Learning Curve

I always tend to learn in short bursts as opposed to a constant steady improvement. As a result, when things suddenly come together my parents act very surprised.

This morning when I woke up next to Dad, I spent quite a bit of time trying to get up on my own. Ultimately I did without a lift from Dad.

Later when we were downstairs in my play area, I knelt down properly and supported myself well.I also showed how well I can crawl. I follow mom all the way to the kitchen and nothing is out of my reach now.

Dad and mom will not be surprised if one fine day I just start walking and talking fluently in 4 different languages ;-)

Daal roti khao..

.. prabhu ke gun gaao. Or so goes an old hindi song. Boring !!

Well, yesterday Mom made some fresh rotis and served it with daal and rice. Instinctively I picked up the roti, tore it into 2 pieces and took a huge bite off it. Mom then gave me a spoonful of daal and it was heavenly. I finished eating the whole roti and substantial amount of rice and daal.

As they would say in Hindi movies " Mujhe Maa ke haath ka khaana pasand hei"(I love Mom's cooking)

Sleepless nights

Q. How many hours are there in a day ?
A. 24

Q. How many hours should one spend playing ?
A. 24

Q. How many hours should one sleep ?
A. As few as possible

Q. Is that possible ?
A. Possible in the nursery.
Impossible with Dad and Mom

Q. Impossible ?
A. Nah.. not really. I do get up in the night.

Q. Many times ?
A. Nah - just once or twice ! But I ensure that I am awake at an unearthly hour.

Q. Why so ?
A. Oh its fun to wake up Dad and Mom.

Q. Dont they try to put you to sleep ?
A. Oh they try. They put the dummy in my mouth, they put me on the lap, switch on the fan and everything else to make me comfortable.

Q. Does it work ?
A. Not always. SOmetimes I let them win... but mostly I succeed.

Q. Succeed at what ?
A. Getting in bed between Mom and Dad

Q. What ? YOu still sleep in their room and bed ?
A. Dad hasnt got around to getting my room ready and frankly, I much prefer their cosy bed.

Q. Hmm... cant last long, can it ?
A. Nope. They are already talking about painting my room and getting me a wardrobe.

Q. Wouldnt that be cool ?
A. No. But I am open minded. Lets see how it goes.

Q. So arent you preparing yourself ?
A. I am, arent I ? My voice is louder now. I can rattle the whole bed. I know what toys make noise. All of them designed to get Mom and Dad to pick me up.

Q. So you arent giving up trying to get in their bed then ?
A. Nah.. its just too cosy.

Step by Step

The things I seek the most every waking hour is my Dad's fingers. You see I love to clutch at them and hoist myself up. Once I am up, I want to walk.

I am still afraid of letting go of fingers even though dad assures me that he will hold me. It seems I can balance myself for a few seconds without holding on to anything. But I tend to topple over as I try to overcompensate .. but dad always manages to hold me before that.

I have learnt to shuffle a lot too. Nothing is out of my reach now.

BTW.. Harry Potter 7 got released yesterday and true to form, dad finished reading it in a day. Its supposed to be a kid's book, but Dad and Mom like millions of readers worldwide are fascinated by the magical story.

Happy 12th birthday to my favouritest cousin

Dear brother Yash,

I wish you a very happy 12th Birthday.I hope you and your friends have loads of Daabeli and Cold Coffee & enjoy the party.

In the meanwhile, Dad and Mom and me are going to have a little celebration of our own. Knowing that you had enjoyed eating Fajitas at our place, Mom is going to make them tomorrow in your honour. We will cut a cake too -- I'll probably get to blow the candles on your behalf.

Dad and Mom are crazy about you - they think that you must be the most well behaved, intelligent, considerate and sweetest 12 year old boy in the world. And you are my hero too - I loved the way you played football with me in our backyard, the way you held me and fed me.

I am your biggest fan !! After all, everyone thinks I am modelled after you.

