Been a long time since I did pictures, so here goes:

Here’s one of her eating by herself. She’s a pro now (Kala Tikka!) and her eating skills were much appreciated at school.

Here’s one of her wearing all the gear that I (she?) got at the big bangalore blogger meet. The cap and book are courtesy Abha, the T-Shirt is one of the two that she got from Kiran “If you think I’m beautiful, wait until you see my mom”- isn’t it a riot? The bag is from Kiran as well.

I try hard to get her to do artwork….sigh

Poppin has started school again after a long break of two months (summer holidays). I was concerned that she would go through an adjustment period again, but thankfully I was wrong. She’s excited about going to school, trots off happily every morning and apparently participates in all the activities. It’s very exciting to hear what her teachers have to say about her, it’s like seeing another dimension of her.

I have slowed down at the work front, working from home most of the time, and I’m only working part time. I am off work from July (really early since I’m only due in mid August). This somehow seems impractical because I know I should use my free time after the baby is born, but I really want to spend more time with Poppin before it becomes madness again.

I’m in week 32 now and thankfully so far everything has been going well with regard to my pregnancy. I feel active and healthy and am very grateful for that. A week ago, the DH suggested we go out for lunch on Friday afternoon. Since both of us were working from home, I agreed. I suggested taking Poppin along but I knew it would clash with her afternoon nap so I didn’t insist. En route to the restaurant, I started getting ravenous so suggested we make a U turn and stop over elsewhere. DH however insisted that we go ahead with our original plan because apparently I had said that I wanted to go to this particular place only and he had to indulge me. I found it strange but didn’t say much, perhaps the man finally realizes that he has to pamper me more?

When I got to the restaurant, what do I see? All my friends from office were gathered there, and it was a baby shower! We had a great lunch and I got a lot of cool stuff for the new baby. They even included a gift for Poppin which I thought was so thoughtful and marvelous of them. Belatedly I realized how my teammate had taken DH’s number a few weeks ago apparently for some information on the Tennis Coaching classes that he conducts! I was so amazed and touched.

That was Friday. Saturday, I was lazing around still oohing and aahing over the cute blankets and booties that I had gotten the day before (are newborns really that small?) DH told me that there was an used book sale going on in the terrace of our apartment, a charity event conducted by the committee. And there’s no way I would miss looking at books, so I hurriedly ate lunch (despite DH telling me that there would be time later to eat) and then grabbed some of my own books to donate.

I land up at the terrace and guess what - all my closest friends are yelling SURPRISE! Two surprises in a row? Whoa. They had made food (and I’d eaten already waaah!) and brought me a gorgeous saree, that I quickly changed into. We played games and caught up and had a fantastic time. This one was completely driven by my two closest pals and the DH. DH wanted to even call some of the Bangalore bloggers apparently, but just around that time I’d deleted my mobile’s phone book by mistake and lost all my numbers!

I kept telling DH that he shouldn’t have done this, I felt so guilty for yelling at him the last few weeks because he seemed to be so busy SMS’ing all the time or spending family time in front of the computer. Now I know that he was spending time planning the showers for me. Sweet sweet man. And this baby is so so lucky, because he/she has gotten not one, not two but three baby showers so far.

This is not about why you “should” have another baby or when you should time it. There are no real answers to that question, because each situation is so different. Before we had babies, DH and I had the conversation about babies, like most married couples do. He wanted a baby and I grudgingly agreed to keep up my end of the bargain. My only condition? If we have one, we must have two. No idea why, but I thought that it wouldn’t be fair on one kid to have two parents ganging up against him/her. The husband agreed.

So we went on to have the Poppin. And I discovered how hard this child-rearing thing is. Mentally. Physically I’m up for the challenge, I have lots of energy in general, can sleep anywhere/anytime so all night feeds aren’t a huge problem. Mentally, worrying about whether I was raising her appropriately, spending both quality and quantity time with her, all of this took (and still does to a large extent) a toll on me.

