Trip to the beach!

We took our first post-Prarthna's arrival in this world trip to the beach today. It was proposed by Sudhaker on Saturday and we finalized the plan with them that evening about going today. They wanted to go to Rehoboth to try and include some shopping (they are compulsive shoppers, I think :-)) but I convinced them that we should go to a South Jersey beach as we had never been there and this might be our last chance. He did inquire about an "outlet" mall. Turned out there is one in Atlantic City but we never got to that.

The weather turned out to be picture perfect. We left Newark around 10 AM and arrived in Wildwood around noon. We took a long break on the way at a Wawa for Prarthna to eat, and do her "jumping jacks". We picked up all our stuff and set up camp near the ocean with our mats, umbrella, and tons of food, some of which had been consumed during the onward journey. There were quite a few people, although not as many as you would see later in the season. The water was still quite chilly. We managed to get in for a few minutes at a time, but no one mustered the courage to stay for long periods. Prarthna behaved herself pretty well. She took one nap, and generally stayed happy. I read a book for a little bit while the others took a walk. In general, we took in the sights of sun, sand, and frolic. There was a kite festival going on and we saw some exquisite kites. The drive back was quite comfortable and we made it back in an hour and a half. Overall, it turned out to be quite an enjoyable day. We relaxed, talked, ate, and spent some good time together.

Prarthna continues to grow and do more and more things! Yesterday, she crawled a good 30 ft at a real fast clip. Prachi called her and she went to her mixing scooting, old fashioned crawling, and some leaps as well. She has perfected standing up with support and now does it all the time in the crib.

My wife is calling me. So I better publish this and get going!

Friday the 27th

Well I just got reminded of the belief (or should I say misbelief) in Friday the 13th - considered by many to be the most inauspicious day to the extent that they will forgo many things that they normally do. I am not going to ramble about superstitions but just talk about belief - which can be so strong that it can take your life over and protect you in all situations. There can be only one such belief - faith in the almighty! I was watching a movie last night (cheesy Bollywood flick, but anyhow) where the girl has complete faith that someday God will deliver her soulmate in her life. That he exists and is only waiting to be found. Whatever she believed, it was pretty strong. We need that kind of a faith - which can sustain us through times good and bad.

But God has always provided us with bright spots in the midst of all gloom and right now, there is no brighter one than the baby! She is just so amazing! Yesterday was another great day. She was in her crib and suddenly we heard her squeals and screams of delight and we go in to discover that she had managed to pull up on the crib and stand on her own and she was calling us to look at her feat, her accomplishment. She did it again and again. It was just surreal that she recognized that she had done something big and wanted us to share it with her. She has been trying to pull up on all sorts of things - chairs, tables, magazine stand, cupboards, her crib and playpen. We had helped her along but this was the first time she did it independently! Bravo, Prarthna.

So probably that will be her new fascination from now on - I can already see the signs. She is going to get over crawling and try to stand! Well God bless her as she tries these new things and I hope she stays safe and does not get hurt.

Another anecdote that I like to share - this happened 3-4 days earlier. It has become super hard to change her diaper or put clothes on. The other day I was trying to put her pants on her and she kept on rolling over. I told her to stay put so that I can finish the job. She seemed to understand and stayed on her back for exactly 3 seconds which she thought was enough time to do it - and then she was back on her tummy! Oh ya, she managed to turn on her TV (by accident, of course) a couple days back. She also managed to open the door of a cupboard yesterday by pulling on the knob.

The Schumans visited us on Wednesday. That was a story too. Prachi was cooking in the morning (this is a fairly new concoction she has started to make - from potatoes, okra (ladyfinger), onions, and bitter gourd (karela, ugh) but this is a way I would eat the karela). We realized that it is going to be too much for both of us and Prachi said we should call some one over. I asked her who and made a couple suggestions, but she said - someone like Eric and Lis. So I called Lis and she was willing to come but had to check with her hubby. They did come and we had a good time with the babies and Maddie. Prachi also made mixed lentils and they loved both the things. We also had a decadent dessert - one big brownie (proudly made by Eric) with 2 scoops of icecream. You bet I was full!! Pictures should be coming soon!

