Secret Santa

It all started last week with a radio program. They had a piece on secret Santa. It was quite surprising to know that.... A good amount of people despised this idea. Buying gifts for people you do not know. And more importantly, ending up absolutely useless gifts because your secret Santa did not know what you are.

I had to smile at this. Basically, I was happy to know that I am was not the only one to dislike this game. Every holiday season, I have to rack my brains over the secret Santa they play at Kiddo's school. I personally do not like the idea of doing stuffs for the sake of doing it. And Secret Santa ends up being just that!!!

But then, this week.... Things took a complete U turn. Couple of my friends were playing this game in their various circles. And... Well their excitement levels... The amount of effort they have taken to find the appropriate gift... The surprise element... The happiness quotient that went into this picture... Well... That was simply amazing to watch....

Happy Holidays to Everyone
.... Mmmmmmuah!

PS.
If any one is planning to send me a secret gift... Please make sure its an house elf who can take care off all the boring stuffs at home with 0 input from me O:-)
Oh! Wait! That elf is called husband!
Erase! Erase!
There is no need of any secret gifts... I will pass this one for the peace I now have.
Phew!

Picture Courtesy : bourkegroup.com.au

Change in Worth

She1 {irritated at the herculean task}: He is not worth it!
She2 {equally irritated}: Exactly what I thought!

And the Shes go back to their life.

As an observer what interested me was.... The He had been a strong support to either of them during their worst. Even today, if there is a genuine need... I am sure he would still be there for them.

Okay...  Okay... I will leave some room for the obvious :-P

Chances as high that he would still be there for them.....

Yet... Today... When they speak of those light-hearted interactions... Neither wants to do it with Him. What changed?

Actually... More than the logical reasoning behind these whats & whys... When I look at it... It is interesting to see the varied parameters & their new forms. And to add to it... They are still changing... Lets see how they change further...

Errr... But... Soooo not worth the time... Even for a social scientist!!! :-D

Picture Courtesy : www.pinterest.com

The Script

Me : Buy me a drink!
He {sounding all clever & pleased}: Lime juice ok?
Me {smug & impatient} : Yeah! Just mix it with white rum or vodka
He {could feel his irritating mile long all the way here} : This conversation reminded me of a scene from Karthik calling Karthik
Me {with growing impatience} : Haven't watched the movie... So cannot relate

And he shares this link...

And I walk away with my free drink for sticking to the script without even knowing the script!! Not to mention the theartics!

Thank you MM!!! For that final nudge.... Mmmmuah!!

Mister!! Thanks for actually sponsoring this wonderful evening I had with myself!! I love youuuuuuuu :-* :-* :-* :-* 

They really know how to surprise us

The last weekend, a friend & I had put up a sale (eatables) at another friend's apartment. We were initially thinking of leaving the kids at home. But as the day neared, I was dreading the fact that I will not have Kiddo to support me. When she is there... I know she... Just completes that picture. I decided to take her with me. My friend still was unsure about bringing hers.

On the sale day, when my friend's younger child saw Kiddo all dressed up... Well... You very well know what the next scene would have been! She dresses up in record breaking time & joins us :-)

After reaching the venue, I give the kids a brief intro on how to keep an itemized sales record. Their only task... Keep track of the number of items sold. They did goof up initially... But since we had a slow start, I had enough time to correct it. But..... 

After the initial slow period... The rush just kicked in. We had a live counter too. As we got busy with the live counter... The kids just took charge! Cooking at the venue was taking a good amount of time & with multiple orders, we were getting busy... And yes... We were panicking as well... At least I was... & internally O:-) Moral of the story we were getting busy backstage. 

That was when these two 9yr olds took charge. They were all over the place. 

Taking orders

Serving the clients 

Updating the menu list as & when the items were completely sold out

Collecting money

Paying the balance (I strongly believe the adult customers helped the kids with this... And I am sure we did end up with some financial loss because of their calculations... Yea... Check their math scores in class!!) 

To the extend that they got frustrated with our pace & started making lemonades all by themselves & serving it!! 

