Sen-sible thoughts

San Francisco

2011-06-21T15:16:00.000-05:00

We took our 10 year anniversary trip, one year late, to San Francisco. I booked the tickets using airline miles, and the money we saved went towards a nice boutique hotel. The hotel was situated right on Powell Street, in the heart of Union Square.

Spring 2011

2011-05-31T12:32:00.002-05:00

The weather this year has been pretty strange. We had almost no spring weather. The heat was on in the house till the last week of May! And that was after a few days of A/C weather a few weeks before. Plus lots and lots of rain, and straight to summer temps.

In a couple of weeks, we will be going on our 10 (+1) year anniversary trip to San Francisco. I have been there a few times, but never as a tourist. I know the airport pretty well! So it will be nice to enjoy the city for a change.

Armaan during the Mothers Day program

A card and a gift for mama

My six year old has a teenager in there somewhere

Best friends!

Priya at the music recital at Highland Christian

Armaan's face is priceless!

Wisconsin Dells, Part Deux

2011-05-05T13:38:00.004-05:00

Last year the kids had so much fun at the Dells that we decided to go back there again this year. Todd, Susan and Collin couldn't join us this time, but we took along Sabrina. We went back to Wilderness Resort which we had liked last time. We had a really good time again. Priya went on the bigger slides that she was afraid of last year, and Armaan went on the smaller slides. Unfortunately, the camera was left in the van for most of the trip, so we didn't get to take too many pictures.

Armaan's parking business

The kids have been in a 4-6 year old soccer team for a month or so. So far neither of them can lay claim to being natural prodigies. Which is just fine. At least it gives them the chance to run around for 40 minutes (4 periods of 10 minutes each).

For Armaan, running around means strolling from one end of the field to the other

Happy Sixth Birthday, Priya!

2011-05-05T13:26:00.006-05:00

April 5s tend to come around pretty quickly. I can't believe that Priya is 6 already! I remember starting this blog when she was around 6 months old. And I was thinking that time was flying by then! I suppose that's the nature of parenthood - you watch your kids grow up, and count the passing of time by their stages.

Priya had a birthday party with a dozen or so of her class friends, with Skylar and Collin as special guests. We had it at "Jump Zone" which is about a half hour away from us. It is basically a big hall filled with inflatable things to jump and slide on.

2 weeks away

2011-05-05T13:18:00.004-05:00

Tish spent a couple of weeks in Michigan over the kids spring break time. I took those days to take down the wallpaper in our bathroom, and paint the walls. Since I wanted it to be a surprise, I didn't ask Tish what colors she wanted. So I was pretty sure that no matter what I picked, Tish would want something else. So while all the work done was much appreciated by her, the color was not. I suppose calling that is what ten years of marriage gets you. :)

Priya also got to celebrate an early birthday while she was in Michigan.

Armaan with his tower of blocks

Armaan as helper, Car Show

2011-03-28T08:00:00.004-05:00

Ok.. I've finally caught up to within a few weeks of being current. The past month or so had been pretty busy. I was traveling for 3 weeks straight to Webster, NY for EMC compliance testing for Xerox. This week is spring break, and Tish and the kids are in Michigan.

Since Armaan's birthday is in July, he got to have his class birthday early.

We went to our second annual Chicago Auto Show. This time Armaan liked it a whole lot more. Priya always enjoys family outings.

Armaan's favorite car

The cars from "Cars" - Mater

Lightning McQueen

Global Warming 2011

2011-03-28T07:47:00.005-05:00

We had the most gigantic snowstorm that I have ever experienced in early February. The snow was over 3 feet deep by morning, with drifts going up 5 feet in the backyard.

Pose up. The snow is waiting.

Getting started...

An hour of shoveling and this is all I got?

If you wait and stare long enough, about a micron of snow layer evaporates

My neighbor had a better idea - shoveling

The backyard still needs to be done

Priya played outside for about 20 minutes

Armaan lasted about 5

Catching up on Christmas

2011-03-28T07:32:00.005-05:00

Its almost the end of March - time to put up those Christmas pics! :-)

But first, Armaan's first boo-boo that needed a bandaid

This pillow is now a fixture on Armaan's bed

Bruno and Sarah's little girl, Tillie on her baptism

Opening presents with cousin Trace

Priya's window "stained glass" that I helped finish

Start of a new decade

2011-01-12T07:23:00.005-06:00

Time to get back to the neglected blog. The last few months have been busy with travel to India, and then finishing up the Christmas season. Most pictures from that time went up on Facebook. Even now I have the temptation of just posting pictures on Facebook. The viewership is much wider there. But there is no sense of narrative there, so its back to blogging. Hopefully my one or two readers are still with me.

So we are in 2011. The start of a new decade. The year started with some major organizational changes at work. Lots of people have been shuffled around. As for how it affects me - that will have to wait till the end of this year to gel out.

Kids ready to go out in the snow

Collin is a hugger!

Lincoln Park Zoo

Can I just eat my cookie?

All done!

Fourth quarter

2010-10-07T08:06:00.006-05:00

Its the first week of October already! Back in March I was talking about buying tickets for India. Now our trip is six weeks away! The kids and I are also officially "Overseas Citizens of India." Doesn't mean much, except that the kids will have the lifetime ability to go in and out of India as they like - no more visas needed. You never know which one might want to explore their roots later in life. The process itself was typical Indian bureaucracy. It took all of the 14 weeks that was advised, along with one trip to the consulate.