Love you lots
xxx
Varun

Happy birthday Dhruv

Dad never forgets Dhruv's birthday. You see Dhruv has a reputation of being a mischievious and naughty kid and his birthday falls on the same day as Bastille Day, the symbol of French revolution. So whenever its 14th July, Dad is sure to remember Dhruv's bday.



Happy Birthday Dhruv!!

I should have wished my cousin Saanvi on my blog too. But I am not sure if Anju aunty and Bhushan uncle would have liked me to put her photograph. She celebrated her bday on 2nd July.

Playing peekaboo

Apologies for the poor quality of this video.... its the spirit that counts though. So see me enjoying my new birthday gift. More importantly watch how I play peekaboo.

Soul food

Mom and Dad had given up hopes of introducing me to Indian cuisine. Normally I shake my head vigorously and say no whenever they offer me food which is even remotely non-European. They always thought I would always be more at home with Pasta than with Papad. But today, when I was offered Khichdi and Kadhi, I lapped it up like a true blue Gujju.

After all, it is India's comfort food and I know so many toddlers who got introduced to people food with Khichdi. I think mom and dad are well pleased as it gives them more options to offer me.

I chewed it well and than even gave a distinct burp to indicate my satisfaction. Whats next then ? Dhokla ?

Who is the biggest fan of my site ?

Turns out I get the maximum number of visits from Mountain View, California. Now who can that be ? Sergey Brin ? Larry page ? Eric Schmidt ? Here's how I know...



or is it simply the case of the google analytics script leaving its own trails ? If you are out there in Mountain View and have been following my site, let me know.

Music to my ears

This morning, Dad and I were playing downstairs while mom was having that extra hour of sleep which she well deserved. Now our usual routine is I am either standing up using some support or sitting down with my toys. Today we chose a different routine.



Dad switched on the computer and opened up Youtube. He then picked out some songs for me to hear. I must say Dad has got a good musical taste - we listened to Kishore Kumar's "Hum Bewafa", Strings' "Na jaane kyun" and Euphoria's "Maaeri". This was followed by some western classical music "Sullaria" and "Libiamo". Wow !! I am beginning to love this wonderful site where we can listen to songs of our choice - oldies as well as new.

It was different when Dad and Mom were growing up. They would have to listen to their choice songs on a mixed tape and getting a mixed tape made was a luxury .It would easily set you back by Rs 150, a sizeable amount in those times. The musical fares on television were limited with two 1-hour slots of music on wednesdays and fridays ( Chitrahaar and Chaayageet).

The funny thing is - Grandpa envied the choices that Dad had when he was growing up. Grandpa had to rely upon radio stations belting out his favorite music (Binaca Geetmala and Akashwani). Having said that, Grandpa loves all the black and white movie songs from his times. He thinks the songs today rely more on electric instruments and gimmickry whereas the songs of his times had a strong melody.



But we digress. The point being that I love my music and have loved it ever since I was growing up. And thanks to the likes of Youtube, I would be able to listen to what I want when I am growing up too ( assuming that the record labels sort out the digital rights management issue)

Talk about the growing choices of the consumer. Thats what free economy is all about.

Learning an important lesson early in life

Most people are unable to solve their own problems because they dont know how to say no. People feel awkward saying the word because they believe that the person asking them for something, usually a favor, would be feeling awkward too.

I dont allow myself to be in that situation. I can say no well. I can say it vigorously by shaking my head from side to side. This is especially noticable when I am having my meals. If I dont like something, I say no. If I prefer to eat something else, I would say no. I am quite good at this now.

But the other day, dad was trying to put me to bed and I wanted to play - so I kept saying no. Dad did not agree and kept trying to put me to sleep and he prevailed eventually.

I think I am at the age when I can say all the no I like, but in the end I will still have to obey the orders. I just have to remember not to become docile and forget the importance of saying no when I grow up.