The Elusive September

It is September. The month that brings with it so many birthdays, celebrations and festivals in our family. The month that demands all our energy, attention and time. The month that we wait eagerly for a whole year and that which gets over in the blink of the eye. The month that also reminds me how thankful and grateful I should always strive to be. It kind of replenishes and energizes me for the next 11 months. 

It is like the start of the new year for me. I make resolutions, promises to myself and set small, tiny goals to go for. And I'm glad they have been helpful so far.

Our little girl is 9. I knew she was our greatest gift, but I could have never guessed how much of an impact a tiny, little being could make in our lives. It is very difficult to believe 9 years have quickly flown by, while we try to treasure as many moments and learn as many things as possible.

At times, she reminds us of our other family members, but she never lets us forget that she is just as unique too. The stubborn streak, the sheer determination, love and interest for people, the attention to detail, her story writing efforts, music, wild dance, quirky questions, her love for barbies, the color purple, beaches and books, her fear of flying bugs(yes, that includes butterflies too), her dislike for milk and upma - we have come to come to terms with most of them.

The girl was once scared of the electronic rocking horses in the mall. Then there was a phase when she wanted to ride on every one of them and we would whisk her away before  she could spot the next one. And now, she is just not interested in them and I'm not even sure when that happened.

It is fun to see her grow and to wait for what's in store next. Maybe she won't like purple next year! But I just hope and pray that she always carries a little bit of her childhood inside her :)

Happy birthday Adhya and thank you for every little thing that has been possible only because of you.

She is four!!!!

Our little one turned 4 last week :) 4 blissful years have passed by since one of our beautiful dreams have come true... and it still feels like a dream!

There have been so many changes in the past year.

She loves surprises, every day. And anything - big or small can surprise her. Right after school, she asks me, "Do you have a surprise for me??". And it can very well be a pack of juice, a lollipop(or jolly pop as she says) or a brand new teddy bear. Sparkly eyes , deep sigh and a dramatic jaw drop will always welcome the surprise. And we love that face of hers!

I wish and pray that she carries this trait with her, always. To look forward to something in day to day things in life, will make it even more beautiful.

We can also see inhibitions slowly creep in. She is cautious, reasoning and making choices. And to moms and dads who get frustrated and ask, do timeouts really work?, I would just say, "Hang in there :) It gets better! " ;)

I hope she had a fun 4th birthday - something that she will remember. Happy 4th birthday to the girl who loves monkeys, cats, cupcakes, purple, balloons and more!

 

For the love of balloons.....

23rd September, 2012

Birthdays remind you that time slips through your fingers so fast, even before you make plans of how to spend it!

The little one is already 3! She decided her cake, her purple dress, the pinata and had a long list of her friends to be invited to her party. The last year has been a very challenging one for her - new place, friends and experiences. She now knows when she is in trouble and when she can have her say. And not to forget preschool, which requires an altogether different post...maybe posts? And I'm proud that she has braved it all, far better than what I had hoped for. 

I also know that somehow I will still be treated to plenty of 'mom' moments for years to come. I don't think she can stop surprising us :) When the decorations began on Saturday evening, she came jumping and laughing to tell me that they are sticking alphabets in the wall, which is in fact was the 'Happy Birthday' banner. She was beyond words when she saw all the balloons in the morning. The moment she saw the cake, she didn't want anything else to eat and couldn't understand why we had to wait! She had a proud and stifled smile when she finally cut her long awaited Dora cake! And everything that followed was so quick. She was happy, cranky, running, crying and everything that you could hope for in an excited 3 year old in a midst of 2, 3 and 4 year olds. Our backyard was very colorful this afternoon. And the food was great with so many people helping out physically and virtually :) We did miss our families back home but never felt alone. We had an awesome group of friends come over and they definitely made it a memorable birthday for Adhya.

A big thank you to everyone who made the day even more colorful!

I cannot believe that she is 3. But I'm that way. I never believed that she was already born, already 1 or already 2. It will take time :) But to us, she will always remain the girl who can identify the color brown only as 'brown bear' color and not 'brown'! And the one who wants to hold 5 balloons at the same time!

Butterflies at home :)

A little more effort makes an occasion more colorful and memorable! Maybe you knew this already but I learnt it better on my daughter’s second birthday.