And I began to revisit my decision to have another baby. Pregnancy too was a daunting prospect, I’d had preeclampsia with Poppin and delivered her via an emergency C-Sec at 34 weeks. After spending a day or two in NICU and couple days later in phototherapy, she turned out OK. But the fear and the stress associated with a possibly less than healthy baby was quite scary. Another friend of ours, who’d delivered almost a year after I did also ended up having Pre-E and then Eclampsia, she even had a couple of seizures. It was so hard just listening to her story.

There was (and still is) every possibility that Pre-E might return the second time around, or there might be other unforeseen complications. I talked to my Dr before I decided to start trying for another baby and read up quite a lot (on the internet ofcourse) about Pre-E and my chances for getting it the second time. It’s there but in general because my past history is known, I can be on the lookout and early intervention could help.

Once I’d convinced myself that I could somehow come out of this pregnancy healthy and with a healthy baby, the question was the timing. And the ability to do the juggling act all over again. And God there are no easy answers to that one. It’s just my impatient nature I guess, once I make up my mind to do something I just want to do it soon enough. Raising children is hard but rewarding. Unless there was a real reason for me not to do it right now (medical, financial, other strong commitments) what was stopping me from getting started? I must say I am fortunate that DH didn’t pose any major hurdles in my way. When I told him we should have another baby, he was like ‘Yeah sure’

The main reason I want to do it? It’s just that - a want. There’s this deep need in you to have a child, and you have to abide by that. Or live to regret it all your life. Atleast that is what I felt. I wanted to do it again, to enjoy everything that I didn’t the last time. The first time you’re pregnant everything is new and there’s fun in that. Second time around, it’s not and so you can consciously enjoy your moment instead of going ‘What’s next?’. I hope it’s the same way with my baby as well. Maybe this time instead of worrying about schedules ALL the time, I can be in the moment. I believe that children are gifts from God. Although it seems that we’re doing all the planning and feeling super smart about it, it’s all premeditated someplace else. It was just our time to have another baby. And I am SO looking forward to seeing Poppin in her new role as big sister!

This past couple of months, has been a very bloggy time for me. It started with the huge online shower which culminated in two bloggers Aargee and COS coming home to surprise me with a printed keepsake of the shower efforts. A beautiful gesture, made more special by the fact that they braved Bangalore traffic and took time away from family to come and deliver it in person!

Then I met BangaloreMom and Just Like That, for a quick lunch at McD’s. It was supposed to be brief, since it was a working day, but Bangaloremom actually missed her post lunch meeting because we got so busy yapping away. It was so much fun that when Aargee suggested a bangalore blog meet, we jumped right in with enthusiasm. We decided to do it during the time our very own celebrity blogger Kiran would be in town.

In between however, I got lucky again. Kowsalya and her vivacious daughter Abi, came to Bangalore from Chennai and she made time for a quick meetup with COS and me. I wish we could have spent more than the half hour we managed to squeeze in, we had just started to really warm up and it was time to leave

The big bangalore blogger’s meet happened last Friday and it was a huge success!

Right after the Bangalore blogger’s meet, Shruthi called to let me know that she would drop in to my place on Saturday. We were planning to meet up a couple weeks ago, but couldn’t. This last Saturday she made it. She came in with her porcelain doll like daughter - Puttachi and hubby S~. And not only was Puttachi so darn pretty, she was also super friendly! [Anti-jinx].

To me this meetup was very special because Shruthi is one of the first bloggers I read, before I myself started blogging. I have two friends who blog. And for the longest time I only read them. Gradually I visited others on their blogroll. Pridera led me to Shruthi, and TruthFairy led me to Sujatha. And ofcourse Suj led me to The Mad Momma and the rest as they say, is history. These were the first strangers whose blogs I read. If only I could meet Sujatha and The Mad Momma as well, now that would be so perfect. Someday. I hope.

The unexpected side effect of Shruthi coming to visit me, was the change in DH’s attitude. So far he’s been treating my blog and all the stuff I tell him about blogging as something women do. He’s met three other bloggers before this - Aargee, COS and aka.Monica. But Aargee and COS came home sans hubbies (possibly reinforcing the image he has in mind about us mommy/parent bloggers) while aka.Monica is almost like not a blog friend. When we meet we NEVER talk about blogging.

