Reflections

WOW moment of the day

2009-03-27T09:43:00.000-07:00

Each day Nushki surprises me with a new word that makes me go, Wow thats a first. So I am going to keep appending to this list.

1. Mama - "Anushki don't keep your hands here, its .."
Anushka - "..dangerous"

2. We went to a chemist shop and the guy there handed her a candy. Later ajja asked her who gave her the candy and she said "Uncle"

3. As soon as we entered the park we hit a nice strong breeze and Anushka exclaimed "Wow.. Windy"

Betta now ?

2009-03-16T08:31:00.000-07:00

I came back home with 3 bags of fruit for Nushki, she has been refusing milk the last couple of days since she donated her bottles to "Titi" hoping that "Titi" would return it back but Mama says that they now belong to "Titi" and so Anushka is kinda mad now and boycotted the lovely pink bottles I bought for her. Anyways..
I got home and she was busy playing with her bhaiyya, she glanced at me once and gave me a smile but that was it, no hugs, no kisses, not even a Hi. I tried to call her a few times but she was too engrossed in her play and kept saying "No dada. No dada". So I left her alone, patiently waiting my turn to play with her. Later when bhaiyya left she looked around the room and saw Dada sulking in his chair. So she approached me and said Dada's lap, Dada's lap. Now it was my turn to say No, so I said "No Anushka, No Anushka".
Anushka looked confused and looked at Mama for an answer. Mama told her that Dada was sad because you did not kiss him and hug him when he came home. Then Anushka came towards me, planted a sweet kiss on my cheek, gave me a nice hug, looked me in the eyes and said "Better now" ?

I miss my dada,

2009-03-06T09:51:00.000-08:00

19th Feb 09

So much!

When I miss my dada, I cry for him. Every morning, I wake up and look to my right side, thinking my Dada is sleeping beside me. I ask Mama, “Where’s Dada”? She says, “Dada Seattle”. I wonder, “Where is Seattle?”

When I play some fun games with Mama and want to share with my dada; I call out for him, “Dada, daaadaaa”. But he never comes. Again Mama says, “Remember Dada is far away in Seattle. Dada airplane”. But I thought Mama said Dada was in Seattle. Now why is he in Airplane?

When I have achieved something and Mama claps for me, again I call out for my dada. But I go to an empty room. Dada’s not there, oh yes, dada is in Seattle.

When Mama gives me High-five, she pretends to fall back as my high-five is very strong. I enjoy this game and would say, “Dada high-five”. I know, dada is away, but I like taking his name.

When I build a house with my blocks, I say, “Show dada, show dada”. Now, Mama only smiles and gives me a big hug. She tells me that we can show it to him when dada comes online.

When I talk to him on the phone, I like no one with me or around me. It’s only me and my dada. I tell him how much I miss him. I tell him how much I am looking forward to playing silly games with him. I tell him about the colors of the cars that I want him to bring. I tell him about the cookies and cakes that I have baked with Mama, and how much I want him to taste it .I tell him about going to school and how much I wish he is there to see me climb and ride the bike. I tell him about the puppies and cats that I see on the road. I tell him about what a big girl I have become. I tell him about how much I love him and hope for him to sit on that airplane and come home soon.

When Mama asks me how much I miss Dada, I bring out my two arms and say, “So much”!

When I miss my precious Dada, I spend days painting him the BIGGEST and the BESTEST picture.

Doll Play

2009-03-01T09:13:00.000-08:00

20th Feb 09

You are very affectionate towards your dolly. Every morning, right after you wake up, you will call out for her. You massage your dolly, dress and undress her, powder her, feed her milk, share your food with her and sometimes give her a bath (or rather just plunge her in the water, and dolly has to be out in the sun for a few days). Today, after you got up, there were different types of papers for you to explore with. You seemd to be having fun with the different textures and wanted to share this with dolly. Mama handed you your dolly.

"Mama, dolly cry. Wah-wah-wah". (You say it in the cutest way, with your furrowed eyebrows).

"Oh, oh, oh". Dolly hungry.