Till the last few days to her birthday, I was oscillating whether to have a theme around the birthday or not. The reasons were many, ‘she is too small to understand’, ‘there will be only a few guests’, ‘I don’t know if I can manage it’ and so many. But with 2 days to her birthday, a friendly nudge from Shobana made me go for it. And I’m glad I did it J

We decided on making it a Butterfly party. Butterflies are the recent craze of Adhya’s apart from Zoo Zoo. But butterflies seemed to open endless possibilities when it comes to decoration and proved relatively colorful. With bucket loads of suggestions and ideas from Shobana, the butterflies made their way into Adhya’s party.

Here are some of the pics from her birthday.

Chocolate butterflies on roses.... :P

I know with some more time, shopping and planning, it could have been even better. But nevertheless, I was happy because Adhya seemed excited with the cake, butterflies around the room and the balloons. And how wrong I was in thinking that she was too small to relate to a theme!

So here are some of my tips or should I say lesson’s learnt ;) that will help you with your kid’s birthday party at home:

• Choose a theme, simple yet something that your kid loves. However small your kid is, he or she will be able to understand it.                                                                                                            
• Talk to people who have already organized similar birthdays for ideas.
• Plan ahead of time and look carefully into all aspects. But be prepared for something to go wrong, it just happens.
• Shop from more than one place.
• Keep a checklist. Nothing to beat the good old paper and pen J
• Keep the paper plates, tissues, cups, candles, scissors, cake knife, return gifts, wash cloth and others handy or entrust them with a reliable person.
• Try to finish all the shopping part before the birthday, so that you can enjoy your kid’s birthday without being tired.
• Ho, and take a lot of photographs. However shaky they turn out, they are fun.

And this post wouldn’t be complete without thanking Shobana for all her ideas and help. Thank you Shobana J I can imagine how better she would have done it! And to those who didn’t know already, she and Sudha have come up with FunSquared to add color, life and fun to birthdays. Check them out at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Fun-Squared-Where-Every-Party-Is-Unique/207141172650020. Colorful, isn't it? 

Time does fly!

The fastest 12 months of my life has just sped by and Adhya is one. I’m already missing the tiny li’l one wrapped in a blanket and who just oohed and aahed to convey her needs. But its amazing to see what she is up to these days. My little colombus is exploring and learning new things. Though expected it still leaves us in awe most of the times. All the milestones were so awesome. The first smile, the first direct eye contact, shaking hands and legs, turning over, crawling on tummy, crawling on fours, sitting, standing and now walking n trying to run – all the transitions were amazing.

And suddenly now she is one year old. Have been conceptualizing her first birthday in my mind and talking about it since the beginning of my second trimester. Then I didn’t even know if it was going to be a boy or girl. Her first birthday turned out better than what we had expected.

The D Day: Wished her happy birthday at 12 though she was sleeping J and could hardly find any sleep for myself. The excitement was just too much. And in the morning, prepared all her things for the day before she woke up and made some payasam for her or should I say for us on her bday ;). And how did it turn out? Well that’s another story. It would suffice if I say that it did taste like payasam and she liked it. Yay!

She was dressed in a gaghra-choli which was very big for her. With 2 safety pins it was still loose on her. We then went to the temple and she was as usual folding her hands and praying with so much sincerity. But she didn’t like the garland that they made her wear. Came home and she slept off. We hoped to cut a cake at 11.20 am but she woke up only by one and she then cut her first cake. And she liked it too!

Couldn’t get her to sleep in the afternoon. L Was worried that she would become very cranky but later she slept in auto on the way to the hotel and for some more time in the hotel. She woke up and became happy on discovering balloons, her first time with balloons. They were so handful for her. She loved chasing them and was not scared even when they burst. She immediately went for the next one.

Somehow dressed her up though all she wanted to do was play with the balloons :)

She was ok with the cake and even let us give her the first bite. She also didn’t mind posing for the photos or trying to pick the tags from the gifts J but was very choosy about the people she went too. To sum it up, she was not very crankier and seemed to enjoy the day. She had all her favorite things in the hall – people she is familiar with, balloons, chairs and mirrors. And yes she ate a little food in between too. Such simple are a child’s needs. Wish we were all like them and wish I had her enthusiasm and energy. And I wish and pray that she remains the same.

And yes, to Shankar and me – it was our first party that we are throwing J We really enjoyed the planning, shopping, the numerous phone calls, mails etc etc. We are so happy that so many had actually made it and for all those wishes and greetings she received from people who couldn’t make it. Thanks to one and all!

Happy first birthday Adhya J

P. S. A mail from babycenter on Friday had the tag ‘Your toddler this week’ instead of the usual ‘Your baby this week’….. It just left me wondering ‘Why didn’t I notice this baby to toddler change? L ’