Having learnt by hearing from her brothers the telugu and english weekdays - Mahalakshmi started reciting them in telugu one fine morning. She went on ... sanivaaramu, aadivaramu... when Chandradithya told her the week starts with a Sunday - aadivaaramu. Then she picked up saying...aadivaaramu, sOdivaaramu, managaLavaaramu... and so on.
That's a first for me to hear sOmavaaramu as sOdivaaramu....and I couldnt' control myself :)
Yes - it's been a looooooooooong time since I wrote last. I'll try to be a little more frequent than it's been so far.
Swasti!!
Showing posts with label Kids. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kids. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Tuesday, June 07, 2011
Shocker
Recently we let a couple of neighbourhood boys to come and play in our house with Chandra and Datta. These boys are around 10 years - a little older than my boys, but wanted to play in our house nevertheless. I watched them all play for a few minutes and seeing them get along well I went inside to get on with my work. They could play any of the board games, sports, toys etc., I told them - so I was looking forward to some undisturbed stretch of time.
I got on my laptop, caught some news headlines and after a few minutes - was about to start on my tasks when Datta ran in crying.
'He's catching my balls'.
I was shocked - and didn't understand what he's saying at first. I asked him to calm down and probed him further ... for which he said again, without calming down - 'I am playing and he's always catching my balls'. I was aghast at what the kids are learning these days - and from where - at such a young age. I was about to resolve not to let unknown and half-known kids in to play. I ran out to check out who was doing that and scold them.
A plethora of thoughts ran through my mind - in those few seconds it took for me to go out into the ground. Should I find out who did it and scold him? Or explain to him what's indecent behavior and not allowed in our house? Or should I go and talk to his parents instead?
When I went out, Chandra was batting and the neighbourhood boys were bowling and fielding. Since they are a little older, they are pretty much catching any ball that went up in the air. What can I say then? I looked down at Datta and he's still sobbing, with his face red from the hurt - I understood now - for getting caught every ball.
Who's at fault here? The neighbourhood kids, Datta, Me or the language?
Swasti!!
I got on my laptop, caught some news headlines and after a few minutes - was about to start on my tasks when Datta ran in crying.
'He's catching my balls'.
I was shocked - and didn't understand what he's saying at first. I asked him to calm down and probed him further ... for which he said again, without calming down - 'I am playing and he's always catching my balls'. I was aghast at what the kids are learning these days - and from where - at such a young age. I was about to resolve not to let unknown and half-known kids in to play. I ran out to check out who was doing that and scold them.
A plethora of thoughts ran through my mind - in those few seconds it took for me to go out into the ground. Should I find out who did it and scold him? Or explain to him what's indecent behavior and not allowed in our house? Or should I go and talk to his parents instead?
When I went out, Chandra was batting and the neighbourhood boys were bowling and fielding. Since they are a little older, they are pretty much catching any ball that went up in the air. What can I say then? I looked down at Datta and he's still sobbing, with his face red from the hurt - I understood now - for getting caught every ball.
Who's at fault here? The neighbourhood kids, Datta, Me or the language?
Swasti!!
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Brains
Dr. Usha is a cleanliness freak. Are all dentists like that? Or am I lucky to get paired with one. Needless to say, I don't live upto her expectations of cleanliness. I tend to leave things behind as if I meant to get back to them, but forgot. I can't say myself for sure, if it is purposeful forgetfulness or genuine. I think in my case, the line between both has blurred a long time ago.
Anyway - coming to the present - summer vacation for kids - wake up late in the morning - mom's almost out the door to clinic - dad fixes breakfast - mess and mayhem follow....... yeah! you get the idea. Today's no different. To keep things simple, I carefully planted the idea of Vanilla Milk into their brains even while the toothbrushing is going on. Thank god, they bought into it.
They attacked some of the toys lying around while I ran into the kitchen to prepare Vanilla Milk. After mixing it up, feeling proud of getting a handy froth machine, I poured it into 3 cups, left the spoon on the kitchen counter. Yeah - lazy to just push it a little bit left so it could find its way into the sink. I placed the cups on the kids' picnic/park bench, ordering them to gulp it down by the time I come back from a visit to the bathroom.
I came back in a couple of minutes to pick up the glasses - but as usual - the milk cups were untouched. The kids were busy checking their toys after what seemed like ages for them since last night. I ran into the kitchen to mix some vanilla milk for myself. Instead of taking another spoon, my brilliant brain remembered conveniently that I didn't put the previous spoon into the sink. So, I reached out to the spoon - but my hand came back immediately with a mini shock. On seeing the ants attacking the few droplets of vanilla milk on the spoon. Where did they come from? How could they come faster from seemingly far off distance - while my kids can't reach the milk glasses within their arms reach?!
Who's got the brains here? The dad - who conveniently remembered and thought of reusing the spoon? The kids - who were making the best use of their summer vacation playing around, not even heeding to the call for milk? Or the uninvited guests, who stormed the spoon for the few drops of sweet milk, and lost their lives?!
Is there a way to draw Lakshmanrekha lines all around the house ?!
Swasti!!
Anyway - coming to the present - summer vacation for kids - wake up late in the morning - mom's almost out the door to clinic - dad fixes breakfast - mess and mayhem follow....... yeah! you get the idea. Today's no different. To keep things simple, I carefully planted the idea of Vanilla Milk into their brains even while the toothbrushing is going on. Thank god, they bought into it.