Looking for something to feed your dolly.

"Dolly, yummy yummy dudu".

"Burp". Mama dolly do burp.

"Okay dolly, time to sleep". You then hum a song to your dolly. (Dolly slept beside you and you went about your exploration).

My Primitive Baker

2009-02-20T10:12:00.000-08:00

12th Feb 09

Mama bakes with me for the first time today. When she put me on the high-chair, I thought it was time for my snack. Instead, I saw a big bowl and a Pyrex cup. Read on to see what fun I had with Mama.

Feeling the flour

Mama handed me a spatula. I tried stirring with it like Spot does in Spot Bakes a Cake.

I liked using my hands better. The flour felt cold and soft on my hands.

Mama showing me how to mix the oil and brown sugar.

"Whee"! I enjoyed stirring the sugar.

Mama mashing the bananas.

Somehow the flour was more interesting. Something about the texture.

I decided to give Mama a helping hand by stirring it for her. The batter seemed to be getting thicker.

Oatmeal and chocolate chips were added in the batter. The spoon was stuck and I could barely stir it now.

Letting Mama taste my batter. She seemed satisfied with it.

Taking a break while the cookies are in the oven.

Tada! My banana chocolate chip cookies are ready.

I helped Mama with the clean-up too.

Cookies taste even more delicious when shared with my Bhaiya.

Part 2.

2009-02-18T09:46:00.000-08:00

Painting was the last activity for the day. When Anushka saw the paint and brushes, she got very excited and pulled me towards the table. The children sat down; some put on an art apron, others not so interested in it. The teacher then announced, “Here are two colors, red and green, but please do not mix the colors as they will get smudge”. I looked at that damn teacher and thought she must be kidding. Maybe my head was spinning too much from the day’s activity and I might have heard her wrong. Why will a teacher say that? I brushed off my silly thoughts and was reaching out to hand Anushka both the paint when the teacher said it again. This time I was wide awake, no thoughts or no spinning head. “Please do not mix the colors as they will get smudge”, said the teacher. That stupid woman really said that. I was dumb-founded. Can any “trained” teacher say that? Can they? Do they?

At this point of time, I really wanted to take my child and run out of the door. But Anushka was comfortably sitting on the tiny chair all ready for the paint and brush, that I did not have the heart to leave just like that. The teacher started handing out cut-outs of fish, (why was I not surprised), and gave one to Anushka too. Anushka so politely said, “thank you”. I looked at her and praised her for using such polite words. Even the teacher was surprised.

Everyone got busy. When I say everyone, I mean the parents; they got busy painting for their child. One mom just took the brush from the child and started painting one side of the fish; green and the other side; red. Wow, very pretty, I thought. Some other moms were “teaching” their child to paint. The dad was literally begging his child to finish painting the fish. Everyone’s art work looked very beautiful; the fish looked very neat and pretty. Anushka was painting her piece of fish cut out, and since I did not help her at all, she had blotches here and there. After painting for a while, she decided to just do “dots, dots” with her brush. The teacher then took the brush from her and said, “Anushka, look paint it like this”. She started painting the white blotches. I got enraged and said, “Let her do it by herself”. The teacher was taken aback and quickly returned the brush. I felt good about standing up for my daughter.

It was time to clean up, and I quickly left for the washroom. I had enough. My head was THROBBING!

I went back to the office and P; the co-coordinator asked me how it went. At first I said, it was okay, but felt that I had to voice out my opinions. This was the conversation.

Me: Why do I feel like the children were forced into doing the activities?

P: What makes you say that? Can you give an example?

Me: I talked about the ball incident.

P: Maybe this is your first time here and you feel like what you are feeling, whereas these children are here for a long time now, and it has become a routine for them.

(She did not understand my point. Just then the owner walked in; a middle-aged Punjabi looking women).

P: Madam, she has something to tell you about the program. She feels that the children are being forced.

Mad: Yes, tell me.

Me: I feel like the children are not allowed any freedom. All the time they are being told what to do, where to go and how to do it. I talked about the ball incident and asked her how it is possible to have five balls for twelve toddlers.