There were instances where we had to check with the kids for the exact rate of the dishes... Why??? Of course we forgot in the "excitement"!! :-P 

And all throughout the evening I was completely awed! The kids were simply amazing.... The only instructions they were give was... Make a record of sales... But they figured out we were in need of extra set of hand & just stepped up. They were simply amazing.... Doing this event was an amazing experience for me. Watching the kids handle the rush was just... Amazing.... Not just as a parent... They did great that evening... And we had an amazing time watching these kids. 

:-) 

PS. 

I had an amazing time. For those who do not know me... Please don't waste our time by bringing in the financial aspects. Kids had a great time... We had a great time. Lets just leave it at it. 

The picture says it all....... :-)

Colors??

Some one shared this in our WhatsApp groups - The colors for Dussera!

What struck me was... This color scheme too starts with Red...

Red!

The color of the Root chakra... The muladhara... The foundation......... 

Disconnected Conversations

He : Your heart beats fiercely. Mine just ticks.
She : I have not gifts to offer such a wonder.
If you are hungry, I'll feed you.
If I am mad, you will tell me.
He : You are not mad.
She : You don't know all of me yet.
                                                                     From the movie - A Little Chaos

:-) 

Why?

Kiddo : Some times I feel Why are you my mother... Other times I feel... Only you can be my mother.













Picture Courtesy : www.pinterest.com

But you have wings......

“When she transformed into a butterfly, the caterpillars spoke not of her beauty, but of her weirdness. They wanted her to change back into what she always had been. But she had wings.”
― Dean Jackson

Picture Courtesy : angi_aquarius26

For you Big B!!

He : Come lets take a picture with the cycle. 

And all I could think of was about my big bro! He used to curse me whenever I missed my school bus. Well... that would mean he has to take me in his bicycle. And he despised that. As days went by, he had to take me around on his bicycle to many more places than school. 

This pic is just for you... 

PS. 

Thanks to my friend... I rode a bicycle after.... 2 decades???? Yes! Without any casualties... O:-) 

Wake up!!

There is nothing like waking up to a hot cup of tea in the morning!! That too on a lazy Saturday morning.... Even if that was just a pic a friend sends over whatsapp... 

Thank you dear..... :-) You made my weekend bearable.... xxxxxxx 

Wishing every one a great start to the week!! 

Mission Joblessness????

Yeah! It could be the monotony of the routine that made me do this. Thankfully she joined forces. Our mission??? Teach the third one all the malayalam starts starting with Atham & ending at Thiruvonam. This was my contribution.

MM... Yes! I know... you know... you & I both know... Now can you wipe off that irritating smile from your face? Okok... I shall parcel a Mmmuah... Can we now move on to the next topic? B-) 

Bedridden Gran

Kiddo {in her squeaky voice, with a touch of command in it}: Amma! Please don't the those grandmothers who are always in bed.
Me {succumbing to the noise & the aching body}: {Oh! Yea... I just didn't have the energy to respond}
Kiddo {continuing...} : Be a grandmother like Patti... You know Krishna's Patti? Be like her. FULL OF JOSH... Running around & taking care of her great granddaughter.

Aaaaaaaaaaa....
I need some rest!!!

Picture Courtesy : ladyinspain.com

No Change???????

He : I haven't yet met some one like you. You are indeed a specimen.

He & I were part of the team organizing an event in our apartment. We had to work closely for 4days. Nope! Not 4*24hrs types 4 days. The 1 or 2 hrs after our office hours types 4 days. End of the 2nd day... He passes this comment about me.

I probably would have heard this line for the first time... when??? 17yrs back? And I still managed to get that out of a well-traveled, well-read, well-what -nots 42yr old man!

Should I be happy or should i be concerned?????

Ya.. Ya.. Original piece!!! {Line from the movie Jab We Met}

Picture Courtesy : usatrancemovement.com

Nalini

Nalini is one of the leading female character from the movie Neena. I was an hr into the movie when I realize..... Nalini wears more of Setum Mundum (SM) than any other attire. And thats when it struck me...

For my mom generation.... SM is their comfort wear. Imagine... A long sweating tiring dusty day in the city... I (& my contemporaries) come back home, take a bath & slip into PJs. But for the mommy gen... it was SM.

Thanks to Nalini... I ended up buying one for home use & wore it
. Thankfully... Am not the only nutcase O:-)

Kiddo?? Her response??

