I got so involved in mommyhood and mommy-blogging that this cookery blog got neglected.. and why not.. I don’t remember the last time that I cooked a complete meal.. Complete meal to me is dal–chawal–sabji–roti. Achar, papad,raita.. makes it super special!These days mealtimes are a quick vegetable curry or stir-fried veggies and frozen chapatis!Today I decided to go an extra step and cook something more.This is my menu for the day-
Palak Paneer, Jeera Rice ,Boondi Raita and Frozen Chapati!

My tip for Jeera rice.. it turns out nice and fluffy and is great even if eaten without any accompaniments.
Add jeera to oil .Let it splutter.Now add rice,salt and a tsp chopped coriander. roast on a low flame till rice changes color from white to off-white.Then add water( about twice the quantity of rice) . Bring it to boil and then simmer and cook covered till done.

Sunshine turned 3 weeks old yesterday!!Time flies! It seems like yesterday that we went to the hospital and got her home.. First week home is a blur in my mind..Lack of sleep..midnight feedings..doctors’ visits… feeling disoriented , getting teary-eyed at anything and everything..loss of appetite.. feeling extremely hungry.crazy crazy days.
The second week home saw us settling into a routine slowly. Atya (my aunt) visited us for a few days.While she was there, we compared parenting style-yeah .. yeah I know I am a brand new first time mom.. but come on..I have my own ideas about raising my child.Anyhow, I will discuss that in another post.This post is about Sunshine turning 3 weeks old.
3 weeks old and 3 milestones-
* We took Sunshine out for her first Official outing,yesterday. Not doctor’s visit… not mom’s mommy- shopping… but an actual outing to a Persian restaurant.I don’t remember being so anxious in a restaurant ever.The reason- I didn’t want SS to wake up with a messy diaper. I was brave enough to take her out but not brave enough to take her to a public restroom.Thankfully ,she slept through the entire meal..and woke up just before dessert. We got our desserts to-go.
P.S. MM, as I write this..I remembered you took Beanie baby out soon after you C-sec too.. Way to go gal!I went back and read your post…and remembered something similar…will post about it soon.
*SS smiled for the first time!! And NO! it was not GAS! And NO!she was not sleeping!! She was wide awake. I was singing ‘Ole Mac.Donald’ and a non-stop rap of other rhymes and songs…(Yeah …I am that mom!) DH came and stood behind us and started talking to her. And She SMILED!!Yayyyy she looked at him and smiled. It was the sweetest smile ever. I had read just yesterday about babies smiling by the time they complete the first month.I just didn’t expect it to be so soon. DH repeated the same baby-gaga again.. and she smiled again. Now, I wanted it on camera. DH got the camera and repeated the same words again.. And she graced us with yet another smile!!! SS, darling you made mamma-papa so happy today!
* SS got her first massage. Ever since SS was born, everyone has been telling me , how we would have been pampered if we were in India..Daily massages for SS and me.. My granny tells me that every time I talk to her.How she wishes I was in India.. how she would have massaged her great-grand-daughter.. I feel so bad every time someone says that..be it my granny or some aunt or some other relative. I was waiting for her cord to fall and then I was going to start her massages..So her cord dropped on Monday evening but her belly button was still not dry. Today it seemed dry and closed.. So, we had a massage session.. Mom& daughter-pamper session , with dad looking on. . She cried when we started,relaxing little by little.. by the time I got to her back, she was so chilled out, she had this peaceful expression on her face! Hence proved, SS loves a good back rub!

Here’s Aadya -2 days old.
Thanx AW, for creating this beautiful Announcement.

And some more eye-candy-

….. is it just me?
Or is just the latest in-thing to not think before speaking?
So, I have had some troubles with my pregnancy, but nothing that was never a precedent with another mom-t0-be.
What prompted me to write this post was- Oh well, idle mind. I have been cramping and so am in bed reflecting upon the last few months and among other things was reminded of some people’s not so thoughtful comments. Like, take this couple for example. The husband is DH’s colleague and team mate. So, every time we have to rush to the ER or when DH had to take leave of absence, when I was on bed rest, he had to inform this guy.So, his lovely wife calls me up, while I am still on bed rest and asks me, ‘Oh i heard you are on bed rest’ and even before I can answer, goes on to say- ‘So, what’s the latest complication??’
Uhhh, wait lemme think of a new one!Like I am fabricating these troubles.
Then she goes on to say-‘we haven’t been out anywhere ,even on the long weekend we stayed in.So think we’ll visit you this weekend.’
I say- ‘Yeah sure we’ll meet up. But lets do it some other weekend, I am not up to it.’
She Says- ‘Oh don’t worry about it,we’ll come over and help ourselves to tea/coffee whatever we like. As it is my kids are sick and I need to take them out somewhere.’
I say-‘ My doctor told me about this RSV virus, which affects kids during these months and it wont be a good idea to take your kids out if they are already sick.
She says-‘ Ohh Indian kids have great immunity.they are not like the kids born here!!’
Hello!!! I am pregnant, on bed rest, in the last few weeks of my pregnancy, why would you want to expose me and my baby to a deadly virus, just so you can go out.
Now, don’t get me wrong! I am a gracious host and love entertaining and I love kids, have always loved them.My home has always been an open playground for all my friends kids. Before I got married, My dad would come home every evening to a living room full of kids books, scattered toys and at least 3 kids. And, I was a teacher. So, I thoroughly enjoy kids. But these kids make me nervous. More because of the fact that their parents just don’t stop them. they think its the hosts’ responsibility to take care of their home and belongings and also take care of the kids.
Anyway, for some reason, they couldn’t make it that weekend, and haven’t called back either. But every time DH has to take me to my OB’s office ( and now its twice a week because of my Gestational Diabetes), the husband never fails to comment on how his wife just had one trouble through out the pregnancy and that was labor pain.
Oh come on, every pregnancy is different and are we keeping scores? Ultimately what matters is that the baby should be healthy and safe.

