off come the training wheels

Kabir had been begging me to get the training wheels off his bicycle for a long time now (he has been watching the older kids in the building ride their bikes). Yesterday I finally gave in. I took them off Anurag's bicycle first as I thought that it may be easier for Kabir to learn to balance on the smaller bicycle (his own bicycle is a bit too big and his feet don't touch the ground when he's seated) and Anurag graciously permitted us to do so. The very next moment Kabu was on the bicycle speeding away with no help from  me. He can now ride a bicycle...with no training wheels! Just like that! His excitement knows no bounds. He rode the bicycle around the campus last evening showing off to everyone he met. I should probably get the training wheels off his own bicycle now before Anurag starts complaining.

Bye-bye staff hostel

We waved goodbye to our home of last 2.5 years this Sunday and moved about a kilometer away to a bigger flat on the same campus. We now have 2 bedrooms (AND 2 bathrooms!). We are finally starting to open boxes that we hadn't opened in the last 4 years. The new house is beautiful and very breezy but still feels like a new shoe that we haven't yet broken in. What we miss most about staff hostel:

- Anurag's best friend Kashvi...she stopped eating the day we moved out and fell sick :(

- the long hallways and the chawl like atmosphere where kids would freely permeate from one house to another

- its great location: proximity to Sishu Vishar, gymkhana grounds, my favourite campus coffee shop and so on (of course we are now only 5-10 mins away from all these places, but we were spoilt)

We have some close friends in our new building too, so hopefully it won't be too long before we start feeling 'at home' again.

Anurag's 3rd birthday celebrations

We had twin celebrations for Anurag's third birthday in March. A small party at home followed by a weekend get-away with our close family friends to a resort in Manor.

The weekend outing to silent hill resort turned out to be absolutely perfect! The resort is in Manor less than 2 hours away from Mumbai and is situated by the river Vaitarna. Highlights included the water park, huge play area, great food, a delightful gazal night, late night chat with friends while all four kids slept with grandparents!

the (overcrowded) water park

 Anurag's bithday cupcakes after the kids' afternoon nap

 Beautiful sunset by the river

 Morning playtime in the play ground

 

The outing was the perfect celebration for Anurag as it included all the essentials - close friends and family, outdoor play, cake and water play!

PS: On a related note, I couldn't help but think about the contradictions in my life during my stay at the resort where on one hand, I enjoyed the setting by the river and the kids' play at the water park and on the other hand, I noticed what I typically do in any of my work related field trip - women fetching water on the bank of the river (in what is a drought year) and multiple jackwells in the river bed to source drinking water for nearby villages. Hopefully, next year we can take the boys to a more natural setting to enjoy their special days.

Deceptive looks

 Can you see the real Anurag behind the sweet smile in these pics? The last one gives it away..

 

Sr KG Annual Day

Kabir's KG school held its annual day in February, a few weeks before he graduated from Sr. KG. Each section performed a dance in which every student of the class took part. In addition to his class program, Kabir was part of the 'welcome song'. I am glad I found its video on youtube because this is one of those videos which will surely embarrass him no end when he grows up :-)

Some comments/observations:
1- In case you couldn't spot Kabir, he is the itchy flower - third one from left. (And no, they aren't dressed as colourful lions. They are supposed to be flowers.)
2. We all know that boys have really poor choices available in outfits compared to girls. But this is taking it to a whole another level!
3 - I'm not sure how these kids were chosen but I sincerely hope that it wasn't based on their musical abilities :-)

The link to his class performance (section C) is here, though he isn't in the frame most of the time:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olUGXlRJe0U

Teaser

I have a whole lot of stories and pictures to share from the last two months - Anurag's birthday celebrations, our family weekend outing, Kabir's new school and story of the two tiny pigeon chicks that hatched in our balcony. But for now, just a little teaser..