I told her I am going to wear SM at home... Well... she reacted!! She is still working on convincing me to send the SM I bought to my mother. Why? Because SM is worn by grannies. I can sooo see the reason behind 100sareepact!!! 

Creative Lot!!!

Sssh! Let me write this down before I forget. I know I will have to come back to this page. I do not want to miss even an ounce of its essence...

So... What was this? Oooh! Yeaa....

So... There was this moment where I was panicking about the list of stuffs I have gotten myself into. I was just listing them. It spanned from the mid of July to mid of Sept. I have something or the other every single weekend. Every single one of them requiring a significant amount of my time & energy. That was when the insecurities started creeping in... Okay! Okay! Paranoia kicked in! Fine?

And I was pouring out... A few minutes latesr... I get this audio clip in my WhatsApp!!!

How did he achieve this in this short span??? Hmmmm... He had the original song playing from his laptop... & he recorded using WhatsApp's voice note... Yea... Easy peasy mixing!!!

I didn't even dare to ask him where he was at that point of time. The options I had was..... I am the only one to be blamed!! To make a completely sane & uptight man to do this in the middle of the day while he was preparing for his client meeting!!!

PS.
Yes... It did make me laugh out loud..... The song describes everything perfectly... Vattayipoyiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii..... :):):):):):):) 

Doubt Mariam!

This was the name given to Kiddo by her dance teacher... Why??? For asking so many questions!!

Well.... how much ever we try to console ourselves with the line 'Curiosity is good'... how much ever she uses Google... Her questions do get tiring after a point.

Yesterday, we went to watch a play. Kiddo was seated closer to the stage and I took my place towards the end of the room. The play was interactive... as long as these interactions stayed within the limits of script.

Well... What do I say... I could see that familiar hand shoot up every now & then... seeking her chance to ask her doubts. During the initial part of the play, the actor did give
her a chance to speak. Well... Yes! It was a question... That too well outside the scripts.

Have to admit... the actors handled it pretty well... :-)

Note to Self :
Make sure Kiddo doesn't take her title in the wrong manner.

Picture Courtesy : www.scientificamerican.com

Instructions for the....

... Continued

Kiddo : "Amma.... You should ask my children to bury me properly."
Me {After.... after what?}: What?
Kiddo {with the same innocence}: You should ask my children to bury me properly.
Me {Still confused}: But.... won't I die before you?
Kiddo : Yes...
Me {jabaa??} : Then... how can I tell your children about your burial?
Kiddo {now irritated at my ignorance} : Yes!! You will come in their dreams & tell them!

How stupid of me?!!?!?!?! How could I miss that?!!

Picture Courtesy : www.dreamstime.com

Lost

My My.... I couldn't have asked for more. I cannot even say you have exceeded my expectations. Why??? Because I didn't have any expectations.

All I have got to tell you is...
:-*
:-*
:-*
:-*
:-*
:-*
:-*
:-*
:-*
:-*
:-o
:->

I love youuuuuuuuu...

Oh! Btw... My dear... People have started adopting this picture. You did make quite an impact... B-)

Picture Courtesy : Picture of the girl is off the net. Editing is done by my friend. I was talking to him when this topic came up. And he comes up with this picture... :-) 

HowTo satisfy those TasteBuds???

She : We had Puttu & Kadala
Me : I too am thinking of making Puttu & Kadala
Kiddo : Yeeeey! Kadala.....
Kiddo {immediately the realization steps in} : Oooh.... But then it won't be like Achamma's (gran)
He {as Kiddo's excitement fizzles out} : So this is the problem every where. Why don't you all learn to do it like the parents??

My dear He... Remember the salt analysis we did as part of our schooling... Follow the steps & you will end up with a successful analysis. Well... cooking might seem like salt analysis to you... But then... Also remember that one should follow the heart while cooking.

Salt analysis says -  Fry the onions, then add tomatoes.
But then.... The heart goes behind all those nuances.... should the onions be lightly colored, golden brown, caramelized? Oh! Yea... The overly burnt!

My heart would beat for different things. Oh! Btw... Tastebuds does weird things to that silly thing called heart!!! Synchronization all these variables will take days of direct observation of all the elements involved.

