celebrating 5 years and going on 11th! :)

I am a firm believer of Karma and partly destiny too. No, I have never discounted hard work because many a chances get squandered because we keep waiting for things to happen on their own.


So for me the fact that I met M is Karma (good one at that) and the time it took me to convince him that we are good together is the hard work I put in! :)


And as we complete 5 years of being happily married and 11 years of knowing each other I must count my blessings and tell M just how much I love him and how lucky I feel to have HIM by my side.


Of course we have had fights. Some of them have been nasty too. But through it all what is comforting is that we have known how important both of us are to each other. WE have always known that the good times have been a constant rather than being an occasional thing. We know each others' strengths and try not to play on the weaknesses when we have a fight.


M is definitely the better half between the two of us. Both of us come from fairly different backgrounds and the fact that he accepted the change much faster and a lot more gracefully than I did says a lot about him. For that I can never been thankful enough.


Past 5 years have been a joyride and I have loved every moment. Be it the late dinners because we were both learning to cook or the bike rides in rain and sunshine. The movie watching spree when we watched just about any and every movie that released ( karam and Naina anyone?) or the trips to Majestic to buy pirated DVDs when we finally bought a TV after a year of shaadi. The discovering of new restaurants and your uncomplaining company to all the exhibitions that happened in the city. The small barsaati we lived in to the current house we should be getting out of but don't want to! The times when stuff was bought only after we needed it and had the dough for and the occasional faaltu kharcha we can afford to do now. The fact that we are genuinely fond of each others' parents and more often than not how my relatives call you and yours call me when they need something or just for a chat! :) The time we finally bought the second hand Maruti and went on our first long drive with Papa guiding you to now taking Cubby in it just about everywhere. The pregnancy where you were a rock solid support and to see you being the awesome father I always knew you would be. The lavish praise you heap on me even in public laughing away the Joru ka Gulaam tag and just how much faith you have in whatever I do. I feel lost without you even with my own friends and family.


For all this and many more intangibles I Love You! Don't ever leave my side! And don't lose that sense of humour and the smile! :)


happy 5th darling pati M! :)


and here's some random wedding day etc photos! :) I know I made a gorgeous bride (there are no NOT gorgeous brides according to me!) and M still whines about how he wants THAT biwi back! hehe! But me in lenses and make up is only a dream as of now! ;)

The ONLY shy dulhan pic of me! On wedding eve! :)

Maine jeevan ki dor se tujhe baandh liya hai! Corny? yes! True? YES! :)

Nope! No kissing the bride in Maharashtrian weddings! Just some Chinese whispers! :)

The wedding day. I never really stopped smiling since! :)

"Kaan pili" where the brother warns the groom to betta take care of his sister!


M acted the part well and yes, the brothers let go of the ear only after they are given a gift! :) Nothing like good ol' threat of corporal punishment! Hehe!

A photo op among many others! :)

The garlands being exchanged! :) Yeah, I was ANYTHING but shy and nervous! ;)

Find our faces between the flowers! hehe!

The homecoming! :)


I had to kiss all his thirteen cousins and give them a gift to be let in! :) And the fun was just beginning! Can you imagine I forgot to call my folks and tell them i reached ok! gah!

Lord Of the Rings! :)


I think we did like hazaar extra rounds to make M win, but i still won! Woohoo! :)

A LOT of dancing happened!

A LOT of smiling happened! :)

Till we were too tired to do either!

Uske baad kya hua is for me to know and you to guess! ;)


Here's to many more M! :)

Chin! Chin!

Much love and hugs and kisses!

and yes Thank You! :)

Designs on me for Valentines Day!

So what did we do this Valentines day? Usually we are pretty clueless and last year we actually forgot about it. This year...


We could have been doing something like this...


Instead we laughed over the corny heart shaped chocolate cake...


choked on the heart-straw, but Looved the sinful coffee.


and then went to a tattoo parlour to get meself a tattoo!


Yes!!! I did too! :)


Ofcos its NOT blood! Freaked ya out, didn't I?! :p


Sneak preview!

Taadaa!! That's cute l'il devil a.k.a. Hot Stuff! :)

It is still getting healed, so I don't have a clearer and nicer picture. This is with M's camera phone. I have wanted a tattoo for the longest time. When I told my dad, he said "Finally! Your long standing wish is getting fulfilled! Make sure the needles are new!" My mom freaked out just as I thought she would! :D It is indeed heartening to see some thing don't change. Hehe!

Finally found this guy to get it done from. Came reccoed from coupla friends and a totally worthy recco I must say. Ofcos this being my first tattoo, I am no expert, but I felt comfortable with him, he had a steady hand and the tattoo looked exactly the way I though it would. The place was neat and clean, they opened a new needle in front of me and gave em to me as souvenir once done thus reassuring me that they don't get reused.

M first decided to wait downstairs but then came up to the studio to "hold my hands" through the pain and was thoroughly disappointed at my lack of screaming and crying! :p

Cubby has been touching it, pointing to the nappy the devil is wearing and saying "Naappy!" followed with "Niicce!" in his characteristic style.

