When Little Hands Tell A New Story

Once again, pulling out a post from the drafts!! I really have no idea why so many of my posts are lying in the drafts (around 65 at the last count) and I totally forgot to publish them

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Till a couple of years back, I was very enthusiastic about applying mehendi to Lui. She has the cutest hands I’ve known, dimpled and chubby (though her nails are a different story altogether!!). Her fingers aren’t long, but they are soft and tender and when she cups my face in her hands or when we hold hands while crossing the road, I feel that they are something very precious, like the softest bale of silk, cool and soft. If I have a headache, she would gladly rub Vicks on my forehead, her caresses gentle and her touch beautiful!

Needless to say, I love her and I love her hands. Since she was a kid, I’d beg her to stay still while I drew pretty flowers and tendrils with mehendi. My painstaking efforts were tolerated by the toddler, which was roughly for 5 minutes, after which she would just rub her hands together and smudge the entire thing.

I would feel peeved, that my daughter didn’t show signs of loving this hobby as much as I did (not that I’m very good at it!) but I was hoping that the lovely green mehendi paste would play its magic on her.

It didn’t.

She would make it clear in no uncertain terms that she didn’t like it at all . Frankly, it was unrealistic of me to expect my daughter to like the same things that I do. She is so unlike me that I wonder if she really is my daughter. When a child shows liking for stuff which is close to you, it becomes easier to initiate the child into it, to show them the right way to go about it. Something to do with treading on familiar territory, I guess. With Lui, since we have nothing in common, bringing her up continues to be a challenge. I’ve introduced her to all my likes and hobbies, alas, she has zero inclination towards any

In fact, it is little Shobbs who’s the picture of sincere curiosity as he asks me what ingredients I’m adding to the dish which I’m cooking, or wondering why I’m not wearing a matching dupatta with my dress!

Lui, couldn’t care less

Anyhow, on the Friday evening before Eid-ul-Zuha, Lui went to play in the neighbour’s house while I went about my work of preparing for the weekend. After an hour, when there was still no sign of Lui’s return, I went to the neighbors place to check on her.

Imagine my shock, when I see her sitting calmly with her hands outstretched as the neighbors kids painstakingly applied little intricate designs on my daughter’s hand.

“You shouldn’t have bothered K”, I told the young girl,” Lui will mess it up within minutes”.

But K was almost done, so I let her finish.

“Kharab mat karna“, K gently warned Lui.

“NO”, yelled the little monster as she ran back home.

I just shook my head, knowing fully well what the monster would do as soon as she reached home.

Alas, Lui proved me wrong. Once again. She sat as patiently and still as a saint till the Mehendi dried. And as she sat there, willing for it to dry, I couldn’t help but realize how much my daughter has grown-up! She’s finally more patient, in control. Moreover, she finally took a fancy to Mehendi…. That is reason alone for me to celebrate!

Cant wait for this particular one to come off….then I will draw those flowers on my baby’s hand  .

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For the record, I did apply Mehendi to Lui after that…she was still as a statue and very cooperative!

Alas, I don’t have snaps of that effort

 

 

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Learning New Things

It is sleep time in the MomofRS household. The twins have drunk their milk, wiped off the mustaches and slumped onto their respective pillows.
“Say your prayers”, I admonish the two.
Little Lui immediately starts off with, “Dear Allah, please take care of our Big-Dadi .  Dear Allah, please take care of our Abu. Please teach him to make rice and tea and juice and bhaji and ghee and chocolates. Please give him little cold and little heat. Not too much cold. Please make him do good work and not do any naughty things ( ). Please teach him to wash clothes and vessels. Aaaaameeeeen”.
Shobby says, ” Dear Allah, please do all that Lui says, okie?”.

   

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The kids are getting ready for school. I dressed them up and asked them to go to the kitchen to have breakfast, while I get ready for work. When I came out of the room, Lui was doodling on the walls, deeply absorbed.
“Lui, did you have your breakfast?” I asked.
She didn’t look at me and just said, “Yes”.
“Look at me. Did you eat it? Really?”
“Yes”. Still not looking at me.
Shobby comes up to me in the meanwhile and seeing our conversation, butts in, “Mumma, Lui didn’t have breakfast”.
I was a little annoyed. “Lui”, I said, “you musn’t lie dear. Its okay if you dont want to eat. Just say that you didn’t”.
“Lui is a liar, Lui is a liar”, started chanting a very bratty Shobbs!
“SHOBBYYYY”, screamed Lui, who was silent till now, “SHUT-DOWN!!!!”