But with Shruthi it was different. Towards the end of their visit we ended up actually talking about blogging, and when S~ said that he’d read my blog (I don’t know if he said it to be nice :), DH was taken aback. I think he thought that if a man was reading it, then it wasn’t a woman’s thing after all! After they left, for the first time he asked me for a blogger’s url (Shruthi’s) and read through some of her posts. He even asked me for mine, but didn’t venture beyond this post (Oh, what’s this kickstarting baby series mean? It’s so cryptic, I don’t know what’s going on blah blah

Whatever. I’m not too keen that he should read my blog, but it would be nice if he didn’t pretend that it didn’t exist! And if he didn’t use his ‘Oh your blog friend‘ tone the next time I speak about somebody I met due to blogging. Sue, you did tell me (in an offline conversation) that this would happen if he met more of you guys, and it’s finally coming true.

Before I forget, I also managed to meet up one on one with Kiran on Tuesday last. I mainly went so I could meet the muse of her blog, the adorable, friendly and high-energy brat. I took Poppin along as well. I supposedly saw her minus her war paint, but contrary to what she thinks, I did NOT faint. Dear Kiran, I’ve seen you all glammed up and then at home with your glasses in, and I STILL think you’re gorgeous. So there.

So here’s to blogging and meeting more interesting folks. For where else would I meet such a diverse range of people?

..we have blog meets
On Friday last, nine of us (yes NINE) bangalore bloggers met up for lunch.

Venue: Kind aargee’s place, who played hostess to perfection in her well groomed and lovely home.

Time: 1:00 to 4:00, most of us were there for most part.

Food: Juice/Mirinda/Sprite, with cookies and chips as starters. Yummy paranthas/Rajma/raita/salad for lunch (from Mast Kalandar). Dessert was an awesome Chocolate Mousse cake, courtesy Swati, of which yours truly ate two pieces. What? One for the baby ofcourse!

We talked about: Husbands, work, life, babies, blogging, weight…. all punctuated by lots and lots of laughing.

Since we were in such a large group, it’s hard to get very particular impressions about any blogger. In general though, there were NO awkward moments, no quiet moments, and everyone was fun.

In particular,
Swati: I think I’d seen a blurry picture of her a long time ago on a social networking site, but didn’t remember her so well. As far as looks go, she’s pretty, tall and has a Jolie-esque pout. She’s calm (but not quiet no sirree) and when you’re talking to her she has this way of looking right at you and paying attention, a fantastic listener. And she got us that heavenly cake, so yeah she’s a good guest too!

Abha: I didn’t know her too well (via her blog) before we met so no, I had no specific images in my mind. She’s easy going and full of laughs. She’s a sport, she brought these lovely little gifts for all our kids (gift-wrapped with their blog names on it!!) even though, apart from Aargee’s son, no other kids were present. And these funky baseball caps for all of us from her company (she works for a popular radio station)..

Compulsive Dreamer: Quiet is what I thought when I met her. And yes,lovely voice and great diction. She got Aargee and me (pregnancy heh) flowers. How sweet is that? She was also the person everyone thought was very familiar, as in they had met her someplace but couldn’t put their finger on where. Must be some karmic connection I managed to spend some one on one time with her when we going back home and I noticed that she spoke pretty decent Kannada to my driver despite having lived here only for 4 years. I was maha impressed.

Kiran : I was most pumped about seeing her. One, because I’ve known her personally for a long time now. Two, this blog of hers. She writes the most coolest stuff there. She arrived the last (at 2 pm) thanks to namoora traffic and the fact that she’s staying at the other end of the city. I went down to Aargee’s gate to receive her because I was so curious to see her. And boy she didn’t disappoint. She was wearing a sexy black top (cleavage et al :), sexy black jeans, pale gold peep toe stilettos and a matching bling bling handbag. And, ofcourse oversize sunglasses perched up her gorgeous hair. Don’t believe her when she says that she is fat. She is so not. She’s gorgeous. And very very friendly. Real and down to earth. Not snooty like some of those women I see all immaculately groomed.

I’d already met the others, so no surprises there. But yeah, just so they don’t feel left out..