They attacked some of the toys lying around while I ran into the kitchen to prepare Vanilla Milk. After mixing it up, feeling proud of getting a handy froth machine, I poured it into 3 cups, left the spoon on the kitchen counter. Yeah - lazy to just push it a little bit left so it could find its way into the sink. I placed the cups on the kids' picnic/park bench, ordering them to gulp it down by the time I come back from a visit to the bathroom.
I came back in a couple of minutes to pick up the glasses - but as usual - the milk cups were untouched. The kids were busy checking their toys after what seemed like ages for them since last night. I ran into the kitchen to mix some vanilla milk for myself. Instead of taking another spoon, my brilliant brain remembered conveniently that I didn't put the previous spoon into the sink. So, I reached out to the spoon - but my hand came back immediately with a mini shock. On seeing the ants attacking the few droplets of vanilla milk on the spoon. Where did they come from? How could they come faster from seemingly far off distance - while my kids can't reach the milk glasses within their arms reach?!
Who's got the brains here? The dad - who conveniently remembered and thought of reusing the spoon? The kids - who were making the best use of their summer vacation playing around, not even heeding to the call for milk? Or the uninvited guests, who stormed the spoon for the few drops of sweet milk, and lost their lives?!
Is there a way to draw Lakshmanrekha lines all around the house ?!
Swasti!!
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Fever
Whenever I sign off saying something like - 'more on that shortly' or 'details to follow soon' - that 'shortly' or 'soon' inevitably comes not so soon or shortly. Anyway...that's for later. But for now - I will talk about the new fever.
No - I am not talking about the fever I got last month or the one my son got last week. But the exam fever that's going on now. All around the state, for that matter. Since late February, I should say. Our kids have exams going on now - for the past 4 days - and will complete their first academic year in India on April 21st !! They have been great in acclimatizing and learning fast to adapt to the new environs as well as new subjects/languages. And to stand 1st or 2nd in their classes shows how eager they are to learn, setting aside the numerous inconveniences they face, coming from the USA.
Usha and I have been busy for the past couple of weeks - preparing them for some program or exam or the other. Thank God, the academic year is ending this week! (Or is it not really a respite?! now that the kids will be home all day :( )
We shall see.
Swasti!!
No - I am not talking about the fever I got last month or the one my son got last week. But the exam fever that's going on now. All around the state, for that matter. Since late February, I should say. Our kids have exams going on now - for the past 4 days - and will complete their first academic year in India on April 21st !! They have been great in acclimatizing and learning fast to adapt to the new environs as well as new subjects/languages. And to stand 1st or 2nd in their classes shows how eager they are to learn, setting aside the numerous inconveniences they face, coming from the USA.
Usha and I have been busy for the past couple of weeks - preparing them for some program or exam or the other. Thank God, the academic year is ending this week! (Or is it not really a respite?! now that the kids will be home all day :( )
We shall see.
Swasti!!
Friday, October 01, 2010
When 50 became 410
The boys are busy with Chota Bheem, Hanuman, Mr. Bean, some studies and other play stuff. In the US, they were never in front of the TV for more than an hour. Here, it's getting difficult to pull them away. Anyway, yesterday I had the fortune of them following me into the drawing room to sit down and do some Math. Chandra did 3 digit additions and substractions fine. Datta did single digit problems fine - so I gave him 2 digit problems as well. After a few problems, I gave him 25 + 25 - to keep things simple and make him excited. Excited - he sure was - at 'cracking' all the problems. He pushed his book towards me and ran off to join his brother for another episode of Chota Bheem.
I checked the book at the end of the day - before going to bed. And I was surprised to see him answer 25+25 = 410. For a second I didn't understand where got that from. Then I realized, I didn't teach him to carry over ... so no wonder :) Right or wrong, he is always at peace! What a joy!!
Swasti!!
I checked the book at the end of the day - before going to bed. And I was surprised to see him answer 25+25 = 410. For a second I didn't understand where got that from. Then I realized, I didn't teach him to carry over ... so no wonder :) Right or wrong, he is always at peace! What a joy!!
Swasti!!
Friday, March 19, 2010
No Batteries
After a few episodes of naughty, if not outright nasty, behavior from Datta - I shouted at him asking "What happened to your listening ears? Do I have to pull them out?" To which he responded immediately, with a mischievous smile - "They need batteries".
hmmm...
Where can I find them?!
Swasti!!
hmmm...
Where can I find them?!
Swasti!!
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Disney - Where Dreams Come True
We have been to the Walt Disney World and been on the 4-night Disney Cruise earlier this month. The kids had a blast and are already asking to go on a 7-night cruise next week. Usha and I enjoyed the vacation thoroughly as well. This is our first cruise trip, but second visit to the Disney World. The cruise really is our dream come true. (yeah...why not?! no need to cook; no need to do dishes; no doing the beds nor washing clothes... ha ha)
One thing that really strikes me on our trips to Disney World is the cheerful faces of all those that work there, and their excellent customer service. Right from the bell boy to the store man to the security guard to the characters (of course). If there's any place on earth where someone bends over his/her back to satisfy the customer - then Disney is the place, we felt.
