Happy (1st) Birthday !!

29th October, 2008 - Finally, D-Day arrived !! Having slept early last night meant that I was up early the next morning. I was greeted to gentle hugs, loads of kisses & 'Happy Birthday' wishes from Daddy, Mamma, Grandma, Grandpa & Bhua. One year completed on Planet Earth, Yippee !!

Looking at the glint in there eyes, I could make out that it was a different day, perhaps very special for them. Daddy took the day off from office while Mamma decided to go to college for an hour, wrap up the important work & join Daddy in preparing for the celebrations.

That's me on 29th morning enjoying some sweets & teasing Daddy :P



Bhua & Isha Didi were to arrive in a few hours from Bikaner so everyone including me was eagerly awaiting for them to arrive. Daddy & Mamma took me to a nearby temple to seek God's blessings. Soon, Isha didi arrived and I had a great time playing with her. Daddy & Mamma visited Hotel Rockland a couple of times during the day to see that the decoration & food preparation is going on well. I slept a couple of hours in the afternoon as it was going to be a late night today. Time flew and soon we were getting ready for the birthday bash.

Grandma dressed me up in a stunning red lehenga which she had gifted me for my birthday. Mamma said to Daddy that I was looking so cute so she would put an additional kaala tikka (besides the one daily dose, yawn !!) on my forehead. If Mamma were to have her ways, I would probably have atleast 4-5 kaala tikkas all over my forehead & she would shoot all buri nazar waalas on planet earth. As usual the picture below shows me bemused (& confused) about the fuss over kaala tikka :-




All of us reached the venue by 6:45 PM and it loooked very beautiful under lights. Since there was still some time for the guests to arrive, Daddy went on to get the cake and take care of last few pending details while I enjoyed some cool photo sessions.










The whole place was covered with lights & baloons. I did manage to grab one. That's me blushing behind the baloon as Mamma took another pic of mine.



















That's Isha Didi, looking cute as ever ! For an 8 year old child, she's remarkably mature & has a great sense of understanding. Daddy often says to Mamma that when I grow up, I should be like her. Daddy, I've noted that down and will add it to your list of expectations (I'm an year old & the list already has 50 odd items, Dear God, save me from the cruel expectations of my loving parents !!!)















The cute yummy cake has arrived !! Mamma, can't I have a bite now and we can cut the rest later when all guests have arrived ? :-P



By 9 PM, almost everybody we'd invited had turned up. The guests included close relatives, neighbours, Daddy's childhood friends and their families, his office colleagues and Mamma's college colleagues. I was having a gala time with so many small kids around:-

Eshika - She's 3 months younger to me, a neighbour and a very good friend of mine.
Jasman - Although she's 3 years old, I love playing with her almost every evening. She's a neighbour and often drops by at home to play with me.
Satvik - My younger cousin brother, he's 3 months younger to me.
Jiya - She's born on 19th October so we are of the same age. Her delayed birthday bash is due in a few days from now. I'm glad that Ill get to see her soon again!
Krishna - He's 2 years old and I had good fun playing with him.

Soon after, it was time to cut the cake. It was yummy and I'm glad that everybody gave me a slice !! Pity I could'nt have the whole of it :P



While I was playing with kids, Daddy & Mamma looked after the guests. Dinner was served around 9:30 PM in a typical Punjabi fashion and by 11 PM, most of the guests had left (with a few extra pounds). While most of the family members were having dinner, I and Isha Didi took stock of the gifts I had received.

We reached back home by 11:30 PM and unpacked the wonderful gifts that I had received. I was very excited, jumping up and down with joy with no intentions of sleeping for the next few hours :P The gifts includes some really nice dresses, a couple of picture books and lots of cute toys. I & Isha Didi danced on a few songs that I'm realy fond of. Everybody was tired after two hectic days of celebration so we decided to call it a day & dozed off to sleep by 12:30. It was impossible for Daddy to believe that less than 48 hours ago, I was down with fever, in terrible pain & barely able to manage a smile.