Mad: Well, maybe the teacher had something in mind, and that is why she had five balls out. Maybe your child saw a ball for the first time and got berserk, others did not.

Me: You don’t get my point, do you? Mad: No, tell me.Me: It’s not about my child going berserk over a ball, yes she did and so did the rest. Of course a child will go crazy over a ball; they just love that thing and want a piece of it. What I am trying to say is, they are too many instructions for the little ones, and they were just not given the freedom to do anything.

Mad: I think since this is your first time, you felt a little overwhelmed with all these instructions and routines. These children are here for a few months now and they are used to it. And instructions are good for them; they need it as it helps them to know what is right or wrong.

(Gosh, another dumb cow. Who was I talking to? Either she was acting stupid or she just could not get my point. FREEDOM!!)

Me: I think maybe I am not making sense here. They do need instructions; but do they need instructions for every little thing; play like this, kick that way, paint it this way. Are there right or wrong way to paint? Then I went on about telling her the paint incident.

Mad: (She turned to the other coordinator and asked her which teacher was in that classroom). Yes, so you did not like the painting.

Me: Well, the teacher told us not to mix the colors, and I found that ridiculous. A new color could be created by mixing two colors. And she also took the brush from my child’s hand and started painting for her. Why did she do that? Again, doesn’t this show the kind of “freedom” you give to your children here”.

Mad: R, could you please tell so and so not to paint for the children. We have to talk to the teachers about it. Can you please talk to her? (R, murmurs a yes).

Me: The other parents can’t see it, maybe because they are just parents. But I am a teacher and I see it from another perspective.

Mad: Maybe. (And she just walked away)

I was about to leave this outrageous place when P asked me how long have I been a teacher and where have I taught. She came out and gave me some numbers to call and told me that they need teachers at Kangaroo kids. She said I could fit in very well. She asked me if I was interested in working. I replied, “I had a very overwhelming day today. I cannot think. I just need to take that rickshaw and go back home with my daughter. I will call you once I have overcome this day. She looked at me and smiled and said not to worry too much about it and that Kangaroo Kids are much better as the teachers there are more experienced and they know what they are doing. Well, now she tells me that! And I thought your teachers were trained “twice” before entering your school!

I kicked myself for taking Anushka to such a place, in fact I felt awful as I told her that she was going to a fun place where there will be books to read, toys to play and other fun things to do. This was really a horrible experience for my daughter and me. It was hard to believe the way these toddlers were treated. The whole concept of mother-toddler program is so different here. It was too just painful to see from a teacher’s point of view. My child will definitely thrive much better at home.

Anushka's Horrible Experience at School- Part 1

2009-02-11T08:47:00.000-08:00

Dear readers
WARNING! WARNING! This might be my longest post, so read it at your own risk. I have written it in two parts. this is my first part.

We reached the school promptly at 9.30am and reported to the coordinator; P .We introduced ourselves and was briefed a little by R, the program coordinator. She explained what the mother-toddler program is about and how it is conducted. She was very clearly trying to sell her program to me. She seemed a little arrogant and was also a little pushy. Immediately, she suggested that we should sign the forms and attend school the very next day. We told her that we would like to see her school and attend a session of it. P then took me around the school, (by this time, Rahul had to leave for his meeting), and showed me the different rooms. I was pretty impressed that various activities were conducted in smaller classes and that mom and their tots would go from one class to the other. The last room she showed me was the computer room. I asked, "Computer room for a year old"? And she replied, "Yeah, children love computers right, so we try to make it fun and let them "watch" the computer". Okay, I thought.

Anushka and I were looking at the huge fish tank as we had a couple of minutes before the class started. Anushka was mesmerized by the fishes. Soon, we went into the class and there I saw baskets on the floor with fake money in it. There was a teacher on the stage who pretended to be a grocer; selling various fruits and vegetables. She told the children to get a basket and come up the front to buy vegetables or fruits. All the parents did as they were told, and I too led Anushka to the pretend grocer. Toddlers were eagerly looking around to see the various fruits and vegetables, all this while the pretend grocer aka the teacher was shouting out like a typical "bhaji walla or rather bhaji walli".