Me, I am just waiting for this week to get over so that it's completely healed and i don't have to hide it under the Neosporin powder I sprinkle generously to avoid infection. And no, there are no deep thoughts behind the design. I just thought it was cute! :D There was definitely a thought behind the place... ankle is the only part of my body that at this point of time that doesn't jiggle! :p Logical, Nahi?! :p

Thanks M! For the AWESOME gift! :) Love ya more than you know or can imagine. But then you DO know, don't ya?! :)

May be...

The month that last one has been! May! With a tentative name itself, obviously nothing was planned and done and things happened. Mostly good! Touchwood!

So warning - SUPER long post!

17th May was my Kaka - Kaku's anniv. (Uncle and Aunt would be the apt translation.) Of course that;s what the family tree makes them, but they are lot more than that. Both of them have always been around in good and bad times in the family. Kaku fawns over Kabir as much as my Mom if not more. You should have seen the way she geared up to prepare for the baby as soon as she knew. From gorgeous chaddars to little clothes to tiny woolens for Cubby. She really pulled all plugs and pushed herself hard. No words can ever thank her for such genuine affection and love she gives without any expectations! Kaka too makes it point to be around for all important occasions even if it means travelling six hours for a 3 hour get together. They were the first people to come and stay with us in Bangalore with the intention to just meet us and be with us! Thank you both of you for being such a solid and loving support! Hope to see you here for Cubby's first birthday! :)

22nd May - My parent's anniversary! What do i say about these wonderful people? Words fall short when i try to describe how well they brought us up. I also don't know what to say because they made it seem so effortless. I hardly remember them ever being preachy and yet they taught us so much! From my mother I learnt how to support your family, be strong in times of crisis, how to be adjusting without compromising on what you believe in! I am still grappling to manage time as awesomely as she does (she multi-tasked waayyy before the term became so hep!) and to cook three fresh meals a day like her! Hats off to you Mom! It's from seeing you that I was confident I could be a working mom and do a good job of it! I love your free spirit, your will to stand for what you believe in, not just for yourself, but others too!

My dad is mostly what I am even today. He taught me to be positive. He told me life is not always fair and yet managed to imbibe that there are more good people in this world than bad, and that's why the world still continues to exist. My faith in humanity is thanks to seeing him in action with people at every level. I have learnt that at times I might get cheated, but a good deed is always returned! If not from person you expect, then from someone else. So keep doing good work and life will be good to you. Dad I admire your never say die attitude, the way you always have listening ear and sensible advice. I get my habit of shedding tears at drop of the hat (esp at happy things) from you! :D I guess I get whatever bit of my writing skills also from you. It's absolutely no surprise that you are loved and respected in whole of our family!

And together both of you showed me what a good marriage is all about! I am glad I married a little later in life and got my basics right! Thank you for respecting my decision, supporting it and being there always sharing the joys of my married life!

Love you MOST!

25th May - M's birthday! :D What do I say about the joy of my life? After a almost non-existent courtship (the courtship was zero!) period of six and a half years, I managed to blackmail this guy enough to marry him. To his credit, he did not run away from the mandap! :p Married life started with some rocky patches and setting our expectations right. Once we got settled into the groove that's when our courtship period actually started. From after work 'dates' at Cafe Coffee Day to watching every new movie that released in the first week! From learning to cook together and having dinner only by 11pm to depending on Maggi to sail us through the lazy weekend. Everyday was filled with love and laughter. And it has never stopped being like that. Of course we fight (which couple doesn't), we slam doors, say hurtful words we wish we could take back, but through it all, we know we are imperative to each others happiness! We kiss and make up and the days are beautiful again! M is patience personified and I manage to test that as well. Yet, he forgives me graciously, until I manage to upset him again. When we found out I am pregnant, M was even more caring. We went to all our favourite haunts in Mumbai. I just had to ask for something and it would be there. He even got me the last Harry Potter the day it released, pleading not to read in the hospital! :D Our innumerable scrabble games and DVD shopping jaunts to Majestic to actually agreeing to NOT having cable at home, we have been equal partners in every decision we make. M treats my family as his own and he is adored by everyone. He is magic with kids and equally popular with the oldies. He can have you laughing in minutes with his brilliant sense of humour!

M you are indeed in every sense of the term my better half. I am glad you took a chance to find happiness with me and I hope you will never regret this decision. Thank you for being the perfect husband, the best father and an awesome son! Life just wouldn't have been the same without you! And i mean it only in a good way! :)

And last but not the least! My darling l'il brother who is a whole six and half years younger than me was going through a tough phase! He is studying in the US and was trying hard to get a summer internship. Apart from a chance to earn good money, it also means a chance to land up on a good job later. With US economy slowing down, no good news came for over a month. Being the cynic that he is, he worried and worried, ruining his health on the way too. I so wished I could just go and spend some time with him. Few days ago, phone rings midnight with his name flashing! I obviously get worried till I heard "Yohoo! Sis! I got through Yahoo!" I was sooo kicked and happy. He said he didn't wanna disturb Mom-Dad and HAD to share the news with someone! I felt SO proud and touched. Now he has offer from another good company as well and things are looking up! You rock brother! I just KNOW you gonna be SUPER successful! Am so proud to have the brain of the family as MY brother! :p Though Cubby could do with spending some time with you (you were so good with him), am sure you will make up for it. I also look forward to some EXPENSIVE Raksha Bandhan gifts! ;)

All in all a month where some of the most special people celebrated some special occasions. I am really lucky to have all of you in my life!

Always, be there, will ya?