While we were in Madras...

My FIL is an ADORABLE man! Hes every girls dream FIL. Of course, the fil-mil combo does nt work as beautifully as the individual FIL but one cant ask for too much, so no complaints. He has always treated me like a princess and now treats Ashu like a Queen. Ashu being the manipulative kid, adores him and sticks to him like glue and says all the right things to him. What can I say, shes but a natural! His entire desire in life is to show me that he can take care of her without my help. So at 6 am when Ashu gets up and runs out of our room to him, the day starts for him while I go back to sleep. He gives her milk, takes her to the bathroom, tries to give her breakfast while I slowly get up and continue where he left and finish feeding her. Then he takes her out, to the terrace, to the garden and comes back during lunch time. Sings her to sleep sitting on the swing. After the nap, we go out to the beach and visit a temple where he completely takes charge of her while she has loads of fun. Bliss! On the day I landed in Madras from Zurich, I left Ashu home and went to the Dentist. She was seeing my in laws after 8 months. She said bye to me and stayed with my FIL. Atta girl!

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She ll happily go to the driver, the maid, the gardener, the little girl next door but not to my MIL. I swear I have no part in this! Its totally her choice. Who am I to interfere? ;)

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We were taking Ashu to the beach everyday. Though she did nt like to walk on the sand or get her feet wet in the water, she liked to look at the sea, the crows and the stray dogs. She had taken to our driver very well and he was carrying her around mostly. (Driver, maid, car, beach, shopping,.. I did nt have to lift my finger for anything, so what am doing here in Zurich?)

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My fil and I took Ashu to the Besant Nagar beach one evening. There was a big horse and Ashu was excited and said she ll ride on it. But she would nt sit alone or with the horse guy. So our Driver came to the rescue and they both went horse riding on the beach. She sat with a smile on her face as if shes the Maharani doing the rounds! Then the merry go round, the kids giant wheel, a balloon, a kaathaadi, a ball, half an idli in Murugan Idli kadai, happily holding one of the waiters hand and walking away while Amma gulped down a whole Onion Oothappam, visit to the temples,... So tell me again, what am I doing in Zurich?

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Hd arrived minus a baggage(it came the next day, thankfully) on Sept 7th and Ashu went bonkers seeing him. She screamed and started running in circles around me and it was hilarious to see her. Then when Hd carried her, she was swallowing tears and was choked and did nt talk for a long time. It was all so emotional and I felt so bad for her. The poor thing, how much she had missed him even though she did nt ask for him even once in those 5 weeks.

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Officially, Ashu has "gone" on the beach, on the roadside, public toilets in the restaurants, department stores, wedding hall, train, plane, airport, temple,... She even stood in line and waited for her turn! Diaper less life is a bliss, I tell ya!

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When my parents were also in Madras, Ashu was ecstatic. One thatha is bad enough, but with two - I started pretending she was nt mine! But got to tell you that she was to her good old self when we came to Madras. My dads definitely the culprit and his presence is what makes her a monster. My FIL is very similar to my dad too but the man is a bit afraid of me so he does nt interfere with my parenting style and listens to me.

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Watched Sivaji again with Hd this time. Was nt bad even the second time. Had fun. Probably because we realized we would nt be watching a movie in the theater in a long, long time to come.

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I have never really liked Madras before. But this trip has made me realize that I would nt mind settling down there. Some day. And only I know what a big deal that is for me. Children do change our lives upside down, dont they?

Kids do say the darndest things!

Amma, whats this?
Don't ask me anything, Ashu.
Amma, is this your Brestus?
*sigh* Yes, its my breast.
Amma, wheres Ashus brestus? (touching her chest)
*oh God! Why this soon?*

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Amma who's going in the motorbike?
I don't know Ashu. How would I know?
Tell me, Amma.
I don't know. You tell me.
Uncle, Amma. Uncle is going on the motorbike.

!!!!

So one time, Im making paper boats from the tissue paper in a restaurant to keep her busy. I make a boat and ask her what it is and she says "Boat, Amma!" Then she takes over and generally makes a mess with the tissues. Then she crumpled a tissue, folded it one side and asked me, "What is this? Tell me, Amma". It looked like nothing to me and I told her I did nt know. "Tell me Amma. What is this?" So I say, I don't know Ashu, you tell me! "Its a tissue, Amma", she says with a grin!

????

While we were going to Madras by car, I had put on a diaper for Ashu as she might go to sleep or there would nt be toilets when she wanted to go. When we stopped in a restaurant for breakfast, she did nt want to to use the bathroom. She slept for a while. Later, the AC in the car broke down and we stopped at a garage in the highway to repair it. And Ashu wanted to go Susu. Since there was no toilet there, I asked her to go in the diaper. But she would nt. "Susu, Amma. Susu ponum, Amma", she was saying. I told her there was no toilet and she showed the road side and said, "I ll go here Amma". WHAT? Is it in her blood or something? To be ready to go susu by the roadside? So of course off went the diaper(which was sparkling clean!) and she squatted like a pro and did her job! You passed the test, Kiddo!

Back.

I am back. *sulk* The only good thing is that I can blog more now. Checked my blog as soon as I came back to find that my template is gone so even before unpacking the umpteen suitcases and before keeping the Kothamalli chutney(coriander chutney) in the freezer in spite of my mom reminding me a hundred times to do so, I surfed the dozen free template sites to find a suitable one. This is only temporary, working on the header. (Will take your offer if I cant find my way, Tharini!)

Missed you all.

ps.
Oh yes, about Ashu. Shes thrilled to be home and to see her room. But at 5 am today, she asked for my FIL and said she wants to go to his house. Then said she wants to go to "kammonam" to see my parents. Is asking why there are no mosquitoes, lizards, flies, worms, etc... in the house. Why indeed?

B-r-e-a-k

I ll be off the Internet from tomorrow. See you all, 3 weeks from now. Already I have truck loads of blog posts to catch up. At this rate, I think I ll be glued to my laptop for weeks after I reach Zurich.

Mad Momma - Please restrict yourself and do not post more than once a day! ;)

Poppins - Have a great time in Europe!

Tharini - Please don't change your beautiful headers before I get a chance to see it! :)

UTBT - Good luck with the Potty Training. May the force be with you.

Moppet - Mail me how Moppet settled down after the India trip. I would badly need some advice after reaching Zurich!

Art, Itchy, Kowsalya and other Madrasis - Hoping to chance upon you folks in Madras if I ever get out of the house!

