36 weeks scan

Hey beanie baby...

We had a growth scan scheduled on the 17th of Dec (you were 36 weeks then) and I was super excited to see you after such a long time. I think it has been 4 months since your anomaly scan. I was eagerly hoping that you would move around a lot during the scan and I would get to see what you actually do when I feel stuff moving inside of me. I had even thought that I will eat some ice-cream before I get to the hospital so that you would be on a sugar high :) Unfortunately, neither could I eat the ice-cream nor did I get to see you much.

Long story short, you had already descended down into position and the doc tried to show you to us from different angles. For one thing, your face was not visible anymore - we could only see what was left of your cheeks and chin. But then again, you had probably become very camera shy, because you had covered both your cheeks with your hands. My my, what long fingers you had.

All we could see of you were your hands, thighs and bum - hehe. Meanwhile, the week before on Dec 8th, Sunday - your first cousin - my sister's baby girl was born. We had gone to see her already thrice in the same week. The day she was born, then 2 days later with my cousin's family and then again 3 days later with your paternal grandmother and paternal aunt. She is the cutest baby girl and looks exactly like a Japanese doll :) She has the blackest of eyes I have ever seen in a baby. You are very excited to see her I bet, but you still have time. Don't worry, she'll come to see you when you are born.

You are now 37 weeks old and we just have 3 more weeks to go before we can actually see you. Me and DD are super excited and waiting eagerly to meet you.

Your achievements this month ??

You have been kicking a lot lately and doc has informed us to get to the hospital if you don't kick normally or if you don't kick at the normal times.

You kick the most in the morning when I lie down for a while around 10 am. Then again after my breakfast when I sit down to work around 12 pm. Then after lunch when I get down for a siesta around 3.30 pm and you are the most active around 4 pm just after your DD leaves to work. He misses the most action that you have in the day. Then after that I guess you go into a deep sleep, cause the next I feel you is only at night after dinner time around 11 pm or so.

Also, you have started getting a lot of hiccups lately. Maybe its the way I sit, but I am not so sure because, changing positions doesn't help your condition. I feel it is the hiccups, because I can feel you jumping around inside. I can only but assume since its rather rhythmic.

My BH contractions have started long ago. Sometimes, I think I have labor contractions, but I am not sure about them. So we cannot really say how soon we will be welcoming you into our world, but I just hope its soon :) I cant stand the excitement any longer. But your DD wants you to take your time. He jokes around telling you not to come in 2013 as that would make you an old model by a mere few days. So he tells you to come in 2014. Lets see !!

- Ciao until we see your doc next on 26th.

28 weeks

Dear Baby Beanie,

I am so overwhelmed today - hence this post.

We together completed 28 weeks today. Just 12 more weeks to go.

Here are some updates in your life.

The last appointment was nothing great. Doc could hear your heartbeat very clearly and all the reports (HIV and OGCT - 2nd time) came out normal. So nothing to worry.

You have become SUPER hyper active this month. You are kicking all afternoon. You kick when I lie down (within 5 mins you start kicking). But the only problem is that when DD wants to feel you kick, you kind of shy away - not sure why you do that. He gets to feel you very rarely and enjoys every moment with you.

You kick a lot more in the afternoons when I am working in office and the next highest is during night when I am sleeping. I still don't know what triggers your kicking - whether its the fact that I am calm (not moving around) or its the fact that I have just eaten. I am yet to figure that out.

Meanwhile, here are some updates in my life.

I enrolled for the Cloud Nine delivery package (booked it) last month. I attended an antenatal workshop which was a freebie with the booking. There was a seminar and several people from Cloud Nine spoke about various things - nutritional needs of mom and baby, stem cell technology, diet and exercise for mom and baby etc., It was a fun workshop although DD liked only few parts of it.

I got new clothes (ur DD bought me some new stuff after a long long time - else I do all my shopping by myself. He doesnt like shopping and doesnt generally accompany me)

I got a new monitor at work yesterday :D

I ordered a phone yesterday and got a new phone today on an amazing Diwali offer on Flipkart. My stupid old phone was just 6 months old but was giving a lot of problems. So exchanged it for a new one.

