My meal times are quite entertaining.. sometimes for the others but mostly for me.
In the present instance, I am pretending to have killed a mosquito and am now throwing the dead beast on everyone around. Watch the reactions of the victims..
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=S84Oe1Spgoc
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Monday, November 3, 2008
Keshav makes a Fashion statement
For those of you who haven't guessed it yet, I went to see Fashion, the movie, on Friday evening. It was a momentous occasion as it was the first outing to the cinema hall for me. For those of you who know my strict Mom, here's how it happened.
My Ma-Baba and Chachu were over in Mumbai for Diwali. Chachu and Mummy were very keen on watching some movie, and Mummy was very keen on watching Fashion. Papa, who was not very keen on Fashion, after a lot of pressure from Dadu and Mummy, finally booked the tickets at Fame Adlabs. All this while, no one had even had the thought of me going for the movie (if you knew my Mom, even you wouldn't!!!).
About an hour before the movie, as I sat in my chair having my evening snack, Mummy remarked - "Will Keshav be alone at home? He will feel very bad and will cry a lot when he sees all of us going out (for the movie)."
Papa, never to be one left behind, immediately picked the weak spot and hammered - "Lets take him along.. I will take care of him. And if he causes any trouble, I will walk around outside with him."
Instantly, I raised my hands in victory and hollered out my approval.
Obviously the suggestion was met with murmurs of approval from all concerned. Mummy tried to make a feeble protest about how small I was (btw Mummy.. it is young!!) and how loud the theatre would be, etc. But as luck would have it, I managed to get a ride into my first movie.
Walked into the theatre perched comfortably in Papa's arms. The aromas of the various food items was simply overwhelming and (I thought) worth coming to the theatre for. Then I saw this poster which had a cute little doggy on it. Instantly I pulled Papa towards it and called out to it - "bow wow.. bow wow.."
The doggy looked back at me with a gleeful smile (for having been noticed in all the crowd), but did not say anything back. Maybe his mummy told him not to talk to strangers!! After petting it for a minute, I lost interest and decide to wander off in another direction. Later Papa told me that it was a Vodafone ad and that it was not a real doggy :(
In the meanwhile, Chachu and Dadu were buying some food stuffs. As we went near them, I could smell the fresh butter and salt and was sure I was going to like this. I grabbed at it and picked up as many as I could in my little hands. When someone asked me for some popcorn (thats what it was called), I immediately stuffed it in my mouth and showed them my thumb :)
The movie soon began. It was quite dark and loud. There were a lot of girls who were just walking up and down, for no rhyme or reason. I dont think I liked it too much. Every now and then I would look up to check if everything was going on fine on the screen.
However, the popcorn was too good and I kept myself focused on it. Everytime the tub of popcorn would come in my direction, I would grab it and try to hold on to it. But everytime, Papa would make me pass it on to Baba-Ma or Dadu or Mummy. I just thought that was not right. They were enjoying their movie. The least they could do was let me enjoy my popcorn.
Anyways, after too tubs of popcorn and the intermission, I decided I had my fill of this dark and dingy place where one could not even run around. Every time I would raise my voice to say something, I would be sushed down. On top of all this, Papa did not give me even one sip of the cold drink he was having. So then I decided to take up Papa on his word and made him walk out with me.
We walked around in the food area for a while, but it was too hot there. Papa said something about cost cutting or something. I even got bored of barking at the fake dog and watching another kid resisting attempts of being forced to have milk.
Finally Papa called out Chachu, gave him the car keys and got me out of the theatre. We got into and auto and I dozed back all the way home.
All in all, the popcorn was great but the rest.. I dont get the big deal about it.
My Ma-Baba and Chachu were over in Mumbai for Diwali. Chachu and Mummy were very keen on watching some movie, and Mummy was very keen on watching Fashion. Papa, who was not very keen on Fashion, after a lot of pressure from Dadu and Mummy, finally booked the tickets at Fame Adlabs. All this while, no one had even had the thought of me going for the movie (if you knew my Mom, even you wouldn't!!!).
About an hour before the movie, as I sat in my chair having my evening snack, Mummy remarked - "Will Keshav be alone at home? He will feel very bad and will cry a lot when he sees all of us going out (for the movie)."
Papa, never to be one left behind, immediately picked the weak spot and hammered - "Lets take him along.. I will take care of him. And if he causes any trouble, I will walk around outside with him."
Instantly, I raised my hands in victory and hollered out my approval.
Obviously the suggestion was met with murmurs of approval from all concerned. Mummy tried to make a feeble protest about how small I was (btw Mummy.. it is young!!) and how loud the theatre would be, etc. But as luck would have it, I managed to get a ride into my first movie.
Walked into the theatre perched comfortably in Papa's arms. The aromas of the various food items was simply overwhelming and (I thought) worth coming to the theatre for. Then I saw this poster which had a cute little doggy on it. Instantly I pulled Papa towards it and called out to it - "bow wow.. bow wow.."
The doggy looked back at me with a gleeful smile (for having been noticed in all the crowd), but did not say anything back. Maybe his mummy told him not to talk to strangers!! After petting it for a minute, I lost interest and decide to wander off in another direction. Later Papa told me that it was a Vodafone ad and that it was not a real doggy :(
In the meanwhile, Chachu and Dadu were buying some food stuffs. As we went near them, I could smell the fresh butter and salt and was sure I was going to like this. I grabbed at it and picked up as many as I could in my little hands. When someone asked me for some popcorn (thats what it was called), I immediately stuffed it in my mouth and showed them my thumb :)
The movie soon began. It was quite dark and loud. There were a lot of girls who were just walking up and down, for no rhyme or reason. I dont think I liked it too much. Every now and then I would look up to check if everything was going on fine on the screen.
