore. After an amazing amount of weekend travel between Hyderabad and Bangalore and continuous cribbing about how much he misses Bangalore (not me, mind you!), the Arien had his first big real smile as he called me on Skype and informed me of his imminent move, a while ago.

Me? I had a goofy grin pasted on my face for a loong time. In fact, I did not pick a fight with him for quite some time and refused to disagree with any of his plans (however much I secretly disagreed with them). After he came back, the niceness got a bit boring and I went back to my usual self :D

Ohh.. and before I forget: This is my 251st post on blogger :D Cheers to me!!

Wordless Wednesdays -- Dessert fit for a Queen -- Yumm!

Laser Tagging and Sahib Sindh Sultan -- Adrenalin Rush and Yumm

Thursday evening saw us at I am Game, Koramangala, waiting to check out Laser Tagging. Apparently, it is a big hit in the US but none of us had heard of it here. We were 9 of us and only the bride and the groom had played the game before. However, that was not a cause for concern, because the enthusiasm level of all 9 members was quite high. In few minutes, we figured out that Laser Tagging was more like Paint ball but with laser guns instead of paint guns. Obviously, chances of getting hurt were minimal as long as we followed the instructions.

The first step was collecting our tags and figuring out who was in which team. I knew I was more of a liability and told my team that I would go hide rather than hunt the opponents down. Everyone first groaned and then agreed! We were then asked to go upstairs to put on our jackets and arm ourselves with the laser gun. 

The moment we entered the room, we were overwhelmed by the strong smell of unwashed jackets. When we realized that we would be wearing the same jackets, the capri cousin mentioned committing suicide with his laser gun!! Anyway, we got past that because we really wanted to play the game. Because most of us had not played the game, the person-in-charge showed us a video of the game and explained the various instructions - including telling us that we could not commit suicide (i.e shoot ourselves with the laser gun), or hit the opponent with the wrong end of the laser gun, or generally harm the opponent. Also, after we were shot, the jacket vibrates and your jacket and gun deactivate for a short period of 5 seconds. He asked us to get moving as soon as that happens so the opponent does not shoot us again. The person-in-charge also mentioned that the place was built like a maze with pillars and if we bumped into the pillar, it was bound to hurt. He also showed us the 6 target areas that each jacket had, which could be shot at. There were 4 in front and 2 in the back. Also, each team had a base station that could be shot at for maximum points. The base station could also shoot back. After the instructions, the jackets and guns were activated and we entered the arena like gladiators (I can dream, can't I?). 

And before we knew it, all of us were running helter skelter, hiding, and shooting at each other crazily! We initially thought 10 minutes was a long time, but we never realized it as we ran around the maze and shooting at our opponents. When the time was up, we realized that most of us were sweating profusely from all the exertion. The others had settled themselves in front of the base station and shot at it continuously, gaining points. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the game.

We decided to visit Fun Games at Forum so my niece could have some additional fun. While the capri cousin was playing with his daughter, all of us sneaked off to have some snacks at the Transit Lounge. After the game, all of us were ravenous. No one overdid the snacks because we wanted to have a nice dinner as well. We decided to go to Sahib Sindh Sultan and had a yummy dinner. The bride wanted to be seated in the coach but it was full up and so we sat outside - another cousin joined us and we had a lot of fun teasing the bride and groom, sharing anecdotes of the past, and of course, eating. A nice evening - Good Times!