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Birthday bumps

A tier for each year.
Pic courtesy: Google pics

You turned six, yesterday and once again I forgot. I have wronged you dear blog, grossly. Never, once in these six years have I acknowledged your birthday. How callous is that! I thought this year would be different. Reading a birthday post at momofrs’ I thought I’d have a bash for you. I even planned a gift — a brand new design or a super colourful header. However that was not to be. Belated happy birthday to you, my best friend, my confidante.

Thank you…
for being there when I needed you
for sitting quietly when I didn’t
for waiting patiently during my summer disappearances
for listening to me uncomplainingly… rants, ramblings, babbles, gushes and all.

and above all,
for connecting me to so many many wonderful people

THANK YOU.

PS: Hope you enjoyed the cake.

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Brownies!


Sometime back I’d promised I’d find time each weekend to take up one craft activity with Naisha and try one recipe with Hrit. However I could keep my word only to Naisha. We did some great fun stuff. When it was Hrit’s turn either we ran out of time or I couldn’t find a suitable recipe.. easy yet appealing. And so I fobbed off the poor guy with stuff like peeling boiled eggs and potatoes (basics are very important, I told him) …

 … or post cooking washing (A good chef must learn to clear up).

Yes mums can be pretty crafty.

Sweetheart that he is, he hung around helping me with my chores satisfied if I let him ‘smell the atta’ or gave the names of the spices in the spice box.

Finally this weekend things came together and we decided to try this recipe from cookingandme.com. Chef Hrit took centre stage assisted by Naisha.

First, the ingredients…
Marie biscuits — 20-25
Cocoa powder — 3 tbsp
Roasted nut of choice, we managed walnuts — 1/4 cup
Sugar — 2 tsp
Condensed milk (Milkmaid) — 1/2 of a 400gm tin

Here’s how it goes…

Crush the Marie biscuits.. don’t worry if it isn’t too fine a powder

Add the cocoa powder

Add the sugar and Milkmade and mix. This needs some strength and I had to lend a hand

At which point.. the mixture becomes too yummy to not be tasted..

Add the nuts

Butter a bowl/tray

Spread out the mixture on the tray

Pat it evenly and put it in the freezer.

Call in the assistant to clear up

We left it overnight and the result was great. The brownies in the original recipe
look yummier but ours weren’t bad

For a more accurate account do hop over to the original recipe .

Hrit’s parting line (accompanied with a huge sigh): I wish I were a mama then I could get to cook all kinds of things.

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We are Maganlal Dresswala

Check this out1. Sher Khan from The Jungle Book
2. Mowgli from The Jungle Book
3. Ladybird (2 sets)
4. Bee
5. Octopus
6. Jelly Fish
7. Air Hostess
8. Pilot
9. A river
10. An astronaut
11. Planet Venus
12. A Russian dancer
13. Spiderman
14. Nurse
15. Baker (2 sets)
16. Queen of Hearts
17. SpiderThat’s our DIY fancy dress inventory. Crazy isn’t it? The kids have worn all of those over the years, of course not counting the ones I’ve rented/borrowed from kind friends. Add to this sets from varied annual day programmes and you’ll know why the kids’ cupboards are overflowing with clothes they do not wear, and this in just the four years since they started school.

I really should host a dress-up party for the kids and their friends.

Getting back to where I left off in my last post — the fancy dress was a grand success. They looked glittery enough and scary enough to each of their complete satisfaction. Here’s how they looked..

A crown, a cape, an apron and a heart worn over a red and white dress.
N painted a thermacol plate with hearts and also made some playdough tarts (which were demolished before they got back home).
I swear I didn’t ask her to show off her cape.

 

That’s the spider. Erstwhile octopus tentacles were covered with black ribbon and poof! they turned into spider legs. H wore them with slings. A piece of black cloth with the web, a hole cut out for the head to go in and tied at the sides with black ribbon, worn over a black T shirt. This one was easy.

 

Obviously, this then is our entry for Shruti’s Artsy Craftsy Challenge .
A glittery Queen of Hearts crown
Scallops cut into some red chart paper.
Paint on fevicol and spread glitter. Shake off the excess (and store for a glittery craft another day).