   

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This morning, I served the kids their bed-milk. Shobby finished his first and held out the cup.
“Yeh lo Mumma”.
“Hey!! Keep it on the table”.
“No you keep it”.
“Hello!! Its your cup, you keep it”.
“Lekin, cup aapne laye. You keep it”.
“Very funny. YOU drank the milk, so you keep it”.
“No No. Mumma. Not say like that. Meri baat suno. Jo cup kitchen se laata hai, woh hi cup kitchen mein rakhta hai”.
“No way! Jo doodh peeta hai, woh cup kitchen mein rakhta hai“.
“Mumma!! Hamesha aap ki baat kyun sunu?? bade logon ne bhi chhote bachchon ki baat sun-na chahiye“, grumbled a VERY peeved Shobbs!

   
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I was coming back home last Sunday after a visit to BFS (where we had some awesome chicken curry and fried prawns!). I was riding my bike, with Lui in the front and Shobby sitting behind me. I usually keep both of them behind me but Lui simply insisted that she be allowed to stand in front. I told her it was long way back home and her feet will hurt after a while. The girl just wouldn’t listen!
To be on the safer side and prevent her from falling asleep/getting tired, I told her that she will have to press the horn whenever I tell her to. She was easily convinced and we went on our way. For the first 5-10 minutes, I told her when exactly she must press the yellow button.
After that, she just did it on her own, without the need for me to say anything. She practically became my left thumb
Speed-breakers : small beep.
Turning : beep beep beep.
Crossing : long beep.

She got the hang of traffic so well, it was amazing!
Surprising part is, when we were coming towards BFS’ place, it was Shobby who insisted on standing in front and he was also busy with the beeping. Only difference being, he just beeped at will

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And while we are on learning new things, this is how one is punished when one uses their grandfather’s handkerchiefs to mop the floor. She made sure that the said handkerchief was scrubbed really clean after that !!

sincerely at work!

The tyke wore a dupatta on her head because , in her words, “mujhe mere baal disturb karenge“

   

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Mumma’s Little Helpers

Its the season of peas. Lovely green peas which are now cheaper than what they usually cost throughout the year. The MIL brought around 3 kgs of green peas last week. The plan was to deep-freeze half of it and use up the rest. Since then, we’ve been having peas in practically every dish. Matar pulao, salads, matar-paneer, aloo-matar, matar-karanjee, matar-parathas and the list goes on (frankly, I’m a little sick of the little pea )

The kids aren’t big fans of the pod. But when disguised within parathas or in soup, they have it. Usually though, if they find a pea floating in their soup, it has to be removed!  Point is, they don’t like it much.

Last Saturday morning, I finally got down to shelling those peas. The twins were busy watching some cartoon (rationed viewing on Saturdays ). I suddenly remembered that I’d left my phone in the bedroom. With the BF away, I keep the phone with me at all times…not wanting to miss out when he calls . So imagine my surprise when I walk back to the hall and see this :-

Two little kids trying their hand at shelling peas. Shobby was having no luck with it. I saw him ripping off a few with his teeth. Worst part is, as soon as he saw his paparazzi mom zooming in for a pic, he scooted off the table he was sitting on. *Sigh* He did try to help me, didn’t he?

Lui was the picture of determination and dedication. Though the pods were a little hard to tug apart, she still gave it her best shot.

Looking at her sitting there, shelling peas with a content look on her face, I realized with a pang – my daughter has grown up! Though I refuse to believe it , in my heart, I have to accept the fact that she is no longer a toddler (in fact, I still call her my baby!). She is a grown-up little pre-schooler who thinks her mother is the picture of impatience. Why else would my every question to her be replied with a ,”Thoda sabr toh rakho...”

Anyhow, 10 minutes into the shelling and she called it a day

But I didn’t mind. I’m just glad that she did something without me pestering her to do so. Usually, for kitchen related chores, I rope in Shobby. I ask him to put washed utensils in their place (the ones where he can reach). He helps me put vegetables in the refrigerator after sorting them . For some reason, Lui abhors kitchen work. She will do anything else, sweep or mop the floors, fold clothes, fetch stuff.