Yesterday was a nice day after 3-4 days of rain and we managed to take advantage of it by going for a long walk with Prarthna in the stroller. She was playing for almost the entire time but managed to fall asleep when we were ready to go up - as she does most of the times! So the walk got extended so that she could sleep. Prachi went up for a while to make her flavored milk - that is so good! We served it to Eric and Lis as well. It is the good old Kesar Pista Badam Elaichi milk (for those who are Hindi challenged, saffron Pistachios Almonds Cardamom milk). Now we have grinded all those together (courtesy the grinder that the Boshoffs bequeathed on us) and now it is super easy to make! So anyhow, I was walking the baby. I also met two women (who work in the apartment office and live in the same complex - very convenient) walking their dogs. Well, I just can never imagine owning a pet - but that is just me. I know you can have a great relationship with animals, but it is just not my cup of tea. When Prachi came back (finally) and I was ready to go up, Prarthna woke up and then we all went up.

During the day, I spent some time trying to sell some stuff and I managed to sell the TV and the office chair. We still have tons of things and really really need to get on trying to dispose them! I am taking someone to the airport today and also delivering the TV and the chair in the evening. Yesterday was the last day the idiot box resided in our house, and so I caught Jeopardy and Seinfeld and then tried to watch that movie (DTPH) which I was talking about in the beginning of the post, but gave up in the middle. By the way, I have seen it twice before (when I was in IIT - so a long time back) but just wanted to see it for nostalgia sake probably.

Both mom and daughter are asleep right now. Prarthna woke up really early today (before 6, aaargh). She ate her breakfast at 7, but now she is asleep and Prachi is also catching some shut-eye with her. She invited me to sleep also, but I just don't feel up for sleeping again once I have got out of bed. I will probably try and take a nap in the afternoon.

Enough of my ramblings. Prarthna just woke up also and so I will get going. I will stop here and will post some pictures soon.

Going to India

This is an email exchange I had today with Jayanto. A reader should read his email first which is at the bottom of this post!

well choche,

I can imagine what you feel. It must be sad to feel this way in a city you
grew up and spent the first 22 years in your life in! I can think back to
our last summer in delhi when we went here and there in your fiat, cursing
the heat, but still having tons of fun! We were so much at home then.

I don't know how I will be when I finally go to India. It has been 3 long
years, and I am more out of touch than you are. The other factors are that
like you said, we hardly know anyone there any more.

I want to think that I will be fine. I know Delhi has progressed a lot,
with many different things. But the basic nature is the same, which I can
identify with. I just need to get away from what I am used to here, and
that should do it. This is in my mind. The reality - only time will tell!

Having said all this, enjoy your time there. I know the heat makes it kind
of impossible to get out, and you have to find oases of cool air - it is
just a different idea to go into a cinema or a mall just to be in an AC, but
that is the ground reality there! Human body is amazing. Could you have
imagined surving Chicago winters while you lived in Delhi? It is just that
is easier to escape the elements here as compared to there.

In any case, it is hard for Jay to become Jayanto again :-))

Well, the free wifi is nice! And chicken tikka croissant sounds very nice.
So drink up the latte and have a good time at the wedding!

And I hope you enjoyed my ramblings!

Love
Middha.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Jayanto Minocha"
To: "Rajul Aggarwal" ; "Prankul Middha"
Sent: Sunday, May 22, 2005 10:38 AM
Subject: latte, chicken tikka croissant and free wifi

Am currently sitting in this quasi-hip coffee shop in green park
market. Heck, even Starbucks ain't got free internet access. And a
Hillary Duff video playing in the background.

So to recap my India trip so far. Quite sad. Well, the trip hasn't been
that sad per se. But as I've said so many times, I really do get bored
when I visit "home" nowadays. Am that bothers me, causes guilt, and
pushes me into a mild depression.

It might just be due to the fact that this is the 3rd time that I'm in
Delhi within the last 18 months. But feel very out of sorts. Had to go
and buy a cardboard box today. Had no clue where to go. Went to a
hardware store (was thinking moving stuff implies Home Depot, which in
turn implies hardware stuff). Was informed to go to a kabadi shop.
Roamed around Munirka for 15-20 mins before I found one and purchased a
used one for 15 rs. Oh, reason for the search.. am planning to move a
substantial portion of my book collection back here.

And don't give me a hard time about being a firang. Already my
conscious is giving me a hard time as is.

And met Ravi and IP once. That's it. Sum total of people I'm in touch
with who're delhizens.

Well, I can go on rambling, but I guess I've already reached your
attention spans. So that's all for now.

-
Jayanto

Another picture session

More pictures for your perusal. Enjoy!!


