Power of Vision - how 2018 was and how i hope 2019 could be

At the end of 2017, I was inspired to create a vision board for myself. I sought out inspiration and it was so close to home in Durgesh Nandini. I created my vision board and at the end of 2018 I saw my vision board and understood how much a clear vision for something helps allow you to focus towards it better.

There were many things that fell into place with a little more focus and patience. Some things didn't go close to getting done or even planning - for over five years I've wanted to see The Taj Mahal and I havent. I had it on my vision board for 2018 and it didn't happen, I will be putting it on my 2019 board as well. Most of the visions I had for 2018 have now become a part of life. Mentally, it has changed my thought process so much - or may be I'm just getting old.

While I envisioned my 2019 - I knew I wanted to change my food habits and include a lot of fruits. I wanted a menu set in place and a meal plan that made sure the three of us ate healthy and tasty. I started off early last year on prepping meals for the week. Although I couldn't stick to a menu on a weekly basis, I did cook all three meals till Swiggy made it's way into my life. Our relationship with Swiggy is super strict and she knows it - once a week only if we haven't eaten non veg anywhere outside the whole week. Swiggy understands.

Food prep is a fun thing I've been doing. Grocery would be bought - veggies washed and cut and put into boxes for salads or poriyal. Fruits washed and cut and put into ziplock bags for smoothies. Handbag salads would be emptied on days of work. It was such a fun routine to start with and now has become a habit. This year I plan on learning to make sauces and condiments at home - like peanut butter and Nutella. Healthier I'm guessing!

I did the occasional workout sessions but couldn't keep up with their time table because of lack of time. Netflix and Prime had me hooked. I know, but also, I did read a lot in 2018 so I'm kinda say we can catch up with workout refreshers in 2019. So, that's one that still needs work on - and stays on my board.

This year, I've decided to finally dust off the DSLR and shake up the hidden photographer in me and try taking more pictures again. I still do on my phone - but no Pixel can give that awesome look of holding a dslr and squinting for a lovely picture.

G man and I have decided to document all the books we read. Pictures, review and since my son can now write and give his opinion - he's going to review his books on paper while I review every book I read on my blog. Hoping to keep this alive forever!

Looking forward to keep 2019 a healthy and inspired year and hoping to make these little changes a part of life!

Lean on

I was watching my friend patiently answering her younger son. At the end of every answer he would say - why?

Amma, why didn't we come for class so many days?
Because we had winter holidays.
Why?
Because it was Christmas time.
Why?
Christmas time is when school gives us holidays to be with family.
Why?
Don't you want to be with family?
Why?

And after waiting for his response he knew his prank was understood and he smiled at us all and left the place. What a cutie. Why? Adorable little fellow. Why?

These boys all had Hot Wheels that they carried so they could play with them in the sand pit in the corner. To them the half hour before class was the time they could officially take out the Hot Wheels from their bags and act all cool about it cause it wasn't school and it was still the same bunch of friends.

After three years of this class, we we're closing in to the end of the coursenot- a small batch of mothers who had been there for each other through their kids birthday parties and picked up each other's kids from school when once couldn't make it. We had become close enough to be invited for family weddings and closer enough to rush to homes of one of us who had lost a family member.

Somewhere during the course of these three years, we had created a community of mothers who could laugh together and listen together. At the end of the day, it's your girls who get you - and when your girls have children the same age - Hallelujah!

Today was such a day where we had discussed our holidays and plans for the kids once this course was over. Some were taking kids swimming, some drawing, some skating and some straight home. We had seen each other's kids grow, shared paediatrician numbers, exchanged views on  everything under the sun and  pretty much heard each other out.

Support systems and morale blankets are those that we choose. Every mommy deserves a support system apart from family - to grow with.

A day in the life of Me.

A day in the life of Me. 
Wake, brush - jiggle wiggle.
Try opening my eyes with sleep stuck in the middle.
A steaming coffee, a slice of bread,
Oh, how I'd like to just snuggle back to bed. 
Hug, shake the little piece of my heart,
Always lie to him, that in his sleep he did fart. 
Hurried bath and hurried breakfast,
After which my eyes do get some rest. 
Oh no, wait! There's another boy to wake,
After our vows, his name I did take. 
Another coffee, a little meal idly,
Bid goodbye to the husband, by the doorknob that's fiddly. 
Devour the paper and Instagram,
Till I realise, there's work to do - let's scram. 
A quick bath and a scurry,
Off to meet the kids who are waiting for their story. 
Hugs and screams for stories to share,
When with these kids, there's nothing else to care. 
Bid goodbyes to the teenies after class,
Pick up the heartlet and head out at last. 
Extra class and sand play for evenings,
And then it's time for tea - Twinnings! 
Then it's the debate of whats for dinner,
The hubby or the sons choice - who's the winner?! Dinner's at eight,
Everyday a date. 
With a handsome little boy,
Who's so shy, he cannot be coy. 
Then comes the the days best,
Two little knees nudging into my chest,
Sleep comes with conditions - Kicks tosses and turns,
Bedlight has to be on even if ur eye burns. 
Try asking your child,
Everyday in their sleep,
Who's your favorite?
Daddy or me?
Ours says both in his stoned sleep,
No matter how annoying long our pranks we keep. 
Date number 2 is grown-up and subtle,
Till we hit the bed and cuddle. 
Wake, brush - jiggle wiggle. 
Wake, brush - jiggle wiggle. 
If you've read till the end, 
You should remember,
I'm doing stories in the form of poems,
With children in December. 
I'm trying to rhyme and at a loss of words,
I just realised I can now use the word 'turds'. #storypoems #dayinthelifeofmeLet's listen to your day in the form of a poem.