And yeah...we even celebrated Datta's 4th birthday (per Indian calendar) on the cruise and he really liked it.
More on the trips soon...
Swasti!!
One thing that really strikes me on our trips to Disney World is the cheerful faces of all those that work there, and their excellent customer service. Right from the bell boy to the store man to the security guard to the characters (of course). If there's any place on earth where someone bends over his/her back to satisfy the customer - then Disney is the place, we felt.
And yeah...we even celebrated Datta's 4th birthday (per Indian calendar) on the cruise and he really liked it.
More on the trips soon...
Swasti!!
Saturday, November 21, 2009
'Manners are not for following'
This past Friday I had an interesting conversation with Datta - my soon-to-be 4-year old son.
Me: No computer for you today, as you were not listening. (The kids watch playhouse disney episodes on the internet)
Datta: Please naanna (dad). Can I watch Handy Manny?
Me: I said no computer on weekdays. Also, you are not listening to us. No good manners, no computer.
Datta: But I said Please... that's a good manner?!
Me: Yes, but you have to listen to mom and me as well - and follow what we say. You can't do as you please for everything.
Datta: But naanna ... good manners are only for saying. Not for listening and following....
Me: What do you mean? What are good manners?
Datta: Please, Thank You and Sorry... these are all good manners. Not listening and following....
hmm... Barney and Mickey episodes on manners have greater influence on him ...what can I say, but to burst out in laughter at his innocence and unintended humor?!
Swasti!!
Monday, August 31, 2009
Redefining ABCDs
Last evening I asked Datta, who is more interested in playing and doing rather than reading/writing, to actually sit down and write ABCDs. Needless to say, he couldn't get computer time if he didn't write them.
He grunted, complained and found no other way but to write them. So he did, threw the paper in my lap and went up to play Disney games on the computer with his big brother and little sister. After I was done doing whatever I was busy with, I looked at the paper, and to my dismay - found just A, B, C and D scribbled on it. Nothing more.
Here's the conversation that ensued:
Me: Datta... why didn't you write it all?
Datta: I did.
Me: Where? You just wrote 4 letters. Where are the rest?
Datta: You asked me to write only those four.
Me: No I didn't. I said write ABCDs - meaning, you have to write until Z.
Datta: But Z is not part of ABCDs.
I am sure scores of parents have gone through this conversation with their kids. It's almost the end of the day. No energy left to sit down and explain to him. Nor to keep him engaged with anything else either...so I resigned and left him giggle away with his siblings in front of the computer.
Swasti!!
How to know where you work?
Recently, while returning home from a drive, we came across the hospital Datta was born in. Incidentally that's the same hospital Usha works in as well. I was telling the boys where each were born and they asked us where mom and I were born at. Here it goes:
Datta: Where is amma (mom) born?
Me: Amma was born in a hospital in India
Chandra: How about you nanna (dad)?
Me: I was born at home in my hometown.
Datta: Why? You didn't have a hospital there?
Me: Not like that. It was just convenient and the facility was available at that time.
Chandra: Oh I know - mom was born in a hospital, so she works in a hospital now. You were born at home, so you work at home.
Datta: Yes, so anna (big bro) and I will be doctors when we grow up and work in a hospital.
How I wish it's as simple as that?!
Swasti!!
Triceratops unravelled
Did you ever learn about the Triceratops? If not, here's a quick tip for you, courtesy Datta.
Triceratop are dinosaurs that try to eat the tops (heads) off the people.
So, there you have it! Forget what paleontologists have to say about the herbivorous nature of the genus.
Swasti!!
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Musings from missed cues
Some times we get lost in a train of thought or go into such expansive thinking that we miss the visible cues staring in our face. One such amusing thing happened this morning.
Just before giving bath to Datta I removed the Diego band-aid he 'sported' for two days on his left elbow, saying his boo-boo is gone and he is fine now. He agreed and stopped holding his hand in an awkward pose. After the bath, while getting dressed, we were talking and suddenly we had the following conversation.
Datta: Naannaa (Dad) - how do boo-boos go away?
Me: When you eat well, and ...
D: (interjecting) Ba... it's a ba...
Me: and stay healthy...
D: (again) B'.... b'....
Me: without eating junk food, boo-boos get better and go away quick....
D: Naannaaaaa ... (in an almost exasperated tone) With a band-aid.
Me: Oh...yes!! If we put a band-aid, it goes away!!
See... some questions warrant just a simple answer. :)
Swasti!!
Saturday, April 25, 2009
3 minus 2
One fine morning last week, the boys were getting ready to go to school when Chandra started doing subtractions on his fingers.
2 minus 2 equals......... hmm... one finger, two fingers; fold two of them and you are left with zero.... (ok...who is reading this to learn? come on... go and get an education :) )
The restless parent in me tried to teach him the 'simple fact' that if you subtract a number from itself, you always get a zero. No need to work your fingers for 'such simple' things. Not content with just 'teaching' the principle, I wanted to test him.
Me: What's 3 minus 3?
Chandra: (as usual) takes 3 fingers and starts his calculations.
Datta: (interjects and says) Zero
Me: That's good Datta. Now what's 4 - 4?
Chandra flings a few fingers out but hesitates... and then says zero
Datta: (shouts immediately) Zero
Me: See peddabbai, Datta is already getting it. You don't have to use your fingers to do this simple thing. Let's try again... 5 minus 5 is?