Moms then started hurrying their toddlers and made them pick up a fruit of their own choice. I on the other hand showed Anushka the fruits and vegetables that were placed on the stand and asked her what she would like. She told me purple, as in the brinjal, so I picked that up and gave it to her. She then said peppers and apple; I asked her if she would like to pick it up on her own. She said "haa" and then slowly retreat her hand to pick it up. She also wanted strawberries, and I probed further by asking her how many strawberries she wanted. She replied by saying two. The grocer then said, "Anushka pay me some money". And I showed Anushka the pretend money that she had in her basket and told her to pay the grocer.

All the children began playing with their fruits and vegetables; examining it, feeling it, and tossing it and some even tasting it. Anushka too tasted her strawberries. The children seemed to enjoy this activity, but before I knew it, it was time to put away the fruits and veg. They sang a song to put away these things.
After the clean up, there was a puppet play, or rather a circle time. One of the teachers was singing a song, and the other was hidden behind a puppet stage showing the various sea puppets. One of the children wanted to touch the lobster, but his mom held on to this shirt so tight and pulled him back. The teacher neither encouraged the child to come up nor say anything! Maybe this is what circle time meant to them.

Then, there was a song about a snow man. Every child was given a snowman book and they sang the song twice and again it was time to put the book away. One of the children was not ready to do so, and the dad said that "It’s ok, let her hold it for a while, and she will give it back". But the teacher, oh the teacher, was adamant on taking it back and making the child upset! After this, there was a name song, where the teacher showed a book with pictures of individual children. They sang a song like this, "Where is Arya, where is Arya, there she is, there she is...”. Then it came to a child who was not present. They sang the most horrible rhyme in Hindi. It went something like this, ("Where is Julie? Oh Julie is not here today, why is she not here. She has high fever, she has gone to the doctor and the doctor gave her the biggest injection. Julie cried so much as it hurt her.) What the hell! This is what you teach a child about doctors. Not bad! One thing I was pissed about was, after the teacher mentioned everyone’s name, she looked at us and did not bother introducing us to the group. Yes, just looked at Anushka and expect Anushka to know that she is welcomed to the class. How can they be such idiots! How can they not introduce someone who is new to the group! It’s just like when you meet someone new, you introduce yourselves just to make yourself feel comfortable. So this was my first peeve; of course there were many before my first, but this was it!

Later on, we went to the GYM class. There was another teacher in the gym class, and some sort of a rehearsal was going on, I was told that there will be a concert for these toddlers and hence the practice. I was asked to sit down and watch; I sat down and watched. What a performance! All the children were forced to act upon the teacher's and their moms' wishes. No one was allowed to run away to climb or jump, or play with the toys, but DANCE like their teacher and their moms.

Okay, why will they want to have a concert for a year old? What’s the purpose here? First of all, the room had some jumping and climbing equipments, and cool manipulative were lying on the table. How do you expect a one year old to follow instructions when these fun and interesting things are inviting them to play? Anushka kept asking for the toys, as I had told her that we are going to a school and there will be toys to play with, books to read and many other things to do. She insisted on having the toy and I wondered if I should hand it to her or not. What if I do, and some other child would want to play too, and the teacher would not be happy as she has her ACT to finish.

After clearing my thoughts, and seeing that other children were playing with the toys, I handed some to Anushka. Boy oh boy! The teacher saw it and immediately said, “Mummy, can you please put the toy away?" Put the toy away, then why the freaking hell is it out there? If it’s not meant to play, then you PUT it away, you dumb cow! How can a one year old resist playing with toys and climbing? HOW? HOW? HOW?

