Belly Dancers

This weekend was the Otsego Festival. Though I am no longer a member of the committee, I wasn't able to 'volunteer' for anything either as I had 4 photography bookings.

The weather wasn't picturesque, but despite the rain, I did get some great shots of Dance Caravan. I really enjoyed working with this group of 12 dancers. Such troopers in the rain! I was hired for two bookings with them; one to document their live performance and another for stills.

The following day, I had two additional bookings- two wonderful families that I gave the option of re-scheduling as it was 'really' raining. They opted to re-schedule, so I look forward to taking their pictures in the coming weeks!

I feel blessed that I was able to turn my love of photography and deisgn into something that I could share with others and create a business from it. My love, Ashish, stayed home with the kids so I could go focus on my business and passion. I also worked on some updated brochures and I'll need to get some more business cards soon! In a week, I'll be promoting my Autumn package, so stay tuned!

MIA

...OR so it would seem if you have been checking my blog and noticed I haven't had a new entry in awhile! Juggling things isn't easy, but children take priority over all things. When your baby is sick or uncomfortable, life stops.

I am happy to report that Nishad is back to being himself! We went in for surgery and I was just amazed at how well-behaved and 'adjusted' he was at the hospital. He spoke to the nurses and doctors in a way that was mature beyond his years. Oh course, it helped that there were toys there!

When it came time to 'put him down' I went in with him. It was incredibly hard for me to do, but it had to be done and I didn't want to 'show' him that I was scared. So, as we entered the dimly-lit room, I talked to him about the fire man mask. He colored the mask with chap stick that smelled like watermelon and then the doctor placed it over his nose and mouth. I sang to him, "Twinkle, twinkle..." as the star lights changed colors on the ceiling of the room. He drifted off, and the anesthesiologist said, "It doesn't get simpler than that. Thank you for your help." They moved the mask off one side of his cheek so I cold give him a kiss and I walked out. It wasn't until I walked out of the room that I allowed myself to cry.

We waited with our eyes on the screen in the family waiting room- icons that indicated to us when he was entering surgery, in surgery, leaving the OR and in recovery. His doctor came out to speak to us and told us that she feels the procedure went well. She can't give any guarantee that it will never happen again, but she did get a lot of 'stuff' out of his eye. He isn't to play in the sand for awhile, or balls. She doesn't want his eye to get infected while healing, or for it to get hurt.

The lag time to see him in recovery took longer than expected. I was getting very nervous. When we finally were brought back to see him, there were nurses surrounding him, he was laying on his side, quiet and he looked so lonely. I just about broke down as I went over to him and he looked up and saw me- he immediately started to cry. They told us that he was in pain, so they had to give him some morphine. I couldn't help but think of our baby waking up and us not being there, because they had to first stabilize him. I understand...he needed to be stabilized, however, he's only 2- we should have been there regardless. Ashish picked him up and rocked him. I had a flashback of a time when Nishad was only about 6 or 7 months old in Ashish's arms. I know Nishad loves me, but he and his Daddy have this tight bond at the young age of 2, that most people don't develop with their parents over a life time. When I started feeding baby Arun snacks, that is when Nishad perked up and said he would like some. We were warned by a friend not to let the nurses give him apple juice as it will make him sick, so we let him sip on water, and gave him snacks. He started to come around better- and within an hour, we were on the road, returning home.

Nishad was starving by the time we were home. He ate two pieces of pizza, two packages of apple sauce, rice cake, apple... Poor guy! He hadn't eaten since around 7pm the previous day. We kept him home the following day from school as a pre-caution. That gave him the weekend to re-cover. He was bouncing around like a bunder (monkey, in Hindi) and back to his typical charming ways in no time!

Pictured is a very proud Nishad with Mommy's make-up on him. After nap he thought he would investigate it on his own.

Surgery Tomorrow

Tomorrow is Nishad's operation on his eye. I'm not nervous about the procedure, but I am nervous about putting him down for it. I was comforted with another person today telling me that her son has the same thing and we share the same doctor. After more than a month of warm compresses and ointment, he needs to have this taken care of for good. Especially with school- he's starting to feel self conscious about it.

Speaking of school, his school was featured in a magazine. We received the information and the article in his Wednesday folder. It's ironic that the director of the school moved to the Wayzata district for the very same reason that we are considering a move to the district- our children's education, which we regard highly. Though Nishad attends a private school (toddler - K), we've heard raves about the public school district from parents in the Wayzata district.