Kiran aka Party girl - Go rock and tell us more!

Kodis Mom - Since no one has, I bid for the Monster. Provided you take Ashu. We do have more patience when it comes to other peoples children, don't we? ;)

Gauri - A little belated Onam wishes. And counting on you for more craft projects.

Ceekay, Noon and Rbdans - Hows it going the 2nd time around? Cant wait to catch up with your posts and find out.

Collection of Stars - Good luck with the beautiful beginning of terrible twos, threes, fours, fives,... and welcome to the club!

Just like that - Onam wishes to you!

SM - You moved without telling? WHERE? Please mail me. *Nobody tells me anything these days. sulk*

Dotmom & Mnamma - I'm hooked to your blogs. I cant wait to catch up with all your posts.

Orchid - Hope alls well and we get to read you soon.

Something to Say - So any luck on the Veggies? I ll even pay you for a surefire tip!

Rohini - I'm sure you would have written just one post, if at all, when I check your blog again. And no, that's no good! Write more!

Premalatha - I cant wait to know either! You would mail me, would nt you?

And all you Mommies - Will miss you and hope to hog your comment boxes soon. (If I have left out some mommies, it is nt intentional. I just could nt come up with a clever one liner, that's all!)

And all my favorite bloggers - Will miss you all too and please email me if theres a dirty debate going on. Would nt want to miss it for the world! (Any reason to get out of the house and find a browsing center!)

ps.
Sorry folks for not linking. Crunch time as I have still not finished packing. Check out Indianmommies.blogspot.com for the links, if you want them.

pps.
Today is Boo's 2nd Birthday. Sorry Boo, no time to throw you a party. But you have been the best thing that has happened to me since Ashu and is nt that saying something? And all you readers give me the energy I need to write. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Update on Ashu at 28 Months.

I don't know if its the age or being in India, but Ashu is a different child these days. I would nt know where to begin to describe her. She seems so grown up at times.

She talks. A lot. She uses sentences like Poonai Ottamaa Odi pochu (The cat ran as if in a race), Paati kindal pandraa(Grandma is pulling my leg), Thatha engayo poita (Thatha has gone somewhere), Biscuit mattum porum (I want only biscuit), Enakku onnum vendaam (I dont want anything)... Its a sweet shock every time she says something new and I make her say it again and again until she gets tired of it. I literally rolled on the floor laughing when she said Paati kindal pandraa. It was totally unexpected.

She is just like the annoying son of my friend who would say, "Amma lets go home", whenever they visited my house. As soon as Ashu scans the hosts house and finds no one of her height, she starts telling "Amma lets go home" and goes to wear her shoes. I am seriously thinking of buying a new book or a new toy before we visit someones house to keep her occupied. Anything to avoid the embarrassment.

She of course is fully potty trained except for the nights when she uses the diaper. She takes off her pant by herself, goes to the toilet and sits on the potty seat and does the job. She even volunteered to clean the potty seat, but I declined.

She has become so adamant and so stubborn that Im really hoping that its only a temporary thing thanks to my dad and she ll be okay once we go back to Zurich. If not, Im planning to send her right back to India on a plane. Alone.

Everything is a struggle these days. As soon as I say "Ashu come here", she ll run to the farthest corner away from me and stare at me from there as if daring me to come and get her. I stare right back at her and its all a downhill from there. Loads of tears, lots of shouting,... all for a simple "come here". So imagine the bathing, dressing, eating, drinking and the other dozen things.

Shes unpredictable with kids. She loves their company but when it comes to sharing the toys, she shares with some and fights with others. Hugs some and pushes others. Snatches things from some and gives away to others. Very confusing.

"Sorry" used to be dime a dozen. Now she rations it. If she hits me or others and I ask her to apologize, she stares at me and zips her mouth. 9 out of ten times, she wins!

Yes, my baby girl who I was very proud that shes non violent has started hitting. I don't know if its the school she picked it from or just another milestone, but she is hitting. Unnecessarily, that too. I have pleaded with her, begged her, scolded her, shouted at her, gave her time outs, hit her right back, advised her, blackmailed her, bribed her,... but nothing seems to work. Its not frequent but its there. Enough to bother me.

She goes from this high energy, laughing and playing kid to a crying mess in less than two seconds when shes sleepy. One minute shes playing peekaboo with me and the next, shes crying her lungs out. I don't even have the time to change her into her pyjamas. She cries as if someone tried to strangle her. This is one thing I don't understand at all about her. WHY?

She has clearly started voicing her needs. And no one in the world can changer her mind. If she wants me to accompany her to the terrace, she wont stop nagging until I go with her. I have no choice. If my dad takes her to the bathroom, then only he should help her wear her pants. Not I. If my mom fed her lunch, then only she should clean her mouth. Not I. She will wear her shoes herself. She will pluck flowers from the garden herself, she will close the door herself,... She has clear ideas of whom should do what. And she ll throw a fit otherwise.

She wont talk or sing rhymes or even say her name to strangers. Most of the times, the strangers just happen to be my uncle, aunt, cousins and friends. They already know her name anyway and just have to take my word for it when I say that she knows her ABC's and can sing "Twinkle, twinkle little star".

For the past 16 months, her diet has been almost the same. She has not added anything new. Im not bothered anymore. One can only try so much. But thanks to this trip, at least my dad now knows what a stubborn kid she is when it comes to food. I don't have to hear him lecture me on the phone on what to give her anymore. I hope!

Sometimes, she says things like "I don't want you", "go away", "I don't like you" and breaks my heart. She did nt go to my dad or talk to him for a while when he came back after a 5 day trip. My dad felt horrible. Forget the teens, Im more scared of her turning three!

She would nt walk two steps. She ll say "Thookiko" (Pick me up) after walking for 2 seconds. I hated walking and whined "Thookiko" until I was 5 or 6 years old, I think. So no use complaining. Fate has a cruel sense of humor.

Last night while taking to Hd on the phone and narrating Ashus antics, he told me that Im complaining a lot about Ashu these days and I have nt told him one good thing about her since I left Zurich. I hope you did nt read this post, dear!

The Amazing Chola Temple.