However, the popcorn was too good and I kept myself focused on it. Everytime the tub of popcorn would come in my direction, I would grab it and try to hold on to it. But everytime, Papa would make me pass it on to Baba-Ma or Dadu or Mummy. I just thought that was not right. They were enjoying their movie. The least they could do was let me enjoy my popcorn.
Anyways, after too tubs of popcorn and the intermission, I decided I had my fill of this dark and dingy place where one could not even run around. Every time I would raise my voice to say something, I would be sushed down. On top of all this, Papa did not give me even one sip of the cold drink he was having. So then I decided to take up Papa on his word and made him walk out with me.
We walked around in the food area for a while, but it was too hot there. Papa said something about cost cutting or something. I even got bored of barking at the fake dog and watching another kid resisting attempts of being forced to have milk.
Finally Papa called out Chachu, gave him the car keys and got me out of the theatre. We got into and auto and I dozed back all the way home.
All in all, the popcorn was great but the rest.. I dont get the big deal about it.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Keshav goes swinging
I got onto the swing for the first time. And no surprise that I had a complete whale of a time.
Here is the story in pictures.
Papa pulls the swing back.. getting the right tension before letting it go..
Here is the story in pictures.
Papa pulls the swing back.. getting the right tension before letting it go..
I am on my way... going down first...
And Up I go... Whoooopppppiiiieeeee...... this is a lot of fun..
Pictures: Courtesy Mummy
Monday, June 30, 2008
Keshav goes taklu again
Hi people.. yes it is true. I have lost my hair once again, thanks to some smart thinking of my parents. Here is how it happened, without my usual dramatics :)
Last Saturday, while I was sleeping in the afternoon, Papa went down and got a barber up home. Then, he picked me up in his lap. The barber dude applied a lot of water to my head (and I was actually feeling very nice and thanda-thanda in the hot Mumbai summer.. not realising what was happening), took his razor and shaved off my head.
I woke up towards the end of this exercise, realised what was happening and pretended to continue sleeping. Reason for the pretence - well, its not that I had the Ghazni look that I could boast of. All I had left was a few locks of hair on my right side and I thought I was better off getting it completely shaven rather look like a pandit with a displaced choti.
Here's my new look..
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Keshav goes to school
"My parents are such heartless brutes!!"
I kept thinking the whole night as I tossed and turned in my bed wondering what my fate was to be the next day.
I had overheard a few days ago that they had enrolled me in some school. I did not pay much heed to it as I did not imagine that it was for now. I mean, who sends a one year old.. ok ok.. a 14 month old baby to school!!
Through the night, I kept reflecting on the past 14 months and trying to decide whether they were really as nice as I thought them to be. I kept trying to weigh what they did and how they did to judge whether they loved me or how much they loved me.
After a lot of thought, I decided that maybe I should give them some benefit of doubt. After all, they were my parents. Maybe this school isnt such a bad idea. With this chain of thought, my mind finally wandered itself into dreamy-land.
I was woken up early the next morning, at 7 am. We went through a morning chores quickly and I was ready by 845 am to leave for school. Papa had gone to work a little before as he had some meeting. Dadi, Chhota Dada, Bhua, Mansi Di and Gunjan Di were all there to say ta-ta to me as I embarked on a new project. My dependable Mummy was going with me to the school.
On the way to school, I had a nice big yellow banana. Having had milk before, my tummy was full. As a result, there was no space for any pangs of anxiety in there :)
School was basically inside this big house which someone had. Mummy and Me walked into this big classroom. It had a nice big jungle painted on one wall, with all animals and trees and grass. The other walls had some pictures of some animals or something or the other.
There was some 7-8 other kids who came in in due course, each with their Mummys and one with his Papa. Then there were three teachers - Kavita Teacher, Bina Teacher and Aashika Teacher. There was also one Malati Aunty who was going to play some music and Sudhir Kaka who was to play the tabla and drums.
School started at 920 am with a recitation of Om and then Ganesh Vandana. Mummy told me that Ganesh Ji is a very important jai-jai. So I kept my hands folded and sat there.
Then they gave us out name cards. Each of the baby's names were written on a white board. They took so much time to give out mine. I kept pulling each baby's card as I was sure they had given mine to someone else by mistake. Mummy kept trying to hold me back. I was quite upset. I mean, why did she not want me to get my own name card??
Finally, the teacher gave me my name card. I looked at it and I was very happy :)
Then we sang Good Morning to Mr. Sun, Lady Moon, all teachers, all babies and all parents. It was a lot of fun. We sang Sa-Re-Ga-Ma-Pa-Dha-Ni-Sa in some Raag Bhairavi. I could not even pronounce it. I had to tell Mummy to tell it to Papa so he could write it down.
We sang a few other nursery rhymes - the monkey rhyme and the teddy bear rhyme. Let me tell you the monkey rhyme.
"Five little monkeys, jumping on the bed,
One fell down and broke his head.
What did the monkey say - Ouch!!
What did the monkey say - Ouch!!
Mumma called the doctor,
The doctor said,
No more monkeys jumping on the bed."
Then there were four monkeys, then three monkeys, two monkeys, one monkey and then no more monkeys jumping on the bed.
We came home and did this for Papa also. He totally enjoyed it.
After this we had a free play time. There were different games in the four corners of the room. Some of them were likel the games I have at home. I would start enjoying one game by which time Mummy would want to take me to the other. I did not like that. So I started throwing tantrums to tell her to stop. I mean, can you stop a game in the middle without finishing it? You tell me!!