For now, I’m just glad that the twins are learning to contribute to the house. I want them to know the difference between a house and a home…….slowly, but surely, we are getting there

 

 

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The Twin’s First Republic Day

Since I was  a part of the Scout/Guides troops in school, Independence and Republic Days are very close to my heart. It wasn’t about the hours of marching we had to do. It was more about the freedom to bunk boring lectures, march in the sun during chilly winters (those classrooms were morgues!!) and be entitled to a bag of goodies (refreshments, we called them) after the practice. Needless to say, I didn’t mind a minute of all that Left-Right-Left !! Somewhere in my cupboard in B’lore, I still have my uniform, the indigo blue frock, brown leather belt, the tightly wound rope that hangs from the belt, the scarf, the line-yard and the beret.

My most wonderful memory of Republic Day has to be in the one in the year 1990. Though I was a Guide, in those days I also used to be a member of the school choir. Which meant, endless hours practicing welcome songs for the chief-guest along with the sessions of march-past, which means, an entire day off from classes !!!

Anyhow, so there we were, soaking in the warm sun, waiting for the chief guest to arrive. For the life of me, I cannot recollect who the person was. I just know that he looked snooty and acted the part. He came in late but we were okay with it….we had come to school around 7AM and given the terribly chilly Bhatinda winter, standing for hours in the sun seemed like a boon. The chief guest arrived sometime around 8:30-9:00 AM. We sprung up from our chairs and lustily sang some welcome number. After the usual welcome speech by the Principal, it was time for the flag hoisting. The school band was in attention, itching to play the National Anthem as soon as the flag fluttered high. The chief guest stepped over to the podium, the sports teacher handed him the rope.

We waited with baited breath.

The chief guest tugged at the rope.

Nothing happened.

He tugged harder.

Nothing happened.

He tugged with all his might.

The by now severed rope gave way and the bundled flag landed on the chief guests head with a loud “Thump”.

A thousand plus children laughed uproariously while a miffed Principal yelled over the mike to “Keep quiet” and “Haso mat!!” Haso mat!! Indeed!! Was it even possible?!!

The Chief guest was seriously ticked off and the sports teacher, who had tied that unfortunate knot, was almost bent double, apologizing profusely . The music teacher started the harmonium, which was cue for the band to start playing and for us to start singing. So yeah, even though we didn’t ‘hoist’ the flag, we had our Republic day .

After that incident, each time I visit any flag-hoisting ceremony, I somehow keep wondering if the flag will open or just land on someone’s head   . This in no way is an indication that I disrespect the flag, its just that having the flag give the chief guest (specially if its those kinds who think they are doing the rest a big favour) a nice public ‘spanking’ , is a thought too delicious to ignore

Anyway, this year, I decided to take the twins along to my office, which hosts the flag-hoisting ceremony twice a year. The Chief guest is none other than the MD himself and the crowd is the usual one which comes every year. The preparations to take them along were started a week in advance. The twins were so eager that they were ready to sacrifice their sleep on a Saturday morning.

We left for my office around 8:30 AM (the old office actually. I now sit in the new office building at a different location). The twins were so excited that they didn’t even want their morning milk!. Once at the office, I realized that hardly a couple of employees had brought their kids along. My kids, not the ones to keep their opinions to themselves, wondered aloud how long they would have to stand around. I did a lot of “Shhh”, but obviously they are immune to that sound. Lui was social enough to shake hands with my friends and even talk to some seniors. Shobby hid himself behind my dupatta

The actual flag-hoisting was a short affair. The twins kept disturbing me as I was singing the National Anthem…Shobby insisted loudly, “Mummy…please aap gao mat !!” Yes, everyone around now knows what my child thinks of my singing skills . Anyhow, once the parade by security guards went by, we trooped inside for a hot cup of tea. I took a few snaps, posting them here :-

Shobby decided to dig his nose just as I clicked

Try as I might, the two refused to salute!

Once inside, they sat down with their cups of tea and quietly sipped at it. A few people came around to meet them, thankfully my children were well mannered and cordial with them all!

