Think ~ Inspire ~ Shop ~ Think VICE

Bryan Adams is one of the artists whose music inspires me. Here is a video from the movie Robinhood-Price of Thieves. Happy Listening ! Shakira - Whenever Whereever

One of my favorites .. I've decided to start embedding my favorite videos to my blog moving forward. Today's menu includes Khaman Dokla .. Its a Gujrathi dish which I love. Last evening we trimmed our plants in the front garden. Here is a comparison photo spaced one year apart. THEN: NOW

I was visiting a bookstore (it was mommy time) while Archu and Hubby were home, I saw a woman fondling her 4 month old baby. Oh, I must say my heart was filled with love and memories of my baby that tiny, clinging on to my shoulder. What a feeling. Everytime I see a mom with an infant girl slightly younger than Archu, it makes me want to hold Archu tight and give her a snuggly kiss and say and I love you. Here is an interesting read from the book titled ‘Chicken soup for the soul–from women to women’. --- Quoting- ‘‘I had 2 toddlers and the thought of waking up in the morning fully rested, instead of having my eyes pried open by tiny fingers was quite attractive. I had heard of the term ‘empty nest’ and correctly assumed that in an empty nest, I could wear clothes without spit up stains, finish sentences when speaking to my husband, carry a purse without squeak toys or pacifiers or cookie crumbs. Oh, the beauty of dinner time without spilled milk, a house without the background

I have learnt some valuable life lessons over the years and want to compile them so my kids can benefit. - Health is wealth, We realize it most only when we get sick. - Your spouse can be your best friend. -You are your child's hero. -Past is history, Tomorrow is mystery. Today is a gift, that's why its called 'Present'. - Don't worry about what people think of you. - Greet with a warm smile, no matter your mood. - It's all in your mind. -When someone says something, listen and appreciate. - Watch your words. - Work when you want to, also take a break when you have to. (Applies more so to women) - Your baby has one childhood. Relish it with him/her leaving no regrets. - Your parents love you the most, and you love your parents as much as they love you inspite of any past arguments. - Never make someone feel like they are less worthy than you. - Never show off, because everyday is not sunday. Things can

** Immigration Services ** Most of us in the US would have heard of this term at some point , I can guarantee it (at least for those of you who have moved from another country). I have been waiting for the extremely over rated 'Advance Parole' document. The name itself seems like some criminal seeking some parole .. wierd .. is'nt it .. Advance Parole (called AP) is a travel document which an EAD holder needs to re-enter the country. This is serious stuff people ! Finally I found that my AP has been mailed out and should reach me anytime. Thank you USCIS for mailing it, after the gazillion service requests and a trip to the local office and daily phone call for follow ups !!!!!!

Past few weeks have been so hectic, I am going to try to describe it. I' ve been trying to catch up with many things - here's our friday,saturday and sunday briefly summarised. Friday morning - I wake up, feed her , play with her , start cooking, feed her, try to finish cooking, put her to sleep, eat , talk to friends, try to browse online, clean up on yday's mess, organize toys, organize the closet, visit the library, spend some time online and after hubby comes home, we call up another couple to dine out at pavani - also undergoing the same ' catch up syndrome ' as us .. why ? they too have a baby - and remember Houston's extensive geography - every little outing is a long journey and with the heat ! what happens next will suprise you - the darn power went off at the restaurant ! yes I repeat, there was no power at the restaurant ! why ? blame the passing severe thunder storms .. and we had to eat in the dark, with a tiny candle by us, ofcourse no AC and 2 k

Last August I was pulling myself to work each day with a 7 month pregnant belly, dreading the downtown traffic, getting ready for the baby shower and checking all the things that had to be bought to bring home baby .. This August, I am excited about my India trip next month .. with my kutti ladoo .. I've never travelled alone internationally, so I am spending a lot of time carefully planning .. What change in dynamics .. My list itself is pretty long I consider, now I have Archu's long list of items to pack .. not to mention the 100s of diapers that need to dump into the baggage .. gotta be fun and I am loving it.

My baby is growing up ! She is beginning to understand her surroundings little by little .. Some of the milestones that she has reached (between her 8th and 10th month) are jotted below .. - responds to her name - holds self to stand up - sits for extended periods - crawl very well - drink from her sippy cup on her own - plays with imaginary characters in the air - she understands 'NO' - likes to play 'peek-a-boo' [like hide-n-seek] -reaches for spoon when I feed her -use thumb and finger pincer grasp to pick things up - drop thins down and look for them - very attentive when i sing to her - bang objects together - loves to see herself in the mirror - pass objects from one hand to the other - separation anxiety - which means she needs to be within mom's eye view .. if she does not, then automatically she will cry Hubby and I are working on a few essential things that we think is a good practice: - daily morning brush her 3 teeth - daily listen to slokas (prayers)

I love to be clutter free. It frees my mind. When new items come, old items eventually will need to go. What is the point in hoarding ? Everything has its place in my house, I just like it that way. It's who I am. I always compartmentalize and organize. This way I know I'm in control. I like to be perfect in what ever I do. "Either do it well or don't do it at all" is my mantra. I stack up on bins and make sure to group similar items and store them away neatly. A clutter free life is a blissful life. Holds good for all the emotional baggage that we may accumulate along the way. Best to simply drop them and move on.