Finally we played passing the parcel, then had an aarti where they put tikka for each of us. We ended with another prayer, this time in Marathi. We ended the day with another chanting of Om.
I slept off on the way home. I was so tired after all the fun. I had never imagined that school was going to be so awesome. I felt very bad for thinking ill of Mummy-Papa.
I am now totally looking forward to the next class.
I kept thinking the whole night as I tossed and turned in my bed wondering what my fate was to be the next day.
I had overheard a few days ago that they had enrolled me in some school. I did not pay much heed to it as I did not imagine that it was for now. I mean, who sends a one year old.. ok ok.. a 14 month old baby to school!!
Through the night, I kept reflecting on the past 14 months and trying to decide whether they were really as nice as I thought them to be. I kept trying to weigh what they did and how they did to judge whether they loved me or how much they loved me.
After a lot of thought, I decided that maybe I should give them some benefit of doubt. After all, they were my parents. Maybe this school isnt such a bad idea. With this chain of thought, my mind finally wandered itself into dreamy-land.
I was woken up early the next morning, at 7 am. We went through a morning chores quickly and I was ready by 845 am to leave for school. Papa had gone to work a little before as he had some meeting. Dadi, Chhota Dada, Bhua, Mansi Di and Gunjan Di were all there to say ta-ta to me as I embarked on a new project. My dependable Mummy was going with me to the school.
On the way to school, I had a nice big yellow banana. Having had milk before, my tummy was full. As a result, there was no space for any pangs of anxiety in there :)
School was basically inside this big house which someone had. Mummy and Me walked into this big classroom. It had a nice big jungle painted on one wall, with all animals and trees and grass. The other walls had some pictures of some animals or something or the other.
There was some 7-8 other kids who came in in due course, each with their Mummys and one with his Papa. Then there were three teachers - Kavita Teacher, Bina Teacher and Aashika Teacher. There was also one Malati Aunty who was going to play some music and Sudhir Kaka who was to play the tabla and drums.
School started at 920 am with a recitation of Om and then Ganesh Vandana. Mummy told me that Ganesh Ji is a very important jai-jai. So I kept my hands folded and sat there.
Then they gave us out name cards. Each of the baby's names were written on a white board. They took so much time to give out mine. I kept pulling each baby's card as I was sure they had given mine to someone else by mistake. Mummy kept trying to hold me back. I was quite upset. I mean, why did she not want me to get my own name card??
Finally, the teacher gave me my name card. I looked at it and I was very happy :)
Then we sang Good Morning to Mr. Sun, Lady Moon, all teachers, all babies and all parents. It was a lot of fun. We sang Sa-Re-Ga-Ma-Pa-Dha-Ni-Sa in some Raag Bhairavi. I could not even pronounce it. I had to tell Mummy to tell it to Papa so he could write it down.
We sang a few other nursery rhymes - the monkey rhyme and the teddy bear rhyme. Let me tell you the monkey rhyme.
"Five little monkeys, jumping on the bed,
One fell down and broke his head.
What did the monkey say - Ouch!!
What did the monkey say - Ouch!!
Mumma called the doctor,
The doctor said,
No more monkeys jumping on the bed."
Then there were four monkeys, then three monkeys, two monkeys, one monkey and then no more monkeys jumping on the bed.
We came home and did this for Papa also. He totally enjoyed it.
After this we had a free play time. There were different games in the four corners of the room. Some of them were likel the games I have at home. I would start enjoying one game by which time Mummy would want to take me to the other. I did not like that. So I started throwing tantrums to tell her to stop. I mean, can you stop a game in the middle without finishing it? You tell me!!
Finally we played passing the parcel, then had an aarti where they put tikka for each of us. We ended with another prayer, this time in Marathi. We ended the day with another chanting of Om.
I slept off on the way home. I was so tired after all the fun. I had never imagined that school was going to be so awesome. I felt very bad for thinking ill of Mummy-Papa.
I am now totally looking forward to the next class.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Keshav thrashes Krish Jr.
For those of you who don't watch Hindi movies, please go and check out a movie called Krish. For those of you who do, need I say more.
Yes, I thrashed up Rehan Roshan, Hrithik Roshan's son. It all happened like this.
Yesterday evening, I had gone to the Club in the evening with Mummy and Papa. We had taken my sand kit, as they wanted to introduce me to the sand pit. Since it was still very hot and sunny, we sat down in the shade on the grass lawns, and wait for the sun to go down a bit.
I was generally exploring all the things for the sand pit and walking around with a couple of them in hand. Mummy and Papa were sitting around and chatting among themselves. A few feet from us were this lady and this small boy, though a bit bigger than me, I think.
Mummy soon started talking to that lady and asking her all sorts of things (which I ofcourse don't understand). Then the conversation got over and each of them got back to their own things.
Soon after, this lady started egging that boy onto us. This boy got up and started moving menacingly towards us. I watched him out of the corner of my eye for a few seconds. He seemed to grow in confidence every step and I was suddenly afraid for the safety of my parents. After all, how could someone even threaten them in my presence!!
When I thought the boy had crossed all limits of safety, I got up very quietly. I had the sand-pit toys in my hand as weapons. Little would this silly boy know that there were not only toys, but could also be effectively used against an adversary.
I quickly moved ahead and before the boy got a chance to react, I gave him one sock on his face!! Lo and behold, this big boy almost started bawling and ran back to that lady :)
By this time, Papa also noticed what happened and came and picked me up. Since I did not want to alarm them of the threat this boy had posed, I played along and said sorry to that boy, when Papa insisted that I do.
But I also gave him a look, out of the corner of the eye, that said.. "Buddy.. you better not try and harm my parents!! I will take all your teeth out and feed them to the crows!! And yes, I know what teeth and crows are.. so don't try me!!"