After the wonderful concert was over, the teacher took out 5 balls. 5 balls for 12 toddlers! I think even my youngest sister will know that this is the biggest NO, NO! How can you have 5 balls for 12 toddlers! Well at least my child goes berserk when seeing a ball, I don’t know about others. Each wanted a piece of that ball, and since there weren’t enough, there was utter chaos in that classroom. The teacher quickly suggested that we should play dodge ball; meaning the parents form a circle, and the children will be inside the circle. The parents will throw the ball to a particular child, and if it hits that child, he or she is out, but since they are young, they still get to stay inside. Seriously, I was losing it! Was she just plain stupid or what?

However the parents tried to play the game but were unsuccessful. So then the teacher said, “Okay parents, how about you pair up and roll the ball to your child but do not let your child touch the ball”. So the parents followed suit. I think by this time the toddlers had it! Some howled their loudest cry and a few displayed the most outrageous tantrums I had ever seen. This might have terrified the teacher and she quickly went to the nearest cupboard and took out hundreds of smaller plastic balls. The children stopped whatever they were doing and hurried to get the balls. Anushka was thrilled to see those balls, and she pulled me to wherever she was going and started picking up the balls like there weren’t a tomorrow. As if that was not enough, she put some under her arms and wanted me to carry some for her. (How long this activity lasted, don’t even get me started, or else I will never be able to finish writing this post.)

We were led into the language room where we got to read books to the children. Anushka picked up some books and sat on a chair. She began to flip the pages when she realized that she wanted another book. She got up and went to look into the box. She saw another girl coming to get some books; she looked at her and said, “Book”, and then offered her the book. That was such a sweet gesture. Again she sat on that chair and began to read the book, but before I could even turn to the next page, it was time to PUT AWAY the book. I just could not believe it. Why are they hurrying the child like that? There weren’t one activity that lasted more than five minutes. What were they trying to achieve by doing this?

Semi-circle Moon

2009-02-08T08:42:00.000-08:00

3rd Feb 09

Dada and you were walking back from the playground. You stopped and looked. You then said, "Dada, semi-circle moon". Dada too stopped and looked. Indeed, he saw a semi-circle moon. He was very surprised that you were able to distinguish between a semi-circle and a crescent moon. It was only two days back where you told him that you saw a crescent moon. Dada gave you a tight hug.

Few weeks ago, Mama took out some foam shapes for you to play with. You would look at the different shapes and asked, "What's that?" We would then tell you if it was a circle, diamond, heart, triangle, square, semi-circle or crescent. We were at a book store and dada picked up "tiny tiny" books for you and one of the book were about Shapes. Instantly, that became your favorite book for the week. We sat in the store and I pointed out the shapes to you. Within minutes, you were able to tell me the crescent and semi-circle shape. We read the book at least once in a day, and after the second day, you could tell us almost all of the shapes in the book. We were amazed at how fast you picked up.

You have been pointing to us circles and stars for two months now, but to know such words and relate it to the actual shape, is really amazing. Now you see shapes everywhere. You saw pentagons and trapezium and wanted to know what those were, and all I could think to myself, "Soon she will be teaching her mother".

Reality of private ownership

2008-11-02T09:26:00.000-08:00

We were invited to our friends place for dinner; a family with an 8 year old girl and a teenage son. Upon reaching there, we exchanged our hellos and introduced you to their grandfather. At first, you were sitting quietly on my lap with your head down but your eyes were busily checking the new faces and the environment. Each time someone said hello to you, you would look up and smile shyly and then look down again; but the eyes were still busy doing its own things. Later on, their daughter, Saatchi, brought some stuffed animals for you to play with. You looked at all the animals; but were very interested in the tiny teddy bear. You started playing with the teddy bear and kept saying Mine. Mama kept reminding you that it belongs to someone else and we have to return it after we leave.

Once you warmed up, you started exploring the place; you crawled in the kitchen, in their bedroom and almost got into their bathroom. Saatchi and her mother were playing catch-catch with you. Saatchi had a big ball and she was playing peek-a-boo with you. When you found her, you burst into laughter and wanted to play all over again. You got bored of her game and initiated your own, you wanted her to come and catch you and so crawled away; all this while, you were holding on to the tiny bear and kept assuring yourself by saying; Mine.

