15 Marbles

Moments.Musings.Memories. ❤️Gathering little marbles from ordinary days and keeping them for our memory jar. ❤️

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  • hardwork paid in kind

    This is what I saw this morning when I woke up and it cheered me up. Its the view from my bedroom window. And each morning,when I wake up, the first thing that I do is open the blinds and look out. I have a small patch which I have been working on,since we moved here. The Bubba asked me why are you so excited..its not like you planted it..well ?I didnt but I did work on it.
    This is what it looked like when we first moved in-

    The whole patch was covered with weeds,and all the greenery you saw,was just weeds.The soil was snail infested and the real plants were all dying or infected.I spent several hours over the weekend ,pulling the weeds out and after 3-4 hours out in the sun,this is what it looked like.

    And it still looked like the garden had been attacked by gnomes..The water was flowing out…the rose plant was diseased..and all the pots in the back, had nothing but grass.The shrub in the middle needed triming.

    And here’s a tired Ms.Aadya sitting and enjoying the new garden,after all the hard work.

    I wish to do more to the garden..hopefully the next weekend 🙂

  • The weekend that was..

    It was a nice mall-ish weekend.Yes,we spend most of the weekend in the mall. Saturday morning,after a light brunch,we headed out to a shopping centre,close to home.The first hour or so was spent in lazy browsing.Christmas shoppers,are already out and the stores are decked with Sale banners and Christmas lights and the malls are over crowded . There was a long line at the check-out counter of the toy-store..of course we were just window-shopping and soon got tired of beating the crowed and came out the store.But only to come face to face with a musical merry-go-round. And I casually asked Aadya if she wanted to sit on it.Big mistake.She is not the little girl,anymore who loved sitting in her stroller..No sirree..she wants to explore now. Of course she wanted to get on the merry-go-round..We put her on it..one turn,second turn and she refused to get down..We put the coins in the first two times,because she was having fun.There were two more empty seats and while it was running,two other girls came and sat down on those seats. The second time,I put the coins,these girls were still on it. The third time, Aadya wanted..Mohh ..and I was digging for coins, and their mom just told them,”lets go,”and they were ready to leave..I managed to dig out some coins..the girls saw it..and stayed. But I was short of 50 cents..The mom never offered..nor did she stop her girls,when they asked me to hurry up!!HUH!! I was shocked..and its not like these were little girls.. These were 5-6 year old, surely the mom could have said something..Anyway, that made me mad..and I decided to not look for more coins. Picked up Aadya and offered her a choice between walking and sitting in the stroller.
    Obviously, she chose walking..and then refused to hold my hand.It took a great deal of talking on my part to convince her that for her to not get lost,she needed to hold my hand. We stopped to look at puppies in a pet store..There were black Labrador pups and brown Labrador pups.Oh so adorable.And Ms.Aadya was absolutely smitten.This time I was smart and didn’t ask her,if she wanted to take one home..Then,there was the usual grocery shopping and ho hum. that was as boring as it gets. We came home and had some steaming hot cheese rolls for dinner.
    Sunday morning,after a lazy brunch at a local Lebanese cafe,we hit another Mall.This time to look for some formal wear for Sanj. You see, he is joined a new company and the dress code here is very formal. The first day,I saw him dressed in his suit and tie,my heart swelled. All his previous jobs, called for a formal shirt and trouser,as the office wear..but this place is more corporate.There is something about a well-dressed man in a crisp shirt and starched suit…Ohhh seeing him dressed like that,makes me go weak in the knees..Anyway, not to digress..we hit the malls.. walked around ..looked at the suits,but didn’t find anything interesting..Finally stumbled upon a cute store called Pumpkin Patch.Well, what do you know..Pumpkin Patch had a lot of fun stuff for little Ms. Aadya..So, we ended up shopping for her. A pair of cute pink polka dot shorts,a red pant with ties at the ankles,a couple t-shirts.
    Then,it was time for some coffee..Sanj ordered some yummy white hot chocolate,while I pigged on a Banana -berry smoothie..But,that’s not why I started telling you about the coffee orders..The reason why I started telling you about the coffee shop is..they had an offer of free Babychino with any drink. So,obviously we ordered one for Aadya. And she L-O-V-E-D it..She loved feeling grown up.. having her own cup of coffee…And we loved the fact that we could finish our drinks peacefully..without a curious Ms.Aadya, wanting a sip from our cups.
    We rounded off the day, by meeting some friends.BTW,A “babychino” is a little cup of frothy, steamed milk with chocolate sprinkles on top served in an adorable little coffee cup. It’s made to look like a miniature cappuchino.How cute is that??!!!