Daddy says it's a night that he'll remember for the rest of his life !! He & Mamma had worked hard to make my birthday bash a memorable event and I'm sure these sweet memories will last forever !!

As expected of him, Daddy's overworked brain(yawn) has already set the clock ticking for my next birthday !!

Diwali 2008 !

28th October, 2008 - The last three weeks have passed with the blink of an eye as Mamma & Daddy have been busy preparing for my birthday. The invitations have been sent out and every minute detail settled, now waiting for my birthday bash to happen the next evening !

Diwali is the festival of lights and joy but 28th October morning didn't exactly bring any joy to my family, instead it left them scared and very concerned about my health. I had light fever and was on homeopathic medication since last 2 days, the medication seemed to be taking effect slowly. The body temperature would rise to 101 degrees and then back to normal in every few hours. As soon as the temperature dropped to normal, the brat in me took over to new mischievous activities which made Mamma & Daddy believe that I was just fine :P

Rewinding the memories back to 27th October night, I was not exactly in great health for my first birthday celebrations but the family members were in great spirits - Diwali & my birthday on consecutive days, it doesn't get any better than this. This was until about 11 PM in the night, when I started vomiting. The body temperature rose to as high as 103 degrees, leaving Mamma in tears. Daddy gave me regular medication to keep the fever in check but I would just throw up every 15 minutes. Since it was very late in the night, they thought it would be more appropriate to wait till the morning and take me to our regular pediatrician Dr. Bhasin. As it turned out, this wasn't the smartest decision they ever took. I could barely sleep a minute and I don't remember a night where I've cried more than on this unforgettable night!

3 AM in the morning and Daddy had no choice but to take me to the hospital. The doctor gave me some medicines & I fell asleep (much to the relief of Daddy, Mamma & Grandma) shortly thereafter. I woke up at 8 AM feeling no better than I did the previous night so Daddy took me to Dr. Bhasin.



At his clinic, Mamma just couldn't stop her tears telling him that my birthday party was due in next 36 hours. He assured Mamma & Daddy that I would be fine by evening and that they shouldn't forget to invite him to my birthday bash :P

He gave me some medicines which allowed me to get some more sleep for the next couple of hours. Daddy may curse him often for not paying enough attention to what a kid's parents tell him or for the staggering fee that he charges but the truth is that his prescription works wonders with me !!

I was back in perfect health in the next 4-5 hours and participated in the Diwali Puja at home with my usual mischievous mood. I burnt a few crackers with Bhua and then went to sleep early (much to the courtesy of medication !!). God has his own ways of telling us that he's there for us always. He may test our patience some times but that's only his way of making us stronger.

The gloom that had spread at home in the last 12 hours was gone & my smile back everybody back into a cheerful & joyous mood, waiting in anticipation for the next evening !!

Let's have some fun again, here I come !!


















The mischievous smile is coming back, Cheese !!










Thank you God for everything !!!

Birthday Bash Preparations !!

As soon as October 2008 started, Daddy & Mamma switched to top gear to prepare for my birthday. This was the time which they had been so anxiously waiting for the past few months. Although Mamma had her (dreaded) PhD mid-term examinations & Daddy had peak work load (which is a norm for the last 8 years - yawn !) stretching to a 14 hour work day, they were super excited about getting everything right for planning my birthday celebration.



The in-house discussions which usually involve cursing why it's so tough to do a PhD (Mamma), why the clients are do demanding (Daddy), why we should invest in property (Mamma speak)) & why we should instead save for my bright future (Daddy of course) stopped at least temporarily and my birthday bash planning took center stage. Besides the usual gossip, they pondered over every useful & usless detail.