Soon it was time to go and dada told you that you had to give the bear back to Saatchi. You shook your head and said MINE, MINE! Dada and mama then told you that it belongs to Saatchi and that she will be sad if you take her bear away . But how much of this would you have understood?? Mama tried again but then you started to cry and were not ready to part with the stuffed toy. It was nice of Saatchi’s mom to say that it does not matter and that you can keep the bear. Well, I knew Saatchi was sad and wanted her to have her teddy bear back. When we sat in the car, dada distracted you and took the bear from your hands and gave it to Saatchi. You began to protest but mama quickly handed you your fishy toy and you seemed content. When we drove off, you kept signing Bear; you remembered the bear and wanted it. That was your first encounter with the reality of private ownership. Dada felt very bad that he had to take the toy out of your hands like that; he felt that he was cheating you in some ways. He told me that he was going to buy the exact bear the very next weekend. Hmm, mama too felt sorry that she could not think of a better way for you to give up the toy; but found myself smiling when dada said that he would buy you the same toy.

(I have always liked this rule and wanted to share it with all)

Toddler Property Rules
If I like it, it's mine.
If it's in my hand, it's mine.
If I can take it from you, it's mine.
If I had it a little while ago, it's mine.
If it's mine, it must never appear to be yours in any way.
If I'm doing or building something, all the pieces are mine.
If it looks just like mine, it's mine.
If I think it's mine, it's mine.
(http://www.inspiredinside.com/humor/humor_ToddlerRules.htm )

The artist

2008-10-21T11:38:00.000-07:00

Anushka is beginning to learn the art of flattery, isn't that amazing, a 16 month old knowing how to be diplomatic and get her way, babies are so clever.
This is what happened today - I was lying on the sofa and started reading a book which apparently had a very attractive cover page and that caught her attention immediately. Usually she rushes to me and starts saying "Mine Mine" and I bluntly refuse saying "No Mine, Its Mine" and turn down her request and after a few attempts she leaves me alone and goes back to what she was doing. Today however she chose to approach this differently. Having learnt from her past experience she decided that some flattery would probably get her what she wanted. So she slowly crawled up to me and then stood by my side. She had the most disarming smile on her face, then she titled her head slightly and said "Dada" maintaining that smile, looking straight at me and not letting me know that it was really the book she was after. I said "Hi Shona" and she repeated "Dada.." As I continued to read the book she respectfully stood by and peeked over my shoulder trying to read it. She slowly started touching it saying "Wow".. and then wanted to flip some pages and finally she could not take it anymore and started with the "Mine ?".. Mine, Mine..
Of course I let her have the book this time, how could I not after all the efforts she had put into this !

Not the bug again!

2008-10-08T13:20:00.000-07:00

Another post from a distraught mama....

Few weeks ago, I wrote about how well you were adjusting to this new environment, maybe; just maybe, I said it a little too early. You were down with the bug; cold and cough and a HORRIBLE stomach upset. You were going to potty Four times in a day and your stools did not look good. Your cold and cough too was really bad and you sounded all stuffed up. We took you to this doc (I like this doc the best, as he never rushed to prescribe you anti-biotic) who knew that we are not from here and then went on saying that you are just adjusting to this new environment and the bacteria! He did not show any concern regarding your diarrhea; he said that it happens, nothing to be alarmed about. How can I not be? Four or five times in the potty. Anyways he gave you some natural medications and sent us home.

Somehow the doctors here aren’t as gentle as the doctors back in US. In the US, your doctor Sarah took her time to examine you and would woo you if you showed a sign of discomfort. Over here, nothing of that! They are in a hurry to examine you; their touch is just too rough on a gentle baby’s skin. Being a pediatrician, how can they be so rough? Your dada says that they have to be efficient over here, there are just too many patients out there waiting, hence this type of handling. If only I could explain that to you. The looks you give me when someone is touching you like that; is as if you are telling me, “Mama, I don’t like this, why aren’t you stopping it? I wish I could tell you something; but what? That what he is doing is for your own good? How can it be good if you are crying? Oh baby, mama wished too that the doctors here be just a little gentler; but all I can do is to be there for you when you cry, to hold and comfort you and to tell you that it will be over soon.