Aargee: Still waters run deep, that’s the one thing that comes to my mind when I think of Aargee. Ofcourse at this meet she was harassed by having to play hostess to us. And her son, refused to go down for a nap at his usual time. There was no way he was going to sleep with so much action going on! Eventually he dropped into her arms and slept.. at the END of the meet. Unfortunately we all had to leave (Come on, it was 4 pm, how long can you outstay a welcome?) even though Aargee pleaded with us to stay !

Bangalore-Mom: I’ve already met her before at a brief impulsive lunchtime meet we did a few days ago. Which was also a blast by the way. So much so, that she actually missed her post lunch meeting ! And this meet confirmed what I thought about her then. This one is a riot. She’s vivacious and animated and I’m sure is the blabbermouth that brings parties to life It’s a non stop talkathon with her, total masti!

Collection Of Stars: I’ve known her for awhile now, I think we gel easily. We can pick up the conversation thread at any point and we have lots in common. Amongst all the Bangalore bloggers, I identify with her the most. She’s easy going, simple and straightforward.

Just Like That: I’d met her too at the above mentioned lunch meet with Bangalore-Mom. When I joined her and Bangalore-Mom that afternoon, I’d already had lunch at office. I wanted to have a drink but wasn’t carrying cash and stupid McD’s won’t take cards. Nevertheless as soon as I sat down, she solicitously asked me what I wanted, went down and stood in line and bought a milkshake back. That should tell you about her. She’s warm warm warm. Just like her posts and her comments. I think I could tell her anything and she wouldn’t judge me. The next time I have something to fess up to, I know whom to call.

Sigh. It was a beautiful experience. I so want to do it again.

P.S Read Swati’s version pre-meet post here and post-meet here

The first bloggy baby has arrived. Today. Please head over to Parijata’s and congratulate her (she’s a non mommy blogger, but reads us).I got a one line SMS from her phone at 8:25 AM today, “It’s a girl!” and I was so darn excited that I felt so silly She already has a son and this is her second baby. Sigh, a perfect little family.

Another blogging friend is due as well this month and I’m eagerly awaiting the news. Dear pal, I so WISH you would make that announcement on your blog, don’t you know how it’s killing me to keep this quiet?

Ok, who’s next *rubbing hands in glee* ? Lavs, Kodi’s Mom, Maggie ! I’m guessing we’ll go alternate, Lavs will have a boy. Kodi’s mom a pretty girl and Maggie we know is having Munch. Yoohoo this is so much fun.

Edit: What an idjat I am, I missed STS ! We already know Something to Say is having a girl. My alternate theory is working very well I must say. Provided she has the baby after Maggie that is.

Blame it on pregnancy hormones but there are actually five people due in June in this order:

PlanetHalder, Kodi’s Mom, Lavs, Maggie, STS

Since planethalder is having a girl, that probably turns my theory of alternate sexes for each delivery on it’s head. But then again if Lavs goes first and not Kodi’s mom (like I’d been thinking..)

Mystery Pregnant Blogger Cantaloupe’s Amma : Boy (My guess) Show’s I’m wrong, she had a girl on 20th May.

PlanetHalder: Girl (Known)

Lavs: Boy (My guess)

Kodi’s Mom : Girl (My guess) She had a boy !! On June 4th, and she was next after CA. PH and Lavs are still in line.

Maggie : Boy (Known)

STS: Girl (Known)

Update: Read STS’s wonderful tips here..

TMM has a nice post on the tips for mothers and MTB’s all of which I wholeheartedly endorse. Here are some of my personal random notes for MTB’s from my first experience..

1. Save the back: I cannot emphasize enough on the need for preserving the back. One of the biggest culprits for back pain is the diaper changing position. Most of our time is spent changing diapers (barring feeding ofcourse, which I hope all mothers do sitting or lying down). I used to change Poppin’s diapers on the bed (with a rubber sheet underneath) and while this was ok, I would still find myself hunching over a bit. So one of the best things I did was to set up a changing table of sorts. This helped the Dh too, as he took over most of the diaper changing sessions. You can buy these changing tables with drawers etc, in any good baby store if you are live in a major city in India. I know Lifestyle carries it, and in Bangalore so does the Baby Store (Ulsoor Road) For those of you living in a foreign country, you get it in every baby store I’m sure.