Behind the water glass

The twins took a fancy for the water glass. They were stuck there for ages. I had to literally drag them away from there. A friend clicked this snap for me -

Don’t ask me why Lui’s bent like that

While leaving, I took the kids outside to a tiny garden maintained by my company

The twins ran around for a while and then we left for home. On the way, the twins insisted they wanted the stick flags (those paper flags with a windmill attached to it). I bought two and we went back home.

Throughout the day, I reminded the children about the flag-hoisting and how we were free people now compared to being slaves earlier (blah blah blah… am sure it went over their heads). Each time, they nodded their heads sagely, excited only when they remembered the shower of petals from above, something they both LOVED on sight

Overall, it was a day nicely spent. I felt glad that I did my duty as an Indian.

Towards evening, Shobby’s paper flag tore (both the kids were using their sticks as swords). He came running to me with the torn paper in his hands. “Mummy, this is broke”, he said and then holding out the piece of paper, added further,”Yeh kya hai?”

“Oh no!! This is the flag baby!!”

He looked at the windmill on the stick with a puzzled look.

“Toh, yeh flag nahin hai??”

*Sigh*

Some lessons still need to be taught !!

 

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Of Secret Bonds And Spaces

I recently read a book called “Break In” by Dick Francis. Its a story of a steeplechase jockey and his twin sister set in  the backdrop of Francis’ forte – horse racing.

Right from the beginning of the story, it is made clear that the two leads have a bond that is strongly telepathic, they can both read each others mind and even as kids, could figure out where the other was , when the elders got tired of searching for one.

As I went deeper into the narration, I felt as though this book was written for Lui and Shobbs !! The invisible bonds that tie Kit and Holly together, is creepily similar to the bond between Lui and Shobby. It is fascinating, to see them both together. They fight, they yell, they squabble, they land punches and usually beg us to get rid of the other. But the second we, the adults, try and reprimand any one of them, the other gives out a banshee call and literally goes for our throats

Lui will complain about Shobby, I turn to scold Shobby and Lui will whack me with her plastic bat, indignant that I dared to raise my voice on her brother! Shobby, not the whacking type, tends to hurl himself on us to put maximum distance between us and his sister. A kabaddi-champion in the making, is my wild guess!

I can list a hundred different instances when they both abhor the intervention of any third person between them. At school, they may completely ignore each other, reveling in the company of other friends. But the day Lui skips school or Shobby is at home, the others gets restless, refusing to talk or play with the other kids . Their teachers have time and again pointed out this behavior in every parent-teacher’s meet.

Recently, since the BF is away, the twins sleep with me. One night, since Shobby and Lui were involved in a major fight where Shobby was the main culprit, I punished him by making him sleep on his bunk bed. What I didn’t bargain for, was the effect on Lui. She was awake most of the night. She kept waking me up to convince me to bring Shobby to our bed. She was worried that he would be scared all alone. Apparently, she was deaf to his snores . Each time she woke me up, I would ask her to go back to sleep and not disturb me. Eventually, she woke me up to inform that she was joining her brother on the bunk-bed.

By the time the two woke up the next morning, they were back to screeching and clawing at each other.

Frankly, I’ve given up on the two. They might bring the house down with their yelling, but I desist from playing the referee. Let them fight, they’ll obviously make-up after a while. Then they will shoot accusing looks my way and hold me responsible for all the misunderstanding between the two

Its funny and sad at the same time…..I mean I know the kids love me and all but somewhere, I believe they have their own little space where I’m not invited. As they grow older, I can feel the space expanding. Earlier, they used to come and talk to me directly about anything. Nowadays, they discuss among themselves before approaching me . They crack their own jokes, get under the blanket and laugh their guts out, play peek-a-boo with each other…and I, stand outside like a silent observer, simply watching them and thanking Allah that they don’t need me to keep them busy. That they have each other.

But it hurts too . A teeny tiny ache in the vicinity of the heart……

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The Twin’s First Trip To Mahabaleshwar

Winter in Pune, is a joke . Not a typical ‘HAHA’ joke, per se, but a ridiculous one where you eagerly pull out woolens from boxes, sun them and then wait patiently till the weather is cool enough to use them. And then you sit back and twiddle your thumbs, waiting for the cold winds to blow your way.

