With Cuddles in school, the entire routine in our house changes, from early to bed to early to rise to no more late nights on weekdays to four free hours for me to do whatever I want

You are just days away from turning three, a momentous milestone for both you and me. On most days you are a brat who keeps me on my toes and our house upside down, but in all this madness I thank God a million times for making you mine. For filling my life with unconditional love, wet kisses and sweet hugs that are guaranteed anytime of the day.

This year has been a toughie for all of us, but you have been oblivious of all the pain it has caused you. I learnt from you to live life as it comes, to be madder than ever before and to come back to new joys and crazy adventures. It’s been a year of exploring fun activities, seeing you dabble effortlessly in three languages and turning into a restless-curious and an adorable lil big boy.

The costliest toys don’t mean much to you because re-arranging the drawing room furniture is more fun. Running recklessly remains your most loved activity and your partner in crime is your grandfather who puts his army boot camp fitness levels to good use when with you. Chasing cockroaches and flies is your new found pastime much to your mother’s displeasure. You are a puzzle addict taking on your Sudoku fan of a dad. Food is what you eat when suitably distracted with stories, stickers or videos. Like your parents I can forsee a future movie addict who does not bat an eyelid when in front of the idiot box.

A paragraph is not enough to chronicle your wild year, but the daal needs attention and this is all that your ‘lazy with words’ mom can churn out.

The birthday plans are going to be a lil different this year. Hope you enjoy the day. It’s truly a blessed one.

Love Mom

He is rummaging inside the toy basket, after a while, there is a loud cheer and he says I found it

Yesterday he asks me, Mamma give me a bedsheet, mujhe thand lag rahi hai

Everyday we are amazed and impressed at his growing vocabulary. He is observing, listening and learning every minute. We are always asking ourselves, “where did he pick this from, how did he learn this?” Guess as first time parents each thing that Cuddles does is new for us. Hope to stay blessed like this forever.

Cuddles pretends to sleep in the living room.

Me: Why don’t you sleep in the bedroom

Cuddles: This is a bedroom

Me: No, this is the living room

Cuddles: No, This is a sofa.

#2

Cuddles: Mamma I wan po-corn

Me: We will tell papa to get you some when he comes back from office

Cuddles: voh kitchen mein hai

(eeks, can’t trick him now)

Heartwarming moment

Cuddles returns from nani house, comes to me, gives me a hug and says

Mamma mein aa gaya 

Offices bring in so many emotions in us. Sometimes it is a fun place where you make lasting friendships and find life-long confidantes, sometimes it becomes a sentimental place where you find a mentor who holds your hand and pulls you up the ladder, the other times you discover detractors igniting the worst of your fury. No doubt an office then becomes a place we associate bitter-sweet memories with.

In seven years of work life I worked at five offices. The first was located in a two bed room apartment, the second in the basement of a prominent tower, the third a picturesque green space, the fourth a typical corporate floor and the fifth a nostalgic landmark building.

Each office had its share of friends and fun, gossip and goose bumps, accolades and agony. This particular incident happened in the fourth office. In that corporate jungle our department was a small team of five headed by our boss – a middle-aged portly Nawab from Lucknow. Well, he wasn’t technically a nawab but he totally behaved like one. To begin with he was slow in speech — he spoke in pauses, he liked the old life which meant we had to time and again listen to his many tales of yore that began with… in 1970 when I was in school we plucked radishes and carrots for lunch and so on and so forth… , he was really lazy postponing work to the last minute so much so that we had to remind him about deadlines, his mood swings made him really grumpy on some days (those days incidentally happened to be always near a deadline or two .