Today I went to the 12th century Airavateswarar temple in Darasuram built by the Cholas. Just a few miles away from home. Since it has been declared as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, work is progressing to renovate the temple and since so much money is flowing in, it is being maintained superbly. But the temple itself is just amazing. No words can describe its beauty. The sculptures are out of this world. I visited the place twice within 2 weeks and I was just speechless both the times. The amount of details that has gone into it, the amount of work and labor, oh my God! And to think that even with so much technically advanced world, we have problems to move a rock from one place to the other and here 3000 years before, this temple has been built as if someone just flicked their finger and by magic, it appeared. Every nook and corner has been sculpted. Theres not a plain surface. The pillars are carved, the steps are carved, the gopuram is amazing, the windows have intricate designs, ... Theres the mythical animal Yaazhi, elephants, bulls, horses, snakes, folk dances, yoga postures, radha krishna, ganesha, muruga, ... There was this carving of lord Ganesha in one of the pillars. The ganesha was only an inch tall but the details were just amazing. Then there is this big statue of Goddess Annapurni with a vessel in her hand. If you flick on the vessel, you get a different sound even though the statue is made of one stone. Then theres Saraswati with a wisdom eye in her forehead, theres a huge Nandi, ... I was spell bound. A sculptor would have spent his entire life time just on one pillar, I guess. Awe inspiring, really.

I could nt help but remember this chocolate shop in Zurich which was opening shortly and for 6 months I saw the men with drills carving the shops name on stone at the entrance. And they had just about got the shape of S on it. And then to see such a temple built 3000 years ago with just uli and suthiyal (chisel and hammer), its unbelievable. And to think that I spent thousands of Euros seeing the roofs of Sistine Chapel and the statue of David and went gaga over them but never had the inclination to visit this landmark temple in my own backyard. I am glad I did it now. I am super glad.

My home town is a temple town. The name itself means that you will see a Temple tower from any angle of the town because of the number of temples crammed in this small town. If you have the habit of touching both your cheeks when you cross a temple like I do, then your hand will be permanently on your cheeks if you are in this town!


This is the famous Kumbeswarar temple where Ashu gave a banana to the temple elephant and took blessing from the elephant bravely while I stood a good 5 feet away!

This is the Sarangapani temple, the tallest in town.

And these are some of the Darasuram photos.

The rest are here. Check them out.

Terror Thatha.

I have seen my share of grand parents. But no one can come close to my father in the annoyance scale. Oh.My.God. I cant even begin to tell you what I have to put up with, day in and day out. I'm either going to leave Ashu here and escape. Or take Ashu and run away and never ever come back. He always, always keeps an eye on her so I cant even talk to him two sentences straight. He either interrupts to tell something to Ashu or gets up and runs to rescue her from I don't know may be a piece of paper which might fall on her head and hurt her badly. He sleeps when she sleeps. So no time to talk then. He always has her in his mind. Did she drink milk, did she eat, is she sick, is she better,... You begin to tell him some incident and he ll interrupt with a dozen Q's that you will scream your head off and leave the room.

"So dad, today Ashu climbed the stairs and..."

"Did nt u go with her? Why did you let her climb the stairs on her own?"

"Listen dad. when she went up, she saw the rain and..."

"Did she get wet? Why would you let her get drenched in the rain?"

"No dad. Listen please."

"Was the terrace door locked? Did she go out? Did she slip and fall? What was your mother doing?"

*screaming my head off and leaving the room*

If Ashu hits me, he checks her hand for injury.

When she throws a tantrum, he does whatever she wants.

He ALWAYS picks her up when she wants him to and always carries her everywhere. I have never seen them walk together even two steps.

He sits if she orders him to and stands when she asks him to.

He expects all of us to do the same.

This one time he was holding a piece of plastic paper between his lips for I don't know how long because she asked him to and screamed whenever he removed it.

When I am channel surfing and Ashu turns her head to the voice of some kid talking in a commercial and I do the grave mistake of changing the channel, I get a lecture from him about how Ashu will never be the same again because of this negligence.

He calls me a sadist if I give her time out.

He walks out of the room and sometimes even the house when I am scolding her.

According to him, we should nt let her do anything she does nt want to.

He clears all the toys that Ashu has scattered as soon as she leaves the scene because he does nt like me making her clean up.

He complaints that she eats little but also wants me to stop feeding her when she says enough.

Ashu has been drinking milk straight out of a cup instead of a sippy cup since coming here. But he gives her the sippy cup whenever my mom and I are nt looking.

Hes disappointed in me as a mother.

He wants me to be patience incarnated even when shes at her atrocious worst.

I should never complain about her.

If she is good, its because she is born that way. If she is bad (according to me) then its because of me.

When I think enough is enough and call him a hypocrite, he says "I did stupid things. But you don't have to do the same". Its hard to control myself from strangling him after such statements.

He always sees only the good side of her. Even if she throws a dagger at his heart, I guess he ll compliment her on her perfect aim before taking his last breath. (I would nt be the first to rush him to the hospital anyway!)

Train travails.

We were on an overnight train journey recently. My mom, Ashu and I. When Ashu was little, we only traveled in 2 tier AC compartment as it was comfortable to sit with Ashu in my shoulder, if she woke up in the middle of the night, without the middle berth. In the 3 tier AC, I have to crouch and sit and also the berths were nt as wide as the 2 tier AC. But this time, since shes older and mostly sleeps though the night and more importantly since my dad has retired recently, we traveled by 3 tier to save money! Its funny to observe the people around. This family of a husband and wife and 2 teenage daughters were sitting near us and as soon as they sat, the mother asked her husband loudly ""why did nt you book in 2 tier?" making sure everyone heard her. As if she had no idea until she sat on her seat! Yeah right! Then to make sure everyone knows she has traveled in 2 tier, she goes on to describe how 2 tier compartments have curtains, reading light etc... Her husband did nt utter a word. Then she said, "2 tier la waiting list aa?" as if to find an excuse. Whatever makes you happy lady! And after all this, she slept in the lower side berth. If I hate one thing on trains, its the side berth. Especially on a 2 tier AC. Criminal waste of money and its a torture to sleep there with a child.