Datta: Zero
Chandra: Zero
Me: That's very good Datta.
Chandra is happy that his little brother is also into learning math and asks Datta a question.
Chandra: Datta what's 1 minus 1?
Datta: Zero
Chandra: Datta what's 3 minus 2?
Datta: Zero
Hmm.... the kids made me realize what a fool I make of myself at times, trying to cut short the learning process and teach them the tricks :) Datta's just having fun and that's what it is meant to be, isn't it? Every kid has to learn the basics the old fashioned way and there's no shortcut there!
Well, if I think I learnt a lesson I can apply to parenting as a whole, I'll be in for a surprise when I get back to my 'restless parent' mode again soon enough.
Swasti!!
2 minus 2 equals......... hmm... one finger, two fingers; fold two of them and you are left with zero.... (ok...who is reading this to learn? come on... go and get an education :) )
The restless parent in me tried to teach him the 'simple fact' that if you subtract a number from itself, you always get a zero. No need to work your fingers for 'such simple' things. Not content with just 'teaching' the principle, I wanted to test him.
Me: What's 3 minus 3?
Chandra: (as usual) takes 3 fingers and starts his calculations.
Datta: (interjects and says) Zero
Me: That's good Datta. Now what's 4 - 4?
Chandra flings a few fingers out but hesitates... and then says zero
Datta: (shouts immediately) Zero
Me: See peddabbai, Datta is already getting it. You don't have to use your fingers to do this simple thing. Let's try again... 5 minus 5 is?
Datta: Zero
Chandra: Zero
Me: That's very good Datta.
Chandra is happy that his little brother is also into learning math and asks Datta a question.
Chandra: Datta what's 1 minus 1?
Datta: Zero
Chandra: Datta what's 3 minus 2?
Datta: Zero
Hmm.... the kids made me realize what a fool I make of myself at times, trying to cut short the learning process and teach them the tricks :) Datta's just having fun and that's what it is meant to be, isn't it? Every kid has to learn the basics the old fashioned way and there's no shortcut there!
Well, if I think I learnt a lesson I can apply to parenting as a whole, I'll be in for a surprise when I get back to my 'restless parent' mode again soon enough.
Swasti!!
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
He believes he can fly
Remember the song from Space Jam - I believe I can fly ?! Datta reminded me of it when I was driving the boys to school the other day.
I was driving and stopped at a red light. Datta was chatting non-stop about what he would do when he grows up (which is another story for another time, as he has no concept of linear time and thinking; and thinks he can be a Benjamin Button - you know what I mean!)
So anyway - when I stopped at the red light, he didn't see the red light - and asked me to keep going. I told him I can't as the light turned RED. His response was: "I want our car to fly in the sky so we don't have to stop for red lights. I want our house in the sky. I want my day-care, annayya's (big brother's) school in the sky, our play ground in the sky, walmart in the sky, temple in the sky...". Chandra caught on as well and true to their mood then, they kept on and on...until they built a whole community in the sky.
Sometimes I am scared to ask them to do anything that looks like conditioining them, lest I should stunt their creativity. Well, that's only sometimes, though. :) Let's see what they become...
Swasti!!
I was driving and stopped at a red light. Datta was chatting non-stop about what he would do when he grows up (which is another story for another time, as he has no concept of linear time and thinking; and thinks he can be a Benjamin Button - you know what I mean!)
So anyway - when I stopped at the red light, he didn't see the red light - and asked me to keep going. I told him I can't as the light turned RED. His response was: "I want our car to fly in the sky so we don't have to stop for red lights. I want our house in the sky. I want my day-care, annayya's (big brother's) school in the sky, our play ground in the sky, walmart in the sky, temple in the sky...". Chandra caught on as well and true to their mood then, they kept on and on...until they built a whole community in the sky.
Sometimes I am scared to ask them to do anything that looks like conditioining them, lest I should stunt their creativity. Well, that's only sometimes, though. :) Let's see what they become...
Swasti!!
Monday, February 23, 2009
Jai Ho !!
Indeed!
Haven't watched the movie yet. It will have to wait, as we enjoy our own home productions every day, with the boys and the girl reeling out their creative sides extracting so many emotions from us that we didn't even realize existed.
Of course, I'd be lying if I said we didn't watch any video at all recently. The boys serve up a plethora of the colorful flicks and we are surrounded by so many of them that our viewing preferences have changed completely. The Wiggles, Playhouse Disney, Barney, Dora and Diego, Tom & Jerry, Bal Ganesh, Kittugadu, Ramayan, Krishna, Ghatotkacha etc. etc. have taken over our TV screen many many moons ago.
In all this, we are glad we caught the second half of the Oscars show last night, when the Slumdog bagged most of its awards. We resolved, at the end of it all, to watch the movie soon before it becomes a thing of the past. We shall see... :)
Swasti!!
Haven't watched the movie yet. It will have to wait, as we enjoy our own home productions every day, with the boys and the girl reeling out their creative sides extracting so many emotions from us that we didn't even realize existed.
Of course, I'd be lying if I said we didn't watch any video at all recently. The boys serve up a plethora of the colorful flicks and we are surrounded by so many of them that our viewing preferences have changed completely. The Wiggles, Playhouse Disney, Barney, Dora and Diego, Tom & Jerry, Bal Ganesh, Kittugadu, Ramayan, Krishna, Ghatotkacha etc. etc. have taken over our TV screen many many moons ago.