I put up a new pic of myself yesterday on FB and all my friends are wishing us ATB for our new adventure together. Together we will travel the journey of life and I hope you will want to be with me throughout this journey - if not physically (which is not possible at all times) - at-least mentally in tandem with my thoughts and actions :)

Wishing you ATB for your life which begins in approximately 12 weeks from now.

- So

Ganesha Chaturthi in Mangalore

Although I reached Mangalore on the day of Ganesh Chaturthi, I know I did not miss much, because that is only the beginning for us Mangaloreans. The first day of the Chaturthi only signifies bringing or welcoming of the Lord Ganesha to our homes. The festival only starts after that and it generally lasts for around 10 days or so. Some people have a send-off party for our dear Ganesha on the same day (thats how it is at my dad's ancestral house - where my parents attend the festival), whereas some of them send him away on the day of Nopi (10 days from the day of festival) - that is how it is done in Mumbai. Some others keep the lord in their houses for a month and then send him off.

Here, at Mangalore, different temples follow different traditions and so I got to see atleast 5 different Ganeshas being sent off :) I could not attend our ancestral fest (maternal side). However, I got to see other community fests happening and ending. One of them is our very own Venkataramana Temple Ganesha idol. A very beautiful one I must say. I regret to say that I did not bring my camera along for my Mangalore visit this time. So I do not have many pics with me to put up.

The 2nd Ganesha that I saw was the Sanganiketan community Ganesha. Huge in stature and very commanding looking, but very beautiful and so different to look at than the other idols you might see around the city. The last but not the least was the procession I went to see - for the Nehru Maidan Ganesha. This idol is also very huge and the entire city comes together to watch this procession, which includes around 15 tableaux marking the start of the procession, and then comes our lord Ganesha at the very end of the line. The only difference with this Ganesha - even though being very large - is that the face of the Ganesha looks like a small kid - so its very very beautiful to look at and a very enjoyable sight.

During this procession, I walked for around an hour rushing through the various tableaux. Main attractions were the Mahishasura Mardini, Krishna Leela, Bala Ganesha Leela - where he stops Shiva from entering Parvathi's quarters - hence leading to birth of the elephant face lord, Lord Hanuman's story and many more. So by the time we saw the Ganesha towards the end of the procession, it was raining torrentially as is the usual Mangalore climate. We had to then rush back to our house lest we get stuck in the rain - we had gone on foot. So we rushed quickly back home and meanwhile got drenched in the rain a bit :) I was a bit scared that I would catch a cold - but thankfully I didn't.

However, by the time we got back, I had a bad-ass pain in my back which was not allowing me to put one step ahead of the other by the time we reached close to home. Somehow I managed to get back home, climb upstairs, freshen up and fall into bed, dreaming about the next Ganesha Chaturthi - hoping to take my baby to see its first Ganesha festivities at my dad's ancestral house. Lets see what next year has in store for me. Until then....

- So

BABY KICK ALERT !!!

Dear Baby Beanie...

I must say the last visit to your doc was quite a fruitful one. Remember how she asked me if I felt your movements and I was not too sure. Well !! I am pretty sure now and I can feel you very prominently inside of me.

When I got back from the doctor's consultation visit, I kept thinking - the doc said I should feel you within a week - but then have I been feeling you and I don't know yet ? So I lay down for a while wanting to see if what I felt is real. They say in THE book that babies are most active when mom is lying down or resting. And yes indeed, I did feel something different and concluded it has to be you.

Then we got busy with your elder cousin's birthday celebrations and me with my work and stuff and I only got time to really feel you at night everyday. Sorry I could not spend much time with you. Also, I had to get some last minute stuff done - we are finally leaving for Mangalore - to your maternal grandmother's place. I was so excited that I went on a last minute spree on Saturday. We are leaving on Sunday (8th Sept) on the day of Gowri pooja. I went to my dentist, got my fillings redone - went for a grooming session - oh and also went to the hospital again to get your delivery package.