* Whom to invite? If there's ever a time to identify your loved ones - family & friends. It is now :)

* Venue - Whether celebrate at home or in a hotel? Celebrating at home would be tough to manage with a sizable guest list. Organizing it at a hotel and inviting more people would mean that we would miss the warmth of the near ones & that homely touch.

* Food/ Menu - Punjabi, eh ? Need I say more. Apart from 'Paneer' & 'Daal Makhni' which are de-facto menu items in any punjabi function, they discussed (read fought) over every other possible item.

* Cake - Thankfully, there was not much fight over this one. They showed me a picture book containing a huge collection of cakes. I pointed my finger towards one which looked really sweet and the matter was closed.



After a comprehensive survey of 10 near by hotels (Courtesy Daddy) and never ending negotiation deals (Mamma Who else !!), Daddy & Mamma finally decided that they were going to organize my birthday bash at Nimantran Banquet Hall, Hotel Rockland which is at a stone's throw (Did I mention that Daddy did throw one in wee hours just to confirm that) from our home.

Diwali on 28th October and my birthday on 29th October and just a week to go !! Time is flying for sure :P

Eleven Months Old !!

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Eleven gone, one to go !!

Sometimes, numbers can sum up our lives so beautifully !!

Mamma's Birthday - 19th September
My Birthday - 29th October
Daddy's Birthday - 8th December

19th September + 39 Days = 29th October
8th December - 39 Days = 29th October

Ba !!

I'm glad that after yelling this word on the top of my voice numerous times every day, Daddy now knows what I mean when I say 'Ba'.

Saying 'Papa' may be difficult enough as I learn how each alphabet is different than others but 'Ba' is managable. By God's grace, Daddy & everybody else in the family now understands that 'Ba' refers to Daddy :) Here are some of the other acronyms from my personal dictionary:-

Ma - Mamma
Da - Grandpa
Aaye - Grandma (Impossible to get the spelling right as the length of 'aaye' varies with my mood)
Huh - Doggie

Daddy absolutely loves it when he reaches home after office and I just go crazy yelling 'Ba Ba Ba ...' until he holds me in his arms and we go for our customary evening walk to the near by park or temple. The same routine is followed every morning when I wake up :)

For the uninformed, 'Ba' usually refers to a 200-300 year old lady usually found in the most boring family soaps on Indian Telivision. The lady just never refuses to die while her son/ daughter marries 3-4 times, her daughter in-law undergoes a plastic surgery (twice !), her grandson dies and becomes alive yet again & what not !!!!

Daddy says 'Vanu, beta tujhe yeh hi shabd mila tha mere liye ?' :(

Driving is fun !!

I love driving, it doesn't matter if it's a small car which Daddy bought me when I was 5 months old or his own car which is getting old now. Since Daddy's car is too big for the entrance of my room, so I usually roam around from one room to another in my small little car. Daddy usually gets scared when I zoom around at a high speed on my joy ride :)



Since I'm not old enough to have a driving license (what a pity !!), Daddy usually drives when he takes me & Mamma out. I enjoy sitting on the front seat along with him and I love watching the action from the window. I don't trouble him at all when I'm in the car and when I do, he puts the seat belt all around me to stop me from even thinking about any mischievous activities.

Daddy, just wait till I'm old enough to drive and you are due for a few good 'Driving Lessons' from me :P

Chanda Hai Tu !

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This has to be one of the best hindi songs to be brilliantly written & most beautifully picturized. I simply love watching this one !!

Ten Months Old !!

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29th August, 2008 - The flight of time just continues to suprise my family & every passing month seems to come & go every so soon !! As usual, Daddy is left gasping for breath updating this blog for every month gone by.

Mamma managed to do something which Daddy could'nt do in the last 1.5 months - the monumental task was to take my photograph showing my two little toothies :P

More on the toothies later ;)

Me & Mamma !!

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No relation can be as pure & as sacred as that between a mother & child.


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No words can describe it, no images can depict it.