If you don’t want to (or can’t due to space/budget constraints) then you could set up a diaper changing station on the top of almost any table that is of comfortable height. i.e. When the baby is on the table, you must not have to bend down to change the diaper. Then you could use a changing pad on top of the table (which also you can find in said stores) If that is also ruled out, simply put a thick folded blanket and throw a waterproof cover on top.

Obviously you NEVER take your eyes off the baby when he/she is on the table! And keep all your supplies close by, warm water-cotton balls/wipes, butt cream etc.

2. (W)Rap like an Egyptian: The maternity girdle/wrap is something I found incredibly useful. It’s touted to help get your tummy back into shape and it did work for me. Don’t believe me? Read this. Even if you still don’t believe me, do get into the habit of wearing one, because, it supports the back! Now there are different types of maternity belts in the market. But me, I stuck to the good old cotton saree method. Cotton is comfortable, washed cotton is soft and doesn’t chafe and make you itch. Plus the size is customizable!

How it works is thus (bear with me on the descriptions and totally yucky drawings, I’m no great shakes at this!)

1. Get a helper to hold one end of the old cotton saree while you hold the other end.

2. Fold length wise into halves.

3. Repeat, so you have a strip of thick cloth whose width is about the length of your palm.

4. Starting from one end, roll the folded saree, as tightly as possible like you would roll a mat.

5. Use a ‘naada’ from a pajama, to tie up the rolled up saree.

You can get two sets like this ready before your delivery, for alternate day’s use.

After your delivery, depending on your comfort level (and mode of delivery), you have the nurse or helper start tying this on your stomach. Here’s how this is done (wish I could do pictures..)

1. You lie on your back
2. The helper unwraps your tied up saree a bit and tucks in one end underneath you, right below your rib cage
3. And begins to unroll the saree and wrap you tightly like an Egyptian mummy.
4. The wrap goes all the way to the bikini line (or just above your C-Sec scar if you have one)
5. There will still be some saree left, so wrap back up such that the two ends of the saree meet, at which point they can be knotted up.
6. You can reinforce the wrap by tying the pajama ‘naada’ (string) around as well.
7. Wrap as tightly as is bearable, not so tight that you can’t breathe, but not so loose that when you sit up, the saree folds hang loose.

You can do the wrap standing up but I find the best results comes from lying on your back, as the stomach is naturally flattened in that position and you get the best fit. I started with this on Day 3 after a C-Section. It was slightly uncomfortable at first, but soon it was god send. It was the one thing that made those all day feeds bearable. After close to five-six months of bearing weight around your stomach, your back gets used to it and now it requires this support. I wore this for nearly 3-4 months, after which if you’re going back to work, it gets impossible.

It sounds complicated, but it’s really not. If you’re in India, ask the ayah in the hospital or your massage lady, she’s bound to know how this works. If you’re abroad, make the extra effort and have your mom/mil bring these sarees from home. A man’s cotton veshti (South Indian Dhoti) also works, but I really like the length of a saree and the doubling up of the wrap. It is totally totally worth it.

3. Don’t call me, I’ll call you : Rest, rest, rest. Do not talk/watch TV/read/browse the internet/blog for more than 10 minutes at a time. Even that, only after a fortnight after delivery. Listening to music is ok ! It sounds crazy, but these things tire you out. Your body has just been through something incredible, give it a chance to recuperate. I used to balk at this (especially when you’re going nuts with a new baby) but you HAVE to give yourself this time to recover. You’ll have enough time to catch up with the rest of the world later, believe me, nothing earth shattering will have happened by then. If you can, withdraw from everything for 6 weeks. You’ll be all the more stronger and refreshed when you get back. And those of you desis who argue that Western women do everything within days of their delivery, all I have to say in response is yeah, but so what? If you can get that rest, and there’s someone to give it you, grab it with both hands. Besides we are all not structured the same way.