The weather, alas, has other plans. So while the Northern region of the country freezes away to glory, the twins at home refuse to wear a shirt over their vest, claiming it to be ‘too hot’. The fan whirls at a nice speed as we sleep in the night, justifying, somewhat, the need to use a blanket (forget the heavy ‘razai‘ !).

Winter hasn’t technically arrived yet and I have already packed my woolies back in their boxes. Maybe next year, I will give them all away to charity.

Anyhow, so desperate was I for hint for chapped skin and dry lips that the BF obliged and took us to the nearby hill-station of Mahabaleshwar - the land of the Strawberry goodness . This was couple of weekends back. We just decided on the spot, packed our bags, fished for a few woolens for the kids and set off. I had just picked jackets for the twins but the BF suggested that Mahabi (as Mahabaleshwar is lovingly called) is a LOT cooler than Pune. With a hum and a haw I packed two sweaters too. Okay, on a side note, believe this – I packed clothes for me, the BF and two kids, with two sets of changes in one ruck-sack. I’m smug as I type this, because before this, each time I stepped out of the house, even for a day, I would carry at least 4-5 sets each for the kids, with towels, napkins, jackets, etc. Not this time. I kept it to a minimum, with just another hand-bag with the edibles. Thats it. With two bags in hand, we set off. The BF was mighty impressed with the limited luggage (He wasn’t so impressed the next day when he found that I’d forgotten his change of inners !! Oh well….we’re learning, aren’t we?!)

So we started not-so-early on Saturday, had a nice 3 and an half hour pleasurable ride through beautiful hills and fields. We crossed the picturesque town of Wai, famous for many movies (Swades, Bol Bachchan, Gangajal, etc). We didn’t stop there though. The ghat stretch was pretty treacherous with sharp bends and we wanted to reach Mahabi before the traffic got worse.  Once we hit Mahabi, we visited the Mapro Garden. I think it is a popular destination for food/ice-creams (served with fresh strawberries)/ candies, syrups, squashes/jams/honey, etc. Though Lui had a bad cough, she kicked up a big fuss when we refused her the ice-cream. When she started screaming blue murder, we gave in and got her a cone. “She won’t be able to finish it”, the BF told me. Knowing my girl, I should have bet him on it. She finished it without a care about the world. I mentally thanked myself for remembering to ger her cough syrup along!

Shobby wouldn’t allow me to click his snap, behaving like a celebrity caught in the vicious circle of paparazzi. After a few snaps of him covering his face, I gave up .

The Mapro farm had put up a big trampoline inside their premises. There were a bunch of kids already going bonkers on it. I was a little apprehensive, what if someone lands on them?! But then, the kids seemed excited and we dumped them on the trampoline.

The twins had a blast, as you can see . Lui was annoyed when we pulled her out from there and started another tirade of rants. The BF quickly bought a big box of fresh strawberries from a counter outside and handed it to her. Thats it. The girl was on her best behavior throughout the trip. By the way, strawberries are her favorite fruit. She was overwhelmed at being given an entire box to herself, to eat as much as she wants. Believe me, she was so quiet afterwards that we wondered what was wrong with her

We reached the MTDC resort by noon (why MTDC?? Because the Country Club membership is one the worst mistakes we’ve ever committed in our lives!! In spite of being members, in spite of paying the AMCs, we still have to inform months in advance even if we need to go on a short vacation of 2 days !! We tried to book the rooms in the Country Club resort around Nov/Dec. Even then, we were told that bookings weren’t available. Anyone know if we can get a refund from the CC guys?? )

Anyhow, the MTDC resort was pretty good too. Not luxurious, but serviceable, yes. We got a nice family suite with two rooms. At 1pm in the afternoon, the room was chill enough to freeze water. I’m not kidding. The mattresses were frozen blocks of ice! When we rested there for a while, no matter how much we rubbed our feet together, the bed wouldn’t thaw . Exactly what I wanted

We ordered lunch, quickly gobbled the food and then contemplated the next step. I think an honest confession is due here. Neither the BF nor I am keen on walking long distances. We thought and we planned and then after much discussion resorted to taking a well-deserved nap after the long drive. So we all hit the bed.

I woke up the kids around 4pm. The MTDC resort is closet to the sunset point and I wanted to take the kids there. By now, there was severe chill in the air, even though it was sunny outside. The kids wore their sweaters and then the jackets over the sweaters! For kids running around in chaddi-banian at home, this was a major weather indicator

I took the above two snaps while the kids were playing outside our rooms. Though there were two swing sets, the two settled into one

Don’t be fooled by the sun. It looks warm and sunny but it really wasn’t. It was COLD!!!