Vale, Vale.

2008-09-23T10:03:00.000-07:00

My hubby gave me the privilege of writing a post in his blog, so I thought why not write something about him and Anushka. I went through my posts in my "private" blog and felt this was a special one to blog about. Then, Anushka was eight months old.

Dada playfully lifted you overhead and said, "Vale, vale. You started chuckling with delight and kicked your legs. When dada stopped, you kicked your legs even harder as if to tell him you wanted more. Dada then started saying, "Vale, vale. You gave out your loudest belly laughter. No words were exchanged but your actions were met with actions from your dad that told him that he got your message.

Though preverbal, but an amazing expressive kind of communication was going on between the two of them, just to beautiful that I had to write it.

Sonia

Vocabulary

2008-09-17T06:22:00.000-07:00

So we started to count words that our toothless wonder (well now she has 2.75 teeth) can say and were surprised at the number, it was well over 40. Lets see how many I can recollect
mama, dada, ajja, akka, nani, nana, aashna
apple, onion, pepper, chapati,
tractor, car, bike
mine, wow, baby
eyes, ears, knees, hair, cheeks, nose,
hi, bye, where is it, out,
meow,
yes, and of course NO.

OMG She has discovered the word "No"

2008-09-14T09:02:00.000-07:00

First of all, my apologies for the prolonged absence, thanks for keeping the faith and welcome back !

I had an epiphany today, I have those once in a while and when I do my day goes really well because I am convinced that I have realized something that is so simple and makes complete sense and yet most people have probably not thought about it. So today was one of those days, want to hear about it ? ok here goes..

In life we are always trying to do better, in our professional lives we train ourselves to be the best, exercise to keep ourselves fit (well most do), seek advice from experts on matters of health and well being, read books, talk to friends, etc the point is that we are always seeking information and training ourselves to do well. Yet, when it comes to parenting I am sure most parents don't spare a thought to seek "training" on how to be good parents. They simply rely on their natural instincts when it comes to parenting. Parents spend a great deal of time interracting with their kids, teaching them stuff, trying to control their behavior etc so doesn't it make sense that they get trained on how to be good parents from professionals in this field ? Shouldn't we learn more about parenting techniques and try to sharpen this skill ? And yet, I have not come across any Parenting Academy that teaches us more about how and why kids behave the way they do and how we should cope with it. So that was my "Hmm that makes sense, why does anyone not think about it" moment of the day.

My wife picked up the "Happiest Toddler on the Block" book and I began reading it today, currently on page 33 of 290, so still a long way to go but the author already has my attention. Atleast once on each page I go "Oh wow, yes Anushka does that", for example snatching things and saying "Mine !", classic Neanderthal behavior, the author says that children this age are like Neanderthals, or early humans. She has also developed a "fake" attention cry now, she actually looks pretty cute going "Ooo Ooo Ooo" with her frowned eyebrows trying to guage how her parents are going to react.

Anushka is getting cuter by the day, she is growing up too fast, displaying signs of being a toddler now and telling us "Mama, Dada, Ready or not here I come"...

Happy Mothers day

2008-05-11T10:03:00.000-07:00

Mammaaa

Happy Mothers Day ! I hope you liked the waffles and chai I made for you this morning. I had so many plans and wanted to do a lot more but Dad just did not understand what I was trying to tell him.

You are the best Mommy in the world !

You were up in the wee hours of the morning and sometimes late in the night to pump milk for me. You prepared fresh meals for me everyday, made fresh fruit yogurts and breakfast cereal, none of that yucky Gerber jar stuff.

You are the best Mommy in the world !

I love music because you played music to me when I was in your tummy. You bought so many nice CDs for me. The afternoon music sessions, all the musical toys you made for me, the creative dance lessons, I have enjoyed everything so much.

You are the best Mommy in the world !