    And now for the cuteness shot of the day…..
    These days,whenever we are going out,Ms.Pipette insists on taking along one of her “friends”..one of her toys. Today the chosen one was,the yellow Happiness Angel,that we have named “Happy”.Not even two minutes in the car,and Ms.Pipette,wanted some Didu…OK,Mimi gave her the Didu…And what does she do? She offers it to Ms.Pipette.. “aa aa” we heard…”aa aa mumm umm didu didu“..she was telling Happy… and if you think that’s cute..wait till you read this..After that, she wiped Happy’s mouth and then patted her to sleep…:)
    Now you can say..Awwwwwwww

  • A chat with Pipette

    This morning,I was doing the dishes and Aadya was playing in the kitchen.Its a nice sunny day and the sun-lit kitchen looked lovely.She was singing and talking to herself.
    Suddenly she got up and opened the refigerator and lugged out the almost full 3 L can of milk. Here’s the dialogue that followed-

    Mimi- “Aadi, what are you doing?”
    A- “Dudu”
    Mimi- “You want dudu”
    A-“Yeah”..(getting excited)
    Mimi-” Are you sure?”
    A- “Da da…”

    ummm OK..I gave her some.. 2 mins later her cup was abandoned and she got the TV remote.

    Mimi(Aadya calls me Mimi)-“Oh you want to watch TV?”
    A- “Yeah..(gets impatient)”
    Mimi- “OK,sit on the couch and watch .”

    I turn my back and she gets up from the couch,and starts fiddling with the TV button..

    Mimi- “What are you doing?”
    A- “TiTi”
    Mimi-“TV?”
    A- “YEah Yeah..”
    And she throws the remote on the floor.
    Mimi- “Are you Mad?”
    A- “No No”
    Mimi- “You think Mumma is mad>”
    Pipette- “YEah yeah!”

    My sister told me that if she is bored..she just says yeah.. but I wonder how..she says no..when it comes to her..

     

  • And A Happy Diwali to Everyone

    Diwali, this year was going to be very low-key. The family,back home has been going through some troubled times and I am constantly obsessing about that. and then, we just moved.We are still trying to settle in.I haven’t even unpacked all the bags.And with the limited 3-4 vessels,hyper-active Aadya, there is no way,I wanted to attempt making Diwali sweets and savories.
    To add to that, grandparents on both sides of the family were upset, about not being able to send anything for their precious grand-daughter.We sent the address so late. So, anyway, we had pretty much given up on receiving any gifts this year.New place, not many friends..and the works.
    But, we were pleasantly surprised,when our “only” friends here,when we moved,T&S, called up to say they wanted to visit. We were happy.They came bearing-diwali sweets,wishes and a surprise. A package from our very own,Dipali.There were gifts for Aadya and Me!! And boy were we thrilled..:) That sort of got us in the mood.Then we feasted on the goodies 😀 Then,I decided to make a little something, just shagun ka. Strapped Aadya in her Pram, and marched up to the Indian store. I got some stuff to make Chivada and laddu. And while we were there, Sanj called,with good news. A car,that he had gone to see over the weekend, got approved and the dealer was ready to deliver it the same day.So, I picked up some more mithai.We got back home, I finished cooking..and then after dinner, we went for a long drive. And what a fine car it is.
    This morning when I woke up,I decided to make some chivada.That’s another thing,that I got around to doing it only by 6.00 in the evening. I just about managed to make chivada, mathri,and something,that tastes like Rava laddu but,is not even close to it in appearance..oh well.. something is better than nothing,na?
    This time,we just lit candles and prayed..No elaborate pooja happened..More because,there is no space..and with this super-curious Aadya,I didn’t want to risk keeping it down. And its the thought that counts,ain’t it?
    Anyway,now I have an excess stock of sweets and Sanj,doesn’t eat it.. Aadya is not getting any..I have decided no more sweets for her, after 4 in the afternoon.She gets a sugar rush and refuses to sleep.Which,leaves me.All the calories and the measly two pounds that I managed to lose in this one month..I am going to put it on back,with interest..Oh..such is life.
    Anyway,
    Wish you all a very happy diwali.May this diwali bring lots of joy and prosperity to every one.