4. Mamma don’t preach: Everyone knows the pains of unsolicited advice. Here’s my own unsolicited advice to you: LISTEN. Even if it annoys you, confuses you, or you hate the source from where it comes, listen. Don’t act, but atleast listen. Postpartum is a time when you’re highly irritated and unsure of your abilities as a new mother. Blame it on hormones and lack of sleep. Due to that, one tends to fight with helpful mothers, or diss every piece of advice that does not come from Dr. Spock. Don’t. There’s some wisdom in tried and tested methods. There’s no need to try every single thing that comes your way, but listen up and see, there might be something you could use. Beyond that ofcourse you do what works for you and your family.

5. It’s a beautiful day: Children I believe, are put on earth for the express purpose of teaching us to live in the moment. So do just that. If you had a bad day, leave it and don’t dwell on it the next. If junior cried all day yesterday, don’t fall into the trap of ‘I must be a bad mother‘. Nothing is permanent. Even those “bad” habits that the child has picked up. If you need to get back to work in four months time, don’t fret about that now. I think that infant care issues apart, what makes it harder is the pressure we put on ourselves to be perfect mothers. Let it be, you and baby will find your rhythm soon enough.

Approach the new day as it truly is meant to be approached - a brand new beautiful day. One more day with your bundle of squirming, pooping, spitting-up joy.

Not in real life, merely in Poppin’s vocabulary. Poppin has finally woken up to the fact that she’s about to become a big sister.

- We’re leaving her Thatha’s house (my FIL) and she’s saying Bye to everyone. Then she announces, “Mummy, Daddy, Baby, Kutti Babbee ellaarum polaam” (Let’s all of us leave, Mom/Dad/Baby (herself) and small baby).

- She’s playing with her hot wheels cars, there are four of them - she says “Idhu Mummy odu car”,”Daddy odu”, “Baby odu” and then pauses and says “Idhu Kutti Babbee odu” (This is Mom/dad/baby/small baby’s car)

- Frequently she’ll stop what she’s doing and come close to me, and say “Hi Kutti Babbee” to my tummy. Complete with a wave. And a falsetto. It’s like how we go squeaky when we talk to small children.

- She announced to my mother that when Kutti Babee comes out, it will call her ‘Akka’ (Big Sis). This line is coached by me, but it’s made an impact on her.

Ofcourse this doesn’t mean she’s all gung ho about the impending arrival..

- I used to say Kutti Babee is kicking me, then she promptly tried to kick it back (ouch). So now I just say Kutti Babee is moving inside.

- After naming each toy car after a member of the family, she promptly handed the Kutti Babee odu car back to me saying ‘Kutti babee odu car vendam’ (I don’t want the small baby’s car). Ahem.

- During my 24 week ultrasound, we took her in to see the images. After saying Hi to the baby on the monitor, she turns to DH and asks ‘Poppin odu photo enga?’ (Where is my photo?). Like it was some damn slideshow.

- We had a friend visit last weekend with a 10 month old. The moment I carried the baby, she wanted to be carried as well. Later, I put him in Poppin’s paddle pool after I filled it with balls (like a ball pit). She kept telling him, “Endru” (Get up) and when he didn’t respond, turned to me and asked me to lift him from the ball pit. All because I forbade her from going in while he’s sitting inside (it’s not big enough for two, atleast not for a rough toddler and a small baby).

Well, we’ll cross the sibling rivalry bridge when we get to it. Right now at 25 weeks I’m enjoying the pregnancy far too much to worry about it.

Poppin is now 31 months and she’s growing in leaps and bounds in many ways. Vocabulary and understanding crucial amongst them. Along with it, she’s also becoming more independent with doing things for herself. Wearing her strappy sandals all by herself, her underwear and pants (she hasn’t tried wearing frocks or tops by herself yet).

One of the biggest (from my end ofcourse) changes is the ability to eat by herself. She used to be able to eat dry food (chappathi/dosa/idly) if I made them into bit sized pieces for her but I had never let her try using a spoon. Must be the overprotective desi-ness in me.

All that changed in the brief period she attended school. Since she’s in a mixed age group obviously she’s seen some older kids feed themselves with a spoon. So at home she declared one fine day that she would do it Thaaney Thaaney (all by myself). At first she was clumsy, tipping the spoon before it reached her. Now she’s getting better at it with practice.

If she starts making too much of a mess, then I try to involve myself with some other activity so I don’t develop hernia or become that overbearing mother who’s trying to get her to eat in a particular way. Like right now, I’m writing this post And she’s actually seated on the living room sofa with her food. Thank god I have a leather sofa !