It  will be close to the end of 6th month (mid 6th month atleast) when I get back from Mangalore and then it would be too late to book your delivery package at Cloud Nine. The package includes a lot of freebies - a free antenatal workshop for me and DD, a free pre-natal workout session for me, a free baby shower for us and then there is also other stuff like a lucky draw and then they gave me some printouts about what I should get at the time of admission for YOU (baby) and ME (mom). There was also a insurance form that I need to fill in and keep ready for admission procedures to go smoothly.

Anyways, this post was about your movements - so I left on Sunday night to Mangalore. I was so excited and maybe so were you. After I came to Mangalore, I guess you grew a tough pair of arms and legs. I feel you kick so hard every day when I sit down to relax and every night when I lie down to sleep. You have become super active here - not sure whats the difference. Maybe you know that you are in a different environment or are excited to meet your grandparents but you sure are not quiet :)

DD is hoping to get to feel you better when we get back since we have been away from him for around 9 days now. We will be going back to Bangalore tonite (Sep 17th). DD will be waiting to receive us in the morning :)

- So

It sure is Baby Season !!!

Wow !! I know so many people close to me who are currently pregnant.

I, for one am expecting and 22 weeks pregnant. There is my cousin who is sharing almost the same due date with me. Then there is my sister who is 1 month + 1 week ahead of both of us. My friend's sister is also pregnant.

And today I find out that one of my other friends is also pregnant and due 2 months later than me.... Wow !! Overwhelming piece of information and a lot to take :) Gonna be difficult to keep track of due dates now.

Also, I need to start some serious knitting / crochet now if I wanna make enough gifts for all my close friends' / relatives' babies. When I do, I will put up pics on my other blog.

- So

General Checkup at 22 weeks

Dear baby beanie,

We had our monthly checkup today. I am on 22 weeks now. More than half-way thru. Just 18 more weeks to go before I can see you. Finally got to hear your heartbeat over the hand-held doppler and we were overjoyed to hear it. It was super audible at the first try itself.

Doc asked if I could feel movements - she described them "butterfly-like". I said that I could feel something but I was not sure. Your dad joked "butterfly-nu illa yaava fly-nu illa" (roughly translating to  not just butterfly, there is not even a fly). However, doc said that I should start feeling movements in another week's time.

Some other updates are that I need to get my 2nd OGCT (Oral Glucose Challenge Test) and HIV test done before my next checkup. Other than that, doc said everything seems fine otherwise. Next checkup is on Oct 2nd.

Signing off until then,
- So

Anomaly Scan at 19 weeks

Hello dear baby beanie :)

We saw you today (21st August 2013) in 3D and 4D. We were thrilled.

The doc has scheduled an anomaly scan for us and we were more than excited that we can see you once again and this time in complete detail. When we reached Cloud Nine, we were immediately called in. It was an early scan at 5 pm itself and patients were very less.

The doc started off saying that this would be a very important scan and she would be looking at you in full detail (including measuring every part of your body) to see if you are growing at an average rate (as compared to other babies your age). While she was measuring your body parts, she was also explaining us every detail that she found. She showed us your hands, feet, head, stomach, back bone, neck bone, thigh bone and so on.

After this thorough examination, we got to see you in 3D / 4D detail. We saw your face, eyes in close up view. Your radiologist (Dr. Bhavana Dewan this time), said you were smiling. We could see your lips. At first you were shy and hiding your face with your hands, but later you moved your hands and let her scan you. Then we saw your pretty face and we were overjoyed.

During the consultation also, the doc said everything looked fine and even though I had lost weight again ( I lost another .5 kgs from my last appointment), it was more important that you were growing very well. It did not matter what my weight was as far as you looked good. We have our next consultation on 4th Sep. Its going to be a general monthly checkup.

Right now, I think I feel a lot of your movements every now and then but I am not really sure its you :).  Hope to feel you kicking soon. Just waiting for that moment.

- So

3rd Month NT Scan and 4th Month Checkup

Dear Baby Beanie,

The blog post for your 3rd month radiology scan has been long pending. So I am going to club it with this post.