Nishad also was speaking about his friend Thomas again. Yes, yesterday he told me his name. I was afraid that someone corrupted him by telling him about Thomas the Train, because we don't watch that "stuff." So, I asked him, "Is Thomas a train, Nishad?" Oh! He looked at me so oddly, "No Mamma, that is silly! Thomas is a boy in my class. He is naughty and makes a mess. He's my friend." hahaha! GREAT!

He told me he worked on the pink tower again today. I tried to explain to him why he wasn't going to be at school tomorrow...I'm sure he'll be back on Friday.

Picnic

Today Arun and I had some company for a morning walk; our friend and neighbor Krista and Lucas came with us! We walked down to see the cows at the dairy farm that is only two blocks away- then we roamed the streets, avoiding people that pay no attention to the posted speed limit. After we headed over to the park, where we planned on meeting Laurie with Sean and Baby Sage. Sean was in his glory climbing all over everything while Lucas chased him everywhere. Arun was happy exploring wood chips and Baby Sage was enjoying her nap. Lucas was ready to nap, so we said bye-bye to them and hung out a bit more before it was time to leave to go pick-up Nishad from school. It was so nice to see Krista, Lucas, Laurie, Sean and Baby Sage. I'm looking forward to seeing them again soon!

Nishad had a great day at school! Brenda told me that he went poop, too. Woo-hoo! I think he digs their potty. Nishad was excited telling me that he was working on the pink tower. I said, "Wow. What did your teacher say?" He replied, "Brenda told me good job!"

On the way to pick him up, Arun and I stopped at Pancho's and picked up some Mexican food for lunch. It was way to beautiful to be inside today! I surprised Nishad by telling him we were going to have a picnic! He was very excited and even suggesting having one on the lawn of the school. In a hop, skip and a jump, we were at Mission Hills Park. We enjoyed our Mexican food and then played at the park. Plymouth has one of the best park systems. I especially love that all of their parks are tobacco free zones. No nasty cigarettes around on the ground, or icky smell and second hand smoke.

Off to School; Coffee Please

What a beautiful Monday! The boys and I woke up at 6:30AM, had breakfast and Ashish and Nishad prepared to go to "work." Ashish called me after he dropped him off at his classroom- a few tears today. Arun and I had some one on one time and then he took his morning nap. I sat down with a cup of coffee and just relaxed. I feel like my work has paid off. Nishad is in an excellent pre-school and he is as prepared as can be. Now I can focus more on Arun so that he can be as prepared as Nishad.

When I went to pick Nishad up today, his teacher said that he was fine. I said, "Say goodbye to Brenda." He turned and blew her a kiss! She said, "I caught that one!" Cute. The two of them seem to already have such a nice repore.

On the way home, he went on and on about how they had fresh pizza for snack today. He said that he ate with another lurka (boy in Hindi) at the snack table and they talked about dump trucks together. We often are often silly with Nishad and give him "puppy licks" all over his face. Today, while I was unbuckling him from his car seat, I said, "Oh, I love you so much I'm going to give you puppy licks!" He stopped me dead in my tracks with his reply of, "Lips are not for puppy licks, Mamma." Oh, I was so taken aback! ...haha I said, "You're right."

While eating lunch together, he said, "So, tell me about your day? Are you having a good day?" There was a fly in the house, which I told Nishad we would tackle after we ate. The fly landed on the table and he dropped his head down as if to speak to it eye-to-eye, "Fly! This is NOT your environment. This is our home. You belong outside." Amen to that! :)

After lunch the boys had nap. I was able to stretch and do a very light workout, which I haven't been able to do in months. You have to start somewhere!

For dinner we had Mexican pot-pies with fresh cut veggies. Nishad *loves* broccoli, cucumbers and tomatoes from our garden. He eats them right off the stem! I love that!

Arun enjoyed working on the art-card alphabet today with me. More than the pictures, colors and sounds, I think he enjoyed taking the cards out of the box and putting them back in. Yesterday I asked him, "Are you making a mess?" (Trying to keep in mind that what is a mess for me, is learning for him...) He looked at me and shrugged his shoulders and babbled a sound that sounded like, "What mess?" Ashish and I were chuckling about that.

Baked Goods

Last weekend Nishad, Ashish and I made a blackberry swirl pie, complete with homemade crust. Nishad picked out the recipe right from the pages of Better Homes and Garden Magazine. My Aunt Beverly gave me a subscription to the magazine as she knows how I enjoy gardening, decorating and baking! ...Thanks, Aunt Beverly! As you can see, I'm enjoying the magazine.