This is so true .. that we remember moments. Moments that stay in our hearts always .. moments that we look back at and feel our hearts fill with emotions -- it was one such evening today. Our friends had dropped buy for tea and I served them upma that I made for tiffin and chai with salt crackers. In my earlier blog, I mentioned about our wedding CD. Well, today we saw our reception CD. I must confess, it was a reception very well planned by my parents and in-laws. Close to a 1000 people attended to bless us. I realise its full value now that I live 10's of 1000's of miles away from my home country. It reminded me of my college class mates, work collegues, friends who grew up with me in my neighborhood and most importantly my entire family. Ladies adorned with jewels and men folk striking casual conversations made the atmosphere festive. There we were on the dias, center of attention that evening .. dressed in a orange-gold silk sari with gold ornaments standing beside my hand

Why am I feeling refreshed at 11.40 pm . ..  We took some time to revive old memories today:- Saw our wedding DVDs. Oh boy .. I was filled with memories .. 1 Made Therati Pal (Milk sweet) was remined of my good ol days at home with parents .. On youtube, we saw many many hindi songs from bollywood.. Archu enjoyed her swing time at the park .. Wrapped up post-dinner with bhel puri .. luckily I had all the ingredients at home We have this laptop connected to our 52'' TV and the best thing about this arrangement is that we can use the TV as the monitor, and with a wireless keyboard and mouse, we see all movies (Indian/Bollywood) from the comfort of our couch 6 ft away ! Neat .. ain't it ? I know netflix does it, but with Netflix, I cant find the 'Indian' movies and serials (soaps) etc Titanic movie was running on TNT channel ! Its one of my all time favorites and couldn't help but watch it (again!).. A right blend of drama and romance coupled with emotions; m

Moms are awesome ! Never fully realised that until I became a mommy myself .. this tiny sweet bundle could literally have me dancing to her tune ! Is'nt that amazing .. well .. atleast new moms out there will know what I am talking about. LOVE YOU ARCHU On a lighter note .... Read on Sleep: What is 'undisturbed sleep' anybody .. ? When was the last time I slept all night ? wait im thinking hard ! maybe 10 months back ..... wow wowww Clean up after play time: let toys be scattered all day long. It doesnt help to clean up ... coz guess what .. they will be stewn right the way they were ... Mom is the best toy: Try buying a zillion new toys for an infant .. well after the short attention span .. you know who the best toy is --- U Mommy I've pooped: It's amazing how they crawl up to you when they have pooped. Clever :-) Outing: ok pack the diaper bag, make sure their tummy is full .. pick the car that has the stroller .. oh did I forget a toy ... Grocery Shopping: You

The most beautiful discovery best friends can make is that they can grow separately without growing apart ! So many friends through school and college and work .. Eventually we all go different ways as life takes us. Many get married, move to newer cities .. what if we move to new countries .. we tend to start our life all over again .. responsibilities increase and priorities change. All of this demand time. Could it affect friendships? I cherish my friends and what I love the most is everyone has something special about them. I always focus on the positives that each person has to offer, because remember, no two persons are the same ! What could be more pleasure than having girl friends with whom you can chit-chat :) Thanks to the social networking sites, I can (so can you all) keep in touch with all my friends - thank you orkut, facebook, twitter, etc etccc. As years go by, I have realized the value of relationships, to have that support network - both emotionally and spiritually. I

If you are a woman, if you are married, if you wanted kids or had one recently, if you have a good academic degree, and when you have a well-paid job with benefits in a big company - you have been where I have been. It is not possible for husband and wife to pursue career at a 100% pace, when we have dreamed to set a foundation of a strong and loving family bond, and especially when we have planned to raise kids. I made the decision to take a break from work. I was pregnant, and working, and going to graduate school for Masters degree. That is a lot. People may not know, but that truly is a lot of weight on your shoulder. People may judge you, ask you ton of questions, make you feel like you did something awfully wrong, but hey, as long as you can afford it, why not enjoy being with your little darling kids that you created ? I have enjoyed my time with my precious darling at home and I am fortunate to have a supportive husband who stood by me during the times I have had to tak