Cloth diapers !! You have no idea how much we babies love cloth diapers, they are so comfy. For you it meant running a laundry service at home - gosh sometimes I could not believe the number of dirty diapers I had in a day.

You are the best Mommy in the world !

You started reading books to me when I was 3 weeks old and now I am a voracious reader. The baby signs you taught me helped me to communicate and tell you when I was sleepy or wanted milk. The wonderful baby carriers that put me to sleep on our afternoon walks, buying paint for me and allowing me to create art, the wonderful baby games you played with me.. I think the list is endless.

At the end of the day there is nothing more comforting to me than being rocked to sleep in your arms.

I love you Mom !

You are my world !

Birdie Birdie

2008-04-17T19:48:00.000-07:00

If I were asked to guess what Anushki would grow up to be - I would guess ornithologist (yes I googled it). She absolutely loves birds. When she sees a bird her hands go up in the air, doing the birdie sign going "uh uh uh" telling us that there is a birdie nearby. Thats a change I have noticed, before she would enjoy it herself, now she calls our attention and wants to share the excitement. A trip to the nearbly lake is usually a real treat for her, she sees birdies and ducks which I think are her next favourite thing.

We went to a zoo last weekend and she had great fun watching all the animals. Her reaction in the bear's cave was hillarious. A huge grizzly bear lie quietly in its den and right infront was a small pond with fish and some ducks. We could see this through a big glass window. When we entered the place, Anushka totally ignored the bear (she did not realize there was a bear) but was captivated by fish and the ducks. After a while, the grizzly bear woke up from its slumber to check out the audience and when it did, Anushka's eyes opened up wide and she went "O".

My darling has started crawling everywhere now, on her tummy, commando-style. I think its time to make a trip to the store to child-proof the place. Next up - I'll post a video of her crawling, stay tuned...

Daddyasal

2008-04-06T09:29:00.000-07:00

That means "longs for Daddy". These days Anushki just wants to be with me and I am loving it. It is just a phase I guess, I don't get to see her 3 days of the week because of long working hours, so when I am home I think she wants to be with me.

Yesterday I had two accomplishments. I recognized that she wanted to go potty, and later on I put her to sleep, which has almost never happened before. She always wants her Mom when she is sleepy. She looks really cute on her little potty, she even grabs on to something when she is trying hard, my baby is so focussed :-)

Oxford of the East

2008-02-20T21:38:00.000-08:00

The city of Pune was called the "Oxford of the East" by the late Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, due to its popularity with students from all over the world. Why am I talking about Pune ? Because we will be moving there soon. I have decided to accept a job offer from a US based company that has an office in Pune.

I am very excited to move to Pune, we will be close to Mumbai and to Singapore as well. But this is Anushka's blog, so I am going to write about what her thoughts might be on the subject. I wonder if Anushka will feel the difference, I'm sure she will think that we are on another trip and that soon she will be back in her own home, her play area in the loft, the bathtub, the backyard.. wonder if she will miss it ? She will see so many new faces, grand parents, great grand parents, uncles, aunts, cousins, oh she is going to get a lot of attention in the first few months. I wonder if she will be overwhelmed by all the activity around her and how much time will it take for her to get accustomed to it. Will she miss the big, bright and colorful aisles of the grocery stores here and wonder why vegetables are being delivered at the door now ?

My first entry

2008-02-17T18:52:00.000-08:00

Green Lake

She is always very excited when we get her car seat out because she knows we are going out for a ride, but most of the times its the routine trip to the grocery store. But I think today even she knew that this was going to be much more fun, the sun was out, Mom was wearing a cool outfit, Papa was getting his camera bag ready, oh this was going to be a fun little outing.

We met Helena (Leena) at Green Lake park today. Anushka and Leena started checking each other out the minute they settled down. After a while they were tugging on each other's caps and sweaters. It feels great to see Anushka's progress, a few weeks ago she would be nervous and even start to cry if another baby got very close to her and started to touch her. Now she is not afraid to get close to them , touch and even pull things out of their hands.