I personally would have liked to attempt the buttermilk pie recipe. The crust was a simple and easy recipe to follow in which produced great results. I especially am found of the crust recipe as it doesn't have any lard in it (yes, people still do use lard in their pie crust). The pie itself was a bit too sweet for my liking. Also, I think I would have preferred the recipe to us blueberries instead of blackberries. Honestly, the texture was a bit off and it felt odd to sink my teeth into blackberry seeds.

I also 'invented' a new recipe of my own last weekend; Stuffed Enchiladas Kumar-Style! They were divine. In fact, they were so good we made them again and doubled the recipe. We froze a separate portion for a quick weeknight meal.

Kumar Enchiladas

1 can black beans

1 sm. can of corn or 3 fresh corn cob kernels

1 med. red onion diced

1/2 can diced tomatoes or 1 fresh tomato diced

1 package Mexican (Queso) cheese crumbled

1/3 c. fresh chopped cilantro

1/2 teaspoon Mexican oregano

1 small lime- cut in half, use half to squeeze juice from for mixture and the other half for garnish

salt & peeper to taste

*optional, jalapeno pepper or chillies to taste, diced

2 cans of 'your choice' Enchilada sauce

1 package flour tortillas

sour cream to top off with

Toss everything together in one bowl- mix!

Warm up tortillas

Coat the bottom of a baking pan (again, your choice) with a thin layer of sauce.

Dip the tortillas in the sauce and 'stuff' & roll them up, tucking the ends inside

Pour reaming sauce over stuffed enchiladas

Left over mixture can be used on top of enchiladas

Bake at 400 degrees for 40-45 minutes

Top with sour cream

Garnish with a slice of lime

YUM!

Get out the Sweater!

Arun with the birthday girl...

As the temperatures begin to dip and I feel a bit of Autumn in my bones, I can only think of one thing- In less than two months we'll be in Florida! I actually received an e-mail from "Disney" that reads, "In less than two months, POOF, you'll magically be here!" Well, I don't know about magically...but yes, we will be there with bells on. So, why am I talking about Florida now? Well, I have to remind myself that no matter how chilly it gets, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. The 'warm' season in Minnesota seems to be getting shorter and shorter. Don't get me wrong, I love Autumn. However, I'm not ready for Autumn weather. I feel cheated as it is this year...

Me and my projects! Yesterday I started pulling up sod in the front to work on another garden design. I'm pretty sore and sure I don't have to work out for at least a week! haha. Last night I went to Lowe's and played around with different ideas, but left empty handed. Today I went to Home Depot, purchased stuff and then had Ashish return it for me. I think I'm just going to tackle this project in phases, like our backyard. I have an overall plan, but it's going to take me some time to get things to that point. Patience. Gardening is good at teaching one about that. :)

Time to switch gears- cake, balloons and a little pink are needed! We went to Otsego County Park and celebrated Jenesis' 1st Birthday! Jenesis was dressed to the nines, in an adorable sunflower outfit. Nishad had fun with his friends at the park. Arun every so often stood up and walked...Hey, gotta impress the girls- Jenesis and Vada. We're glad that the Kodl's invited us on this special day. It's so much fun seeing the kiddies grow together! Vada will be the next one in line to turn 1 years old! Oh, how I recall us three Mommies being pregnant last summer!

We came home to find the contractor working away at our new screen door. Ashish and I decided to upgrade the door from our existing one. I'm glad we did. It looks good and adds a touch of elegance to entry. I picked out an etched glass to compliment the other windows in our house. Though it took two weeks because it was a special order, it was worth the wait!

Top 50 Children Books

Today, documenting a bit more of our sweet baby, My Baby Love... I think Baloo (Bear in Hindi) is sharing a secret with him.

Though I think reading any book to your child is better than not reading any, I pride myself in reading books of excellence to our children. Though you will be familiar with some, others may not strike you as familiar. I enjoy seeking out a great book for our children and giving it a new home on our shelf.