This train trip to and fro was interesting to say the least. Ashu successfully for the first time in her life used a Southern Railways train bathroom!! If this is nt a milestone for an Indian child! Especially because she was wearing a diaper but insisted on using the bathroom. Who am I to stop this beautiful beginning, albeit the stench? On the return journey, there were lot of kids and Ashu was having fun saying Hi and asking "whats your name" to all the kids and their mommies! But she would nt say her name when someone asks. The Aunty who sat near us asked Ashu what her name was for 2 hours but she would nt budge. She would tell her dolls name but not hers. The little devil! Anyway, she went to the adjacent seat and was looking at a baby there. I was standing near her. The couple gave her some chips and she was force feeding them to the baby instead and I was asking her to stop. There was man in his late 30s sitting in the opposite seat and gestured Ashu to come near him. But she shook her head. He gestured again and she shook her head again. Then when she was feeding the child the chips, he started to tickle and pinch her in her waist and she wiggled and moved away. Though I wanted to take this harmlessly, I disliked the guy immediately. So I sat in a vacant seat near Ashu instead of going back to my seat. The guy tickled and pinched her a few more times and Ashu said "NO" in a loud voice and moved away from his reach. I asked her to thank the Aunty and leave. When she turned, the guy clicked a photo of her in his mobile phone. Ashu blinked at the flash and ran away to my mom to our seat. I was seeing red. I told him ""You should ask me before taking a picture". He immediately said, "No, no! Its only flash". I glared at him, muttered "yeah right", thanked the couple and left. I told my mom what happened and called him all possible names. The instant lie bothered me more than the act of taking the photo. I mean, my dad has a very similar reliance handset too and it makes a loud "klang" sound and a bright flash while taking a photo. And you cant just use the flash in it. The porukki rascals instant lie made me so mad. Since it was only my mom and I, I did nt want to pick a fight with him. Even then, I could nt sleep peacefully the entire night and at 3 am when Ashu got up and lied on my tummy, she said "Oh Nein! Uncle peekaboo pannaraa" and I saw the guys head disappearing. Gave me the creeps! It used to bother me that Ashu does nt go anywhere on her own and wants me to accompany her whether its a plane or a train or a restaurant. She would nt just wander away to explore. Even when I ask her to go to the next seat and say Hi to a child, she ll ask me to accompany her. Now I'm thankful that she is shy. The fear of the unknown is scary as hell.

Edited to add:
Thanks everyone for the understanding and concerned comments. Makes me feel better now after sharing this incident. Like a coward, I always give people the benefit of doubt and even now I'm not sure if the guy was a pervert or not. May be the entire thing was harmless and I am reading too much into it. Its better to be careful so I would stay away from creeps but I need proof before taking a violent action. Hence the passive reaction from my part. If he had even remotely crossed the line, alone or not, I would have shown him what would happen if he messes with me or my daughter.

Also, Ashu is not very much used to the touchy feely thing and she does nt even like family members hugging or kissing her when she is not in the mood. Ever since we came here, she has been swatting peoples hands whenever they came to touch her cheeks. I told her not to push people away but to say "please don't" when she does nt want people to touch her. So she has been saying NO to my grandma, aunt, uncle and cousin whenever they tried to touch or kiss her. Hence the NO to the guy in the train as well. I never thought she would face such circumstances so early in her life.

Days without internet.

The Internet connection went kaput and its driving me crazy for the past 10 days. I was pretending that it was ok and I can live without blogging for a while but I was shaking inside and felt as if my head would explode if I did nt catch up with the mommy blog world! My dad of course thinks I am insane and I suspect he willingly disconnected the Internet to save some money for his retirement fund. Hd and my sis calling everyday and asking if the Internet is back did nt help much either. So what was I doing?

I got up at 9 am and switched on the TV. Mom would give me a cup of tea and I would channel surf sipping the hot ginger tea. Then would take a shower reluctantly and since my grandma eats a proper meal at 10 am, I would give her company and eat rice with sambar, rasam, butter milk with 2 kinds of vegetables, Appalam, Vadaam, 3 kinds of pickles, etc... while chatting with my grandma, swapping stories about how our knees are hurting, how tired we get often, how difficult it is to raise children, etc.. She is 94 and went through 12 child births. Then more TV while I sit on the Oonjal and slowly drift off to a semi conscious state, thanks to all the food. Sun Musics occasional good songs like "Uppu kallu thanneerukku ekka pattadhu"(Karuppusamy Kuthagaitharar) makes me open my eyes. Then I complain Im bored till I drive my parents crazy. Hd calls up and I complain how theres no Internet, nothing on TV, no books and how Ashu is nagging me for Dora while my dads stupid DVD player would nt play the multi region DVD. Then it would be tea time again with home made murukku, then kuzhal, ... and probably a game of Pallankuzhi with my Grandma, if Ashu lets us. My mom also makes Onion Oothappam or bajji, pakoda to appease my boredom hoping I would shut up if my stomach is full. Then some more TV, watching young children sing and the old morons criticize them harshly. Some name calling later, its back to Sun Music and its loosu VJs and the occasional good songs, "Vizhiyil, un vizhiyil"...(Kireedam)

None of the Tamil channels would telecast any of the Sivaji songs fully much to my disappointment. Usually the Tamil channels show the trailer of the movie with bits of songs, scenes etc... before the movie is released. Then on the day it is released, they show full songs, comedy scenes, action scenes, etc... Then the day they review the movie, they show most of the good scenes in the movie. A week later, you would have seen almost the entire movie and 6 months later, you would see the whole movie on some channel on Diwali or Pongal, "mudhal muraiyaaga"! But not in the case of Sivaji. I so wanted to see the songs and my nagging was an all time high that my dad whose last visit to the theater was when "Manaalane mangaiyin bhagyam" was released, took me to the movie. He was squirming on his seat the entire movie while I enjoyed the songs. Now next month I have to squirm in my seat while Hd watches the songs. An okay movie since I went with very low expectation. Rajini sure rocks! "Avaluku vandha vaazhva paaren" - my moms comment on Shreya.


A bottle of Bovonto in the evening in the garden terrace while mom feeds Ashu looking at the parrots, sparrows, crows and eagles flying in the sky. Later, the children from the neighborhood come home and entertain Ashu. More TV later, its dinner time with Idlies, Dosas or Chapathis. Then phone calls with Hd and my sis, complaining about my dad and how he does nt care about me, how Ashu has become a total brat, how my mom gets on my nerves,... Then of course, TV until midnight. Unakkul Naane...

Half way through...