By this time Mummy and Papa were in a bit of a tizzy..
"Oh.. Keshav has beat up Hrithik Roshan's son!!"
Whatever...
Yes, I thrashed up Rehan Roshan, Hrithik Roshan's son. It all happened like this.
Yesterday evening, I had gone to the Club in the evening with Mummy and Papa. We had taken my sand kit, as they wanted to introduce me to the sand pit. Since it was still very hot and sunny, we sat down in the shade on the grass lawns, and wait for the sun to go down a bit.
I was generally exploring all the things for the sand pit and walking around with a couple of them in hand. Mummy and Papa were sitting around and chatting among themselves. A few feet from us were this lady and this small boy, though a bit bigger than me, I think.
Mummy soon started talking to that lady and asking her all sorts of things (which I ofcourse don't understand). Then the conversation got over and each of them got back to their own things.
Soon after, this lady started egging that boy onto us. This boy got up and started moving menacingly towards us. I watched him out of the corner of my eye for a few seconds. He seemed to grow in confidence every step and I was suddenly afraid for the safety of my parents. After all, how could someone even threaten them in my presence!!
When I thought the boy had crossed all limits of safety, I got up very quietly. I had the sand-pit toys in my hand as weapons. Little would this silly boy know that there were not only toys, but could also be effectively used against an adversary.
I quickly moved ahead and before the boy got a chance to react, I gave him one sock on his face!! Lo and behold, this big boy almost started bawling and ran back to that lady :)
By this time, Papa also noticed what happened and came and picked me up. Since I did not want to alarm them of the threat this boy had posed, I played along and said sorry to that boy, when Papa insisted that I do.
But I also gave him a look, out of the corner of the eye, that said.. "Buddy.. you better not try and harm my parents!! I will take all your teeth out and feed them to the crows!! And yes, I know what teeth and crows are.. so don't try me!!"
By this time Mummy and Papa were in a bit of a tizzy..
"Oh.. Keshav has beat up Hrithik Roshan's son!!"
Whatever...
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Keshav goes to play
I went to the mall today. There is a play area for the kids, and that's where Mom-Dad took me. There are a lot of games and rides, but most of these are for older kids. For bachchas my age, there is a "Toddler's Den". That's where I went.
It was a really cool place. The whole place was lined with these soft mats, so that I would not get hurt if I fell. It was quite like the mats that Mummy had got for me at home, just that those were nicer and had some cartoons on them.
There was this small house which had a gate and two windows. I went inside and found a lot of plastic balls on the floor. Mom and Dad stood at the two windows and I kept running from one window to the other handing them the plastic balls and taking new ones from them.
Then we went to this big car which was full of plastic balls. I got in there and played with the balls for a long time.
I would keep throwing them out and Papa would keep throwing them back in. There were some other kids who came into the car as well. Most were bigger then me, but there was this one taklu guy who seemed my size. So I quickly scared him off by knocking him on his head. He moved back and let me have the larger space. Quite a good move I thought :)
Then Papa took me to this big slide. He would place me at the top and I would slide down to the bottom (he was sort of holding me to prevent me from tumbling down head-first). Mummy would be sitting at the foot of the slide. This was really a lot of fun. I also tried climbing up the slide, and managed it as well with some help from Papa.
We spent some more time in the Den and then left for home. I totally enjoyed myself and want to go back again soon.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
I am ONE
I am ONE year old now. Actually, I was one year old about 9 days ago.
Reason I am saying this is to remind those of you who did not wish me on my birthday. Also, thanks a lot to all family and friends who did remember and who did call or wrote in. For the record, I totally loved it!!
Birthdays can be quite productive. That’s what I think, fresh from my first birthday. Lets face it – (i) You don’t get that many gifts on a single day any other time, (ii) you are the center of attention, (not just for family) but for 100 other people who come for the party, (iii) the goodies for the tummy… yummm.., (iv) New clothes, and finally (v) your world coming together.
Such was my first birthday. We were in Calcutta to celebrate it. The Cal junta had still not got a chance to get my darshan. Plus, Baba-Ma (i.e. Dada-Dadi) are shifting houses there. And hence the gruh-pravesh pooja was there. As a result, we all trooped in to the hot and humid city for 4 days. All the others were also there – Kaku, Bhua, Fufaji, and certainly both my didis – Mansi and Gunjan. And guess what, Nana-Nani also came down from Delhi for a couple of days.
The day itself started with everyone was giving me poochis and saying Happy Birthday. And I wondered – “Whatever happened to good old Good Morning today!! Maybe its gone for a holiday!!” Mummy was the first to give me a big hug and wish me. Then as everyone kept repeating it, every few minutes, I got confused. For a while I thought I was being asked to do something. But I didn’t know what. Then I gave up – and just enjoyed :)
Got loads of gifts (even before the party). Chhota Dadu gave me a pendant, Didis gave me a toy each, Bhua-Fufu gave me a ring and some clothes and all. Kaku – the forgetful one – couldn’t figure out what he should get me, so we went and bought me a set of 100 balls!!! I mean, that’s a cool idea. I’ll certainly not need to buy one for a few years I guess. Papa-Mummy gave me a tricycle [though much later :( ]
The 13th was largely a family day. Morning was some special traditional lunch which Dadi made. Evening, we went out to dine at a nearby Chinese restaurant where I got lots of crispy noodles to have. The highlight of the day, however, was something else. Just before lunch, Mom, Dad, Chachu, Mansi Di and I went to this place close to home. It has high walls and a big gate. We went in and saw about 100 girls – girls of 2 years old through to girls of 20 year old. I wondered why they were all here!!