OMG!!!

Well... as long as you are not poisoned... Thank the Lord that you are not poisoned & eat what has been served on your plate X-( :-P

PS.
Unless I am positively motivated, I surely am not going to invest all that time in observing & analyzing the elements... X-(

Picture Courtesy : truedemocracyparty.net

Instructions for the... what???

Scene 1
Kiddo was setting the bed for her sleep. That is... arranging her cuddle toys around her on the bed. She was talking her heart out... or was it nonsensical blabbering???? Anywayz, I decide to make efficient use of this time & step into the washroom brush my teeth. And out of the blue she goes...

"Amma.... You should ask my children to bury me properly."

No... words can do no justice to my expression!!!

Picture Courtesy : doityourselfparties.blogspot.in

Penguin

Kiddo {Drinking in every bit of what she was seeing}: Amma... Can you take a picture? With me in it?
Me : But... Its dark in here... Nothing will be seen... You know that even on a bright sunny day, the pictures clicked on this phone are not good enough
Kiddo {Turns back... watching them play again... and completely lost} : It is okay... I will know that it is me in there.

After I oblige, she turns back... spends some more time watching them... and finally when she is completely done... says... more to herself than me...
"I have nothing more............"

As a mother this was a special moment... Observing her... The moment Kiddo learnt that there are Penguins in the Sea Life, she wanted to watch them. I think the credit goes to the marine biologist she was talking to.... his excitement... Anywayz... That took us to the Penguins. And I could see Kiddo cutting herself off from everything that was happening around & just living her experience.

She was struggling to speak... Maybe she just didn't want to speak... As if, speaking would break the bond she had established there... She had that content look...

:-)

Now back to the reality... for the next time... Learn to be content with things that are not so expensive :-P But have to mention... That 77 GBP I spent on the entry tickets... Sooooo worth that 10mins of silence... ;-) hee hee... Mmmmmmmmuah! 

Classic Trick

He {My TTC instructor to Kiddo} : Who are you?
Kiddo {Shrugs & points to me}: Her daughter!
He {With his Krishna smile}: Is that your identity? Her daughter?

Of course!! I was wearing my evil grin.

This is the standard trick question. I am yet to find a person who answers this question with all the clarity.

But then.... Who am I?????????????????

Picture Courtesy : helpingotherstransform.com

Alicia Keys - Girl on Fire

Uff!! This song goes soooo well with the amazing climate we are having here...

You may read the lyrics from www.azlyrics.com

Dedicated to all the girls walking on fire all by themselves.... Hang in there girls!!!

How to Select

She {to a calmer Kiddo}: Who else will help her select a good friend? She is incapable of deciding what dress to wear all by herself. Have you seen the kind of dress she wears when you are not there to help her with? She cannot even pick the right pair of clothes. How is she going to decide on her friend? Do you think she can do it all by herself?
Kiddo {wiping away her tears}: No.
She : Exactly my point!

And... I go Pling!!!!! @@
Desp! Desp! Desp!

Picture Courtesy : blog.credit.com

Dedication...

I am dedicating this to you my dear... I still can see you debating with yourself while you were in office.... Mmmmmmmuah!
I... Love... Youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu

Thihahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

Yeah Babe!! I enjoyed every second of it!!!!

Picture Courtesy : plus.google.com

No Kind Ones

Kiddo : Maybe when you meet your friend
Me {still engrossed in whatever I was doing}: Which friend?
Kiddo {with a disappointed tone}: Uff! Oooh! Your Friend... The Treaty one!!
Me {LOL when I finally made the connection} : Kiddo... There are no treaty friend.
Kiddo : Yaa... Its only when you meet your friend
Me {After a long pause}: Why don't you search for one?
Kiddo {getting into her thinking mode}: But then... I should find someone who is not kind. Otherwise he will get scared when he watches you scolding me.

Me... Well... I still haven't recovered from this!! @@

Picture Courtesy : www.livescience.com

Choreographed?

He {voice high with excitement on the discovery}: Is it because of your nose ring that all of you have tilted your head in this direction?