I so wanted to potty train Ashu when she was 21 months old before we left for Zurich. That did nt happen of course. Then I began some half hearted attempts in Zurich but they got us nowhere. Then the trip to the US happened and she started school, so I did nt want to burden her with one more thing. Ok ok, I did nt want to be burdened. I have heard from friends that its easy peesy to potty train kids in India but somehow did nt quite believe it. I mean what magic is there in India? Its the same effort everywhere and if the kid is ready, then its easier anywhere, right? Wrong! Because my stubborn kid is trained already. In flat 5 days. I don't even know how that happened but I said no more diapers and asked her to tell me if she wanted to use the bathroom and she did. There were only a few susu accidents at first and also she did nt want to do potty in the toilet. She asked me for a diaper when she wanted to do the big job. I thought its going to be tough to break her. But a lot of encouragement and compliments did the work and voila! Its bye bye diapers during the day. I'm still making her wear in the night, got to figure out how to train her for the night. Shes such a sleepy head that waking her up in the middle of the night and taking her to the bathroom is out of the question for now. Baby steps Boo, baby steps! :)

So here are the reasons it has been easy to train her here:

She is 28 months old and ready.

She is able to wait at least for a minute to use the toilet. She has bladder control. High time, anyway!

The bathrooms here are so convenient compared to the dry bathrooms abroad with a drain only in the tub. The "squat anywhere you want" type of bathrooms here are the best!

With this warm weather, she can take a shower after every bathroom break if she wants and I don't have to worry about her getting a cold. Also she can roam around in minimal clothing.

My mom and the maid, obviously! I would nt have the strength to do this if not for them.

The peer pressure. I don't know a 2 year old in India who is not potty trained. Ashu is a black sheep among them!

I ll be here at least for 3 more weeks and hopefully there would nt be any huge change for Ashu, so she can have a routine.

So there. The day I thought would never come before her 3rd birthday has come. My daughter is potty trained. (by day!) Do yo know how bad it is for the environment to use disposable diapers? ;)

Aadi Perukku, Sapparam, River Cauvery and fear.

Ashu pulling the Sappara Thatti (Sapparam) today on the occasion of Aadi Perukku. I remember buying the plain wooden Sapparam from the street vendors and decorating it with color paper, garlands and pictures of Gods and Goddesses and pulling it on the roads proudly in this same road when I was young. It does feel good to be back home, just the four of us, Ashu and my paternal grandma. I feel as if I am a child again and afraid that any minute now, my dad will ask me to get ready for school! *shudder* Thankfully Ashu reminds me that I'm the all powerful one now! Shes talking nineteen to the dozen and our heads are spinning listening to her. If my dad has any dreams of having a peaceful retired life without anyone bossing him around, hes sadly mistaken. The little Missy is making him jump through hoops and he is being a willing partner. She takes him to one of the rooms and asks me to get out and bangs the door on my face. Waves bye to me happily if I threaten her that I'm going to go back to Zurich. Few times a day, she switches allegiance and sticks to my sister. Sis is leaving tomorrow and I'm sure Ashu is going to miss her a lot. She also remembers the 2 boys and a girl from our neighborhood who used to play with her 8 months back and is having fun with them. For the first time, I let her go alone with the boys to their house. The older boy who is 9, carried her around and was baby sitting her in his terrace while I stood on our terrace and sneak peeked. OK, I did nt let her go fully but its a start! :) I find it so heart warming to see the children here completely unsupervised, running around and going to friends houses and having a wonderful time. So trusting, so innocent and so ignorant of the bad world out there! I am not sure if I can let go Ashu as easily as these parents have. But its so good to be in such an environment at least for a while. I pray to River Cauvery on this auspicious day to wash away all our fears and grant a safe world for all the children. Now let me go and gorge on the masal vadai, puliyodarai, coconut rice, curd rice and crisp vadaams! So long! ;)

We are like this only.

I don't know how it all started. May be my moms enthusiasm for life or my dads passion with life but we have always looked forward to each day with utmost pleasure and wondering how we can make someones life happier by doing something. It might be just some silly thing like writing a note or helping with sisters home work or folding the laundry but everything will have a surprise element to it. When I was a teenager, I would nt fold the laundry or help my mom around the house even if she begged me to. But the minute she went out to do some shopping or to visit a temple, I ll start planning on how to surprise her when she came back. I remember when I was 13, I wanted some drawings for my chemistry record book and my sister would nt help me. I cried the whole evening and went to school the next day without taking the book with me. I was planning to tell the teacher I had forgotten the book to get an extra day to do the dirty work. Then during lunch time, my sister comes to my school in a cycle on a hot day and gives me the book with neat drawings. It was always the surprises which made our lives so special and so extraordinary. My mom would cook a storm without telling us, my dad would buy a puppy and surprise us. I would get first rank in some exam but would give the report card with a sad face to my parents to see the look on their faces when they saw number 1 written on it. There was a never a dull moment in our lives.

Off to college and at the drop of a hat I would leave the hostel and take a bus to go home which was five hours away. Since we were living in office quarters, I would go to Dads office first to surprise him, Then call mom from his office and tell her that I'm going to leave the hostel and will be home by evening. After a minute, I ll be knocking the door and she ll say "Enna dee idhu"(What is this?) when she seesme. Numerous occasions like these but it never got boring. We four always tried to do better than the other when it came to surprising. Fast forward to 3 years back when I was in Swiss and my sister came to India from the US to attend her sister in laws wedding. My parents and she were going to have so much fun and this would be the first time they would be together without me. I was fuming inside but whoever thinks of spending a fortune on a flight ticket to attend sister's sis in law's wedding? People don't even attend their own sis in law's wedding these days! Then Hd asked me "why don't u go". I wanted to but felt it was nt right. But he insisted and when the surprise element was thrown in, the old me could nt resist. I say old me because my marriage had killed my surprise instinct thanks to my in laws who associate surprises to lying! A year after our marriage, they visited London and we went to pick them up at the airport. I told Hd to hide and I went to them and told Hd could nt make it as he had a meeting and welcomed them. Then Hd came from behind and surprised them when immediately my mil told him "She lied to us, da. She told us you have not come". My face well and that was the end of old me when it came to my in laws. Thankfully, Hd caught the infection and we lived happily ever after surprising the hell out of each other every birthday, anniversary or any other occasion. Anyhow, I booked my tickets to Chennai. Yes, to attend my sister's sis in law's wedding. I had to tell my dad as he had to pick me up from the airport. My in laws were traveling that day so they could nt. So I landed on a Saturday midnight and my dad and I stayed in a hotel. Next day, we went to my sister's In law's house and when my sister saw me, she was speechless for a whole minute and that's saying something as no one in this whole wide world has seen my sister speechless even for a second right form the moment she was born! :) Thankfully, my mom was in another room. I went and stood near her. But she totally did nt see me but was looking at my dad who had just entered. Then I said "Mom?" and she turned and saw me and she was so shocked that I was afraid she was having a heart attack. Conveniently, my BIL was not in the scene so I got to surprise him as well but he was nt blown over. He said he was confident that I would never leave my sister alone with my parents! Wise man, he is! Then of course since I had paid so much for the ticket, I went on to surprise my cousin, my aunt, my uncle, tom, dick and harry as well and was talk of the town for a while. Got a gorgeous Silk Saree from my sisters MIL as well for the wedding, So I would say it was Paisa Vasool! ;)