In all this, we are glad we caught the second half of the Oscars show last night, when the Slumdog bagged most of its awards. We resolved, at the end of it all, to watch the movie soon before it becomes a thing of the past. We shall see... :)
Swasti!!
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Obamayana
The other night while putting the boys to bed, they requested for a Rama story. Having told them some Rama stories recently, and having listened to more at the Sunday Heritage classes in the temple, they got hooked on to the Ramayana characters.
Chandra is Rama and Sugriva while Datta is Bharata and Hanuman. Sometimes they take on a third character as well. And anything slender and long becomes a bow and an arrow. Anything with a protrusion at the end, naturally, becomes a mace (gada). We have innumerable battles at home these days, and luckily for us and for themselves, both are on the same side and fight with fictitious evil, up in the air.
So, last night I thought I would tell them about the genesis of Ramayana, i.e. the story about Shravan Kumar, his old parents, Dasaratha's archery skills and the curse he incurs because of that. Yeah, I know - too much high level stuff for the little kids. Righfully so, I was jolted from my own slumber when the words Obama, change, schedule etc. started getting mixed up with the story.
I don't remember when I started dozing off and what all I was telling them - but when I looked at them, they were wide awake and with confused looks for what I was blabbering. They know Obma is the new President, but couldn't understand what Obama has to do with Rama, Dasaratha and Hanuman. At that point, I decided to start another simpler story and retold the 'Bharata pleading Rama to return but leaving with his sandals' story. And I made sure Obama wasn't part of this story.
After that the kids slept easy - but I was interested and intrigued myself with what Obama was doing in Ramayana and it was a long night for me. I could never figure out :)
Swasti !!
Chandra is Rama and Sugriva while Datta is Bharata and Hanuman. Sometimes they take on a third character as well. And anything slender and long becomes a bow and an arrow. Anything with a protrusion at the end, naturally, becomes a mace (gada). We have innumerable battles at home these days, and luckily for us and for themselves, both are on the same side and fight with fictitious evil, up in the air.
So, last night I thought I would tell them about the genesis of Ramayana, i.e. the story about Shravan Kumar, his old parents, Dasaratha's archery skills and the curse he incurs because of that. Yeah, I know - too much high level stuff for the little kids. Righfully so, I was jolted from my own slumber when the words Obama, change, schedule etc. started getting mixed up with the story.
I don't remember when I started dozing off and what all I was telling them - but when I looked at them, they were wide awake and with confused looks for what I was blabbering. They know Obma is the new President, but couldn't understand what Obama has to do with Rama, Dasaratha and Hanuman. At that point, I decided to start another simpler story and retold the 'Bharata pleading Rama to return but leaving with his sandals' story. And I made sure Obama wasn't part of this story.
After that the kids slept easy - but I was interested and intrigued myself with what Obama was doing in Ramayana and it was a long night for me. I could never figure out :)
Swasti !!
Monday, January 05, 2009
Imagination
Last night I was reading a bed time story for the boys. Brief synopsis: crows fighting on a tree; a pigeon lands on the tree; crows fight with it and send it away despite the pigeon's requests for shelter as it lost its way in the rain and dark skies; pigeon goes to a mango tree; lightning strikes the 'crow-tree' and hailstorm kills and injures a lot of crows that night; the remaining crows ask the pigeon in the morning how it survived; praying to god saved its life.
Once the pigeon is thrown out of the 'crow-tree', Datta said: when I become a small, tiny infant again, I will jump into the book, hit the bad crows and rescue the pigeon.
He said that with such conviction, it's not even a wish to become an infant again; he thinks it's just a matter of time before he becomes one :). I wish I had that imagination !
Swasti !!
Once the pigeon is thrown out of the 'crow-tree', Datta said: when I become a small, tiny infant again, I will jump into the book, hit the bad crows and rescue the pigeon.
He said that with such conviction, it's not even a wish to become an infant again; he thinks it's just a matter of time before he becomes one :). I wish I had that imagination !
Swasti !!
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Thanks for the Blast!
This past Sunday (Dec 28th) we hosted a get together party in Piscataway (NJ), the planning for which started more than a month ago. Datta turned 3 on Dec 23rd while Mahalakshmi turns 1 on Jan 2nd. And then the New Year is just around the corner. We haven't met with many of our old friends and family for quite some time. All in all - we decided to have the party in NJ so the venue will be accessible to people coming from different states in the NE corridor.
Venue: Party Hall behind Hi-Touch Wireless store in the Sukhsagar Restaurant strip mall.
Time: 11:30am - 3:00 pm (11:50am - 4:30 pm actual)
Scheduled Program: Cake cutting, Lunch, Music program by Sri Santosh Khammamkar
The party started on a very slow note as invitees started coming in around 11:45 and I was the only one from the host family receiving the guests and talking to them. But my conversation skills were not enough to keep them engaged. We needed Usha and the kids to bring charm to the gathering. Having only one vehicle, being used for getting things to the party hall from different places kept them and Haritha (my BiL Ravi's wife) stranded in the hotel. After a while, Ravi brought them to the party hall - past Noon and the party started coming to life.