Past Phd, Current Phd, and future Phd (well, maybe !!)



Gotta know what is on sale :)



Look at me, I am so cute :)



All smiles :)



One of my favorite shots !!

It is Friday (for the lack of a better title)

I haven't posted pictures in a while. So here are a couple of all of us. There are very few pictures like these and the ones that exist are definitely not the best. But they are still sufficiently good!



Middhas of Maryland (Bhuvan is in the background)



Another one (This is at Dolly's place)

I went out on a lengthy shopping trip today and made a number of stops. The traffic certainly added to the time I was gone, which turned out to be 3 hours. I was at the mall, Farmer's market, Indian store, and shoprite and also managed to fill gas and do a return at Eckerd. It was a rainy day, which we didn't mind too much as the weather has been beautiful overall.

Eric and Lis have sold their house which means their departure is becoming real. The settlement is on the 28th of June which is a month away!

Another day

Another day, another no answer. I could get disillusioned and stop trying but I do not want to give up. That is not what God wants us to do. So I am trying to keep the faith and belief strong. After all, if God is for you, who can be against you? And indeed, he has continued to bless us richly - see what a beautiful daughter he has given us!

Also, we should not always focus on what we get, but what we have given. It is a profound statement and is expressed beautifully in the second stanza of this song

Listen

Prarthna continues to amaze us. She wrestles with the thick cushion all the time and will stand if you give her your hand. She loves to get all over Prachi. Today she was doing that when Prachi was eating lunch, especially focusing on her plate. I told her to leave her alone and come to me. She promptly obliged and put her entire hand in my bowl full of paneer! That was incredible.

We went to the mall today to run a couple errands. We got the gift card for the baby shower this weekend, picked up vitamins for Prachi's mom and also got the car seat requested by the Boshoffs. The weather has been really nice and it is fun to be out!

Time to relax and celebrate

I am so glad Prachi's defense is successfully behind us. Now that she is done, we can some time to relax and enjoy. It would have been perfect if I had already secured a job, but oh well, this is still an occasion to celebrate.

We went out to Kate's for nachos yesterday after a long time. It was fun! Prachi was able to find a seat outside while I was parking the car (which was a major hassle on Main Street). We had taken Prarthna's feeding seat as well which I tied on the chair there. When she woke up from her nap, we put her in that seat. Initially, she was scared to be among so many people and wouldn't let go of Prachi's hand but then she got comfortable. We ate our nachos (which were not the best, but fine) and also fed her some. We then thought of getting some icecream at the farm but the traffic on Paper Mill with all the construction dissuaded us and we went home and had rasgullas for dessert.

Today we went to Sangeeta's place for a little while to spend some time with them. I played some pool after a long time. Everyone had fun with Prarthna. It was an OK visit although things are certainly not the same with them as they were earlier. Guess we have changed after we had the baby, which is natural! We came back around 7:30 and after Prachi had put Prarthna to bed, she made lobhia paranthas for dinner.

Bhuvan has decided not to come this weekend as he has a ton of work to do. So, we won't see him this month at all. We have a couple invitations for this weekend and we are looking forward to travelling there.

Dr. Prachi Middha

Mr. Prankul Middha and Ms. Prarthna Middha hereby join friends and family in congratulating Dr. Prachi Middha for her great achievement. We are proud of you. Prachi had a great defense presentation. She was a little nervous for a couple minutes during the talk but overall, she did pretty well. She was able to satisfy the committee with her work. She does not have to do lots of changes in her thesis. Not a lot of people showed up for her talk but we were extremely happy to have Lis attend. She stayed for the entire talk, and we really appreciate the sign she put up on the door congratulating Prachi.

After the defense and a quick visit home, we went out to dinner with Dr. Wexler. He is a great guy indeed! Prarthna stayed with Sudhaker and Bhumika during the defense. She was OK for the first hour but then probably she began to miss us and started to cry and I had to go get her.

Pallav was able to visit us last night as a stopover on his great road trip. His parents also came over this morning and we had breakfast together before they left for New York. It was great to see him and chat with him.

Big day tomorrow

Tomorrow certainly promises to be one of the biggest days of our life as a family. Prachi is going to defend her PhD work at 1 PM. Hopefully, if all goes well, she will come out of that presentation as a successful PhD. "Dr. Prachi Middha" does sound nice. So, today I lift up a prayer to God that she is able to do a great job tomorrow. She is able to answer all the questions of the committee, and the committee does not find much at fault with her work. Also, that Prarthna stays calm when Bhumika is taking care of her while I attend Prachi's talk.