Your 3rd month scan was on 9th July 2013. Me and DD were pretty excited to see your growth and we were pleasantly shocked at how much you had grown in just 1 month.

The cheerful doc was pretty patient as she continuously monitored your growth and measurements and noted down every single point. She measured your hands, legs, head, CRL etc., She even counted your tiny little fingers and toes and showed it to us. She allowed us to listen to your ever racing heart. It was a good time. I guess you were sleeping when the scan was going on, because the doc kept poking my belly to make you move. After a while you woke up and started moving.

The most joyful of all the moments was when you slowly moved your hand and put your thumb into your mouth. We were surprised that you could do such a thing even though you were just 3 months old. Right now you measure 59 mm (CRL). This scan was called an NT scan - which is conducted mainly to check for Nuchal Translucency. The scan measures the nuchal thickness which provides information about various autistic syndromes. In your case, the risk factor reduced by a whole lot after the scan and that put us to peace.

I had quite some more tests to undergo (because of my age - nearing 35), but thankfully all of them came out normal / negative. Oh and also, during the scan you were bigger by 2 days than calculated earlier - so my due date is 2 days earlier - now its 18th Jan 2014 instead of 20th Jan 2014 (which was diagnosed in the previous scan).

Our next appointment with the consulting doctor was on 7th August during which time, the doc tried to listen to your heartbeat using a handheld Doppler device. Apparently it was quite inaudible to her itself, so we couldnt hear you. She said the main reason could be that I was sporting a lot of belly fat - I wish I had exercised better :P She said there was no need to worry since the uterus had grown bigger since the last checkup and everything seemed normal, but just to ease our worries, the 5th month scan was scheduled earlier so she could see your progress and also ease our tensions at the same time.

Even though this scan is being conducted 15 days prior to the end of the 5th month, I still felt as though the last 2 weeks went by super slow. I am eagerly waiting to get the scan done today in order to see your growth once again and listen to the beautiful sound of your heartbeat yet again (btw, it always puts me to tears).

During this month, I have undergone quite a lot of problems. I had severe back aches, indigestion, acid reflux problems and also most recently since 2 days, a pressing tooth ache. Unfortunately, since your growth is more important right now, I am not allowed to get a surgery done on my teeth or anywhere else, because X-rays are dangerous to your growth. So I have to just make do with pain killers. Maybe during the end of the term or after your birth, Ill get my teeth corrected.

Meanwhile, I am super excited and at the same time super worried about this scan. I just want you to be safe and healthy and growing fast. I almost forgot to mention that I have started listening to Garbha Raksha Stotra and when I heard it for the first time, I am positively sure I could feel you move inside to the chants and mantras. Although I have never experienced it before, so I cannot tell for sure that it was you :) I have still no signs of very visible (or rather feelable) movements from you yet. So thats another cause for concern, but I am trying to be hopeful.

Just 1.5 hrs to go before my scan. This time, I want to eat something 30 mins before the scan. They say that babies are most active 30 mins after food intake - so lets hope to see some action from you :)

- So

TSH Test

10th June 2013, Monday

Baby beanie completed 8 weeks today. TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone) test results came out on Monday. Everything is normal - the lady on the phone said.

Had a lot of stomach twinges over the weekend. Went to the doc to show the report and to ask the numerous questions that I had about my changing body and lifestyle - like twinges in the stomach, body aches, tiredness, nausea (no morning sickness), aversions to foods, not feeling hungry and also riding a bike to work.

Doc said not to worry about anything - all of these are normal pregnancy complaints. All of the changes in the body are normal. She also said that riding a bike is not going to cause any harm to the baby unless otherwise there is really a problem with the pregnancy in the first place. In that case, they would automatically order bed-rest and / or less stressful lifestyle.

For the cough and cold that I intermittently have, she recommended steam inhalation. Talking to her put my mind at ease about a lot of things, more so because she was confirming what I read about in the book "What to expect when you are expecting".