My friends Satyasai and Lalita Kommaraju from Philly were the first to arrive, followed by Seshagiri and Rama from Edison. Then came my friend from Rutgers Satish Kethineni with his wife Srilakshmi and kids Sanjay and Sujay. While I was chatting with them, one of my maternal cousins Srinivas Kuchibhatla, whom I haven't met before, arrived with his family. And then a steady stream of friends and family started joining us. All in all, including us, we had 69 adults and 36 kids at the party.
It picked up tempo with enthusiastic participation from everyone present and by lunch time - with the menu that received good reviews - it really started to take off. Once the cake's cut the birthday party environment is in full swing and the kids had a good time jumping around and playing with the balloons (most of them were brought down and blasted by then).
Right after the lunch, just after 3:00 pm we started the music program. Our good friend Sriram Peyyety had his daughter Chy. Sreenidhi started the proceedings with a soulful rendition of a Lord Ganesha Bhajan (gajAnanayutam gaNESwaram). Sri Santosh Khammamkar started off his music program with a Kishore Kumar number and followed it up with numbers from Rafi and Mukesh, and mixed a few good telugu songs in between. Another good friend of ours Narasimham Kota had his daughter Chy. Sarvani dancing to the Bommarillu song - Apudo, ipudo, epudo kalagannane cheli. Sarvani showcased her talent with a smooth flowing dance to the song. His second daughter Chy. Manasa also danced to the Bham Bham BholE song sung by Santosh. Manasa is only 2 years old but danced very well and showed us all what's coming in the future. Narasimham garu himself showcased some cool steps in the process of encouraging his little daughter. Sriram garu started the dancing frenzy for the adults with his trademark steps and Narasimham garu joined followed by Ravi Nistala, my cousin's husband. Sriram garu pulled me as well to dance - and I obliged with my awkward-at-best steps.
We requested Smt. Sirisha Kotamraju (w/o Srinivas Kotamraju) to end the music program with her great rendition of 'nArAyaNatE namOnamO' song.
I need to mention here that all of this was made possible only with the gracious support provided by friends and family who covered several loose ends for us - before, during and after the event. And there were one too many of those, given that we were hosting the party about 180 miles away from home, in a different State. Bhargava made and brought yogurt for the party while also picking up the chapatis I ordered from a lady a little distance away from his home. Balu TKVL brought his mini-DVD camcorder to record the function. He also rushed to East Brunswick to pick up the Spinach balls curry, vadas and kaajaas from another lady I ordered them from. Seshagiri has been helping us right from the planning stages in booking the party hall and also picked up the main menu from another lady in Edison (Mango pappu, Brinjal allam/mirchi curry, sambar, Lemon rice, Dosakai pachchadi and papads). As we ran out of the pizzas for kids, he rushed out again to get another couple of them from the near by Pizza Hut.
Lalita, Padma (w/o Vikayakrishna TKVL) and Madhavi brought rice cookers while Susmitha (w/o Sundar) took charge of rice cooking. Santhi garu (oru distant relative and w/o Padmanabha Sastry - a family friend) and some other ladies at the party took charge of the food section - and making sure every body got everything they needed during the lunch. Santhi garu also helped in cutting the cake into pieces for all.
In the initial stages of party quietness, Sundar engaged the kids that were attending the party. And when we learnt that Santosh Khammamkar forgot bringing his Mixer, without which the music program cannot happen, Sundar went with Santosh to the near by Sam Ash to rent/buy a mixer. Having learnt that the equipment costs about $400+, we decided to go for a Karaoke machine from Walmart instead. And I requested Srinivas (Bhargava's BiL) to get it from the near by Walmart. He also took it upon himself to return it after the party :). Sankar and Vasantha took the boys with them to their house, so they can play with their son Mihir. That gave us the time to clean up the hall and return it in clean condition to the owners after the party. Sriram Nadimpalli helped with the video shooting while Satish helped engage the kids and took pictures of some nice occasions we missed.
Then there were others who helped us in other party logistics. All in all, almost everyone helped in making the party a grand success. The great part about it all is that everyone felt at home and took active part in the proceedings. Consider this: we had friends and family come from MA, NY, PA, VA, GA and of course NJ. Madhury and Ravi came to the party from a Boston suburb, with their 2 month old daughter Sri Lasya. Another dear friend Sriram Peyyety attended with his family having returned from India just the night before. Then there were Sundar and Susmitha who came from Reston, VA with their kids. My cousin Rani and her husband Ravi came with their 2 kids, from Falls Church, VA. We also had Sowmya and Prasad attending with their daughter, although they landed from Vegas just that morning - after taking a red eye flight.
My BiL Ravi and his wife Haritha have been of great help all along. They flew up from Columbus, GA for this party on Dec 25th itself, did a lot of planning, shopping, decorating and helped with many other logistics. We organized a few parties before - but all were close to our home, and none of this magnitude. Our heartfelt thanks to all that attended, participated and helped have a great time. We had a blast and we are already making plans for another party in 2009 :) We will see...
Swasti !!
Venue: Party Hall behind Hi-Touch Wireless store in the Sukhsagar Restaurant strip mall.
