The hubby, S and I had a nice 10 day break in Bangalore for Diwali. The best part was that S got to meet her cousins (my bro was down with family for a couple of days) and celebrate Diwali with them.
We reached Bangalore the night before Diwali. This time we had taken an early evening flight, as opposed to our late night flights earlier where we used to work till the last minute, rush to the airport and finally reach my parents place in Bangalore at 11:30 in the night. This time we managed to reach home by 9:15 p.m. so we could settle down and unpack some of our stuff before the Diwali morning.
Diwali mornings start early for us with the oil bath ritual. Each family sits in front of the Puja/God room, the elders dab some oil on our heads, and do Aarti of the family. Then we have to take a bath with Gangajal in the water, don our new clothes, participate in the Puja and seek blessings from the elders. All this is supposed to happen before sunrise, though usually only the Aarti does. Some enthusiastic people also burst crackers after the Puja. S was woken up at 6:30 in the morning, my mom and sister-in-law did Aarti for our family, S was given a traditional oil bath and dressed in a salwar kameez given by my mom – all set for the day ahead!
We all exchanged gifts in the morning- S got a Dora bag from her cousins, and the hubby and I got clothes from my parents and sis-in-law. My hubby gave me a Raymond Weil watch for Diwali, which I proudly displayed to all. Its lovely and I wear it all the time. I can’t nag him about not giving me jewelry anymore, of course! I haven’t given my hubby anything for Diwali as of yet, had planned for an I-Phone, but then he took an extra one which my dad had lying around, he’s now pestering me for the first installment of an SUV, but that decision would be a bigger and harder one to take. We got my nephews some violent toys- earlier we used to try and give non-violent games, but this time I thought they enjoy it, may as well have fun on their holidays- they don’t need to take it back with them to Singapore if my sis-in-law doesn’t approve. There was one dartboard with a gun, and another gun with Batman on it. Both of them wanted the Batman one of course, and my sis-in-law had her hands full trying to convince them to take turns.
Relatives streamed in during the day to meet my parents and my grandmom (who stays with us and is the eldest in her family). It was fun catching up with all of them, and of course getting S to meet her second and third cousins. We had a grand breakfast and a grand lunch, and I had planned to get S off baby food during the holiday- by forcing her to eat whatever we eat, and patiently waiting for her to get hungry and give in- back in Bombay we don’t have the time to persuade S to eat what we are eating and just end up giving her the same stuff everyday, but I thought at my mom’s place there would be the time to try, and also the help around to make the food required (my hubby and I eat very spicy food in Bombay which is not appropriate for S). But S had other plans of her own. She absolutely refused to eat any of the normal food, and even if I waited for upto 1 hour after her normal meal time she would just refuse to eat. So back to the baby food. Only consolation is that it is healthy food!
In the evening we took S to the park alongwith her cousins. They were all chattering in the car all the way to the park and back, but while in the park went their separate ways. The boys wanted to play roughly on all the apparatus, and S wanted to either swing or go on the slide. Good fun.
In the night we traditionally have a get together where we call close relatives- immediate aunts and uncles and close family friends. They usually come with kids so there’s a lot of cracker bursting as well. My sis-in-law and I lit the diyas around 7 p.m. and arranged them on the balcony of the house, on the outside steps and the entrance to the house. We usually keep the diyas on the steps inside the house as well, but with so many kids around this time we didn’t want to risk it. S was dressed in a cute green ghagra choli I had got her and was all set to burst crackers with her dad. She held a few sparklers and watched her cousins light fountains, charkas and even bombs. I thought she would be quite scared with the noise, but she was alright and was outside for about half an hour where the cracker bursting was taking place. After that she was treated to lots of snacks by her daddy (we as a family indulge in too many snacks!). Then for some reason she decided to call one of her cousins “Pizza” and spent the rest of the evening shouting “Pizza” at him much to the amusement of all the relatives. My mom was quite unwell, and that was the only dampener on an otherwise brilliant evening.
My sis-in-law and nephews were in Bangalore the next day as well and S spent the day with her cousins- feeding the dogs, playing cricket (rather I held the bat alongwith her and her cousins were urged to bowl slowly at us) with them, going to the park with them and generally hanging around the house. They were leaving at night, and the hubby was leaving for Sweden the next night, so we decided to have a night out at Hard Rock Café- since we don’t get much time or enthu in Bombay. Originally we had planned to leave S at home with my mom and do some pub hopping, but since my mom was not well we thought better we take S with us. S had fun there-there were other kids also there (surprisingly one waiter was entertaining the kids, rather unusual for a pub!) and they gave her a colouring set which entertained S for some time.
The next day the hubby and I managed to catch a Hindi movie after a long time- Wake Up Sid. We went for the afternoon show, leaving S with my mom. The movie was ok- I thought it was a bit too slow paced, and I didn’t particularly like the acting of the main protagonist, but overall good timepass. The hubby left in the night for Sweden after S had gone to bed.