Little this, Lottle that.

With a bunch of friends sitting in a circle in a class we all chose to send our kids to - we were all yapping while we were on our phones. We had overpaid for an overrated class for our 6 year olds. We had 2 hours of time to kill and we chose to still stare at our phones while talking to each other. With kids going to different schools, Priyanka and Nick's wedding pictures and a bunch of other worldly things to chat about - we went from one random useless topic to another.

Just then, another common mommy friend had posted a picture of her baby from when he was 1 month old (she obviously waited a year cause if she posted it as soon as he was born, AYYYOO KANNU PATTRUM). The picture was this little button of a boy dressed with a crotchet hat and mittens and a diaper sitting in a wicker basket with a truck very tastefully placed near it - truck na boy aama. And of course, blue hat and mittens - so we know its a boy. The picture was captioned - 'I know a little boy. He stole my heart. He calls me mama.' I did melt for the picture and the others went 'Aww' but there was that sarcastic part of me kindled by Chandler Muriel Bing that just blurted out 'There is this thing. Its called a mobile phone. It has ruined my life.' The others went into boisterous laughter and silently liked the picture of the baby and laughed again. 

Have you ever experienced this awkward silence between two topics when a bunch of people are sitting together? Well - this was it. An engineer, a half-baked chartered accountant, an ex Infosys employee and me an ex-Googler - here we were after quitting our jobs wondering what topic to talk about while we knew in our heads we were just worried about what to make for the kids at home for dinner. It happens. Its happening everywhere. Our phones have taken over us, haven't they?

What was a remark that was true to its very sense was something we never think about let alone say out loud. What then happened was wonderful - we all went into a confession zone. Our guilty pleasures being Koffee With Karan but for serious times, we'd do re runs of FRIENDS and Game Of Thrones. One of us even liked comedy shows on Vijay Tv, cause you know - Ennama Ippadi Panreengaley Ma. Netflix, Prime & Hotstar had pretty much ruined it for many. With running around for the kids and putting their schedule before ours - I guess the little let out we had as mothers was this. Some chose the gym. Some chose movies. Some chose their girl gang. Some chose shopping. Some of us just chose to stay home and do this one our phones. That moment I took to asking my friends - if you had to explain yourself in one sentence, what would it be? 

'I'm a montessori mother of two who loves to cook and create cute clothes for my kids'.

'I'm a mother of a strong-willed boy who loves to scribble on my walls and i make art out of them.'

'I'm a crotchet mom with a cooking blog.'

As much as I would have loved to say the truth, I made it cute and sugar coated with and topped it with a red jujip and said, 'I'm a mother of a 6 yr old who hugs like a teddy and reads like a dinosaur.' 

Who was I kidding? And who was I to judge the girl who posted the picture of her little boy with a stolen phase from Pinterest? In my head, I clearly knew I was a housewife an online streaming addiction hook attached to my eyes. 

Towards the end of 2018, I had made amends - I didn't allow myself to use my phone until I was alone and was in need of timepass. I had read considerably very few books in 2018 - so I bucked up and finished Michelle Obama's Becoming. And what a book it was! (Will be another post altogether) I did what I always do, I decluttered. With a week of mind cleansing, singing out all the Varnams I had learned as a kid - I had finally realised how much could be done when the mobile phone wasn't around. 

2019 - Id like to mend the ways of how technology has me hooked. Little Netflix, Lottle Books. Little posting, Lottle Writing. Little Meat, Lottle Veg. Little Reacting, Lottle Responding.

Have you weighed out your Littles and your Lottles for this year?

Back to the grind

With the start of the academic year here, life is almost back to the grind. School is priority uno for both G boy and me. This year looks promising with him learning cursive writing and more in his second and third languages. For me, storytelling has taken it's roots after four years of toiling hard. Classes and workshops for parents and teachers have started this year. On my toes already! Let's hope for a good reach this year!

Wiggly Tooth Won't Go - Part 2

After a long day of trying to get Gnan to yank off the wiggly tooth, Mommy G was tired.

Lunch time went by. Tea time went by. Milk time went by. The grand finale of dinner happened and the dangly tooth got more dangly.. if that's even possible.

That's when Mommy G and Grandma G took things into their own hands. And by things, they mean G man. After putting him on their laps, one held him down and the other yanked off the dingly dangly tooth without any pain or blood but loads of tears.

What turned out to be a painless and useless tooth had caused a lot of worry in little G man for many days. He was smiling finally, toothless smiles of course!

Kids, worry is a small thing. Wait, adults and kids, worry is a small thing. Stop chewing it over and over in your head. It's all going to be a nothing at the end of it.

Wiggly Tooth Won't Go!

G man and his wiggly tooth

Gnan was beyond worried about his dangling tooth. For over two weeks it had been dangling by the root and giving him so much trouble while eating.

He wasn't able to bite into his favorite Nutella sandwich because when he did, it was there.

He wasn't able to clean the delicious pull off the ripe mango seed because when he did, it was there.

He wasn't able to brush his teeth properly because when he did, it was there.

G man got worried. He found a corner where he could try and wiggle his tooth off with his tongue.

For three days, he would eat minimal and would find a corner where no one disturbed him and try wiggling his tooth off but in vain.

Every night he would go to sleep praying that when he wakes, his tooth would have fallen off in the morning but in vain. His mommy suggested he wait till the day his tooth decided to fall off on it's own.

For two weeks, his wiggly tooth was so attached to him. G man and mommy G were anxious to get it to fall off but the tooth just won't go.

To be continued...