Next milestone is at 12 + 1 weeks (12 weeks 1 day). Ultrasound scan on 9th July. Waiting to see you again, baby beanie :)

- So

Embarking on a new adventure

Saw you for the first time today. You are so tiny, just 1 cm in length. Although I dont know you much yet, I was so worried about your health and your wellness. Once I saw you, my eyes filled with tears thinking that you are safe and healthy and I dont need to worry much anymore.

Listening to your heartbeat only made my tears pour down and when your DD came in to see you, he was super worried that something was wrong because I was crying. Only after the doc told him that they were happy tears, he relaxed a bit. Poor thing, he must have been stressed out.

We were both very happy to see you and we rejoiced. All the pains and discomforts from past days were forgotten. We shared the news with close friends and family and ate sweets. Everyone was happy to hear the news. Everyone is waiting for your arrival.

A new adventure begins hereby for me. Eating more healthy foods, worrying about you first and foremost and even more than worrying about my health. That is going to be my new job. And your DD's job is to worry about me :P Hope he does.

Doc described you as my "bright" baby. I wish all the brightness in your life and I wish you will be the brightness in our lives too :)

- So

Pregnancy Journal

May 17th 2013

Finally found out I am pregnant - through Beta-HCG test.
Have an HCG count of 2267 as of yesterday (blood sample was taken yesterday evening)

Had taken two HPTs (one of which was yesterday morning) - both of them negative. So had lost all hopes. Was even scared to look at the result of the HCG test. Asked DH to check and he was playing with me saying "Its unbelievable that things like this can happen" and I thought once again, that the test was negative. But then he confirmed after a while and we were very happy.

Although I am still apprehensive, because I passed a clot today morning - so I am really scared about the spotting and the clots. Want to go for a scan and confirm the pregnancy before building up hopes.

May 18th 2013

Had my first ultrasound scan today. Pregnancy is confirmed.

Gestational sac is present and in the right place. However no fetal pole or heartbeat yet. Doctor says its too early to say anything because of the absence of these features and asked for a repeat ultrasound again after 2-3 weeks. Next ultrasound is on 4th June.

Going to be very worried until then. Keeping fingers crossed.

Doc said that there is nothing I can do about the problem and that we just have to wait and see. She said that she can advise me to take bed rest, but that is really not going to help. But she would recommend it.

May 19th 2013

Spotting started again. So super worried that I am going to have a m/c :(

May 20th 2013

Since doc said that resting is not really that important, went back to work as I had not informed in the office about the doctors appointment or about the pregnancy in the first place.

May 26th 2013

Passed a clot again, but cannot go to the doctor, as she again wont be able to say anything until the next ultrasound. Worried that I might have taken too much stress. Worried that maybe I should have rested.

Although, I am happy that spotting stopped completely.

<Dateless>

Every day when I go to work, when I cross a bump on the road, I say sorry to you baby for giving you trouble thinking it might be uncomfortable for you when the vehicle jumps :(

Always worried that I might be taking too much stress and spoiling your health along with mine.
Whenever I eat junk food, I am worried that it might affect your health.

I am always feeling either hungry or bloated or puky. No other feeling at all nowadays.

Had pizza one of these days in the office and I decided Ill never have pizza again. In the beginning I enjoyed it, but after two slices, I started feeling queasy even at the sight of another slice. The crust was however too good to resist, so I removed all the toppings and ate only the crust of the remaining slice after 2 hours or so.

Oh BTW, my DH is showing extra care towards me these days. He picks the heavy stuff for me. He brings me goodies to eat. Advises me to eat small meals more frequently. Worries when I say I am super tired and asks me to rest all the time, but you know there is always some work to be done. There is no possibility for complete rest. I jokingly fought with him saying that he is only caring for you and not for me :) so he started caring only after we heard the news.

So far, only 2 of my close friends know about you. One is A and the other is R. They are both very happy and praying for your safety :)

May 31st 2013

Planning to make energy bars this weekend, so that I can keep nibbling on them when I feel queasy or when I get hungry - multi-purpose :) Your DD is a gym freak, so he wants the bars for his snack times.