Then of course this time. I have never surprised my dad big time. And decided to do it this time to honor his retirement. I roped in my sister as well and the stage was set. She decided to surprise her In laws as well since by now you might have guessed what a loony bin family we are! As my In laws are nt the type, I pulled them in for the execution stage. I needed someone for transportation as well, you see! :) So after hazaar phone calls, chat and mails later we booked our tickets and could nt wait for the big day. And it all happened way much better than we had anticipated. After the surprise number one with sister's In laws who were totally blown over, we moved on to Scene 2. My dad was in the entrance of our house talking to his brother and my mom was at the back of the house talking to her cousin. My sister hid in the car while Ashu and I got down. My uncle(Dads younger brother and my favorite uncle!) and dad were shell shocked seeing me get down with Ashu at 8 o clock in the night. My dad took Ashu from me and literally ran home to surprise my mom. That's how our minds work - how to surprise the next person in the relay race! Anyway, my sneaky uncle who was sure I would nt have traveled alone, went to the car and took a look inside expecting my FIL or Hd when my sister popped out. From Switzerland he could take! But from the US! And the both of us!! He went ballistic! We shushed him and ran home when our clueless mom was walking back from her cousins place and saw us. At first, she was nt sure if it was really us. But then, a mother knows her brood does nt she? She let out a scream when we shushed her and ran up the stairs as my dad still does nt know that my sis has come. Poor dad was looking for my mom at home when we all went up and he was showing Ashu to mom and exclaiming when my sis went behind him and closed his eyes. The indecipherable scream from my dad when he saw her was just priceless. My mom was still in shock and for 2 minutes, she did nt even remember the existence of Ashu who was sitting on the Oonjal(wooden swing) and laughing out loud seeing the drama unfolding around her. My uncle, aunt, my moms cousin, my grand mother and dads office assistant joined in and the cacophony lasted for an hour. My mom just could nt sleep the entire night.

On the 31st, there was this gala party with a huge crowd and all everyone could talk was how Mr.V's two daughters surprised him on his retirement day and what a lucky man he is to have such a wonderful family and also had such a successful career. Tears flowed everywhere when they said their good byes to dad. We of course could nt stop smiling at the feat we pulled much to their surprise! As you would have known by now, this family is full of surprises, folks! What to do, we are like this only.

SURPRISE!!!!

Today is my fathers last working day. Hes retiring from his job after working for 34 years in his beloved organization. I would nt be lying if I say that he loves his office and his job a teeny weeny bit more than his grand daughter and that's saying something, is nt it? So how can I make his day special? By surprising him, of course! We have been planning for a month now and since my mom reads this blog, I could nt write here and it was killing me not to let you folks know. And how can I not whine to you guys about flying with a toddler alone? But I held my tongue and all for good reason. And that's not all! I pulled my sister into this plan as well and she traveled from the US and reached Chennai on Sunday night. Ashu and I reached in the afternoon. We reached our hometown on Monday night by road. My dads still in shock and my mom almost had a heart attack. But it was all totally worth it! The look on my mom and dads faces was just priceless. Ashu of course is the most happiest of the lot having a blast being with her favorite Aunt and her grand parents at the same time. More details of the whole thing later. Now got to go and get ready for the farewell party for my dad.

Happy Retired Life, Dad! You are the best!

M-I-L-K

For more than a year now, we have been spelling the word M-I-L-K rather than saying it in front of Ashu. If we were in a car and were about to reach home in 15 mins, we would nt be stupid enough to say "Got to give MILK to Ashu as soon as we reach home". Because our darling little girl will only hear MILK and start asking for milk NOW! Or if we were in a park and I say by mistake something like "lets go home, she must be hungry, I forgot to bring milk for her", it would be war! I want Milk, Paal Venum, ... She used to cry when she was much younger and then later, started nagging and now she screams! First it was Paal(Milk in Tamil) and then we started using the word, milk. Then she understood the English word too and started asking for PILK. So we switched to spelling. It worked. Until now. Yesterday, madam got up from sleep and declared "I want Em-Eye-El-Kay". I mean, imagine it coming out of the mouth of a 2 year old. Hd and I were like WHAT! Then today, she said it again to prove that she actually knows and that one time was nt by mistake.
Bee-Are-A-Tea this one!

Got "Baby talk for dummies"?

Do you moms & dads get bothered when you don't get what your child is saying? Long back before Ashu, one of our friends used to annoy me a lot by not understanding what his son said and always asked the mother what he was saying. I understand that the mother gets to be with the children thoughout the day and the dad is sort of out of the loop. But this dad never made an effort to understand what the kid was saying and it happened a lot of times. For an observer, it looked as if he was nt a big part of his sons life. And I did nt like what I was seeing.

Fast forward to now, lot of times, Hd and I have no clue what Ashu is saying. And her gibberish baby talk only makes it harder for us to understand her words. but I make her repeat and she patiently repeats it a dozen times and after racking my brain, a light bulb flashes somewhere and I get what shes saying. Like "neithuttr" means she wants a nail cutter to trim the nails of her doll. And she tried so hard to make me understand that one by showing the dolls feet and going to the bathroom and showing the cabinet. And I can see that she gets really upset and makes a sad face and sighs(!) when we don't understand what shes saying. (Yes! She sighs.) And 99% of the time, I don't let her down. But Hd! Well, men will be men and all that but I hate to see the poor things face when he just nods and says OK to whatever she says without understanding a word. This one time, I'm in the bathroom and can hear their conversation. They are doing puzzles and seeing the examples for circle, shes saying Ball, Sun and "pait" looking at the disc shaped thing which I usually say as Frisbee to Ashu. So Hd says "paint? OK" and Ashu says "No appa. Pait". "Pait? OK OK, whats the next shape?" But Ashu is not done. She says "Pait, Appa. Ashu mummam, Appa" but I think Hd has gone on to triangles by now. And I scream from the bathroom, "Shes saying PLATE"! And this is another major reason why I hate sending Ashu to school. Today she told me something she did in school with another little girl, S and I totally did NOT get it. I am becoming like Hd. :(

ps.
Note to self: "Aandhi" is Laundry in Ashu talk. It took 45 minutes and a lot of gesturing to get that one so don't you ever forget that.

