....and then I woke up.

I had an epiphany today.

We live in India. Huh. We live in INDIA. Wow! We live in FLIPPIN' INDIA!

I think all the hullabaloo over the past year (since the offer was laid on the table) has distracted from the truth of it all.

We live in India. Crazy, amazing, cultural, fascinating, full-of-wonder India.

How lucky are we?! What a chance of lifetime! And to share this exciting trip with each other, as a family, is just the best.

Sometimes life hands you things that are never expected- but certainly welcome.

Come visit us!

Waterstones

We bit the bullet and finally joined Waterstones, a to-die-for "country club and spa" here in Mumbai. It has a wonderful pool, spa, salon, gym, restaurants, daycare, movie room, music lounge, library, bar, etc, etc.
I'd visited a few times as a guest and once he'd taken the tour, Mike agreed- it's an amazing (and sometimes absolutely necessary) escape from the craziness Mumbai offers.
I love it because I'm able to take advantage of the childcare and take my time with each child- swimming with Catherine while Ryan plays/naps in the Juniors room, or cuddling poolside with Ryan while Catherine runs around, or get a pedicure while both of them are entertained. :)
We hope to use it lots and lots and lots...........and lots.
www.waterstonesclub.com

Photo shoot

Ryan celebrated his 3-month birthday last week- so I thought it was high time for a photo shoot. Actually, this is just a super-casual one...a local friend is going to do a better one for me later this week (thanks Becca!).
Weeds, these kids! Weeds, I tell ya!

Monkeys and Camels and TREES- oh my!

We realized that we had yet to go on any type of excursion since our August return, so last Saturday we hopped in the car and took a drive to a local Hill Station, a town called Lonavala. The scenery is incredible- sooo much different than Mumbai, and amazing that such greenery could exist so close outside the city!
It was a fun day- camel rides and monkey-sightings! And just plain spending time together- which makes us all happy! :)

Star Student/Spirit Day

Catherine was the Star Student last week! She proudly displayed her "All about Me" poster, and I got to go in and read a book (her choice was Twinkle, Twinkle), share some things about her and treat everyone to a snack.
While preparing for this day (other than fretting over whether I could bring myself to let go of 15 whole packets of fruit snacks, hot commodity that they are!), I sat down and made a list of things that make Catherine special. It struck me that maybe I should do this more often, because she really IS a cool kid.

Catherine is special because:
-she loves to sing and dance (and shake her booty, but this wasn't audience-appropriate!)
-she knows how to write all her letters and numbers, and is starting to spell!
-she loves to read, read, read
-she is a very sweet big sister
-she is a good listener
-she loves to play dress up and board games
-she gives GREAT hugs
-she is a good colorer
-she loves her school and her friends

The fruit snacks, by the way, were a HUGE hit! None of the other kids had ever tasted them (Catherine is only 1 of 2 Americans in her class)....guess other countries don't feed their kids CRAP like we do?!

Then, at the end of the week, the Elementary School had it's first Spirit Day- Pajama/Crazy Hair day! I'd dare say the Catherine won "Most Spirited"! :)

All better

As those of you on Facebook know, I had a mild meltdown the other night.

Here's the scenerio:
4:30 p.m.- Catherine starts whining. Ryan starts crying. Mommy is calm.
5:30 p.m.- Catherine is still whining. Ryan is still crying. Mommy is irritated.
6:30 p.m.- Catherine is about to be beaten. Ryan is now screaming. Mommy is on the edge.
7:30 p.m.- Catherine has taken 45 minutes to get her pajamas on, is now in bed, calling for more books, water, her Dora toy- anything to delay sleep. Ryan's face is now purple and swollen, and he's soaking wet with sweat. Mommy loses it.
7:31 p.m.- Mommy dials Daddy's work phone. No answer. Mommy dials Daddy's cell phone. It rings 20 times. Daddy picks up. Mommy screams that if does not get home within the next 5 minutes, there will be hell to pay.
8:30 p.m.- Daddy walks in the door. Both children are asleep and the house is dead quiet. Daddy says "What's the big deal? They're both asleep, and you're having a beer...all seems well here."
8:31 p.m. Daddy gets a black eye.

Hahah- just kidding about the last part! :)

I'm feeling better now...Mike appeared at home last night at 6 p.m. with flowers in hand. And- I discovered a GREAT store in the Bandra district called Cotton On today. Got myself some clothes.....

....and I'm all better. *Sigh*

Fashionista

Catherine is big-time into dressing up. Here she is in her 3 different Indian dresses: Sari, Kurta and Gujarati. Can she be any cuter? I mean, c'mon! :)
Note the princess tiara in each picture....she is obsessed!

Had to share

Not many words needed....how DANG cute is our little boy?!?

Monsoon

Monsoon is here in India....and everything is wet- and nastier than before. Officially, monsoon runs from June until September, but each year is different. Last year's monsoon was said to be very dry- and bad for agriculture, drinking water levels, fish populations, etc. And until a few weeks ago, we were headed in the same direction.

Not any more. It's soaking wet all the FREAKIN' time now.

Don't misunderstand- it's not a torrential downpour all day and all night. But there's been (at a minimum) a drizzle for the past 2 weeks. The heavy showers are what get scary. Roads become congested mud pits. People are soaked to the bone. The trash along the streets is a slimy mess. Wild dogs, pigs, cows, goats and chickens drink from puddles in the middle of the streets. Entire hillside slum communities disappear in mud slides.

It's an amazing- and yucky- experience.