June 1st 2013

Someone told me today that in the morning after brushing my teeth, before eating anything else, if I eat a handful of raisins, I wont feel queasy all day long. Going to try that from Monday.

June 2nd 2013

Made two kinds of energy bars today, despite a growing feeling of tiredness. Our extended family returned from their vacation in the village - so had too much of work today. Still, I had decided to make a batch of energy bars today - so did them.

Seemed pretty easy :) were over in 30 - 45 mins or so. They are in the fridge right now biding their time * evil laugh *

Sooo not in a mood to go to work tomorrow. Just counting minutes till I can see / hear you in the next ultrasound (2 days left to go).

Ok, super tired now. Will continue this journal in my next post. Will try to write short posts from now on.

'Neer' (Near) Issue

Do people in India even think of water becoming a scarcity in the future ? I highly doubt it.

I was met with a very disturbing sight today morning on my ride to the office. A procession of sorts... pouring water all the way on the road where the procession is about to walk through.

I really do not have anything against people who organize a procession in some God's name and those kind of stuff. But the objection kicks in when they are not doing a lot of thinking when they organize it.
Ofcourse, there need to be processions for God's and India as a land of varied cultures will have a lot of festivals - almost one every month. But people do also need to understand that God does not demand anything from you. This idea of appeasing the God, by sacrifices and stuff - is something I strongly disbelieve in. That aside, the point of this discussion was the way water was being used in this procession.

There was a big water tanker which was moving a few feet ahead of the procession slowly enough for a person to hold out a pipe and pour out water on the road indicating that he is cleaning the road for the people who are walking holding the belongings / offerings to the so-called God (I have no idea which God it was for). And it was not a small pipe. A rather large pipe which is generally used to fill tanks in houses. And the amount of water being wasted - its just unbelievable. Even if the water tanker I saw can probably hold around 500 gallons (~ 1900 ltrs) of water, that would give drinking water to around 1900 people.

Just got me thinking -
Do these people really realize the importance of water ?
Do these people really think that God would mind if the people walked on a dry road ?
Do these people even know that their relatives in their respective villages do not have enough water to farm and earn their living ? Forget about the rest of the world - there are countries where people are dying from water scarcity.
Do they know that many cows and other domestic animals and now even wild animals are starving for water ?
Do they even think about the future situation of India when now itself, we are facing the consequences of global warming and famine and drought ???
Do they really believe that water is never going to be extinct ? Maybe several thousands of years down the line - but it is definitely going to be a huge scarcity.

I had half a mind to get off my bike and give a piece of my mind to them. But I am in fact scared to the extent to which people in India are mindful when it comes to going against a certain person's decisions about appeasing a particular God. I have seen it with my own eyes, and experienced it in my own house what objection gets you. If I cannot even handle the stares and the talks behind my back in my own house, how effective will my thoughts be in the public ?

Then again, how much water savings are we doing in our own houses ? Are we saving enough ourselves to reserve the right to question these people ? Do we stop the taps when we are brushing our teeth ? These are small things to consider.

People in India seriously need to stop and think before taking action. I would like to call out to the public to please save water - even a single glass of water can quench someone's thirst and people are fighting for mere few drops. Not to mention - please save the animals being sacrificed at the end of such processions - animals have rights too.

First Pregnancy Test

Bought a HPT yesterday and wanted to test it today the first thing after I wake up.

Forgot to test as soon as I woke up. I then tested in the afternoon to see if there was something. I was very anxious and waited right near the kit, to see if the result would show something good.

ALAS, seems like I am not pregnant yet. But they suggest to test after a week from the first one. So if I am still running late by then, I will prolly take the test again, before going to the doc.

Sh tells me not to lose hopes since it is not completely negative yet.

Keeping up hopes.
- So

Our little Zen

This particular post has been atleast 1.5 yrs due :) Long post warning.

We were (still are) a bunch of five girl friends in Athens and had grown pretty close within a years time. It was early in the year 2011 that we discussed about this.