Well... he did have a point... All three of had our head tilted in such a manner that our nose studs were visible... :D

Well.... we have been through the pain... Now... let there be some gain ;-)






Picture Courtesy : www.etsy.com

Anything but....

Calypso : Its me nature... Would you love me if I was anything but what I am? 

This is from the movie The Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. Since 2010 this line had been at the back of the mind. I just couldn't place it correctly.

I was sharing this with a friend & he goes... 

"How does one respond to such questions?" 

Well... Lets just hope that no one would have to face this question in real life... :-D 

Picture Courtesy : fashions-cloud.com

It is okay.......

"If you want to cry, cry... It is okay to cry"

People who doesn't have friends to whisper these beautiful words into your ears and actually sit through that process, goes to ashram & does it all by themselves.

Well at least thats what I take back after these 3 days. I can not be more thankful to the universe for having gifted me with my set
. I am equally happy that they have theirs. May Kiddo too be blessed with her personal set..............

Picture Courtesy : www.personal.psu.edu

Matilda

My dear Kiddo...... 

I know you were thrilled & excited after the show. While you were expressing this to her, she had asked you to Thank God for making this happen for you. 

There is one person I want you to Thank. If he hadn't sponsored your tickets... We would never have watched this Musical. Yes dear... There are people in this world who appreciates sparkling excited eyes. 

May your life be filled with such people... Mmmmmuah! 

:-) 

Note to all : 

This entire time... if there was anything I did because I wanted to do... It would be this... Watching a musical! Of course the decision on which musical was made keeping Kiddo in mind. Matilda was just perfect for her. 

Next.... The Phantom of the Opera. Of course! The one by Andrew Llyod Webber O:-) 

Holiday Avatar

Kiddo {Half way into her vacation with me}: This is not my Amma. Something has happened to my Amma. I feel like this is a different Amma. What happened to my old Amma?

Kiddo has never been with me during her vacations. I will be working the few holidays that she gets. This would be first time when both of us had a vacation together. And she was in for the shock of her life.... O:-)

Picture Courtesy : blog.connectfamily.in

Treaty

Treaty Continued...

She {in a matter of fact tone}: You know what my brother used to do before we left for our native during summer vacations?
Kiddo {teary eyed, but curious}: No
She {continuing in that tone}: He used to draw up a treaty. Our parents would get us 2 sets of toys so that we would not fight over toys once we are in our native. But, I am me. I would still play with his. He never liked that. So... Before we left... He used to draw a treaty... It used to list who all owned which all toys. He would also include a penalty.
Kiddo {
wiping her tears}: Penalty?
She : Yes... Penalty... If I played with his toy, I would have to do something for him in return. If I destroyed his toy, I will have to give him one of mine.
She {Pausing for a moment for Kiddo to consume it}: Shall we draw up a treaty? A treaty between you & your Amma?
Kiddo {without even hesitating}: Yes!

To Be Continued.... 

Hypnotize

Kiddo {to 6yr He}: No! Don't listen to her... Now she will start hypnotizing you!
He {absolutely clueless}: ?????
Me {again clueless... hypnotize????}: Whaat??????
Kiddo {her wicked smile appearing}: Yes! Hypnotize!
Kiddo {turning to He & explaining in her sing-song voice}: She will now hypnotize you with... "Chakkarayalle......"

:D
Well as long as people fall for it... I am good... O:-)
Oooo... I am feeling purely Evil... Thihahahahahahaha....

Picture Courtesy : musingsfrommylapore.blogspot.in

Hind Legs

She {during the tour of The National Stud, She was elaborating about the muscle groups that propel a horse}: Nobody would have researched on the muscular structure of the hind legs of any other living being as those on a horse.

My dear lady... All I can say at this point is...... You haven't yet met a mallu guy!!!!!

Grrrrrr!!!

Picture Courtesy : pandasweeps.com

Treaty

It says.... 

23-4-15

Thursday

Treaty between Nandana & Amma. 