We were there to offer then lunch, ice-creams and chocolates. I stayed with Papa while the others served them lunch. They were all in queue and came with their plates and bowls, of all shapes and sizes. And they waited patiently to say their prayers before they ate. They were really happy and excited when we gave them ice-creams and chocolates. At first, I wasn’t sure what the big deal was, till Papa told me that they didn’t have Daddies and Mommies to earn the money and cook them food. And they didn’t have ice creams and chocolates every day.
Oh.. so it turns out that this was a place for girls who didn’t have Mommies and Daddies to live. I wondered why they didn’t have Mommies and Daddies. But didn’t have the heart to ask the question.
The actual party happened on 14th evening, the same day as the Gruh-Pravesh pooja.
When I got there, I saw lots of balloons, ribbons and a nice big hall to run amok. Very soon people started coming in and each one wanted to meet me, wish me, and pull my cheeks (I DON’T like that!!!). I would first see what is it that the person was carrying as a gift, and then decide how much I would allow myself to be manhandled by him or her. I promptly took all the gifts and cash that people gave and handed it over to Papa for safekeeping.
There were so many kids.. mostly elder than me but some even of my age. I didn’t know there were so many, cos I am not used to seeing so many kids in one place. Bhua got them to play some games which they liked. I couldn’t play because I am too small.
Bhua told me – “Next year, you will play.”
Bhua – don’t forget.. Next year, I will play.
After some time Mummy took me to the center wherein there was a nice strawberry cake sitting on the table. I wanted to eat it quickly, before the other kids saw it. But Mummy wouldn’t let me. Then Papa took me and alongwith Mummy and Chhota Dadu, we cut the cake. Everyone gave me a piece of it. It was very very tasty.
Then we pulled down this big strawberry which had a lot of chocolates in it. All the kids gathered under it to grab then. Papa lifted me up and got me to pull it open. I thought I’d show my strength and instead pulled the whole thing down ;) Papa was quick to catch it and spoiled the fun :) (PS: - some of you saw I was scared.. don’t mention it.. pls!!).
By this time I was feeling totally exhausted. It was very hot and humid, I had gone through two change of clothes. I had met about 150 new people. And most importantly, I had picked up all the gifts there were to be picked up J
So then Mummy packed me up and took me home to bed. And that was the birthday party.
Next day when I saw all the birthday gifts, I was so excited. I decided that I want to have a birthday every week J
And for those of you who didn’t wish me this time, don’t forget my second birthday. It comes on the same day, exactly one year later.
Reason I am saying this is to remind those of you who did not wish me on my birthday. Also, thanks a lot to all family and friends who did remember and who did call or wrote in. For the record, I totally loved it!!
Birthdays can be quite productive. That’s what I think, fresh from my first birthday. Lets face it – (i) You don’t get that many gifts on a single day any other time, (ii) you are the center of attention, (not just for family) but for 100 other people who come for the party, (iii) the goodies for the tummy… yummm.., (iv) New clothes, and finally (v) your world coming together.
Such was my first birthday. We were in Calcutta to celebrate it. The Cal junta had still not got a chance to get my darshan. Plus, Baba-Ma (i.e. Dada-Dadi) are shifting houses there. And hence the gruh-pravesh pooja was there. As a result, we all trooped in to the hot and humid city for 4 days. All the others were also there – Kaku, Bhua, Fufaji, and certainly both my didis – Mansi and Gunjan. And guess what, Nana-Nani also came down from Delhi for a couple of days.
The day itself started with everyone was giving me poochis and saying Happy Birthday. And I wondered – “Whatever happened to good old Good Morning today!! Maybe its gone for a holiday!!” Mummy was the first to give me a big hug and wish me. Then as everyone kept repeating it, every few minutes, I got confused. For a while I thought I was being asked to do something. But I didn’t know what. Then I gave up – and just enjoyed :)
Got loads of gifts (even before the party). Chhota Dadu gave me a pendant, Didis gave me a toy each, Bhua-Fufu gave me a ring and some clothes and all. Kaku – the forgetful one – couldn’t figure out what he should get me, so we went and bought me a set of 100 balls!!! I mean, that’s a cool idea. I’ll certainly not need to buy one for a few years I guess. Papa-Mummy gave me a tricycle [though much later :( ]
The 13th was largely a family day. Morning was some special traditional lunch which Dadi made. Evening, we went out to dine at a nearby Chinese restaurant where I got lots of crispy noodles to have. The highlight of the day, however, was something else. Just before lunch, Mom, Dad, Chachu, Mansi Di and I went to this place close to home. It has high walls and a big gate. We went in and saw about 100 girls – girls of 2 years old through to girls of 20 year old. I wondered why they were all here!!
We were there to offer then lunch, ice-creams and chocolates. I stayed with Papa while the others served them lunch. They were all in queue and came with their plates and bowls, of all shapes and sizes. And they waited patiently to say their prayers before they ate. They were really happy and excited when we gave them ice-creams and chocolates. At first, I wasn’t sure what the big deal was, till Papa told me that they didn’t have Daddies and Mommies to earn the money and cook them food. And they didn’t have ice creams and chocolates every day.
Oh.. so it turns out that this was a place for girls who didn’t have Mommies and Daddies to live. I wondered why they didn’t have Mommies and Daddies. But didn’t have the heart to ask the question.
The actual party happened on 14th evening, the same day as the Gruh-Pravesh pooja.
When I got there, I saw lots of balloons, ribbons and a nice big hall to run amok. Very soon people started coming in and each one wanted to meet me, wish me, and pull my cheeks (I DON’T like that!!!). I would first see what is it that the person was carrying as a gift, and then decide how much I would allow myself to be manhandled by him or her. I promptly took all the gifts and cash that people gave and handed it over to Papa for safekeeping.