The End.

Since I have never ever finished a book within 2 days of its release and don't think I will ever do it again, until JK Rowlings next book that is, here's a thanks to the author for the magical times with Harry and his friends. I bow to thee, JKR.

I was sad and happy at the same time when I read the last word of the book and turned the page to find it was the end. I hope this fantasy becomes real when Ashu turns 11 and gets a letter from Hogwarts in spite of her muggle parents. And gets into Gryffindor's. :)

Our Friday ritual.

Soaking in all the oil after the massage.

Trying to blow a bubble during a leisurely, long bath.

Wondering who is God and why is Amma making her say, "Lord Muruga! Save everyone!" Whos Everyone, by the way?

Inhaling the Sambrani and looking at the smoke patterns.

Off to dream land after eating a hearty lunch! Amma can peacefully blog surf for solid 2 hours! ;)

Heaven is...

... sitting alone on a bench under the shade of a tree on a hot, sunny day eating juicy, ripe, red plums, drinking freshly squeezed, chilled orange juice and looking at the graceful Swans floating in the clear, blue lake by the hills while (this is the most important part!) the husband slogs away at work and daughter tries to settle in her new playschool.

Life, as they say, is beautiful! :)

My favourite Indian Writing.

I don’t remember at what age I started reading books. I always loved the books that were part of the school work and used to finish reading the English and Tamil books which had short stories, Non detail books, etc... even before the school year began. And then one day my sister and I stumbled upon the big, rusty Trunk potti. It belonged to my mom and she had loads of Tamil books in it. Pages torn from the Tamil magazines every week and neatly bound, sort of like a DIY novel! And I was hooked. I was too young to read "that" kind of books, according to my parents. I was 12. So I sneaked them to the bathroom or to school or to the terrace and devoured them. I have forgotten the titles and authors of so many books I read during that period of time but a few of them left a lasting impression. Here are some of them.

Paalangal by Sivasankari.
It was about three generations of women. I vaguely remember the story but I can say for sure that it was unputdownable. I love the details in her books. The elaborate way she describes the customs and the rituals of the older generation when a girl attains puberty, during an engagement, the wedding,... Its the same thing I have heard from my grandma a dozen times but when you read it, you wish you belonged to that generation where you did nt have a care in the world or so I thought! I got to get hold of this book soon. I wonder how I will like it after 18 years!
I remember another book "Naan Naanaaga" by Sivasankari which I read again recently. Its about a 40 year old woman who is bored after her sons go off to college and takes up dancing once again much to the shock of her family. A simple but lovely novel.

Kadal Pura by Sandilyan
My mom absolutely did nt want me to read books by Sandilyan until I finished my 10th standard, when I would turn 15. But her rule only made me curious and I finished Kadal Pura even before she found that the book is gone! Its a Raja-Rani story set in historic times and is an absolute thriller! Im ashamed to say I don’t even remember the story line. Another book, I am not sure if its Mannan Magal, was an amazing read too. I understand there are tonnes of more books by Sandilyan. Its time I pay a visit to a Book shop in Chennai the next time I go to India. I’m rubbing my hands with glee already at the thought of it!

Another book from my Moms Trunku potti was Pirivom Sandhipom by Sujatha. The teenage me loved this book. Is nt this the book with Kamal Hassan and Sripriyas photos as illustrations? Was this book made into a movie with them? I never found out. But loved looking at Kamals pictures while reading the story! I also read Aa and Karai Ellam Shenbagapoo. Don’t remember anything about the former except the title illustrations but liked the latter a lot. Pratap Pothan and whatshername completely spoiled it for me in the movie! His short stories, Srirangathu Dhevadhaigal are my favourites and I am hooked to his articles, Katradhum Petradhum, in Anandha Vikatan magazine.

Works of Kalki R Kirshnamurthy
Oh, where do I even begin? Kalki is my most favourite writer in the whole wide world. (Kalki and Roald Dahl to be honest!) I am sure every person who reads Tamil will have Ponniyin Selvan in their favourite list. What a book! Its a long story with five parts and it took me a couple of months to finish all of them. The last part I finished in a 10 hour flight without a wink! Its a book set in historic times and the amount of research Kalki must have done for this book leaves me absolutely dumbfounded. And since my birth place is Kumbakonam and I grew up there, I could imagine the places he describes, the temples he writes about and made me realize what a historic place I am from and how clueless I have been about the Cholas and their history. I am sure kids will learn a lot more if Ponniyin Selvan is recommended as a text book for schools instead of the boring history books! I am the proud owner of all the five parts.

I read Sivagamiyin Sabadham before PS which I found in our local library in the UK. This is the book which introduced Kalki to me and am I thankful to the library! Soon after, I bought Alai Osai and that’s another classic. I have read loads of articles and short stories by Kalki in the Kalki magazine and every time he proves what a great writer he is. Veenai Bavani, Sunduvin Sanyaasam, Kailasamaiyar Kaabara, ... Oh I can go on and on about his short stories. Some are so hilarious that I have literally rolled on the floor with laughter! A sample passage from கைலாசமய்யர் காபரா -

பாம்பை அடிக்க வேலைக்காரன் கொண்டு வந்த தடியைக் கைலாசமய்யர் பிடுங்கிக் கொண்டு பையனை அடிக்கப் போனார். நல்ல வேளையாக, அந்தச் சமயம் ஜோஷனாரா பீகம் வந்து குறுக்கிட்டதால் பையன் பிழைத்தான்! ஜோஷனாரா பீகம் என்றதும், சில பேருக்குச் சுவாரஸ்யம் தட்டலாம். ஏதோ இந்தக் கதையில் நவாபுகளும் அவர்களுடைய அந்தப்புரத்து அழகிகளும் வரப் போகிறார்கள் என்று நினைக்கலாம். அப்படியெல்லாம் ஒன்றுமில்லை. கைலாசமய்யருக்கு வடக்கத்தி ஹிந்துஸ்தானி சங்கீதத்தில் அதிகப் பிரியம். "பயமில்லாமல் கேட்கக் கூடியது ஹிந்துஸ்தானி சங்கீதந்தான்" என்பார். ரேடியோவில் அவர் அடிக்கடி லக்னௌ ஜோஷனாரா பீகத்தின் சங்கீதத்தைக் கேட்பதுண்டு. ஆனால், வீட்டிலே மற்றவர்களுக்கு - முக்கியமாக அவருடைய மனைவிக்கு - ஜோஷனாரா பீகமும், அவளுடைய சங்கீதமும் கொஞ்சமும் பிடிப்பதில்லை. எனவே, அவர்கள் வீட்டில் வளர்த்த ஒரு கறுப்புப் பூனைக்கு 'ஜோஷனாரா பீகம்' என்று பெயரிட்டிருந்தார்கள். இந்த ஜோஷனாரா பீகத்தைக் கண்டால் கைலாசமய்யருக்குக் குலை நடுக்கம்! அச்சமயம் அந்தப் பூனை வந்ததினால் தான் அவருடைய பையன் மண்டை உடையாமல் தப்பிப் பிழைத்தான்.

