Moved!

It was time for my blog to move. It was time to shy out from the cloak of invisibility to a more popular location where only sky is the limit. It was time to break free from cruel formatting and layout restrictions which are such a passe in this era of free virtual spaces. It was time to move on. 

And I wish to do this more gracefully than ever. I wish to give commendable appreciation and gratitude to MSN spaces for providing me an opportunity to vent out my angst, to pen down (or should I say 'key in') my thoughts, ideas and beliefs. However, as the wise men say, it is only modest and favorable to move with time and technology, I now invite you to visit me at this blogspot location and I kindly like to request you to leave your honorable comments which will always command my highest respect.

I must add that no moving/separation is without pain and I grieve to leave the precious comments of my friends as I can't carry them with me. However, I shall most definitely try to dedicate a blog to it which will serve as a continual source of inspiration for 'me and my tanhai.'

Thank you for your time.

Inspiration

My tasks and duties as a supermom have increased, infact doublefolded. And so has my aspirations, expectations, and inspirations. My latest inspiration is my little boy, Raahil. Contrary to popular beliefs that after a baby one just doesn't have any time at all, all newbie moms will agree with me that the feeding time is the best time to pick up a fone, dial a friend and catch up a bit. And if you are not talking, you are dreaming. And as for me, I am turning a bit 'poetic.' Raahil inspired me to reinvigorate, or in simple terms, retry my poetic flair, which I must admit has been quite a weak and a meek attempt, but nevertheless, worth a mention. So here it is.

 

He wants to be rocked,

He wants to be hold;

He wants to be fed,

He wants to be told...

 

Raahil, its burping time, its napping time,

its play time, its feeding time;

But does he listen to mommy, naah!!

He is the king of his destiny.

 

I will eat when I want to,

I will play when I want to,

I will cry when I want to,

and I will sleep when I want to;

 

So as I go through the day with my arsenal,

that consists of diapers, pacifiers and changing pads,

bottles float in my dreams,

as I try to catch up on my sleep;

 

Babies are work, babies are hard,

But somehow they cajole in giving us a laugh;

I gleem in joy when I look at him,

He is afterall my honey and cream.

 

Yes, all I have done is tried to rhyme,

I don't have a natural flair,

But something is better than nothing,

Might tickle a giggle, a snort, or mere chuckling. 

HeLLo uNcles,aunTies and frIenDs,
 
I have company now. 
 
My little brother arrived on July 30th, 2008 at 13:08 hrs. He tipped the scale at 7 lbs 2 ounces. 
 
We are going to call him RAAHIL. Daddy says it means "One who shows the way".
 
Mummy is back from the hospital and I will try to be her little helper.
 
Love,
aNUsHkA sHah

To find or not to find

Well, as my tummy grows, so does the pressing question in my mind. Is it a boy, or is it a girl? Is it going to be pink, or blue? Coming to think of it, this is a million-dollar question for any mom-to-be. Are you going to cave in or hold up with this unrelenting curiosity all bundled up in your big fat brain? Is it alright to go with the latest technology and find out the gender of your baby before time, or go the traditional way, hold it up and be surprised as all our parents and ancestors have been?

 

Some say, finding out whether its 'pink with flowers or blue with trucks' is like opening your christmas gift before christmas. I would partially agree with this. Some mysteries are best left at fate to be unravelled at the pre-ordained 'right' time. But do you have it in you to hold up? Does it make you comfortable that the ultrasound technician or the doctor doing your scan knows it but you don't? In short, are you patient enough to wait it out or you'd rather kill the surprise and be more content with finding out which color to pick for your nursery?

 

I have to say that there are some pretty good reasons why finding out will be more of an advantage than not finding out.

1. First would be to know the color of your nursery. Green and yellow colored-rooms indeed look very dull.

2. Picking out baby clothes. The pink and blue ones are unbelievably cute. Looking for unisex onesies can be quite a task.

3. Cuts your name-finding efforts into half. Picking a name that both mom and dad like is certainly not easy.

 

But are these really sound reasons to motivate you, or just plain lame? Afterall, the color thingy is just for the first couple of months. Once you have your bundle of joy in hand, you can go shopping again.

 

Well, Jignesh prefers 'getting surprised' as this can be one of the life's biggest surprises. I, for that matter, just find it extremely difficult to hold myself and wants to jump at the very slight instinct of knowing what it is. However, this time, I have led myself to follow Jignesh's path and find out how exciting can the climax really be. I would then be able to compare the 'i-know-it' with 'i-don't-know-it' and whether it's really worth it. The chinese calendar says it will be a girl; however, whoever I have met so far, everyone, from complete strangers to your friendly aunties, everyone has guessed it to be a boy. So its the ancient gender-predicting relic against the people. We'll see who wins.

Surprise baby shower

Giving a surprise baby shower party to a mom-to-be entails careful planning, plotting dramas, selection of menu, and some spygiri and not to forget, the chaotic conference calls. I have been a part of this devious scheming on previous occasions. However, this time, I was the victim. I shouldn't really say victim, lets say, the fortunate one, who got home to a lovely decorated house, complete with fully prepared big dinner and a great cake. Last Saturday, my NOVA gang decided to team up and make me cry. Well, they were partially successful. I was surprised, but I didn't cry. In fact I laughed coz of a last-minute discrepancy. Jignesh didn't give them a warning miss-call and so when I turned on the key, everyone was so busy with each other that they were more stunned on seeing me rather than the other way around. And why was I not so stunned? Coz truly speaking, I was kinda expecting them to give me a surprise shower. I just didn't know when and how. And Jignesh did a marvellous job at completely misleading me and throwing me off the tracks all thru the day that by afternoon, I was pretty sure there is no party today.