It was pretty cold at the sunset point. I thought it would be enjoyable, but ummm, frankly speaking, I wasn’t impressed. Towards sunset the crowd swelled to hundreds and before my very eyes, dry winter dust rose sky high and provided very little clear view of the sunset. It didn’t help that the horse-riders were galloping around, kicking up further dust! Before we knew it, the sunset was over. We trooped back to the resort. There, the twins spotted a complex set of slides and bridges and set off for it even before I could give my consent (not that they expected otherwise, but still. A mother ought to command some respect )

After nearly an hour of play, we finally headed to the restaurant for dinner. It never struck any of us that we could take the car out and roam around the town streets, checking out their night-life

Once back in our suite, I have the kids a nice hot water bath, bundled them in their pyjamas and sweaters and settled them to watch “Charlie and the chocolate factory”. Meanwhile, me and the BF took a leisurely stroll outside, reveling in the chilled air, the one which makes your insides shiver (bliss ). Eventually, we saw the lights going off all around us, one by one. so we pulled out chairs and sat outside the room, chatting like we used to , a long time back. I think hours passed. Sure that it must be nearing 12:30 in the night, I asked the BF if we should go in.

“Its only 10:30 now”, he informed me.

“What?!!” I mean, it seemed like ages since we were sitting in the darkness. If it was still 10:30, what time did the people around us go off to sleep?? 8:30??!! Its an unthinkable hour, by our regular standards

Anyhow, we called it a night . At least the BF did. I was busy finishing “the immortals of Meluha”. We woke up early the next morning. The BF had some work to attend to back in Pune, we wanted to be home by afternoon. On the drive back, we came across Venna lake. Lui and Shobby wanted to go boating, but he service hadn’t started yet. The BF was in a hurry so we kind of cajoled the kids into believing that only kids who can swim are allowed to go boating. My poor little angels for the fib . Though they agreed, Lui wasn’t happy about the whole deal, something that she made clear by pasting the biggest frown on her face when I asked them to pose for snaps! Shobbs had no qualms in smiling though.

We made only one stop on the way back. Halfway through, we came across a nice stretch of farms and on one end was a stall selling sugarcane juice. Who could resist?? We bought 2-3 mugs of it. I asked the seller to add ginger to make it easily digestible for the kids. Alas, they hated the taste of it. But again, they had no problems posing for a snap . Lui’s good mood was restored too.

We reached home by lunch time and after that, life was back to routine.

After reaching back,  I realized that we had crossed a major milestone. I rarely took the kids out for long drives before, bothered more about their toilet urges and not having proper facilities on the way. I wondered if the kids will fall sick, throw up and be miserable. I wondered if I would be able to manage them.

This trip was an eye-opener. I realized that my kids can control their urge until we reach back to our room. There were no accidents, no throwing up, no peeing on the bed and surprisingly, in spite of that big ice-cream, no coughing and fever from Lui. The kids have grown up, and how!

I feel useless . Drat them! Why couldn’t they have been the itty-bitty babies they were before

*sniff*

 

 

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Some Things Never Change!!

Sometimes, I feel that the kids are changing and evolving rapidly, throwing away old habits and learning new ones. We talk to the twins about how they used to crawl as babies, the way they used to drool, the way they used to clap their hands. The twins, needless to say, find these tales highly amusing, as if tickled at the thought that they ever behaved like that!

A lot has changed over the years. Their eating habits, sleep patterns, social behavior, characteristics, etc. Sometimes, I wonder where my little babies disappeared to, leaving behind two impish elves . The kids I now have are loud, opinionated, stubborn and high-strung. It doesn’t mean that they less loving or adorable. That they have in bundles . In a way, I’m glad that they are evolving into personalities and can no longer be clubbed as just ‘babies’. Lui always had a distinct persona around her and slowly, but gradually, Shobby has carved his own. They are both as similar as chalk and cheese and  more than a mother, I perform the role of an umpire. The judge. It is both harrowing as well as entertaining, depending on the time of the day (and also my mood )

But when the kids are asleep, some remote instinct kicks in. They forget their squabbles and differences. And never mind how far I place them on the bed, they find each other. Even after all these years, even after keeping them away from each other through the day, I cannot keep them away from snuggling up to each other at night

See it for yourself -

Then :-

Joined at birth…? At 9 months

Now…….