Time: 11:30am - 3:00 pm (11:50am - 4:30 pm actual)
Scheduled Program: Cake cutting, Lunch, Music program by Sri Santosh Khammamkar
The party started on a very slow note as invitees started coming in around 11:45 and I was the only one from the host family receiving the guests and talking to them. But my conversation skills were not enough to keep them engaged. We needed Usha and the kids to bring charm to the gathering. Having only one vehicle, being used for getting things to the party hall from different places kept them and Haritha (my BiL Ravi's wife) stranded in the hotel. After a while, Ravi brought them to the party hall - past Noon and the party started coming to life.
My friends Satyasai and Lalita Kommaraju from Philly were the first to arrive, followed by Seshagiri and Rama from Edison. Then came my friend from Rutgers Satish Kethineni with his wife Srilakshmi and kids Sanjay and Sujay. While I was chatting with them, one of my maternal cousins Srinivas Kuchibhatla, whom I haven't met before, arrived with his family. And then a steady stream of friends and family started joining us. All in all, including us, we had 69 adults and 36 kids at the party.
It picked up tempo with enthusiastic participation from everyone present and by lunch time - with the menu that received good reviews - it really started to take off. Once the cake's cut the birthday party environment is in full swing and the kids had a good time jumping around and playing with the balloons (most of them were brought down and blasted by then).
Right after the lunch, just after 3:00 pm we started the music program. Our good friend Sriram Peyyety had his daughter Chy. Sreenidhi started the proceedings with a soulful rendition of a Lord Ganesha Bhajan (gajAnanayutam gaNESwaram). Sri Santosh Khammamkar started off his music program with a Kishore Kumar number and followed it up with numbers from Rafi and Mukesh, and mixed a few good telugu songs in between. Another good friend of ours Narasimham Kota had his daughter Chy. Sarvani dancing to the Bommarillu song - Apudo, ipudo, epudo kalagannane cheli. Sarvani showcased her talent with a smooth flowing dance to the song. His second daughter Chy. Manasa also danced to the Bham Bham BholE song sung by Santosh. Manasa is only 2 years old but danced very well and showed us all what's coming in the future. Narasimham garu himself showcased some cool steps in the process of encouraging his little daughter. Sriram garu started the dancing frenzy for the adults with his trademark steps and Narasimham garu joined followed by Ravi Nistala, my cousin's husband. Sriram garu pulled me as well to dance - and I obliged with my awkward-at-best steps.
We requested Smt. Sirisha Kotamraju (w/o Srinivas Kotamraju) to end the music program with her great rendition of 'nArAyaNatE namOnamO' song.
I need to mention here that all of this was made possible only with the gracious support provided by friends and family who covered several loose ends for us - before, during and after the event. And there were one too many of those, given that we were hosting the party about 180 miles away from home, in a different State. Bhargava made and brought yogurt for the party while also picking up the chapatis I ordered from a lady a little distance away from his home. Balu TKVL brought his mini-DVD camcorder to record the function. He also rushed to East Brunswick to pick up the Spinach balls curry, vadas and kaajaas from another lady I ordered them from. Seshagiri has been helping us right from the planning stages in booking the party hall and also picked up the main menu from another lady in Edison (Mango pappu, Brinjal allam/mirchi curry, sambar, Lemon rice, Dosakai pachchadi and papads). As we ran out of the pizzas for kids, he rushed out again to get another couple of them from the near by Pizza Hut.
Lalita, Padma (w/o Vikayakrishna TKVL) and Madhavi brought rice cookers while Susmitha (w/o Sundar) took charge of rice cooking. Santhi garu (oru distant relative and w/o Padmanabha Sastry - a family friend) and some other ladies at the party took charge of the food section - and making sure every body got everything they needed during the lunch. Santhi garu also helped in cutting the cake into pieces for all.
In the initial stages of party quietness, Sundar engaged the kids that were attending the party. And when we learnt that Santosh Khammamkar forgot bringing his Mixer, without which the music program cannot happen, Sundar went with Santosh to the near by Sam Ash to rent/buy a mixer. Having learnt that the equipment costs about $400+, we decided to go for a Karaoke machine from Walmart instead. And I requested Srinivas (Bhargava's BiL) to get it from the near by Walmart. He also took it upon himself to return it after the party :). Sankar and Vasantha took the boys with them to their house, so they can play with their son Mihir. That gave us the time to clean up the hall and return it in clean condition to the owners after the party. Sriram Nadimpalli helped with the video shooting while Satish helped engage the kids and took pictures of some nice occasions we missed.
Then there were others who helped us in other party logistics. All in all, almost everyone helped in making the party a grand success. The great part about it all is that everyone felt at home and took active part in the proceedings. Consider this: we had friends and family come from MA, NY, PA, VA, GA and of course NJ. Madhury and Ravi came to the party from a Boston suburb, with their 2 month old daughter Sri Lasya. Another dear friend Sriram Peyyety attended with his family having returned from India just the night before. Then there were Sundar and Susmitha who came from Reston, VA with their kids. My cousin Rani and her husband Ravi came with their 2 kids, from Falls Church, VA. We also had Sowmya and Prasad attending with their daughter, although they landed from Vegas just that morning - after taking a red eye flight.
My BiL Ravi and his wife Haritha have been of great help all along. They flew up from Columbus, GA for this party on Dec 25th itself, did a lot of planning, shopping, decorating and helped with many other logistics. We organized a few parties before - but all were close to our home, and none of this magnitude. Our heartfelt thanks to all that attended, participated and helped have a great time. We had a blast and we are already making plans for another party in 2009 :) We will see...