 

Paint on silver hearts
Add tiny hearts cut out from silver paper.
We’re planning to help N’s friends make similar crowns, the colour preferences are already pouring in. My only reservation is the glitter. It has a nasty habit of spreading itself all over the house. It’s been two days since I finished that crown off and I’m still trying to get it off me.
IT JUST DOESN’T GO.
Even though this was easy enough N didn’t help with it at all so we’ll probably have to have another entry. I had fun, though.
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Two updates

The two current worries of my life — the darned fancy dress and my weightloss — seem to have sorted themselves out.

First the fancy dress.. the decision has been made — Queen of Hearts for Naisha (Yesssss!), Incy Wincy spider for Hrit.
Naisha is a real surprise. She’s a great story teller so I tried to sell her the idea of just narrating the story in the rhyme rather than mugging it up and says she, “No mama I’ll learn the rhyme.. look I already know half. Then she proceeded to rattle off  “The Queen of Hearts she made some tarts….” Women I tell you.. most unpredictable. What’s more she has also prepared herself to tell the story if she forgets the rhyme. That’s one kid sorted. SIGH!

Hrit was a no brainer.. anything black and scary and he’s happy.. so a spider he is.

Somehow the task of putting the costumes together seem so much easier than arriving at a decision that makes the kids and me happy.

Now for the weightloss…
BOREDOM ALERT: If you’re not a compulsive fat fighter stop now.

If you are one read on…
Actually, I’m not even sure I should be happy about this one but I am. I did my BCA (body composition analysis) at the gym today. And the results…

The good first.. (me being a wannabe optimist)
— muscle mass has increased
— BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) has increased.

Isn’t that wonderful?


On the flip side
— Weight up by 2 kgs
— Water content down (I need to drink more water. At least 4 ltrs says the instructor. When I started at him incredulously and asked, “Do even you ever drink 4 ltrs?” He replied with a deadpan face, “I drink 8.” So much for being a smart alec).
— Fat percentage up too.

The net result is what the instructor had pointed out earlier… exercise regimen is perfect but the diet….hmmmm.

However, for now, I can’t look beyond the BMR and I am pretty kicked. All I have to do is eat sensibly and all will be well. How tough can that be? I’ve done it before. So two kgs by Spetember end.

Happiness!

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A dilemma

It’s another fancy dress at the kids’ school and I’m in a bit of a fix. The theme this time is Nursery Rhymes. “Star, I want to be a star,” said Naisha as soon as she came home. “Twinkle twinkle little star. I already know the rhyme,” she chirped.  “We’ll see,” said I while thinking “Won’t do, too simplistic.” They have been singing that one since they could barely talk. I was hoping I could convince her for something ‘better’, according to me, of course.

After some thought, I arrived at the Queen of Hearts. It would be nice, thought I. It’s different, and it would be something Naisha liked — a red dress with shiny, glittery hearts, a crown, maybe and a plate of tarts.. perfect.

Not so, thought Naisha. The deterrent, of course, is, that she’d have to learn a new rhyme. She can do it easily enough, I know, she’s smart.. but the thing is she doesn’t want to.

So here’s my dilemma

If I push the Queen of hearts…
It’ll be an uphill task as she’ll need plenty of convincing.
Of course, she’ll have to learn a new rhyme.
She might worry about her lines (I know she’s a worrier, specially on stage) and her apprehensions might ruin the pleasure of the performance.
BUT
It is a nice concept.
It’s ‘different’.
She’ll certainly enjoy dressing up.

OR

Should I go with the Star
It’s her idea.
She is comfortable with it.
She’ll be more confident on stage.
BUT
The idea really is too simplistic.
She’s capable of much more than this.

Am I being a Chinese Mum in trying to push her? Or am I being a laid back mum in letting her be? How will she know what she’s capable of if no one pushes her? She certainly isn’t the self-motivating kind. If she does well this time maybe next time she’ll be more confident in taking up a challenge instead of opting for the easy route and sticking to the safe and simple.

What do you think? Star or Queen?

Edited to add: She woke up this morning saying a ‘yes’ to the Queen. And now I’m wondering if she’s doing it just to make me happy.. sigh!
.. and I’ve had another brainwave.. what if we skip the rhyme. The brief says they have to talk for a minute.. not necessarily recite the rhyme. She could just say it, in her own words. Worth a shot. Yay.

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