May be my patience is running out with such people or may I am just becoming anti-social. For as long as I can remember, I have been taught to respect other peoples feelings,being polite and courteous towards others and last but not the least-‘ If you cannot say something nice, Don’t say it at all!’
Am I over-reacting or asking for too much?

Before I write about my initiation in the kitchen,its important that I write about the circumstances that brought it on.
When I was almost 10 and my sister 7, my dad was transferred to Saudi Arabia.He worked for a reputed Cement Company and was deputed to their cement plant in S.A. As with all chemical industries, this factory was also situated away from the city. They had built a colony for their employees a few miles from the factory and that became our new home.It was the most beautiful place I ever saw. No matter where you were you could see the sea-The Red Sea.And we had our own backyard filled with SAND!! What more could two kids want?Apparently there was something that was missing- a school. The only big school was in a city called Jeddah 4-5 hrs away. To make this the best arrangement for their kids, all the ladies in the colony decided to start a small school in an empty Villa. Each class had about 2-3 kids .The maximum strength that year being of grade 1 and that was 6 kids. As it turned out ,I was in grade 5 and there was no other kid with me. And so, I had to be home tutored. My mom taught me all the subjects except Science and Maths. And another lovely lady started tutoring me with those two subjects.It was not the best situation and definitely not one my parents would have chosen for me, given a choice.But that was the best we had.
But keeping a high energy 10 year old entertained all the time was not easy.Since I was used to studying independently from a very young age, I found it easy to fit in this pattern. I would be done my assignments long before I was supposed to, and then would go and hang out in the kitchen with my mom. I would pretend that she was a big chef and I was her assistant and a TV show host,commenting on her each and every action- rite from rinsing the veggies to chopping them. Mom decided to channelise this into something creative and asked me how I would like to be a big girl and help her out. I was thrilled. The first thing I learnt to make was Tea! A nice hot aromatic cuppa chai! But I was still not allowed to light the gas stove. Mom would do that for me and keep a close eye on me. I still remember how I memorised the proportions- in a sing-song way-
1 cup water,1 tsp sugar, 1 tsp chai!! yayyy 1 tsp chai!
2 choti elaichi. boil boil,boil!
1/4 cup milk.. simmer simmer simmer..
Its brown! Its done!yes its done!
hahhaa.. and that’s how I made my first few cups of chai! Perfection came with practice and I graduated to other more important things like rice. I had a similar way of remembering the proportions for making rice too.
But every time,someone came to visit,I had to show off my newly acquired skill and ask mom coyly -“Should I make tea?” And when the guests would say- “No no beta.. No need”. I would insist..”But I make good tea!” and wouldn’t give up till they complied! And I do make a mean cuppa chai! Anyone for tea?

My mom was a great cook.Be it cooking daily fare or special treats,she was just great at everything. Now when I am almost a mom,I find myself missing her even more and catch myself planning delicious treats for my baby.
Yesterday,I was telling DH about my mom and her always ready nutritious snacks and he said “OH! the more you talk about your mom, the more I realise what I am missing”. That’s when I decided to bring back some good food to my kitchen.. get some delicious recipes on the table.. and almost rushed to the kitchen at that moment. And then my big belly and third trimester fatigue brought me to a screeching stop!
Anyway, I was playing with the idea of a cookery blog for a long time and decided to do it after the baby is here.. but then I decided why wait..I might as well start it now.So here’s my tribute to my mom and her delectable recipes.
This blog also features my growing collection of recipes,some I have perfected and some I am working on.
I am what I am because of her..She was the best mom, perfect wife, a wonderful daughter.. just perfect in every possible way.She made every task seem effortless, even enjoying the toughest chores.I don’t know about the rest but I sure hope to be that kind of mom someday.And what better way to start than with perfecting her recipes.
This one’s for you mumma!