Is he a genius or what? I hope to read every short story written by him. Is there a collection of short stories by Kalki? Any book suggestions?

Though I have always wanted to read Mogamul by T Janakairaman, I started reading Sembaruthi last month at my sisters place. As you would have already guessed, I was hooked and spent more time reading the book much to my sisters disapproval. And that idiot would nt let me borrow the book. I could nt finish the book before I left. If I die without finishing the book, you know who will be haunting your bathroom, Sis? The book is set in the 40s and is about a young man Sattanathan Pillai and how he struggles to bring up his family which includes both his brothers family. It has an nice flow and the feeling and emotions of the women folk are surprisingly well told. I hope to finish it soon.

I have a love hate relationship with the works of Balakumaran. But his books have always made me think so got to give credit to this eccentric man. I would have read a dozen books by him, I don’t remember a single title. I would dislike him less if he stops telling women how to be a woman.

For the first time, I followed a story in Anandha Vikatan magazine. Usually I have always read the novel later after the book comes out. I have never read the thodar kadhai.(One chapter each week.) But this one was too engrossing. It was Karuvaachi Kaaviyam by poet Vairamuthu. I have always disliked the man for reasons unknown. May be many of his lyrics for the Tamil film songs irked me, I don’t know. I have never given him a chance. And then one day, I read the 3rd or 4th chapter in Vikatan and predictably, I was hooked. I followed the story religiously for around 40 weeks. Its quite thrilling to read a novel that way, a chapter a week. Its about a village girl, Karuvaachi and her depressing story and how she raises above it all. The illustrations by Maniam Selvam were apt. Every week, I saw the pictures and wondered what’s going to hit Karuvaachi next. (Trivia: Maniams Selvams father Maniam did the illustrations for Kalkis Ponniyin Selvan in the magazine) Especially this one chapter where Karuvaachi goes into labour and all alone in a deserted part of the village, the description of how she gives birth to her baby is amazing. I could nt help wonder if Mrs.Vairamuthu wrote that chapter. The entire story takes place in a remote village with village slang, their customs and traditions, their daily lives and to be honest nothing surprised me as I have grown up in a village myself and know what he is talking about to a certain extent. I am glad I followed this story from beginning to end and pleased that Vairamuthu proved me wrong about the impression I had on him.

I have read very few English books by Indian authors. Lots have said about those books too. So for the record, I LOVED God of small thing by Arundati Roy, Namesake and Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri, Sister of my heart by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni(did not like its sequel, The Vine of desire though!) and RK Narayan of course!

Seeing everyones list has onle made me hungry to read more. Im sure Im going to spend a small fortune on books the next time I go to India. Thanks Desi Girl for tagging me. I am surprised I even remembered all the books I read 15 years back. Brought back loads of memories. Thanks again.

I tag UTBT, Priya, Terri, Kiran, Tharini, Gauri, Kodis Mom, Rohini, Sheela and Kowsalya. Take it up if you are interested guys! (Terri, no pressure!) And any one who wants to, of course. It would be great to read all your list and add to my alarmingly growing list of books to read.

ps.

One of the reasons it is tough for me to recollect all the Tamil novels I read a long time back is back then, I read for instant pleasure and was weary of getting caught. My dad thinks reading is a waste of time and was very strict when it came to his school going daughters. So I never discussed the books with anyone which is very important to remember them, if you ask me. I was always on high alert not to include myself in book conversations and none of my class mates read anything beyond Ramani chandran, Tamil Nadus answer to Mills and Boons. Oh, I read her too! :) And then of course once I went to college, it was only "Englees" books to look cool! Funnily enough, my dad never bothered to reprimand me if I had an English novel in my hand. Poor guy!

pps.

The Tamil translation of this post is here. How can I not write about the Tamil writers in Tamil, however finger breaking that ordeal is!

Day 7 proves to be lucky.

After Day 5 of school, we had a long weekend as we did nt go to school on Thursday and Friday. So on Monday, Day 6 I thought we have to start all over again. Hd went to leave her in heavy rain and traffic, trams we re nt running and he got quite frustrated by the time he reached the day care. He dumped Ashu at the school door even before she opened her mouth to cry and rushed to office. Couple of hours later, I left home to pick her up. And it started raining again. Though the trams were running thankfully. She started crying when she saw me but was OK once we came out. Then the trams stopped running again and we were stranded halfway from home waiting for a bus which never came. Then Hd borrowed his colleagues car and came to rescue us. By the time we came home, I was ready to call it quits to school until the rains stopped.

Then on Tuesday Day 7, I went to drop her, again in the rain of course! And all my hard work(!) paid when she went and hugged Miss.A and said "Bye Amma"! I was speechless. She was nt smiling when she said Bye but at least she was nt bawling and that's exactly what I wished for. No crying. So my baby has let me go at last! When I went to pick her up, she cried of course. But I can take that! Miss Hooley told me that yesterday was the best day so far with her having fun and trying to eat some food there. She also did some coloring and asked for a tissue when her hands became messy and Miss Hooley said that's OK, we can wash later. So madam went and wiped her hands in Miss Hooley's jeans! LOL! Take that, Miss Hooley! I was walking with a stupid grin the rest of the day happy that Ashu is OK with school and looked forward to the next day. But of course mother proposes and child disposes. She caught a terrible cold all of a sudden and it worsened in the night with her coughing continuously and crying. Shes clinging to her Appa and her nose is running like a tap and shes has slight fever. So no school today of course! And guess what? It is not raining today!