There were so many kids.. mostly elder than me but some even of my age. I didn’t know there were so many, cos I am not used to seeing so many kids in one place. Bhua got them to play some games which they liked. I couldn’t play because I am too small.
Bhua told me – “Next year, you will play.”
Bhua – don’t forget.. Next year, I will play.
After some time Mummy took me to the center wherein there was a nice strawberry cake sitting on the table. I wanted to eat it quickly, before the other kids saw it. But Mummy wouldn’t let me. Then Papa took me and alongwith Mummy and Chhota Dadu, we cut the cake. Everyone gave me a piece of it. It was very very tasty.
Then we pulled down this big strawberry which had a lot of chocolates in it. All the kids gathered under it to grab then. Papa lifted me up and got me to pull it open. I thought I’d show my strength and instead pulled the whole thing down ;) Papa was quick to catch it and spoiled the fun :) (PS: - some of you saw I was scared.. don’t mention it.. pls!!).
By this time I was feeling totally exhausted. It was very hot and humid, I had gone through two change of clothes. I had met about 150 new people. And most importantly, I had picked up all the gifts there were to be picked up J
So then Mummy packed me up and took me home to bed. And that was the birthday party.
Next day when I saw all the birthday gifts, I was so excited. I decided that I want to have a birthday every week J
And for those of you who didn’t wish me this time, don’t forget my second birthday. It comes on the same day, exactly one year later.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
My Chhota Dadu
I have written quite a bit about me and my antics. For a long time I have been thinking that I should give my readers a chance to also know about my people. As I went through the list of people I could write about, the first person who came to mind was Chhota Dadu.
My Chhota Dadu, urf Kaku for the rest of the world, is quite a darling. He certainly is top of the charts for me in terms of my favorite persons. He is this really jovial person, with a loud infectious laughter, a great sense of humour and most importantly, a round built.
In the morning, when Mummy and Papa have gone to office (thats assuming Papa is in Bombay - given he is never around half the time), it is only Dadu who is with me. When I am getting my morning massage and if I am howling too much, he will sit near me and make me laugh. He will play the tabla or make all sorts of noises to entertain me and keep my attention diverted.
He is usually around till 1130-12 in the morning and often will be playing with me or roaming around with me. Sometimes, when he is working I simply stroll around his room and computer keeping myself busy with the number of interesting things there - his briefcase, some papers, mobile phone, etc. He is not as strict as Mummy or Papa and does let me play with these things a bit.
In case I am in another room or in the other end of the house, I can often hear his voice on the phone and his loud laughter. That tells me he is around and I can be re-assured and do my own stuff.
Among the best times with Dadu are the meal times. I would have already had some food of my own (that's if you can call it food!!). I walk (crawl really) up to him and stand up holding him, beseeching him to pick me up and make me sit on his lap. Dadu will promptly do so and then the feast begins. I will then get whatever sweets are there in the house - laddu, halwa, etc - and other interesting things like bhujia, daal-fulka, daal-rice, etc. And yes, these last two are certainly still interesting (you haven't tried the food I eat!!).
In the evening, post dinner, when everyone is watching TV I usually hang around playing with my things. If I am tired or just want to relax and watch some TV, off I go to Dadu again. He will perch me on his tummy (now you know why the round build is important ;) and I can be very cozy and comfortable there while i catch up on some silly weepy soap or just get to know what's happening around the world.
Very often, you will find me fast alseep on this comfy bed.. ooops.. Dadu... of mine.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
My ‘Cheapad’ Mummy
Well, please don’t start asking me the meaning of cheapad. I don’t think I could give you a literal translation, but I am sure you get an idea, right!! Hold your horses for a bit, and you shall know exactly why I use such a term for my sweet and darling Mom.
Remember I told you guys about Buzz the Bee and the bee-suit Papa had bought for me. Well, once we got home from the party, the first thing Mom did was to announce that the suit was not good as it was extremely warm. Not to mention that he also got berated a bit for buying it. He might have heard more, except for my winning the prize.
To his defense, Papa said that there was another similar suit, which was not half as warm (much thinner), but which he thought might be small for me. Hence he bought this one. Upon this, both of them decided to go to the shop next day and check out the other suit and see if they could exchange it.
By next morning, however, Mom’s intentions seem to have changed. She kept asking Papa if we really needed this suit and whether it would be ever used again, etc. She also showed the mark which my hair-oil had left on the inside of the hood (attached to the suit) and wondered if they would change it or not.
By the time they reached the shop, Mom had made up her mind. Poor Papa was feeling so embarrassed – one since he felt that this was a rather cheap thing to do, and two as he thought the suit had gotten a bit dirty and there was every chance of the shop guy figuring out it had been worn and refusing to change it. Imagine the embarrassment if this happened. So much so that he stayed back outside for a good 5 mins while Mom went into the shop, embodying supreme confidence.
When he went in, he saw that Mom had successfully gotten the salesman to take out the other suit as well as various other garments. He kept looking for the original suit, but Mom held it rather close to herself, carefully wrapped in the plastic bag.
After a bit of humming and hawing about various suits, Mom picked up a Mickey Mouse cap and asked the guy if he had a matching suit. The reply was negative. She turned to Papa and asked – “Do you think we should buy this and then look for the body-suit.”
Taking the cue (and more because he was scared, I am sure), Papa said – “Maybe we should first get the suit and then come back and buy the cap.”
“Great idea!! Achha bhaiya.. why don’t you give me a big pack of diapers and this feeding bottle? How much are these for? Sufficient to cover the cost of the suit (the math had been done much before I am sure)? Great!!”