Still joined at touching 4

There was a picture on Facebook once, of two little babies, premies, snuggling inside the same incubator. Apparently, being premature babies, they were extremely fragile and were kept in two separate incubators. One of the kids’ health kept deteriorating, until one nurse thought of keeping them both in the same incubator.

And Voila!!  Both the kids started showing signs of rapid improvement ( Unfortunately I cannot access FB to post the link here. You might just have to hunt for it )

My twins, needless to say, seek each other’s company when in slumber, because since the time their hearts beat together, they’ve found company in each other.

May Allah bless this beautiful bond that is so beyond our understanding. I’m sure all twins/triplets/and other ‘Lets’ must be sharing similar experiences with their siblings. I can only see it from a distance and rejoice, but they are lucky enough to experience it.

May this bonding never change. Ameen.

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My Loss

It was bedtime and the twins were busy guzzling down their milk.

I still hadn’t changed to home clothes (since I’d returned late from work) and was in my day’s office wear.

The twins finished their milk and sported big, white milk mustaches.

Lui grinned at me and leaned forward . I was sure this girl was going to wipe her mouth on my dress. I snapped at her to use a napkin.

She leaped back, stung. Giving me the saddest look I’ve ever seen in her eyes, she said,”Mai to sirf pappi de rahi thi”.

Yes, I felt smaller than a beetle.

Lui is a serial kisser, who loves to shower her love in the form of kisses. when she’s in the mood, she doesn’t bother what body part of the other person is available. So I’ve been kissed on the head, tummy, shoulders and even feet

But last night, I felt awful. Though I pulled up my daughter and hugged her for all I was worth, I realized that a precious moment was lost. For what? A dress that could be easily washed the next day?!

Another lesson learned. A Child’s love is precious. Respect it!

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Another PTA

Wrinkles.

Yes, this is exactly what I noticed after visiting the twin’s school for the parent-teachers meetings. There were deep furrows on the brow and not so pretty trenches from nose to chin.

I hated those dratted meets when I was a kid and guess what?? I hate them even more now that I’m a parent. This just goes to show that only the teachers enjoy these sessions where they make the everyone else feel like lab rats

Anyhow, had a meeting at the twin’s school today. There wasn’t much to do as I reached 5 minutes late and the speeches had begun. Got a seat in the last row from where I couldn’t see anything up ahead. The speeches went on and on and on. I think I zoned out after a while. There were some small performances from a group of kids, which just made me realize that my kids weren’t selected for any of the performances (the school had given an off to all other students). Oh well! Lui-Shobs weren’t meant for the stage, I guess. Must have inherited that gene from their father.

After nearly an hour and a half, I got my chance to meet up with the class teachers (yep, there were two of them).
When I said, I’m Lui and Shobs mother, the first teacher gave a big grin, shook her head from left to right, probably remembering something severely naughty about the twins and just told me that the kids were doing fine.

Wow. Some consolation that.

The second teacher was a lot more direct. When I told her I was Lui and Shobs mother, she gave a big grin, shook her head from left to right and Wait! Thats all the similarity between the two teachers! After the secret smile, she proceeded to dump a list of issues about the twins. “Lui is too talkative” (yeah! Tell me about it ), “She disrupts the class with her tales” (YAAAWWWNN), “Poor writing skills” (MUST ask Lui to start writing her own blog) .

With Shobby, she was more lenient. “He doesn’t write much”, “He doesn’t colour much”, “He doesn’t recite much”. This came as a shock, since Shobby is forever scribbling, colouring and reciting at home. I mentioned the same to the teacher. “Then he must be doing a lot at home and getting bored in school. Please stop him from doing all that at home” (Huh?!! Didn’t see this one coming )

The one point on which the two teachers agreed wholeheartedly was that the twins are social animals. I mean, they are socially active. They talk to everyone, play with everyone and share their lunch boxes with everyone.  Unlike some other kids, they don’t stick to one particular friend (I think they do enough sticking with each other and revel in the luxury of being with other kids )

Overall, there was no need for me to break out in cold sweat as I awaited my turn.

