Tag: Diwali

Posted on

Whew Diwali..

So Diwali has gone. I have to admit it’s a bit of relief. Oh I like Diwali, in fact I like all festivals but they do turn your life upside down. There’s loads to do. You are overworked and the maids are overworked and are always in a hurry and more than a little cranky.

The kids are in the way.. Either they’re disconnected with the cleaning and decorating, which irks you no end or they want to do everything and that’s worse because you have to think up ways so they can help without doubling your work. The hapless souls got more than their share of yelling thanks to frayed nerves. Not that they seemed to mind. Egged on by friends they kept up a steady list of completely non priority demands.. May I have a pat pat gun? May we buy some Lotus flowers? Can we get home the PS 3? In fact when I took some time making the rangoli for the puja N asked if we cold postpone the puja to the next day and go down for the fireworks right away. Priorities!

When we did go down she discovered a sudden fear of fireworks. Last year she was the one going crazy setting off rockets and anars while H stood in a corner trying to pretend he wasn’t scared. Well this year he got over his fear and N developed cold feet to the extent of dropping the phuljhadi even before it was half done. I’ve no clue what has brought this on. Investigation is pending!

H on the other hand was all over the place, a phuljhadi in one hand and his dhoti in the other (despite repeated assurances I could not convince him that it wouldn’t fall off if he let it go).

The Husband probably puzzled and very annoyed by his star performer’s seemingly irrational fear, gave her a piece of his mind. By the time I reached down after wishing a few friends N had been home in search of me and when I ‘didn’t open the door’ had assumed I was ‘lost’ and was crying in one corner.

We had kept the menu simple. I did manage to make jimikand (or Yam). According to North Indian folklore if you don’t eat Yam on Diwali day you are reborn as a chhuchhundar (Wiki calls it the Asian House Shrew). And so I saved my family from an extremely smelly next life (Oh yeah they smell BAD). For the record the yam kebabs I tried (for the first time) turned out quite delectable.

So that was our Diwali!!

I might not agree with Scrooge but I can see where he was coming from.

Managed to get them to pray
The hurried rangoli
Loved these floating candles.
The markets had such pretty stuff I wanted to bring it all home.

Posted on

Of scavengers and hoarders

While most people are cleaning their homes during Diwali H and N turn into merry scavengers. They lie in wait for people putting out ‘interesting’ stuff. They then try to beat the cleaning lady and carry it all home before she can carry it away with the garbage.Here’s what they brought over this week..
1. Empty shoe boxes, really smelly ones .. ugh!
2. An old bamboo basket.
3. Countless empty mithai gift boxes – some were really prettily decorated, I have to admit.
4. An empty PSP carton with a huge picture of G-One from the SRK film Ra-One
5. Sheets and sheets of thermacol.Okay I have a confession – some of their finds do get me excited. Yes well genes and all.

Getting to the point, their last find – thermacol, is one of my favourite craft supplies. What with the maids playing hooky and tons of Diwali cleaning to be done I’d barely spent time with the kids over the last few weeks. So this Sunday we decided to have some fun.

I cut out some shapes from those thermacol sheets. I used a hot knife to cut through and it was really easy (That tip shared by my sister). The kids along with some friends spent a happy time painting them. Check out their creations.

I let them choose their own colours and designs, not that they would have listened to me anyway. Check out H’s Tigerfish. Craft is not really his forte :-).

 

The phones were an old idea and they got bored of them even before
they painted them. The fish and flowers they loved.

I have to admit this was the kids’  idea. Over the summers in Lucknow they had super fun with thermacol. They made some interesting things.

The phones were a superhit then, made with masi’s help.

 

This was a project that took a long long afternoon.
Dreaming of rain during the summers.

 

..almost done.

 

And finally.. pride of place on nanima’s wall.

For now I’m wondering how to smuggle out and throw away lights that don’t work, bits of candle wax, blackened diyas and many many mithai and chocolate boxes they are hoarding in their room.

Posted on

A letter to Lakshmi ji

Dear Lakshmi ji,

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to be a stay-at-home-mom? A SAHM with a pair of super energetic kids, a super busy husband and a house with a perpetually open door through which umpteen kids stream in an out continuously dripping food and toys?

I don’t think so.

The only kid you’re ever even seen with is your nephew Ganapati, who, with due apologies, is not the really sporty kind. He doesn’t bug you to death to look for his bat or to fish for his ball under the car. He doesn’t hang from curtain rods bringing down pelmets giving you a minor heart attack besides saddling you with the task of carpenter hunting.

You’ve never had to sit with him over his milk and vegetables appearing to be patient while your mind buzzes with the thousand tasks awaiting your attention. Give him his plate of modaks and laddoos and you can get on which your chores (which aren’t really too many).

And no, you’ve never needed to mess your hands making those laddoos either, what with the millions struggling to get into your good books. They load you with enough food to sate even the six heads of your other nephew Kartikeya.

Then there’s The Husband. Yours is supposed to take care of the world so he’d hardly need looking after. He’s not diabetic. He doesn’t need to be pushed to go for his daily walk or watched with a hawk eye lest he empty the mithai box. All you need to do is provide him with your sweet company.. which wouldn’t be so tough given your stress-free life.

As for the cleaning … how much cleaning would one need when one lives on a snake in the middle of the ocean?

So then…

What right do you have to go looking for the cleanest, prettiest houses with beautifully done up tables piled with homemade goodies each Diwali?

For a change… just this once, don’t let that barbie littered doorway scare you away. What? You see no one praying? Hey they’re too excited to sit quietly with folded hands. They’d rather sing and dance.. they’re expecting you, don’t worry.. do walk in. Step around the dolls, Oh and mind those cars –  they might trip you, Oops sorry! did you mess your sari? Those diyas are being painted to welcome you. Don’t mind that sink full of vessels.. that food was made in your honour.

Don’t look at the dust on the shelves, look at the smiling faces in the frames on them. Don’t look for the most scintillating fireworks, look for the happiest face behind the smallest sparkler. Don’t look for the fanciest lights, look for the attention and care with which those diyas were painted. Don’t look at that crooked rangoli look at the thrill on the girl’s face, it’s her first.

Rather than the cleanest, prettiest and most peaceful houses, how about looking for the noisiest, cosiest and happiest homes? Try it this Diwali. You might find them more fun than the squeaky clean ones.

Warm regards

Obsessivemom

Privacy Policy Proudly powered by WordPress