this

Saturday morning, the first day of the last month of the year. my cousins  and friends abroad have put up their christmas trees and hung up their stockings! i have not begun to think of 2013, but, if there were three wishes i got as a gift, i would first ask for me to be a neat freak. if only!

and, the second wish would be for me to wake up (a tad smoothly) early in the mornings. i can jump out of bed on school days, but otherwise it is right next to impossible for me. 

i think, no, i feel, quite strongly, that if i could master the two habits of waking up earlier and putting things back in their place, properly, 40% of my problems would disappear. my mind would feel as open  as my clutter-free surroundings. and, the rest of my problems... oh well! nothing is in my hands is it?

PS

anyone know who can grant me these wishes?

do you know

...what she did last summer? The darling accompanied her mother on walks and discovered with awe the 'touch-me-nots,' chameleons and dragonflies, and lots of flowers!


She enjoyed her afternoon jelly sessions as much as she loved helping her grandmother pickle some mangoes in brine. I have to add, this girl loves her pani puri, raw mangoes and imli... does that make me a bad momma?


excuse the poor quality of picture, please :)


Some one insisted on picking flowers everyday so that she could float them in her (grandmother) ammamma's large crystal bowl and other steel utensils. She loved this!


I am sure she hoped her brother who tagged along everywhere would do more than lend moral support :D


Sigh! so much time to to indulge in games by herself!


Some days, we went on an embellishing binge, first sticking sequins on the bird cage...


... and, then on the terracotta chimes...


...and, a play dough bead necklace for me!


And, this is how we left things on the morning we left. I wish I had remembered to click the fridge door, the "painting wall of fame," that was just overflowing with painted papers and crafts.

yesterday

Yesterday evening, we ventured out for the monthly grocery shopping to my favourite D-mart. I did notice that the sky had become a threatening grey and there was thunder rolling some distance away, so I (luckily) remembered to take in the laundry.

By the time the kids, me, husband, last additions to grocery list after frantically opening and shutting drawers and kitchen cabinets, water bottle, umbrellas, were heading to the lift, it was quite near pitch black. The three minutes in the lift later, it was pouring and husband volunteered to bring the car to us.

Out on the highway, lightning flashed, thunder cracked and traffic was slow. There was an eerie yellow haze beyond the hills lining one side and palm trees bending to half their height in the strong gusts of wind on the other. Again, I had forgotten to carry my camera!

I cringed, not because I missed a splendid photo opportunity - the little box of assorted biscuits was back at home, right next to my wallet on the dining table, where I'd put them both down before I took a large gulp of water straight out of a bottle.

I must, at this point, make it clear to dear readers creasing their brows and wondering why, I didn't just carry a bag. Well, D-marts in Mumbai and suburbs have this policy of making you put your handbag in another green duffel tote and sealing it. The said green tote is officially unsealed at the billing counter - best bet against shop lifters, I have been told.

Also, adding that this little ritual took some getting used to, for readers now staring in disbelief. So, I just carried my wallet, which is not put in another green (official D-mart colour) wallet, rather than have a bag (for however little a time) used by many hanging by my shoulder.

So, now, we were almost there and had to park already! Looked like everyone else had our brilliant plan of shopping for long list of grocery in the middle of the month to beat the crowds, sigh! It was still raining, water running down the car windows in rivulets.

Darling husband peered out and decided it was best for four-year-old-just- recovering-from-a- ferocious-viral-fever (not H1N1) and two-year-old-just-about-to-catch-the-same-virus-from-sister to stay in the car rather than brave the two blocks to store in the pouring rivers of rain.

I told him, in the sweetest voice I have, about the wallet resting at home and he gave me a look, that will not restore him to darling husband status for a long time. There wasn't an ATM nearby, actually never when you need cash and fast. Tired of looking at vipers swishing viciously at the water under the street light made the little one cry.

Not wanting to risk another 'look' if I volunteered information of a little box of biscuits absolutely vital now, I sighed and said we would come another day. As I swung with inertia at the sharp u-turn, I didn't know what was worse - taking a 35 minute drive in the rain, thunder, lightning to the grocery store or turning back, after having braved the unexpected rain storm , for fear the kids would not last the shopping session without throwing hunger tantrums.

Pfft, I sat staring at the wet roads whizzing by, occassionally glaring at husband, who made a quick call to a friend and got directions to another D-mart with basement parking. I could say, he was trying his best to become the darling once again!

Well, the grocery shopping done, we each had a cup of steamed corn, from a vendor down the road, in the car to take care of hunger pangs and drove back leisurely home, in the peace after the storm...