How we had met each other at different times in the year 2009, but we never spent much time with each other. Then we all met once again for a performance for India Nite 2010 and we became fast friends - not just in the actual meaning of the word, but also in the literal meaning of 'fast'. We just 'clicked' if I must say - we started spending more n more time with each other and we soon became such close friends that we used to spend everyday together. We used to even have our dinners together and then play cards n other games in the night - almost every night.

Due to the girls spending so much time with each other, even the respective boyfriends ended up becoming close friends amongst themselves discussing about sports and politics and gadgets every time we met :) Boys are always boys - right ?? We were now a group of more than 10 people - with some couples and some single people in the group. Dec 2009, one of the girls (lets say P) in the group got married to S, and early in the year 2011, we heard a wonderful news from the couple :) Yes, she was expecting and we were gonna have the first baby in the group. That is how this post started and I have added to it over the "years".

All of us were super excited for the newcomer !! We soon started planning for her baby shower and for the arrival of the baby. Initially the parents did not want to know the gender. But later they decided to know it after all and found out that they were having a boy - They disclosed the news when the whole group was together and we were even more excited that now we could plan specifically for the baby boy !! I gifted her with a blanket, a cap and a pair of flip flops for the baby - all made by me.

We had an awesome surprise baby shower for her. It was super hectic, because I guess in some way, she had a hunch or something and she kept following us everywhere we went in case we got even a little bit late getting back. So we couldn't plan stuff with her not knowing. But we did manage to keep it secret somehow over lots of frustrated fights and stuff :) It was amazing that even her dear hubby knew and kept it from her (Lets just say he's not the most secretive in our group).

We lied to her that we are all going to some party and got her to dress up and to go with us. She was stunned to see that the entire party was planned for her !! We had all practiced for a funny dance and some games and it was all super fun !!! She was pleasantly surprised and we had a lot of photo sessions and the most amazing time :)

Soon, it was time for "THE DAY". Since P and S live in Atlanta, and everyone had gotten busy with their lives, we had not met her for quite a while. We had been planning to go meet her for quite some time and finally we decided it was already too late. So, we just started off one morning, thinking the whole way that we should meet her atleast once before the baby is here. And half way down to ATL, we got a wonderful news. That P was in labor !! Our joy knew no bounds. Because we would all get to meet our nephew soon :) And what better day to pick to meet the new parents than the day when their bundle of joy arrived in the world.

We reached the hospital and saw him in the little crib. He was easily the most cutest pinkest baby that I had ever seen and was a carbon copy of his dad. They had named him "Zen" - meaning peace. We greeted the parents, spent a couple of days at ATL, basking ourselves in the joy of his birth :) We found matching "Its a boy" and "Aunts" badges at the hospital. It was a memorable weekend.

I am currently in India and I so wish, Zen was a part of my life too. I know I would have had lots of fun with him and he would get a lot of handmade stuff from me. P, remembering Zen a lot :) Hence this post saw the light of the day today !!

- So

New Job !!

Hello,

I am back !!

I found a new job now - am going to stop freelancing full-time soon. Found a full-time job at flipkart.com. Got an offer on March 5th 2013 - Joined in on March 7th 2013. Was a speedy and relaxed recruitment process.

Its an awesome job. Work environment is great and work culture is just amazing. Completely flexible hours and WFH opportunities. Free breakfast, lunch and dinner. Laptops for everyone. What more does a person want ?

Still trying to settle down into my new place.

So long folks,
- So 

TTC (Trying to conceive)

Feb 28th 2013

We have been trying to conceive and I just wanted to start a journal to jot down some memories of these days.

We were married on Nov 23rd, 2003. So we have currently completed 9 yrs of marriage and into our 10th yr. We finally decided it was time to move on with our life and to add another teeny tiny being into it :) So we have been trying since last month (Jan 2013).

I am currently 2 days late and very hopeful that I might be pregnant. But then, I was late by 4 days last month, and I wasn't pregnant. So I am not keeping high hopes.

I will be taking a home pregnancy test on March 1st (tomorrow) to see the result. This will be my first pregnancy test. Keeping fingers crossed.

- So