With this, Mom handed the bag rather skillfully to the guy (with the dirty hood folded inside towards the bottom portion) and made way to the cash counter. Quickly Papa paid the small difference and ran out of the shop for fear of being discovered and embarrassed. A much more confident Mummy made her way out rather comfortably thereafter.
And what was the cost of the suit… Rs 850 only!!!
Remember I told you guys about Buzz the Bee and the bee-suit Papa had bought for me. Well, once we got home from the party, the first thing Mom did was to announce that the suit was not good as it was extremely warm. Not to mention that he also got berated a bit for buying it. He might have heard more, except for my winning the prize.
To his defense, Papa said that there was another similar suit, which was not half as warm (much thinner), but which he thought might be small for me. Hence he bought this one. Upon this, both of them decided to go to the shop next day and check out the other suit and see if they could exchange it.
By next morning, however, Mom’s intentions seem to have changed. She kept asking Papa if we really needed this suit and whether it would be ever used again, etc. She also showed the mark which my hair-oil had left on the inside of the hood (attached to the suit) and wondered if they would change it or not.
By the time they reached the shop, Mom had made up her mind. Poor Papa was feeling so embarrassed – one since he felt that this was a rather cheap thing to do, and two as he thought the suit had gotten a bit dirty and there was every chance of the shop guy figuring out it had been worn and refusing to change it. Imagine the embarrassment if this happened. So much so that he stayed back outside for a good 5 mins while Mom went into the shop, embodying supreme confidence.
When he went in, he saw that Mom had successfully gotten the salesman to take out the other suit as well as various other garments. He kept looking for the original suit, but Mom held it rather close to herself, carefully wrapped in the plastic bag.
After a bit of humming and hawing about various suits, Mom picked up a Mickey Mouse cap and asked the guy if he had a matching suit. The reply was negative. She turned to Papa and asked – “Do you think we should buy this and then look for the body-suit.”
Taking the cue (and more because he was scared, I am sure), Papa said – “Maybe we should first get the suit and then come back and buy the cap.”
“Great idea!! Achha bhaiya.. why don’t you give me a big pack of diapers and this feeding bottle? How much are these for? Sufficient to cover the cost of the suit (the math had been done much before I am sure)? Great!!”
With this, Mom handed the bag rather skillfully to the guy (with the dirty hood folded inside towards the bottom portion) and made way to the cash counter. Quickly Papa paid the small difference and ran out of the shop for fear of being discovered and embarrassed. A much more confident Mummy made her way out rather comfortably thereafter.
And what was the cost of the suit… Rs 850 only!!!
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Buzz the Bee
For those of you who have not seen enough of Disney cartoons, Buzz the Bee is a character in Disney's movie - "Bee On Guard". Buzz the Bee is (also known as Spike or Hector) often antagonizes Donald Duck and also appears in two other Disney movies - "Inferior Decorator" and "Bee at the Beach." Buzz also antagonises Pluto in some instances. I bet you didn't know this!! Next time watch Disney channel with your kids and not some silly saas-bahu serial.
Buzz the Bee was also Keshav's character (Ya ya.. my character!!) for a fancy dress party for kids at Mummy's office. Papa had bought the costume from Greenbell the previous day. The costume was complete with wings at the back and the antenna on the head. A bit on the thick (and hence hot) side, it was otherwise quite a neat costume.
I realised that grown-ups also like to be kids. Some of them had dressed up as Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse and were running around playing with kids. I mean, didn't someone tell them this was a fancy dress party for kids!! Later on I figured out that they were also paid for dressing like this!! How cheap.. first they gate-crash a kiddies party and then get paid for it!!
The other thing I figured out was that elders are quite fussy. I mean, for the first 15-20 mins in Mom's office, all the uncles and aunties kept fussing around me...
"Oh.. he is so cute.."
"He doesn't look nine months old.."
"Keshav is a duplicate of Nikhil."
I know all this guys!! Tell me something new!!
Anyways, all in all I had fun. There was a magic show and the music was pretty good too. They had a crawly corner for ones like me who are too lazy to stand up and walk. So i had a nice time crawling around the corner.
I also won a prize for being the cutest one around!! For a change, Mom's kanjoos office gave me a decent prize... Pintu Bhaiya had a very tough time blowing it up!! Poor guy went pichak!! See...
Only complaint I have from the party is that there were far too few chicks. And the few there were were being guarded by their over-protective Mom's. As if us guys are all lafangas or what!!
Buzz the Bee was also Keshav's character (Ya ya.. my character!!) for a fancy dress party for kids at Mummy's office. Papa had bought the costume from Greenbell the previous day. The costume was complete with wings at the back and the antenna on the head. A bit on the thick (and hence hot) side, it was otherwise quite a neat costume.
I realised that grown-ups also like to be kids. Some of them had dressed up as Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse and were running around playing with kids. I mean, didn't someone tell them this was a fancy dress party for kids!! Later on I figured out that they were also paid for dressing like this!! How cheap.. first they gate-crash a kiddies party and then get paid for it!!
The other thing I figured out was that elders are quite fussy. I mean, for the first 15-20 mins in Mom's office, all the uncles and aunties kept fussing around me...
"Oh.. he is so cute.."
"He doesn't look nine months old.."
"Keshav is a duplicate of Nikhil."
I know all this guys!! Tell me something new!!
Anyways, all in all I had fun. There was a magic show and the music was pretty good too. They had a crawly corner for ones like me who are too lazy to stand up and walk. So i had a nice time crawling around the corner.
I also won a prize for being the cutest one around!! For a change, Mom's kanjoos office gave me a decent prize... Pintu Bhaiya had a very tough time blowing it up!! Poor guy went pichak!! See...