P.S - Daddy, you are a goner !! Mamma warned (ordered is the right word) you not to put her pics on this blog and you've forgetton to obey that. God bless you !

Nine Months Old !

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29th July, 2008 - I turned nine months old. To mark the occasion, I was dressed up by Mamma in this cute new dress. As usual, Daddy's feelings are a mixed bag - he's very happy to see me grow up, learning new things with every passing day but sad that he will miss these days a couple of years from now. He feels that he will miss

* Me sleeping on his lap all through the night and holding him tight whenever I get a scary dream
* Late Night walks around the house when he tries a million tricks to put me to sleep
* Watching the sky and the chirping birds when I wake him up early in the morning and he takes me to the roof of our house or to the near by garden

I wonder when will he grow up & realize that this is how life moves !!!

My Gang - Bittu, Vanu & Appu !

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Left to Right in this pic (Bittu - The Rabbit, Vanu - The Queen of Mischief and Appu - The Elephant)

How can my blog be complete without a photograph with my best friends? It took a long time coming but it is here finally. Some details on my best pals (apart from Daddy obviously :-)

Bittu - Daddy brought him home when I was 6 months old. My day starts with him by my side in the morning and it ends sleeping while holding him close to my heart. I like the soft touch of Bittu's feathers and I'm crazy about the carrot which he holds in his hands. I try hard to snatch it from him whenever he's near me but all my efforts have been in vain so far. I'm determined to tear him into pieces if I don't get the carrot soon.... Bittu, you better beware !!

Appu - Appu has been my buddy for as long as I can remember. He was amongst the first few toys that Daddy brought for me. Unlike Bittu who doesn't move, Appu lives on batteries so he walks around and plays the drum to please me and I love dancing to his tunes whenever he does so.

If you look closely in the above pic, you will notice that Appu lost one arm recently. It's sad but that's another proof of why anyone should not mess with a Scorpio (even if she is 6 months old) :P

Daddy, if you ever needed another reason to be more regular in updating my blog, this should be it. After all, you won't look nice with one arm either :)

Eight Months Old !

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Daddy - You lazy bum, it's just a week to go before I turn 9 months old, yet there is no post signifying that I turned 8 months old on June 29th, 2008.

To make up for his laziness, Daddy often brings me gifts - this blue ball resembling earth is the latest one. Having the earth/ world at your feet and playing with it is a great feeling - literally !!

आ चल के तुझे, मैं ले के चलूं इक ऐसे गगन के तले

Daddy may not be a perfect singer, but he loves singing this for me. I enjoy it till I dose off to sleep :)

आ चल के तुझे, मैं ले के चलूं
इक ऐसे गगन के तले
जहाँ ग़म भी न हो, आँसू भी न हो
बस प्यार ही प्यार पले)-२
इक ऐसे गगन के तले

सूरज की पहली किरण से, आशा का सवेरा जागे
चंदा की किरण से धुल कर, घनघोर अंधेरा भागे
कभी धूप खिले, कभी छाँव मिले
लम्बी सी डगर न खले
जहाँ ग़म भी न हो, आँसू भी न हो ......

जहाँ दूर नज़र दौड़ आए, आज़ाद गगन लहराए
जहाँ रंग बिरंगे पंछी, आशा का संदेसा लाएं)
सपनो मे पली हँसती हो कली
जहाँ शाम सुहानी ढले
जहाँ ग़म भी न हो, आँसू भी न हो ....

सपनों के ऐसे जहाँ में जहाँ प्यार ही प्यार खिला हो
हम जाके वहाँ खो जाएँ, शिकवा ना कोई गिला हो
कहीं बैर न हो, कोई ग़ैर न हो
सब मिलके यूँ चलते चलें
जहाँ ग़म भी न हो, आँसू भी न हो
बस प्यार ही प्यार पले
आ चल के तुझे मैं ले के चलूं ......

Let's Dance !!