We are also going to meet Dr. Wexler after the defense. Hopefully, after that discussion, we have some more information on which to base our decision about what to do in the next couple months. As Prachi commented a couple days ago, she was sure what we would be doing by the time her defense comes around, but our future course of action is still in limbo. It is kind of incredible that it is the middle of May and little time of left. There are a few options here but we are surely not at peace about them. As I told Bhuvan yesterday, I sometimes feel selfish living here. Also, I surely do not agree with where the USA is going, especially seeing how this country has changed in the last 3-4 years. I guess they have always been like this, but now it is for everyone to see. Well, you could say that that is a philoshopical point of view, but I think that is sometimes critical. In any case, hopefully by tomorrow, we will have some more pointers. Tuesday would probably be a new dawn. Let us see...

On to the lighter side of things: Prarthna is busy with her antics. Not only does she crawl now, she tries to climb on top of things. She loves to wrestle with cushions. She stood on her own yesterday in the crib. Another new thing that she did was playing with the toys on the playgym while in a sort of upright position (I do have a picture of that but will post it later). In any case, she is certainly an active baby and God has truly blessed us with her.

I love being outdoors

Usted puede ver que soy un bebé al aire libre. También está realizando mis planes a disfrutar del buen tiempo que describí en la entrada anterior. Estos fotos son sacado cuando cumplí seis meses - por lo tanto puedes llamarlo mi iniciación a las granes vistas de la natura

You can see that I am an outdoor baby. I am also coming through on my plans to enjoy the nice weather which I described in the previous post. These pictures are all taken when I turned 6 months - so you can call it my initiation to the great vistas of nature


Prarthna at the zoo

On the hiking trail with Schumans

Relaxing by the river

At Lums Pond 

Abundant joy that is Prarthna

This smile can steal your heart


Prarthna nos da mucho alegría siempre. Ella es la luz de nuestra vida. Ella es realmente una oración contestada. Prarthna ha comenzado recientemente a sentarse en su propio. Hace dos días, se sentó sin ayuda para ocho minutos.

Traducción inglés:

Prarthna always gives us a lot of joy. She is the light of our life. She is really an answered prayer. Prarthna has recently begun to sit on her own. Two days back, she sat unassisted for eight minutes.


Summer is here and I am going to have fun :) 

Ahora que el tiempo es agradable, estoy seguro tomar la ventaja máxima. Porque las temperaturas han subido, he comenzado a cabalgar en mi cochecito por el vecindario que trata de mirar todo. He tomado también algunos paseos en el campus de la universidad con papá cuando mamá ha tenido que visitar el centro médico

Now that the weather is nice, I am sure to take maximum advantage. As the temperatures have risen, I have begun to ride in my stroller through the neighborhood trying to look at everything. I have also taken a couple rides on the university campus with dad when mom has had to visit the health center

Dinner with Bhatias - May 6, 2005

Prarthna con Arjun y Anuj 

Los Bhatias nos visitaron ayer con su hijo Arjun. Comimos la cena juntos. Prachi cocinó 'Kofte', Paneer Bhurji' y 'Bhindi, Aaloo, Karela, Pyaz' con pan y arroz. Todo fui muy sabroso. Arjun y Prarthna jugaron juntos. Prarthna es más activa que Arjun. Estuvo en todas partes, mientras Arjun se sentó en el mismo lugar

Traducción inglés:

The Bhatias visited us yesterday with their son Arjun. We all had dinner together. Prachi cooked 'Kofte', Paneer Bhurji' and 'Bhindi, Aaloo, Karela, Pyaz' with Roti and rice. Everything was very tasty. Arjun and Prarthna played with each other. Prarthna is more active than Arjun. She was everywhere, while Arjun sat in the same place

I am trying to stand :) 

Siempre está de un lado para otro.

I am always on the move

Here I am sitting pretty at six months! 

Prarthna is all smiles with Chachu

It is always a lot of fun to have Bhuvan visit. We have missed seeing him a lot this semester as he has been mighty busy with his courses, projects, research, TA, finding an internship, and what not! A humumgous workload on his shoulders! In any case, he has been able to come a few times and we have been able to spend some good time with him. Prarthna loves playing with him also as can be seen in the picture!