The Play

The stage is set,

Characters there are many,

Each a protagonist,

Of his epic story.

There is much self-created chaos,

There is much randomness,

But there is reason & faith,

That the plot will fall in place.

Port Dickson, Malaysia

We went to Port Dickson for three reasons: (1) H was dying to make a road trip in his much loved Porsche (2) I desperately wanted a getaway before I start work again, and (3) this is an ideal age for travelling with Kabeer - he is young enough not to move on his own & old enough to be able to sustain the travelling.

It took a lot of planning - we were carrying about 15 pieces of luggage (including a steriliser, toys, bath stuff, bed stuff, pram, rocking chair & boiled water among many many other things). In the end, it was all worth it because..

(1) Kabeer turned out to be the most non-fussy traveller :) He was cheerful in his car-seat for the 5 hours drive from Singapore to Port Dickson. He surpassed all our expectations & gave us another reason to love him even more :)
(2) I experienced the best massage I've ever had & for the first time, got one while overlooking the sea :) and

(3) H loved the drive. The drizzle made it even more memorable for him

Kabeer this July

Kabeer has come a long way since his poop-milk-sleep days; he's doing newer, cuter things now. Like he says 'mama' sometimes in the middle of a sentence of gibberish!! Of course, he has no idea what it means, its just a sound he can make & I cheer him when he makes it; so he enjoys making it. But its a ego-high for me nevertheless. I pose different questions for him expecting the same answer :)

Q: Kabeer, who do you love the most in the whole wide world?

A: ma-ma

Q: Kabeer, who is the coolest person you know?

A: ma-ma

Q: Mere pass bangla hai, paisa hai, gaadi hai. Tumhare pass kya hai?

A: ma-ma

Happy Anniversary to us!

I remember the day when I first met H. He was my senior in college. He was slightly slimmer then, but also looked a lot geekier. Admittedly, there were no sparks at first sight. But my best friend started going out with a close friend of his & we were forced to spend more time with each other. He didn't have a romantic bone in his body ("if its not your birthday why do I need to get flowers?"); but I gradually got to see him for the generous & kind man he was & adored him for his straight-forwardness (which complimented my complicatedness rather well). A previous failed relationship had led me to believe that all men are chauvinists at heart; but H changed my mind about the male species in general :)

And when the sparks finally emerged, they were giant ones. Of course, like all college romances we had our highs & lows, but finally decided that we wanted to suffer monogamy together.

I think we had the potential of becoming a great love-story if only our families had objected to the union, and forced us to elope, but none of that happened. Our parents were over the moon elated. The engagement followed & then the wedding; both the events are a blur now.

The first year of our life together was in Bombay & it was not an easy year. H had a difficult boss & worked long hours. We bought an apartment in the suburbs (which meant an hour of commuting every day); and our then modest salaries were eroded repaying the housing loan. We barely saw enough of each other that year & the frustrations from work were often carried home. That year my dad had his first brain-stroke & it was painful for me (and still is) to see what it had done to him. H was my pillar of strength, hope & optimism then.

Then we moved to Dubai. It was a fresh start & we had a fantastic run -- both personally & professionally. We finally went on our honeymoon (and Istanbul was an unforgettable destination). We felt appreciated at work, H finally got his dream car (& then another one as his dreams upgraded). We travelled around the world together, we watched movies, walked hand-in-hand by the creek, it was all a very long honeymoon :)

We moved to Singapore 2 years ago. On our last anniversary we were in Malaysia & the following month found out we were having a baby. H endured me throughout my nauseous & testy pregnancy & stood by my side during labour without passing out. Kabeer has taken our togetherness to another level; he's been the most important milestone in our married life; he has made both of us fall in love once again -- with each other & with him.

Today, on our anniversary, I look back at our time together & feel grateful that we found each other all those years ago. "Happy anniversary & I love you."

Kabeer is 3 months old

Kabeer celebrated his 3-month-birthday by going to a baby spa (how pampered are we!!) & loved his first experience of swimming. It was so much fun to watch him swim, we promptly took up membership at the spa. I think this is the next Michael Phelps in the making :)

Starting with the warm-upThen in his pool:And he turned out to be a natural swimmer :)