I love dancing, irrespective of whether there's any music being played or not :) Here is a short (really short) video of me enjoying myself, who says silence does not have a rhtyhm or a tune :P

Father's Day !!

Today is 15th June, 2008 and my first Father's Day - What a pity that I'm not with him :( I'm at Nani's place for a short vacation and will be going back home tomorrow.

So for a change, Daddy will celebrate Father's Day with Grandpa back home while Mamam will celebrate it with Naana Ji.

Weird as it may seem to be, Father's Day is celebrated on a variety of dates worldwide and for this year, most countries have adopted the third sunday of June as Father's Day.

Daddy, Mamma - Enjoy your day with Daddies !! I'll make up for it when I reach home tomorrow :)

Seven Months Old !

29th May, 2008 - I turned 7 months old today. Time flies !! For sure :)

As I grow up, I'm learning a lot of new things. During the last one month, I've learnt to

* Crawl on the ground, more importantly without falling down. Ouch, the first bump still hurts.
* Walk to every possible corner of the house with my walker.
* Learn to observe the sparrows on the neighbourhood tree.
* Mutter a few words like Aaba, Mama, Aiga
* Shout on the top of my voice when Daddy/ Mamma get tired & stop playing with me
* Dance whenever foot tapping music is played (Daddy, please upload my latest dance video soon)
* Watch serials with Mamma - I rarely bother Mamma when she is busy watching her favourite serials from 9:00-10:00 PM every day. In fact, I've started watching them on and off (Daddy - What a pity !!)
* Play Poshamba with Mamma - She does'nt really know any other game
* Play Bouncy Baby with Daddy - Difficult to explain in words but I enjoy it the most.
* Other new learnings would be best described by video clips :)

Daddy says that these seven months have been the happiest of his life (liar liar !! He used to say the same after seven months of marriage) and he's reliving his entire childhood with me. Mamma never grew up, her childhood is eternal so there's no question of reliving it in her case :)

The First Fall !

It was inevitable and waiting to happen ever since I learnt to roll over on my back and stomach. It happened a few days back & left Mamma in more pain than me.

Mamma usually reaches home around 5:30 PM in the evening and we play for as long as we can before we both doze off for an evening nap. Every thing was the same this evening except that Mamma made a fatal mistake of leaving me alone on the bed as she went to the kitchen to get some Cerelac for me.

With in no time, I was at the edge of the bed and wondering what to do next. My curiosity to touch the ground got the better of me and seconds later, I was on the floor with a bump on my head and tears in my eyes.

I cried out so loud that everybody at home rushed to see my adventure go bad. Grandma was holding me in her arms and trying to massage my head to minimize the pain and keep the bump size as small as possible :) Mamma was inconsolable by then and in a big pool of tears thinking that it was because of her mistake that I was in such pain.

Daddy reached home after an hour or so. I was just fine by then and back to my mischevious self. Mamma had a second round of tears for the next half an hour just in case Daddy did'nt come to know about round one from Grandma and others. Daddy had to give her usual dose of boring lectures about how it's natural for every child to fall in order to understand the importance of standing up. His philosphy can put anybody to sleep and Mamma is no exception :)

Anyway, the pain went away after a few hours and the bump went away after a couple of days. Thankfully and as Daddy says my "Invaluable smile never went away, that's what matters in life. Rest are mere details"

Yikes... what a boring line to end a painful post:(

Acute Diarrhoea :(

There have been a lot of climatic changes off-late in Jaipur - scorching sun & heat one day, rain & thunderstorms the very next day, pleasant & sunny at times and unpredictable at all times :) Such climatic variations often take their toll more on kids than adults.

This time I've been caught in the trap. It's been a long week of pain & illness, taking regular medicines, consulting 2 doctors and lots of care by Grandma, Mamma and Daddy. By God's grace & much to the joy of Daddy, I'm beginning to feel much better since today morning.