Books That Every Parent Should Have In Their Child's Personal Library Collection:

1. The Tinest Acorn by Marsha T. Danzig

2. The Tale of Three Trees by Angela Elwell Hunt

3. Hurbert (The Caterpillar Who Thought He Was a Mustache) by Wendy Stang and Susan Richards

4. It Looked Like Spilt Milk by Charles G. Shaw

5. The Enchanted Tree by Flavia and Lisa Weedn

6. Belinda the Ballerina by Amy Young

7. Everyone Poops by Taro Gomi

8. The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka

9. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin

10. People by Peter Spier

11. Whoever You Are by Mem Fox

12. One Grain of Rice by Demi

13. You Are Special by Max Lucado

14. Zen Shorts by John J Muth

15. The Spider and The Fly by Tony DiTerlizzi

16. The Little Prince by Antoine De Saint-Exupery

17. The crayon Box that Talked by Shane DeRolf

18. Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge by Mem Fox

19. The Very Quiet Cricket by Eric Carle

20. Papa, Please Get Me the Moon by Eric Carle

21. Goodnight Gorilla by Peggy Rathmann

22. Wacky Wednesday by Dr. Suess

23. Hands Are Not For Hitting by Martine Agassi

24. I Kissed the Baby by Mary Murphy

25. Fish is Fish by Leo Lionni

26. The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstien

30. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie (& other complete works) by Laura Joffe Numeroff

31. A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein

32. Narnia by C. S. Lewis

33. Little Cloud by Eric Carle

34. Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak

35. Skippyjon Jones by Judy Schachner

36. I Love You Forever by Robert N. Munsch

37. Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus by Mo Willlems

38. The Cat In The Hat by Dr. Seuss

39. Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman

40. One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish by Dr. Seuss

41. Hug by Jez Alborough

42. Hello, Red Fox by Eric Carle

43. Moo, Baa, La La La by Sandra Boynton

44. Guess How Much I Love You? by Sam McBratney

45. Once a Mouse by Marcia Brown

46. I Love You Like Crazy Cakes by Rose Lewis

47. 10 Little Rubber Ducks by Eric Carle

48. God Gave You Us by Lisa Tawn Bergren

49. My Father's Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett

50. I Ain't Gonna Pain No More by Karen Beaumont

The above listed books are highly recommended. Not only were a lot of them tested out in the classroom, but more importantly- by Nishad and Arun.

Phot-o-Rama

I decided to get my camera out yesterday and take some pictures of the boys- particularly Arun as I haven't had a chance to snap any of him lately and Nishad was feeling under the weather. My camera replacement for my D80 and new lens arrived about a week ago, so it was long over do for testing! We also picked-up a desk-top for my work at home. This enables me to take my lap top on-site for jobs, if need be. It's one fast computer! I'm adjusting to a new keyboard...always feels funky the first few weeks.

I'm happy to report that Nishad is feeling a lot better. He hasn't had a fever today. We even went to Maple Grove where we went to Borders. I let him pick out a few books; He selected a Curious George book (which he only knows as "Bunder") and "Fish is Fish" by Leo Lionni. I let Nishad help pick out Jenesis' birthday gift (for this Saturday). We went to one of my favorite stores to browse, "Good Things" and then headed to Trader Joe's for some grocery shopping. After we picked up our Chinese take out from P.F. Chang's via request of Nishad, and headed home. Of course, we couldn't avoid all the suits walking around with flags on their labels and police/security escorts. We were reading in Borders, sitting on the floor, when one of them popped his head around the corner and smiled, "That sounds like a nice book!" Why they were swarming like bees in Maple Grove is beyond me. However, I thought it was funny to see a plane flying above us with a banner that read, "Ron Paul: r EVOL ution" with 'love' flipped backwards and in red font.

After two days of staying home, I think Nishad really misses his school. I'm sure he'll be well enough to attend tomorrow. We weren't about to send him until he had a day of just recovery.

Overstayed Welcome, RNC!

I have always watched both the Democratic National Convention as well as the Republican National Convention. This year was no different. I was particularly interested being that it's in my own back yard, so-to-say.

Regardless of who the next president or vice president is, they need to work with both sides of the isle and independents, the green party, etc. I was very put off by the mocking comments and hateful speeches that were aimed at not only at Obama and his party, but Democrats as a whole. The RNC was busy getting down and dirty, while the DNC continues to rise above.

As a democrat, I felt as though they were angry and hateful. If anything, us Dems should be angry after what the republicans have done to our country. But, we aren't...anymore. Why? Because 'hope' is on the way. There is a light at the end of the tunnel.

Now, I don't expect Obama to walk on water or perform any miracles. However, I do expect change. A change that far out weighs anything of Bush's legacy.