But still… PTA??!! Not enjoyable.

The only concern from my side is that Lui writes mirror images. Her ’5′, ’2′, ’7′, ‘B’ ,etc are all written in opposite direction. It could just be a temporary thing or it could be indication of something more serious. Anyone encountered this problem before? Any suggestions?? Is this worth worrying about?? Any input will be most appreciated.

P.S : Any suggestions/home remedies  for those damn wrinkles would be appreciated too.

P.P.S : I mean it

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Why I Was Away

I’ve been MIA for the last week and for good reason too.
The In-Laws left for Hajj on Monday night (Alhamdulillah). Needless to say, it was a madhouse at the MomOfRS household with relatives, friends and well-wishers dropping by to pay their respects and to request prayers on their behalf.

The in-laws had to attend a 40-day workshop on the procedures and rituals that need to be followed during the 40-day pilgrimage. They will, in fact be staying for 45 days, since this year is the year of Al-Hajj Al-Akbar. After attending a host of coaching classes, medical tests, vaccinations and the works, they were declared ready for the holiest of all journeys .
Labaikallah humma labaik, labaika la shareeka labaik.

Since the trip was for 45 days, the MIL didn’t get a leave beforehand, so she had to work full-time on Monday, which was kind of sad, because we were hoping that she get some rest before the journey began (they had to leave for Mumbai around 1am Tuesday, check-in was at 7am and the flight departure was at 11am. The minute they land at Jeddah, they have a bus to Mecca and from there, they have to proceed for the first arkaan ).
But the rush of family and friends prevented her from getting a shut-eye even for five minutes
The only upside was that the minute they landed in Mecca, all physical discomforts and tiredness was forgotten. They were excited, exhilarated and at peace

Not much of the peaceful scenario back home, I’m afraid.
Firstly, this is the first time in my nearly 6 years of married life that I’m left alone to manage the household all by myself . Earlier, there was the GMIL and after her, it was MIL who looked into the nitty-gritties of home-work. To add to my woes, possibly EVERYONE around me shared my low opinion on my capabilities . People consoled me by the dozens, volunteering their time and efforts, ready to babysit the twins and even come and stay with us till the in-laws return. It was actually very kind of them all…..but somewhere inside , I felt the deep urge to prove them all wrong.
Heck, its just 45 days, right?!
How can I not manage for a measly month and a half?
So what if I didn’t know till now how much we paid the maids?
So what if I didn’t know where the gas-cylinder books were kept or the milk coupons were?
So what if I shudder involuntarily at the thought of managing so many people on my own??
Today is the third day and I’m glad to say, we haven’t sunk yet. This ship still sails and how !!
The BF and the BIL are cooperating in a much better way than before…..ready to juggle work-hours and take up little responsibilities at home. The twins….well, no change in the twins, except that they keep asking for their grandparents, wondering why they aren’t back yet

On my part, I want to redo the entire house by the time they return. I plant to buy new plants (because the all the old ones DIED. Yes, I managed to kill them all again ), just so that the terraces don’t look funny with all those empty pots.
I plan to refurbish the drawing room, add some cupboards to the kitchen (also get some pest-control done), clear up half the mess in my room, paint a wall bright orange, or maybe, we’ll just paint a wall with a nice jungle theme , visits all the relatives I never made time for before, take the kids to places we kept planning to take them to but never did (which does not mean malls and theaters!! These items are still off the list!) and essentially, make time for stuff I never made time for before. This includes a lot of home-improvement activities. I mean, the idea is to pleasantly surprise the in-laws when they return, not give them the proverbial cardiac
I have two willing and  able assistants to fulfill these plans, we now await this weekend, when we will finally chalk out a plan on what all we need to do and how to go about doing it.
Its gonna be fun
The twins will of course, come under everyone’s feet, but what the hell, we’ll let them paint a wall by themselves
Its sure gonna be fun.
Wait. I said that already
What the heck, I’ll say it again

PS: Will do a proper (read : appropriately solemn) post on the in-law’s Hajj trip once they get back (with the pictures, I hope !). It is indeed a once in a lifetime opportunity and me and the BF seriously plan to put in our names for the next year’s list.

Thats all for today. Have a nice day you all. Be good

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