He had a poor digestion but that didn’t stop him from indulging in fried and fatty savouries often, the outcome of which was borne by his errant driver who had to hunt for public toilets on several occasions. One such illness took a reported serious turn and he had to be hospitalised for a few days.  Following which there was no sign of him at work for weeks. When we called to enquire about his health we were told by the dutiful Mrs that Sir was resting. There was no sign of him at work for a few more weeks thereafter.  Then out of the blue one mid-afternoon we found Sir in the office lobby in his characteristic slow pace which seemed slower than usual and behind him was his driver holding a rolled mattress and pillow. They made quite a sight – the portly old man who pretended to be very sick and his weed thin driver holding the bedroom essentials. I still can’t stifle the giggles when I remember that sight. Back then don’t know how but with a lot of resolve to not burst out laughing we sent the senior most colleague to ask the reason for getting a mattress and pillow to office. The answer which he got was as follows: Doctor ne sakht aaram karne ko bola hai, yeh toh aaplogon ki chinta hogayi thi hame toh kya karte razai aur takiya ka intazaam karke aagaye hai atleast ek afternoon nap toh le lenge.  That pillow and mattress remained in his room for many months. He would close the door of his cabin promptly after lunch to heed to the doctor’s advice.

It’s been four years since I left that organisation but even today when I gang up with friends from that office we share a loud guffaw and two about our ex-boss. They don’t make nawabs like this anymore.

His toothy smile with a tilt to the side has earned him quite a fan following in class. Everyday at the end of the class there is a mock request to take him home to which Cuddles  responds by holding the requisitioner’s hand and waving back to his own mamma.  Well, anything to not go home is the sole mantra of dear Cuddles.  Like his parents he enjoys the outdoors. As always he makes friends easily. But who would believe that this angelic child has quite a temper.  Making him eat food is a herculean task. Two morsels and the third is sure to be spat out. The only way he eats is when he is suitably distracted with a youtube nursery rhyme or a cat on the street or some pigeons who grace our balcony occasionally… that’s it, my options end in that sad way.

His vocabulary on the other hand is expanding every day.  The boy who uttered just a few words some months back is blabbering non-stop surprising us with new words. Living with bilingual parents and in close vicinity of Malayalam-speaking grandparents Cuddles is turning out to be quite multilingual himself. He calls water – maani, milk- pal and cheese chish. In all this learning,  my young cousin  visiting us learnt a hard lesson. Completely bowled over by his little nephew Cousin A calls lil Cuddles many terms of endearment. One of which is kochu kalla (kochu means little and kalla means thief). Cuddles picked up the word Kalla very soon and would say it in a very sing song fashion. But the funny part began when he started addressing Cousin A as kalla. It gets really funny when he calls out to him loudly in the midst of a crowd, on the road…  we can’t stifle the giggles.

Alexandria coastline

Cairo was the highlight of our Egypt trip. But little did we know that neighbouring Alexandria would steal our hearts forever. As you can see Alexandria has a mesmerising coastline. One can enjoy this view smoking sheesha and sipping chai in the many cafes dotted along the corniche promenade that runs along this coast. Perfect place for a relaxed vacation.

Mehrangarh Fort, Jodhpur

As we were driving up the winding road to this massive fort I could not help but gape wide-eyed at this imposing structure, standing strong and mighty like its builders the Rathores. The fort is as impressive from inside as it looks from outside with beautiful frescos, intricate carvings and huge courtyards. This trip was especially memorable as it was the last travel we did as a couple. Cuddles was then a four-month old foetus.

Waterfall enroute Munnar

Isn’t this just gorgeous? Nature at its best — and where else but in God’s own country.  A group of us were driving to Munnar and spotted this cascade. The picture is so symbolic of the lush green beauty of Kerala and I feel blessed to be born in the lap of nature.

Sherab Ling Monastery, Palampur

I always associated monasteries with white walls, saffron clad monks and tranquillity until I stepped into the Sherab Ling monastery near Palampur in Himachal Pradesh. The place was a riot of colours. I just could not peel my eyes off the intricate designs on the walls depicting legends from Tibetan culture.

Pushkar lake

This is one of my favourite pics. What I love about it most is the flight of the birds captured in the backdrop of the scenic lake and the Brahma temple in the middle. This is also one of the trickiest places I have been to because I didn’t expect so much beauty and peace in the middle of bursting  alleys lined with shops selling typical Rajasthani ware and teeming with touts.