Only complaint I have from the party is that there were far too few chicks. And the few there were were being guarded by their over-protective Mom's. As if us guys are all lafangas or what!!
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Keshav pees like a MAN
My Mommy has been trying to figure out my potty training bit for a while now.
A few months ago, she got me this blue coloured potty seat, which fits tightly on the western style toilet. It has these two blue coloured handles on both sides. The idea was for me to hold onto these handles and sit pretty on the potty seat and of course.. shit!!
First few days I was quite intrigued by this concept of sitting up straight and doing potty. Not my fault, really. So far I was only used to lying down on somebody's lap, my feet being held up way above my head and me doing potty. For the first time I was exposed to the idea of sitting up straight. I tried to raise my feet up and almost fell off the toilet.
I quickly learnt how to sit on this seat and do potty. Whenever I would feel like doing potty, I would sing my favorite tunes and enjoy the exercise. When I didn't feel like doing potty, I would create a ruckus, stiffen my body and start howling. After a few tries, I got everyone trained to understand that if I did not want to do potty, I should be taken off the seat.
After a few days, however, I got quite bored of this thing. I mean why should I make the effort of sitting upright on this silly seat when I had the option of lying down comforably, having my feet held up and do potty. So I started playing up everyday. It seemed as if I had gotten everyone trained well enough. As a result, I was soon off this potty seat and happily doing potty in my lying-down style.
My Mom obviously is a bit more stubborn than that. I could have said persistent, but i think stubborn suits her better.
So she did a bit of a research by calling up some of her Mom-friends and decided to get me a new potty seat. This is much bigger and has two elephants on both sides. It has a chhotu-sa hole in the middle and a plastic dabba to fit that hole. The concept is that I sit on the seat, and shit in. that hole, straight into the bucket. As all the ladies in the house tried to make me do potty in this new seat, they soon discovered a technical glitch. When I pissed, the piss did not (could not - simple physics) fall into that hole and went in a straight line, falling some 2 feet from the chair.
Mom was just so perplexed again. Her first thought was that maybe there is a separate potty chair for boys as against girls. She felt a bit guilty at not having taken Papa for this purchase, as maybe he could have helped buy a more appropriate seat. She called another of her Mom-friends, one with a boy-baby, to understand whether there wasa separate potty chair for boys wherein this pissing bit could be taken care of.
Sadly, for her, the answer was a flat NO.
What she did find out though, from her Mom-friend, that this friend made her boy piss by making him stand and piss. Suddenly a light-bulb went off in her head and she turned to Papa and said.. "Should we try the same with Keshav?? But he cannot even stand on his own!!"
Once home, the masi was told to make me piss. Promptly, she took me to the new potty chair and tried to make me sit. I certainly was in no mood to oblige.
Finally, Papa picked me up, took me to the loo, made me stand and started.. "Shhhhhhhhhhh.. Shhhhhhhhh... Shhhhhhhhhh..."
And I stood and pissed like a MAN!!!
A few months ago, she got me this blue coloured potty seat, which fits tightly on the western style toilet. It has these two blue coloured handles on both sides. The idea was for me to hold onto these handles and sit pretty on the potty seat and of course.. shit!!
First few days I was quite intrigued by this concept of sitting up straight and doing potty. Not my fault, really. So far I was only used to lying down on somebody's lap, my feet being held up way above my head and me doing potty. For the first time I was exposed to the idea of sitting up straight. I tried to raise my feet up and almost fell off the toilet.
I quickly learnt how to sit on this seat and do potty. Whenever I would feel like doing potty, I would sing my favorite tunes and enjoy the exercise. When I didn't feel like doing potty, I would create a ruckus, stiffen my body and start howling. After a few tries, I got everyone trained to understand that if I did not want to do potty, I should be taken off the seat.
After a few days, however, I got quite bored of this thing. I mean why should I make the effort of sitting upright on this silly seat when I had the option of lying down comforably, having my feet held up and do potty. So I started playing up everyday. It seemed as if I had gotten everyone trained well enough. As a result, I was soon off this potty seat and happily doing potty in my lying-down style.
My Mom obviously is a bit more stubborn than that. I could have said persistent, but i think stubborn suits her better.
So she did a bit of a research by calling up some of her Mom-friends and decided to get me a new potty seat. This is much bigger and has two elephants on both sides. It has a chhotu-sa hole in the middle and a plastic dabba to fit that hole. The concept is that I sit on the seat, and shit in. that hole, straight into the bucket. As all the ladies in the house tried to make me do potty in this new seat, they soon discovered a technical glitch. When I pissed, the piss did not (could not - simple physics) fall into that hole and went in a straight line, falling some 2 feet from the chair.
Mom was just so perplexed again. Her first thought was that maybe there is a separate potty chair for boys as against girls. She felt a bit guilty at not having taken Papa for this purchase, as maybe he could have helped buy a more appropriate seat. She called another of her Mom-friends, one with a boy-baby, to understand whether there wasa separate potty chair for boys wherein this pissing bit could be taken care of.
Sadly, for her, the answer was a flat NO.
What she did find out though, from her Mom-friend, that this friend made her boy piss by making him stand and piss. Suddenly a light-bulb went off in her head and she turned to Papa and said.. "Should we try the same with Keshav?? But he cannot even stand on his own!!"
Once home, the masi was told to make me piss. Promptly, she took me to the new potty chair and tried to make me sit. I certainly was in no mood to oblige.
Finally, Papa picked me up, took me to the loo, made me stand and started.. "Shhhhhhhhhhh.. Shhhhhhhhh... Shhhhhhhhhh..."
And I stood and pissed like a MAN!!!
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