Swasti !!
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
It's the party that matters !!
Today is Datta's third birthday. He's been planning on what to do and how to do it on this day for a few weeks now. He changed the menu many a time. And all it included was a cake which changed many faces from Diego to Mickey to Backyardigans to Thomas to Wiggles to Nemo to Diego again. Luckily for us, that's the last choice and we went ahead and ordered the Diego cup cakes.
As the day approached his excitement found no bounds and with just 2 days to go - he caught fever and started throwing up. After a day of fasting and taking only electrolytes, he improved only to do it all over again this morning. From the afternoon he got better - and we finally decided to take him to the day care to celebrate his birthday. So we all went - and his class was delighted to see him back.
He was accorded the royal treatment, given a custom birthday hat (made then and there) and everybody sang the birthday song. His eyes lit up like the brightest stars and he was filled with great joy. He 'blessed' the cupcakes and goody bags to be distributed - and everybody feasted on the Diego cupcakes. But he didn't eat much of it - other than taking a finger or two tastings of the cream on top. He would have nothing more. But he seemed full and content. All he cared for was being with friends, celebrating his birthday with them and his teachers and going through the party atmosphere - which he's been looking forward to for a long time.
I am sure he will tell stories of this day for a few days or even weeks. And I am glad he was in a decent shape to go to the daycare for this party. Kids are amazing - and always teach us how to savor the simple things of life. It's the party/togetherness that matters - not the cake!
Swasti !!
As the day approached his excitement found no bounds and with just 2 days to go - he caught fever and started throwing up. After a day of fasting and taking only electrolytes, he improved only to do it all over again this morning. From the afternoon he got better - and we finally decided to take him to the day care to celebrate his birthday. So we all went - and his class was delighted to see him back.
He was accorded the royal treatment, given a custom birthday hat (made then and there) and everybody sang the birthday song. His eyes lit up like the brightest stars and he was filled with great joy. He 'blessed' the cupcakes and goody bags to be distributed - and everybody feasted on the Diego cupcakes. But he didn't eat much of it - other than taking a finger or two tastings of the cream on top. He would have nothing more. But he seemed full and content. All he cared for was being with friends, celebrating his birthday with them and his teachers and going through the party atmosphere - which he's been looking forward to for a long time.
I am sure he will tell stories of this day for a few days or even weeks. And I am glad he was in a decent shape to go to the daycare for this party. Kids are amazing - and always teach us how to savor the simple things of life. It's the party/togetherness that matters - not the cake!
Swasti !!
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Disney Ignorance
This past Wednesday night we all went to the Disney on Ice show in the Times Union Center here in Albany. The theme of this year's show is Celebrating 100 Years of Magic. I didn't know that Disney Magic is already 100 years old. I was thinking it's about 70 years or so since it started.
Both the boys enjoyed the show very much and surprisingly Mahalakshmi had a good time as well, until the last 15 minutes - watching all the characters troop onto the stage and perform their act. I must admit I didn't know half the characters. And some of the characters never showed up. I don't understand why Disney preserves the Mickey character so much - and doesn't make it spend much time on stage. May be they think that's one way of preserving and extending the magic of Mickey. I felt bad for the person donning that costume - he/she must have spent a ton of time getting ready - but all they spend on stage is under 5 minutes in the 80 minute show.
We got the first two seats in two consecutive rows - so Datta and I were sitting behind Usha and Chandra. Whenever I didn't recognize a character (which was one too many) I was asking Usha who it was, bending down and whispering in her ear. And my neighbour, a big man with a kid's enthusiasm - is annoyed that I didn't know nothing but still showed up. I guess I didn't do my homework well! Our trip to the Disney World last year did help raise my Disney knowledge though. The kids and their rhymes/stories books definitely help.
All in all, it was a decent show and I don't think I can sit through another viewing. Last month we went to the Wiggles show and we thoroughly enjoyed it. The kids are excited though - and they might drag me into the next year's as well. We'll see.
Swasti!!
Both the boys enjoyed the show very much and surprisingly Mahalakshmi had a good time as well, until the last 15 minutes - watching all the characters troop onto the stage and perform their act. I must admit I didn't know half the characters. And some of the characters never showed up. I don't understand why Disney preserves the Mickey character so much - and doesn't make it spend much time on stage. May be they think that's one way of preserving and extending the magic of Mickey. I felt bad for the person donning that costume - he/she must have spent a ton of time getting ready - but all they spend on stage is under 5 minutes in the 80 minute show.
We got the first two seats in two consecutive rows - so Datta and I were sitting behind Usha and Chandra. Whenever I didn't recognize a character (which was one too many) I was asking Usha who it was, bending down and whispering in her ear. And my neighbour, a big man with a kid's enthusiasm - is annoyed that I didn't know nothing but still showed up. I guess I didn't do my homework well! Our trip to the Disney World last year did help raise my Disney knowledge though. The kids and their rhymes/stories books definitely help.
All in all, it was a decent show and I don't think I can sit through another viewing. Last month we went to the Wiggles show and we thoroughly enjoyed it. The kids are excited though - and they might drag me into the next year's as well. We'll see.
Swasti!!
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