He'll hopefully now stop the following:-

* Criticizing doctors on how unprofessional & greedy they are
* Crib about how useless & expensive the medicines are
* Waking up 50 times during the night to see if I'm uncomfortable or in pain
* Taking leave from office or asking Mamma to do the same

Diarrhoea is common in young kids especially those less than an year old. It usually comes from a stomach infection & it's not hard to guess why I had this infection. I have a habit of trying to taste everything & anything so anything that comes within 50 centimeters of my range is bound to be tasted. It includes:-

* Newspaper - I love it - soft, easy to chew; makes a great sound while eating
* TV Remote - The colourful buttons fascinate me
* AC Remote - I'm learning to switch it on
* All my toys - Eating Appu is my favourite pass time

I hate the taste of these medicines. Yuck !!! During the past week, Daddy tried to be clever with me by giving me medicines using my milk bottle but he does not know that I've already developed a strong sense of what's happening around me. He, Mamma & Grandma - all 3 of them :) had to hold me together in order to give me medicines.

I'm glad all their care & love is paying off and am on my way to speedy recovery !! Dr. Bhasin always calls me 'Happy Baby' and today morning, he said that my mischevious smile is coming back. To prove that he's right, I played & played the whole day with Grandma & Grandpa.

Cheer up every body, it's fun time again !!!

Six Months Old !!

On 29th April-2008, I turned six months old. Much to the joy of Daddy & rest of my family, now it's just 6 more months to go before they celebrate my 1st birthday. Although I'm just 6 months old, Daddy and Mamma often expect me to behave like a 6 year old - eat, sleep and do just about everything at the right time :) I can understand as they are first time, over anxious parents who are yet to settle down into parenthood. They'll learn with time :)

I've learnt to sit and crawl on the bed in last one month or so. While it's pleasing for others to see and I enjoy it a lot, it makes everybody in the family nervous as I often crawl to edges on the bed. Those corners seem ever so dangerous to Daddy now. On more than one occasions, I would have nearly fallen off if Daddy/ Grandma would not have caught me mid-air :)

Growing up is fun and it has it's fair share of ups and downs associated with it (literally !!). A child who does not attempt to walk or crawl for the fear of falling down will never experience the joy of learning. Childhood is meant to be fun but it's also meant to be the start of learning experience for any human being (Yawn !! Daddy's Philosphy seems to go from bad to worse)

Signing off this short post with a promise (nth time) from Daddy, that there'll be at least one post every week from now on :)

Susu Factory !!

Now that winters are over, Daddy and rest of the family members have taken a huge sigh of relief. The winters were severly cold this year in North India including my home town Jaipur.

The chilly winters meant more susu, more wet beds, more & more wet bedsheets and a lot of washing up to do ;). Don't blame me daddy because I always give you a warning before I do susu (mostly on your lap) by crying out loud, it's a pity that you don't understand. Mamma is my favourite victim and I just love to do it on her :) and it does not matter to me if she's getting ready for college, sleeping, eating or blah blah.

Grandma is a tough nut to crack because she always takes me to the bathroom in every half an hour or so. She's determined to make me a well behaved kiddo rather than a spoiled brat. Needless to mention that almost every guest who's visited our house and picked me up in their arms have been fortunate to get the acclaimed 'Vanu's Susu dose.

Daddy's business ideas are always ridiculous and this one is no different. Considering my high productivity level and the extra ordinarily high frequency of susu associated with it :), he says that it should all be collected and re-cycled. This will put an end to India's water problems and earn huge profits for us as well. So, in near future, we might launch our first joint venture 'Susu Inc.' with me serving as Chief Production Officer and Daddy as my assistant. The company works 365 x 24 x 7 with no breaks what so ever :)

He also says that if the idea takes off, we'll recruit all new born babies in the neighbourhood and start training them on how to increase their susu productivity. Those interested in getting their kids registered should contact Daddy earliest possible, we offer cash as well as ESOPs for star performers :))