1. Amma should never leave me alone after marriage 

2. Amma should never change her behaviour after marriage. 

3. Amma should spend quality time with me along with her new friend. 

4. I will call Amma's new friend "Uncle". 

5. Amma should give me importance in her new life as well. 

P.T.O

6. If Amma gets a new baby she should love me like before and I will also help her wherever possible. 

7. I should be the most important person at the marriage 

8. I will happily help her wherever she is stuck

9. I should be able to meet Achan more often. 

10. Amma's new friend should not mistreat me. 

Signed - Nandana Ajeesh & Amma 

*Written by Nandana during her vacation to UK (Josh's house). Nandana's age - 9yrs old. 

To Be Continued.... 

PS. 

Now some one please find me a 'new friend'!!! 

Missing Me??

Well... At least someone missed me!!! 

Phew!! 

London-Paris-New York

He {in his pensive mode}: London..... Paris New York

Me {(im)patiently waiting}: .........

He {all the bulbs are now ON}: You could do that!!! 

For the uninitiated... Thats the name of a movie. As always... he just used a movie to inspire me. May the universe make this thought of yours into reality. Mmmmmuah! 

Note to Self : 

Find a VC for Paris trip! ;-) 

O! Those Corns!!

He {to his She}: Here.. Pepper! You were the one who wanted pepper... Here! Take it! Keep it with you!

All of us exchange curious glances & then just burst out laughing.......

But then............. Amen! 

Starting Over

He {all smug... I was furious about missing out on some fun}: Who asked you to go? 

Me {double smug}: You!!!! 

Thihahahahahahahahaha.... 

Thank you for making sure that I understood nothing of your pep talk. Thank you for pushing me into it. Thanks to every single element in the universe... For making this happen for me... For Kiddo... 

What would have I done without you all in it... :-) :-* 

This is all what is left now. And I start all over again.... :-) 

:-)

Picture does speak 1000 words!! 

:-) 

Time Travel

3 letters

2 across oceans 

2 not into 'decorations' 

But every single response.... Worth every ounce of effort that went into this. 

Okay! Fine! The background story. 

Remember something called posts? The old ones? Post office? Posting letters? Ya..... This was exactly what I meant when I said... Time travel! The last time I wrote a letter would be when I was just out of school, before I got into my engineering college. Those days that was how we used to communicate with our dad - Write letters. 

Recently, kiddo came to me with her ink pen to write a note to her teacher. Well, I flicked it from her & wrote letters to my threes. All 3 were people I am in touch with every single day, if not every hour. What surprised me was... I still had something new to share. 

All I can hear is her laughter while she was going through her letter..... :-) 

Picture Courtesy : One of the 3... who is into 'decorations' clicks this picture... :-) 

My Saree Pact

Last night, a friend started a thread on 100SareePact. Lets not lie here. Saree is something that all in that group wear for functions. I am someone who doesn't hesitate in cutting out her Kanjeepuram Sarees and convert them into salwars or pudavas for kids. It was during our discussion that I realize.... The impact of my attitude towards Saree on my 9yr old daughter. She considers any Indian attire to be something that should be worn only if there is a family function or local festival. This was more evident while I listened to my daughter's response to my statement 'I am wearing a saree today!'. She asks, 'What is so special today?'. Saree is something to be worn on special occasions only... :-) 

I am not kidding myself or anyone by saying that you will see me draping saree a 100 times this year. But... Lets just start with one saree today. I do not have a story from the past to connect with this Saree. All I have is the saree story for today..... So... What was special today? 

A very close friend of mine is retiring. He bids Good Bye to the corporate world by the end of this month. He is a very close friend. We tease each other. We take care of each other. We argue with each other. We fight with each other. He is the enlighten one. He had been one of my strong pillars. And I am sure, he will continue to be one... :-) I have known him for 9 years. My daily office wear is jeans & T-shirt. Long long ago, he had mentioned in passing... When will I get to see you in a traditional wear. Today, we were giving him a farewell lunch. And I just knew... What I had to do to bring in that smile on both our faces.... 

So Typical!!!

I send this message to 5 people... Group consisting of both male & female

"I am bored... Please suggest something that would keep me engaged!"

I observed an interesting pattern here.....

Every single female entity replies with - Take my children!
And every single male entity replies with... Make a guess..... Links to porn sites!!!!

Men!!!!!
Grrrrrrrrrrrrr........

Picture Courtesy : www.patheos.com

Quit Assuming!

Picture Courtesy : quotes-lover.com