 

The last time, I was in Kansas where I had very few friends, my mother-in-law did do the traditional godbharai and we went to the temple, but thats abt it. I yearned for a baby shower with friends and fun. Well, this time, it happened. Not that I don't enjoy the traditional ones. Its just that the traditional ones can be more meaningful and 'traditional' with family and tonnes of relatives around. With friends, you just wanna have fun.

 

The guys did an amazing job at trying to pretend that they were pregnant with pressing balloons under their shirts. Though they ended up looking like they are 15-20 months pregnant which was hilarious. Mohan also suggested oh, this is so easy. You big-bellied girls just make a big deal out of it. Ya, try pressing a 20 pound bowling ball instead of a balloon and then speak. They also tried to guesstimate my burgeoning waistline with only a couple of them doing an accurate job. And to top the games, there was so much food, we could go on all night. They all left with a messy house but loads of wishes, though I have to say the wishes made up for the mess. My friends are very clever, aren't they?

 

I just want to thank all my friends. You didn't disappoint me.

Interesting facts about the bump

While this may not seem such an interesting topic for the male species, being pregnant makes me explore the so-called 'typical womanish' topics. Bump being a prime example. How I love my bump!!! I so want to wear the appropriate fabric that'll help me invite glares and glances from every known and unknown. I am proud to say that I love to show it off. Now don't imagine me lifting my shirt up to do so; I remain well within my 'desi' boundaries. Its just as simple as I don't want to hide my roundy tummy behind long cotton kurtis or tops. In my last pregnancy, I made Jignesh take my pictures at every month which I nicely categorized in an online album to be shared with everyone. This year, I have to admit, I have been a bit slack. But I have been a slack with everything this time. Right from avoiding caffeine, to eating the right amount of fruits. I guess it happens as you get used to the whole 'pregnancy' process.

 

Anyways, I want to share some interesting facts that have been happening putting the 'bump' into limelight. After all the focus on the Hollywood moms parading their bumps under Oscar gowns, you can see a plethora of swollen bellies all over the Internet. Just type in 'bump' and you'll be amazed at the sheer number of links that'll come up. The trend has changed. Women have grown to love their full figure and want to immortalize it by splashing it all over the net. Infact, inorder to do the above, the women have gone to the heights of getting their bellies casted in plaster and using it as a neat nursery showpiece. Howz that for going overboard? The creative-crazy women get a chance to decorate their casts the way they want to. Embellish it with beads or paint your masterpieces on it. Oohhh!! I have to say this doesn't sound too alluring to me. Makes my face all twitchy when I try to imagine this.

 

Morocco has an interesting tradition to ward off the evil spirits. The women in their third trimester have to get their bellies hennaed with beautiful intricate designs. Just like how we have the mehendi tradition in weddings, though its just on hands and feet. I love mehendi and its designs and I don't think I would mind getting my belly green. It is supposed to calm and soothe and help in easy childbirth. Well, for me, that sounds just pretty to me.

 

The vocabulary has changed its words for the same too. In the good ole past, they said 'going the family way' to describe the pregnant women. Now its more on the terms of 'knocked up.' India has its share of words too. From 'uska pair bhari hai' (I fail to understand the connection between the tummy and the feet) to the crude slang word 'matka,' the westernized indians prefer to refer it as 'I am preggy' or just 'I am expecting' (What are you expecting? It could be anything right?).

 

Anyways, while the bumps are being photographed, molded, and painted on, I am glowing with it trying to ignore the tremendous strain it puts on my delicate spine making me dwindle-walk sometimes as I defy gravity. Though this calls for additional shopping and with it, a strain on hubby's pocket too, I love it and I know I will miss it once I get through the process as I lose the attention I get. Till then, do keep dropping in to see my latest pics.

Absent-minded me

We just watched U, Me Aur Hum. If you haven't watched it, here comes the main part of the plot. Alzheimer's disease. This is what Kajol starts to suffer from after a few years in marriage. She starts to forget her address, her husband's name, the fact that she is pregnant, etc. Though this memory loss is not permanent. It waxes and wanes. Sometimes she is in perfect harmony with her life, and at other times, she walks around like a zombie.

 

I have been forgetful right from the time i remember. I have never once returned home with an entire shopping list 'ticked.' There have been instances when I have gone in my car, and come back in a rickshaw. I have left my bag in stores or parks, and just a few days back, some very important documents in a copier at Fedex-Kinko's. I have to admit that I have been lucky so far to get it all back. Imagine!!! even after 15 days. Are my symptoms pointing toward any serious cognitive problems, or am I just too careless? They say, forgetfulness is mostly since you are preoccupied and heedless to the current circumstances. Yes, a lot of times, I do tend to be preoccupied, and I do tend to multi-task, but is my brain just dumb enough not to be able to differentiate between the 'important' and the 'trivial.' 

 

The most hilarious episode that has been stuck in my grey cells so far has been the fact when mom and dad went for a vacation to Goa like 20 years back taking my younger brother along, and leaving me behind with my grandparents and my bua. They told me they are taking my brother for a tonsillectomy and I believed them all this time. How silly and absurd this sounds to me now, a tonsillectomy in Goa, i can't stop laughing. It was just last year during a family conversation time, when I came to know that it was just a 'kid-lie' and I was just a plain fool to have believed it all these years.

 

Events I remember; names and dates, safe-keeping places, I don't.

 

I am not yet roaming around like a zombie, though that could be spotted sometimes now that I have my pregnancy hormones to blame. The only problem I face with this forgetfulness is the wrath of my dear husband whose 'dates-and-numbers-memory' happens to be a lot stronger than mine. I fail to explain to him how my memory kids around with me. I hope this doesn't escalate into any serious problems later in life that probably will prompt him to go watch U, Me Aur Hum again.  He has all my sympathies.