Shasta

S celebrated her 6th today. Unicorn themed - of course - and had her first and probably last ever Piñata. But for a mega meltdown initially she did great all through the event. A few weeks ago, we signed up for a Diwali party organized by the Indian Association in Mexico. Primarily on a whim and maybe for the food? The event was last evening and boy, it was a terrible disappointment! It started late as expected. And obnoxiously loud for no reason. Not quite sure if it was the acoustics at the venue or just the MC shouting into the mic. Maybe both? I love some good rock and metal. I love some good loud music. But I guess not all loud is the same. Also, this day and age, who even does a looping slideshow of pictures of people organizing the event? Dinner was supposed to be served by 1900. Servers said they had orders to serve only at 2030. Maybe the organizers wanted the food to be served only after the main event? When we rechecked at 2030, they said it was pushed to 2130. Had enough of it and walked out. People were still on the dance floor and there was a good turn out. I guess this kinda boisterous social mayhem is just not my jam? ...

S just got back from a week long camping trip in Pipiol. This is the first time she’s been away from M or me overnight and she seems to have handled it real well! Super proud of her! All credit goes to her school for prepping the class right from the very beginning of the school year.

S had a seemingly sudden meltdown on the way back from her roller skating class asking for a ‘Hello Kitty Donut’. She hopped off her bike and said she won’t ride it until we got her one that very instant. M told her we could talk about it once we’re home. The looming thunder clouds didn’t seem to budge her too. M seemed to have had a word with her and that somehow changed her mind - a bit. Finally she did succumb, however vehemently showing her immense dissatisfaction by bawling and walking her bike home. ...

This first, we wanted to take Miss S out for some good time outdoors. With various factors at play, we haven’t had that mental space to prioritize this over the last few months and this is something we definitely wanted to change this year. The Trolley trail was an easy pick since we’d already been there a few times in 2020. [gallery link=“none” size=“medium” ids=“31845,31847,31844,31848,31846”] We directly went to this ‘secret’ spot that’s hidden right at the beginning of the trail. The fog and the weather made this space look even more mystical! Miss S had a terrific time hopping around and throwing pebbles stones across the stream. Later on during the drive back she went on to claim all the fog on the road was because she threw those pebbles in the water. Today was magical! ...

Most evenings when her mom heads downstairs to the gym for a yoga class, this little munchkin and I, head over to the terrace for some ‘outside’ time. She insists on getting her tricycle along - handlebars all donned with Christmas ornaments and the rear storage bin full of random trinkets and toys. Rarely does she really ride it. Ascertaining that the Sun’s still where it’s supposed to be and checking-in with the rising moon, she gets on with her daily business of running behind the crows. Time flies as she fills this unstructured play time with random activities - chasing shadows, sprinting laps, counting birds, verbal diarrhea (What color you like? You see balloon? You like it, Appa? 5,4,2,1..run) and then keeping me on my toes. As the evening beach breeze sets in and the sun dusk’s down, she makes her way downstairs casually forgetting all about the bike. When she does remember it, she wants to be carried downstairs with her sitting on it. ...

@Number Nine Trolley trail Took appa out for a walk here. Shasta had a great time trying to ‘skip stones’. Well, throwing more than skipping…

A glimpse of the past week and the few articles, podcasts, tools, videos and music that captivated my attention: Earlier this week I helped Sharath setup a nextcloud instance on the RaspberryPi 4 that we got him for Christmas. Installed the DietPi OS, moved the user data over to a 5TB WD disk and while at it also setup a pi-hole for the network. Weather wise, this was one odd week. Had a good dusting of snow on Tuesday night and a balmy 60 degrees for most of the weekend. The kids had early school closures and we made sure we hit the trails. ...

A glimpse of the past week and the few articles, podcasts, tools, videos and music that captivated my attention: Happy Birthday little munchkin! At 00:00 on the 19th, Amma and I celebrated your birthday with just the three of us; with you fast asleep on amma’s shoulder, as we were waiting to board the flight to Hong Kong. This will be your longest [34hrs] birthday so far. We’re supremely thankful to have you with us and we’re beyond surprised how you make parenting feel so easy(mostly). As you grow in this mad, illogical, crazy yet mesmerizing world; we hope we’re able to will expose you to people, countries, realms, religions, experiences, wildlife, nature and above all nudge you towards making this a better place for everyone. As cliche as it sounds, time IS flying! ...

Morning muses with the little munchkin perched on top of her stack of books. Babbling, pointing, standing and now slowly trying to walk; this soon to be 11 brat is growing way too fast!

Shasta’s first visit to Patapsco state park. Sharath, Meena, Shasta and I planned to head out together initially. Was pretty breezy and cold. Shasta initially was showing signs of queasiness, so Meena suggested Sharath and I head out while she’d stroll closer to the car. Started out on the downhill and entered the woods around the corner. Meena joined with Shasta as we were heading back covering about three miles. A wonderful, refreshing day out! ...