I had initially planned to relax at home for the entire week and put my feet up and get completely pampered. But office work put paid to my plans and for three of the four working days on which I had taken leave I landed up at the Bangalore branch of my office, cursing my office work! But it was more relaxed, since mom was at home taking care of S and I didn’t have to worry about the maids looking after her, endless calls to find out how S is etc. And for the time I was back home I was completely and shamelessly pampered. My mom and dad looked after S completely- from playing with her to reading to her, taking her down to feed the dogs, to letting her play the piano downstairs, to taking her to the park on the days I was working in the evening. I was able to a) concentrate and finish a lot of work- managed to meet a big deadline, and b) relax, catch up on my favourite soaps and books in the balance time. There’s really something to be said for being at mum’s place- no hassles of getting the house tidy, organizing the groceries, food etc. I know, its not like I do any of the house stuff in Bombay- I have to admit I have a battery of maids who do everything, but I am overall responsible for running two households since we have this strange arrangement of staying in one house during the week (near my office) and another during the weekend (our own house, much nicer!) and for looking after S when I am back from work, and also dropping and picking up S from her playschool which overall makes my weekday schedule in Bombay very hectic! Also two devoted grandparents and S was already better behaved and better natured (I must add) than she is in Bombay- with no unnecessary tantrums, shouting and slapping at us (yes she had got into this bad habit of hitting people when she doesn’t get her way, and while I try to reason with her and explain why this is a bad thing, sometimes the hubby loses his cool completely). I am waiting for my maternity leave where I plan to happily push off to my parents place after a couple of months of the second baby being born.
We also managed to fit in two swimming sessions for S as well during our holiday. The club is about a 25 mins drive from the house, and swimming combined with playing in the club park (they had nice new equipment) kept her busy on two evenings. We also visited my friend who had just had a baby boy and S kept calling the baby ‘V babbu’; and also visited my cousin who has just built a 4 storied house with a gym (which her husband runs). My cousin has a fish tank in her house and S was quite taken with the fish- maybe we should get some at home? I really liked the house, and the more I think about it , the more I feel like leaving Bombay and settling down in a city where we can have our own house, a nice backyard for the children to play, a garden for us to have coffee in the mornings, a terrace to entertain people…but unfortunately our careers are strongly Bombay based. Oh, and we also met my cousin who has a daughter the same age as S- they stay in Australia but were in Bangalore holidaying during our break there.As first S completely ignored her cousin (actually they came over during S nap time and S was pretty cranky at first), then they both started playing with the toys, then they both started running around the house playing hide and seek, and finally both sat down together and ate their ice creams (there's a very cute picture of both of them sitting on the sofa, talking to each other-wonder what they were saying!)
To wrap up the post which has meandered all over the place- had a nice break, totally appreciate the importance of family and grandparents in a child’s life, and can’t wait to go back.
Monday, November 16, 2009
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Would you take your child to a pub?
In this case, I introduced both of mine to the pub scene at a very young age- S who was all of 19 months, and the second, still in mummy’s tummy!
I had made this big plan which involved the hubby and the maid babysitting S at home while I enjoyed a night out with a friend who was going to her hometown for her delivery. It was a baby shower cum farewell party for this friend, so we were to start out at a restaurant around 7:30, have the baby shower games there and then move to a happening bar/pub so my friend could enjoy her last few night outs (for some time at least).
Anyway nothing worked as per plan. The maid was very unwell so was packed off home. The hubby had a sudden ad shoot which came up the day before the party and took up his entire weekend, and hence I was left literally holding the baby! I had anyway planned to take S for the dinner since some other kids her age were also going to be there. I was a bit unsure whether I would be able to manage her on my own, what with me being 4 months pregnant and S being quite a handful in restaurants, but luckily another friend of mine had come over to spend the day and S became quite friendly with her, so the friend was able to help out quite a bit in the restaurant- taking S to see fish, entertaining her while I gulped down my dinner and so on. The other kids had both their parents around, who were taking turns eating and entertaining the kids- and also entertaining the kids so that they would eat- seeing this behaviour (quite normal to parents but I guess strange to non parents) my friend who is not a mother commented that looks like parents can never sit down and enjoy a 3 course meal in one go. Ha ha ha. We cannot finish even a one course meal in one go if the kid is with us is what I informed her. I think she’s going to be thinking hard about when she wants to have a baby.
After dinner we all set out to this happening bar-Zenzi. One of the couples with a kid opted out, so there were two of us with kids and two of us pregnant women trooping into Zenzi. We were pleasantly surprised to find that they allow children into the bar (we had gone to the USA for a holiday in May this year and the bars/pubs were very fussy about not allowing children) so we parked ourselves comfortably on a couple of sofas and felt very happy that we were these “happening” moms. Of course other people in the bar did not share this view. Just seated opposite us were a group of 4 guys who looked quite annoyed at first to see kids there, and later plain disgusted (possibly due to my removing a series of toys for S and the other kid to play with, and the other kid running all around our table with the toys. The group of guys quickly gulped down their drinks and left. I think that the “pseudo” value of that bar would have halved that particular night, and many single people, who probably don’t appreciate the need for old married with children couples also to enjoy a night out, would probably be thinking of not visiting that place again.