I found it ironic that Gullini would mock the many 'community organizers' that work tirelessly in this country~ doing exactly what republicans don't want the government to do. I also found the chanting of "Drill Baby, Now! Baby Drill, Now!" to be one step away from a gladiator appearing in a center ring, with a king poached above him ready to give the thumbs up or thumbs down signal while a hungry lion paces behind steel bars awaiting to enter the arena. Texas surely would have completed that picture with their hats if only they had a big BBQ spare rib hanging out of their mouths with a shot gun in their hand as they do a little barn-yard dance. Yee-haw! I don't recall Michelle Obama snickering and smiling a cheap shots and jokes...ever, unlike Cindy Barbie Doll Mc Cain (Kelly coined that first!). Gullini also spoke about how no one mentioned certain words at the DNC because he thinks that they were afraid they were not politically correct and that they would offend people. Mr. Gullini, let me express to you that you offend me.

While the DNC was about unity~ across party lines, peace and respect, the RNC was about an Ax to grind. They are apparently very desperate. I couldn't have been more disappointed. This year is the first year that I had to walk away and turn off the television. There is already enough mean people and things in the world. We don't need more of the same old stuff.

24-Hr Rule

At the start of Nishad's first full week of school, he caught a bug. Ashish dropped him off at 8:15AM and by the time I went to pick him up at 11:30AM, he had a fever of 100.1 (under the arm). His teacher said that she just couldn't understand why he wasn't himself. He sat in her lap and that's when she felt how warm he was. Our little trooper. I'm sure it has to do with this crazy weather we've been having. That and the fact that he is now exposed to a whole new community.

While Nishad was at school today, I cleaned like I was never able to before. Arun and I had some great one-on-one time. I could tell he was looking for Nishad. He would crawl into the closest, crawl into the office, the bathroom, look up the stairs...

Speaking of stairs... We were all getting ready to have breakfast, when I said, "Where is Arun?" We heard faint little giggles of our happy camper, but we didn't see him. We'll he decided to take it upon his own to crawl up the flight of stairs by himself! We found him at the top, crawling between bedrooms, laughing and smiling. his chest was perched out like a little bird- he was very proud to show us that Nishad is not the only big boy in the house anymore! Ah!! :)

Weekend OF LABOR

No, despite the odd dreams I've been having that I'm pregnant again, this is not labor pains... it's Labor Day Weekend Labor- Work, Work and more Household Work! This is the weekend Ashish and I set aside to complete all of the projects in the house that have been waiting for us since baby Arun's arrival. Hmn. Tomorrow is another day! Nishad's comments definitely provide support and motivation for us though. I love when he tells us, "Momma, you're working hard. You're doing a good job. It looks really nice." Have I mentioned that he even compliments me on my hair, make-up and outfits? "Momma, you look nice." What a little man. :)

Ashish did manage to clean and start staining the deck. We did a lot of relaxing though- which, we relished as we ordinarily don't get to! Our neighbor's grandson is visiting, so Nishad was in his glory with a pal right next door. They swam, played cars and yesterday they went on a wagon ride together. They were so cute together- holding hands and running into the pool.

We picked up a few items on Nishad's shopping list for his classroom; 4 nanners, a dozen eggs and flowers. He also now has a big boy booster seat! We had to get an additional seat for him as Ashish will drop him off at school in the mornings on his way to work and Arun and I will pick him up.

His eye has been bothering Ashish and I. We thought we might be able to cancel surgery on the 11th, but it's just not disappearing. To make matters worse, another bump is starting on the opposite eye now. I feel so bad for him. There is only so much patience for warm compresses a 2 year old can take. He's so brave. At the store today he suddenly didn't feel well. He got tired and started complaining to me. I picked him up a milk and a croissant thinking that the issue was hunger. We left quickly and by the time we came home, it was apparent our Nishad was not his typical self. Ashish thinks the heat got to him- even though he was merely outside just from the short walk from the car to the store. He hasn't wanted to eat anything...though he did finally have a bit of dry cereal. We gave him Tylenol as a precaution as he was feeling warm. Hopefully, he'll be good to go in the morning- little trooper! I bought some drops for my eyes as they are really irritated. Who knows? Allergies, or it could be something going around...

One small step for man, one giant step for Baby Arun! ha,ha. Arun took his first unsupported step! He did it twice. He hasn't gotten over the one step though. As Nishad says, it's "KA-BOOM" after the first step. He likes to walk pushing his choo-choo train (that DOESN'T have an off switch) around the house though. Arun also made it down the step from the living room to the sunken kitchen all by himself! He's added a few new words to his vernacular as well, "bed" and "baba." He loves to move and groove- especially to music. I think he's going to be musically inclined, like his big brother, Nishad. He *loves* to pull you close, hug and love on you! He's such a snuggle bug!