Now that I’ve finished the good news here’s the bad: Potty training has reached an impasse. She doesn’t still tell us for pee but if we take her at frequent intervals, then no accidents either. Night training looks like a far off dream. To be honest I haven’t done any real “training” yet. Maybe I’m too lazy, I keep telling myself I’ll do it when I start working from home or take maternity leave.

If you thought that wasn’t so bad, hear this, she’s still not falling asleep without me rocking her. I have to put her on my lap and pat her or move my leg so she gets a sensation of being rocked. All this to the accompaniment of songs/stories. Now this is a killer, for one no one else but me can do it (my mom is OK, in the afternoons, nights, it has to be me). And as I get heavier and bigger this will be impossible.

I’ve tried holding her down at the bed and singing to her, but no go. She insists on Mummy Madi (lap) and why wouldn’t she? She’s used to it now. This one I’ve no clue when she’ll change. I’m considering getting her a big girl bed and telling her that from now she’s a big girl and has to go to sleep Thaaney Thaaney. Let’s see.

It’s strange, but none of the above changes is making me extra proud or worried. I’m more proud when we laugh at a joke she cracked, than to see her eat by herself. I’m more worried to see her shy away from people than her bad sleeping habits. Maybe I’ve finally realized that parenting is less about how well “trained” the child is, and more about how well “adjusted” she is.

Poppin was sick yesterday and I hadn’t logged on my blog reader. In the afternoon, when I had a free moment, I just popped into Kiran’s Karmickids space. I was hoping for maybe a change in her Bangalore trip plans and what do I see there? A Riddle-Me-Ree. And I’m like whaat? I read it twice to see if I’d missed something, then figured it was maybe it was a prelude of some sort to another post. Then I visited some other bloggers randomly, can’t remember who, maybe Itchy? And I see a different version of the rhyme. I was getting more and more puzzled until I saw Boo’s comment on some of these blogs pointing to her post.

I guess all of you who planned this, hadn’t contended with our very own Boo. The one who has her pulse on the mommy blogdom ! And when I read that post, and the comments that’s when a light bulb went off in my head. So MTB=Mother to Be? So ofcourse I got cracking, I went back to Kiran and the word “Musings” and “Name of a flower” stuck a chord and I knew it was Daisy. Soon we were all exchanging notes on Boo’s commentspace. Then I started getting obsessive, making lists and cracking my head on the clues.

I called Aargee in hopes of wringing more information from her but the bum didn’t pick my call. She had the gall to cheerfully tell me on chat last night that she deliberately refused to pick my call, lest she reveal something. The wretch

When Maggie and later Kodi’s mom joined the fun, we knew we would outsmart you guys !I think we were up late in the night (till around midnight my time) just exchanging MBA-style excel spreadsheets and clues. Till ofcourse Boo cracked it and I saw the answer today morning.

I’ve been logging on and off today morning to the babyshower website and I really don’t have anything coherent to say. To be honest when I knew that there was a blog that we had to get to, I thought it would be a simple one that said maybe ‘Yah Boo‘ or something and some one liner messages from each of you.

While that would have also been wonderful, what is out there is something extraordinary. The design of the blog, the widgets on it (the chat, the bottle, the globe) the length and depth of each message. I’m totally overwhelmed and teary.

And I can only imagine how much hard work it must’ve been to coordinate this amongst yourselves. Across time zones. And deadlines. And babies and housework. How do you mothers who are already shortchanged and frazzled at home find the time to do this for us?

I was due to do a post on April 10th, a blog anniversary post, but never got around to doing one. If I had done it, I would have talked about the sisterhood I’ve found amongst all you women. Who take the time out to read about me and get into my shoes, help me solve my personal issues, laugh at my pathetic jokes, pat my back when I’m feeling sad..

And who now have created a beautiful haven for me to step into and feel pampered and wanted and loved.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I love you all so much !

P.S The actual treasure hunt leads to a blog whose address can be found at Broom’s. It’s a private blog that required cracking the code to get the uid/pwd. For security reasons however, the girls have decided to change the pwd.