But I sometimes wonder, if I did the right thing in taking S along. Its not exactly a great atmosphere for her- there was no one smoking near us, but a couple of tables away there were quite a few puffing away, the place was dimly lit and tables were next to each other so hardly any place to run around and hardly the ambience for a child; also I think other people were uncomfortable having children around as it took away from the bar atmosphere (and we did get lots of dirty looks). But I didn’t have much of a choice- since there was no one to look after her at home either it meant I took S along, or else I didn’t get to go either. The funniest was a message I got from the hubby when I told him that I was at Zenzi- he asked whether I had taken S along- what did he expect, that I would leave her alone at home!!!
Anyway next week is the bachelor party for one of the girlfriends who is getting married. Its more of just a get together than a bachelors party since the prospective groom is also invited. Its at Hard Rock Café and wondering whether to take S along, or get the hubby to babysit at home. This time my mom is also at home, so even if the hubby has a last minute engagement, I still have the option of leaving S at home. In our recent visit to Bangalore we had taken S with us to the Hard Rock Café there-and we were quite surprised to find that its actually quite a kid friendly place-there were quite a few families with kids of S age, and one waiter was actually entertaining a couple of them with a balloon! I guess one of the considerations for not taking S along this time would be that my bachelor friend might find her “bachelor” party getting overrun into a kids party and may not appreciate it too much!
I had made this big plan which involved the hubby and the maid babysitting S at home while I enjoyed a night out with a friend who was going to her hometown for her delivery. It was a baby shower cum farewell party for this friend, so we were to start out at a restaurant around 7:30, have the baby shower games there and then move to a happening bar/pub so my friend could enjoy her last few night outs (for some time at least).
Anyway nothing worked as per plan. The maid was very unwell so was packed off home. The hubby had a sudden ad shoot which came up the day before the party and took up his entire weekend, and hence I was left literally holding the baby! I had anyway planned to take S for the dinner since some other kids her age were also going to be there. I was a bit unsure whether I would be able to manage her on my own, what with me being 4 months pregnant and S being quite a handful in restaurants, but luckily another friend of mine had come over to spend the day and S became quite friendly with her, so the friend was able to help out quite a bit in the restaurant- taking S to see fish, entertaining her while I gulped down my dinner and so on. The other kids had both their parents around, who were taking turns eating and entertaining the kids- and also entertaining the kids so that they would eat- seeing this behaviour (quite normal to parents but I guess strange to non parents) my friend who is not a mother commented that looks like parents can never sit down and enjoy a 3 course meal in one go. Ha ha ha. We cannot finish even a one course meal in one go if the kid is with us is what I informed her. I think she’s going to be thinking hard about when she wants to have a baby.
After dinner we all set out to this happening bar-Zenzi. One of the couples with a kid opted out, so there were two of us with kids and two of us pregnant women trooping into Zenzi. We were pleasantly surprised to find that they allow children into the bar (we had gone to the USA for a holiday in May this year and the bars/pubs were very fussy about not allowing children) so we parked ourselves comfortably on a couple of sofas and felt very happy that we were these “happening” moms. Of course other people in the bar did not share this view. Just seated opposite us were a group of 4 guys who looked quite annoyed at first to see kids there, and later plain disgusted (possibly due to my removing a series of toys for S and the other kid to play with, and the other kid running all around our table with the toys. The group of guys quickly gulped down their drinks and left. I think that the “pseudo” value of that bar would have halved that particular night, and many single people, who probably don’t appreciate the need for old married with children couples also to enjoy a night out, would probably be thinking of not visiting that place again.
But I sometimes wonder, if I did the right thing in taking S along. Its not exactly a great atmosphere for her- there was no one smoking near us, but a couple of tables away there were quite a few puffing away, the place was dimly lit and tables were next to each other so hardly any place to run around and hardly the ambience for a child; also I think other people were uncomfortable having children around as it took away from the bar atmosphere (and we did get lots of dirty looks). But I didn’t have much of a choice- since there was no one to look after her at home either it meant I took S along, or else I didn’t get to go either. The funniest was a message I got from the hubby when I told him that I was at Zenzi- he asked whether I had taken S along- what did he expect, that I would leave her alone at home!!!
Anyway next week is the bachelor party for one of the girlfriends who is getting married. Its more of just a get together than a bachelors party since the prospective groom is also invited. Its at Hard Rock Café and wondering whether to take S along, or get the hubby to babysit at home. This time my mom is also at home, so even if the hubby has a last minute engagement, I still have the option of leaving S at home. In our recent visit to Bangalore we had taken S with us to the Hard Rock Café there-and we were quite surprised to find that its actually quite a kid friendly place-there were quite a few families with kids of S age, and one waiter was actually entertaining a couple of them with a balloon! I guess one of the considerations for not taking S along this time would be that my bachelor friend might find her “bachelor” party getting overrun into a kids party and may not appreciate it too much!
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