Keep Calm and Carry On

We speak to N regularly about the current affairs and we were discussing the shocking outcome of the EU referendum where Britain decided to leave the EU on June 23, 2016. So, N was at the breakfast table and was just listening to the news on the TV and here's what she asked - N: Amma, what does it mean that Britain is going to leave the EU ? Are the continents going to move now ? Me: Ha ! Ha ! Ha ! ( I would never have thought of that question )

N and S went to attend Aditya's ( Sow's first cousin ) and Madhu's wedding ( Hari's third cousin ) in April 2016. How rare is it for one to be related to the bride and groom !! N was super excited and enjoyed the whole experience. She'd probably never imagined that there were so many people in the extended family. She also became an expert at washing the banana leaf prior to the meal!! Enjoying the plane journey ! Tucking into the blueberry muffin in Starbucks, Bahrain Day 1 - A trip to the beach brought out the child in all of us including thatha and patti Such a cute pic of thatha and patti ! Day 2 - mehendi. Sow had a blast at the mehendi and danced to her heart's content. N didn't seem to enjoy the extra loud music and disco lights and preferred to sit with both pattis. Day 3 - vrutham/ reception. Caught up with most of the family from both sides. Also sneaked in a visit to Raja Anna's house to see Vimala Athai. Day 4 - enjo...

We finally made the trip to the highly talked of Woburn Safari Park  on the first day of the Easter bank holiday weekend and what a disappoint it was. The place seriously could not cope with the heavy flow of visitors and it took us about half an hour just to enter the place even though we had booked tickets in advance.  The park was huge but it hardly had any animals in my opinion and it was highly priced. You really had to look carefully to find the wild ones. I would definitely not recommend this to anyone, especially if they are planning to visit in the holiday season.   The highlight of the trip was a train ride around the park. A went crazy as he loooves trains !

March was filled with celebrations galore. It started with my birthday and we made a lovely tangy lemon drizzle cake. It was not just me who liked the cake, N enjoyed it too !! This recipe is just amazing and I will definitely try it again. Lovely way to turn 35. Sow with her two bunnies - N helped to decorate the cake ! Next, it was Mothers' Day on March 6th (also happened to be my star birthday )and I was so glad to get two lovely cards from N and A. N's mothers' day card - Her message is so cute ! We decided to celebrate A's 3rd birthday party at home. N decided that we should have a dinosaur party for A and he didn't seem to disagree. The party went off so well as we got to spend some good quality time with some of our dear friends. We made a gross calculation while ordering the food and were left with loads of leftovers even after packing food for the guests :)     Clockwise from top left: N and A ready to welcome the guests, the girls he...

We had an awesome time in the half term with our customary visit to Harrow Town Centre. We combined it with a visit to the library and its always to see both N and A very excited about the new books that we chose. The added excitement was that we completed the journey by 'Big Bus Red Bus' as A fondly refers to the red four wheeled mode of transport. Enjoying a relaxing morning at home :) Stop at a coffee shop with the milk shakes that I had to complete H and I had taken a few days off too. We spent a day at the London Transport Museum in Covent Garden. We had lunch in Sagar and the restaurant happened to be positioned opposite to the theatre that was playing the West End version of 'Charlie and the Chocolate Facory'. N and I saw the poster and identified all the characters and I promised N that we could come and see the play on her birthday if we managed to finish the book by then. I just loved seeing the excitement in her eyes ! The museum was very e...

A dear friend of mine has introduced me to a new style of cooking called OPOS ( One Pot One Shot). The essence of the style is that all the cooking is done in one vessel namely the pressure cooker. She's even enrolled me in the group's page on Facebook and I get to see all the different OPOSed dishes by all the members. This style should be a boon for someone like me - a working mother who is short of time ( perpetually ) and who is not so proactive and adventurous on the culinary side. Ardent followers of OPOS claim that it reduces cooking time, reduces cleaning as it uses only one vessel and that it is more nutritious since it locks in all the flavours in one vessel. However, I'm finding it very difficult to switch on my mind to this new mode of cooking. This dear friend convinced me to try an OPOS recipe last weekend and I wasn't sure what to make of the end result. Yes, it did reduce the cooking time and the taste was good but it hasn't converted me into a ...

I thought I should record some of the amazing questions that N asks now and then. I'm generally shell shocked when she asks these questions and am amazed at how children can really think 'outside the box'. So here goes..... N is sitting in her tall chair and is totally lost in thought. Me: What are you thinking about Nithya ? N: Was this house in a shop ? Me: What ???? I was totally perplexed and confused and thought that I didn't understand what she said. N: How did you buy this house Amma ? It should have been in a shop for you and appa to buy it !!! I was touched by her child like innocence that thought that one must go to a shop to buy an object and I was thrilled that she even thought of this question in the first place.

Lately, N has started compiling our weekend grocery list. She loves writing all the items in a methodical manner and always checks with me regarding the quantity that is needed. Most of the spellings are correct bar a few - my favourite one is coget ( which was meant to be courgette ). She looks at the list and picks up the respective item at the store too. She so loves being in control of this weekend ritual.

We got to know yesterday that N had passed her stage 1 LAMDA ( London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art ) exam with 62 %. This exam required her to recite a simple poem on stage and also to engage in a short conversation about her favourite toy ( she took along her Frozen Elsa doll !! ) with the judge. H and I were thrilled about it and were very proud of her. Whilst I might think that she is really shy, I think her inner confidence is increasing slowly but surely. It doesn't seem to be a big deal for her at all. She's just a kid after all and has probably forgotten about it all together. Nevertheless, we will start practising for the next stage now. We went out for a celebratory lunch today to her favourite restaurant Saravana Bhavan and she had already decided her order even before we got there - Puri and Aloo Sabzi ! Here's to many more achievements for my little girl !