Priya likes to get her hair straightened when its cut

Like with his cars, Armaan's pretty good with spatial arrangements

Class trip to the fire house

Ninja girls

Armaan's day to be "helper"

Describing what the weather is like outside

Show and tell - his car, of course!

Serving snacks

The 1,000 watt smile!

Now Summer Can be Over

2010-09-13T07:36:00.004-05:00

With school starting for both kids, we can finally say that summer was here, and now its gone. Now that the kids are a little older, they have a lot more fun playing together. So far there hasn't been any obvious signs of sibling rivalry. Though Armaan has a far greater tendency to needle Priya. We have to watch out for this guy!

Armaan's favorite pastime at the pool - holding his breath and dunking his head under water

My office summer picnic

Priya got her face painted and her hair colored

The kids got their fishing poles. Armaan was more interested in playing with the worms.

Priya cast her line, and caught this little guy all by herself. Armaan's job was to let it go.

We had to go to the mall over the weekend to get some luggage for our trip to India. As we were just about to leave, Priya announces that she would like to get her ears pierced. That's pretty typical of her. She will think about something for a long time, but when she makes up her mind, its pretty much a done deal. She had earlier said that she would wait till she was 7 to get it done, but from our side, it was whenever she wanted it. I think she thought she would be braver at 7. As we were waiting, Priya was messing about on the chair, and ended up banging her shin. That's the part you see in the video. She's crying not from fear, but because there's a bruise on her leg from hitting it pretty hard. Earlier, as I was explaining what was going to happen, I said the pinch is only going to hurt for 10 seconds. So Priya said, "I can count to ten and the pain will stop?" Yep.

Start of School 2

2010-09-13T07:25:00.002-05:00

Priya also started school at Highland Christian a few weeks ago. It has been a fairly easy transition for her. She abruptly went from napping for a couple of hours in the afternoon, to no naps. That has worked out fine so far. The nice thing about her current schedule is that she is in kindergarten only three full days. So its not jumping straight into full-time school. The class size is about 15 or so, with more boys than girls. During recess, Priya has found a friend that she plays with every day. This girl isn't from her class though.

Start of school

2010-09-08T14:20:00.002-05:00

Can it really be? It was two years ago when I was posting this for Priya. And now its Armaan's turn. We love Angel Academy, and the work they do with kids. Priya couldn't be better prepared socially and academically.

Annual Fair

2010-08-22T18:55:00.003-05:00

We have been going to the Lake County Fair for the last four years. Before Armaan's 4th of July birthday, we used to also hit a couple of other fairs around that time. This year I didn't think we would make it to the Lake County Fair, but it all worked out. It was Armaan's first exposure to rides, and it was fun to see him try out different things.

Once the ride started, Armaan wasn't so sure he liked it

2010 Pictures

2010-08-11T08:05:00.005-05:00

Winding down summer

2010-08-11T07:46:00.002-05:00

Summer is winding down to a close. When I leave in the mornings, it is dark outside. Not the rosy glow of dawn that I was used to seeing the last few months. The kids have been pretty busy. We had bought a seasons pass to the Munster pool, and I think it was well used. Armaan went from not caring much about water, to constantly dunking himself underwater. Somehow he likes to hold his breath and go under. Not much into swimming, but I suppose its a good start.

Priya starts her school in a week. She is going to Highland Christian, and is quite excited about it. She won't be with her best friend Skylar going on, but they should be able to see each other often enough to keep the friendship going.

As opposed to Priya, we are not having the best of luck potty training Armaan. He is just not interested in it. Which wouldn't be that much of a problem, if his pre-school didn't start in a few weeks too. Even though its entirely self imposed, the stress of getting it done is still there.

Armaan's first VBS

Happy birthday, Stephanie!

Armaan suddenly appeared at bed time wearing Priya's underwear and her nightie. What a goof!

Ten years together!

2010-07-23T19:52:00.003-05:00

On June 17th we celebrated our tenth anniversary. How time flies!! Lots of good times...

Trip to Michigan

2010-07-23T19:46:00.006-05:00

Tish and the kids took an almost 3 week trip to Michigan. It was a nice time of extended stay, though after about 2 days I got pretty bored! Here are some pictures from the visit.

Going fishing!

Happy birthday Armaan!

2010-07-06T08:19:00.006-05:00

Happy third birthday to my little boy! Well.. he's not so little anymore! He's such a delight to be with.

Armaan and Priya's cake that dada and dadi sent from India

Summer fun

2010-07-06T07:55:00.006-05:00

For the last ten days, I have been living the bachelor life while Tish and the kids have been in Michigan. The being alone thing was fun - for all of a day. Then it got pretty lonely and boring. Big ol' house, and I'm living in just one room of it. So I spent some time messing around with things that needed to be fixed.

The first was the furnace. I thought I had fixed the noise from the draft inducer with some lock nuts, but that doesn't help bad bearings. So I ended up ordering a new unit and putting that in. Like with any project, it took longer to put everything back together, than to take it apart.

(Don't mind the red circles. I had posted this picture in an appliance forum looking for advice)

The next project was my car. The power lock in the rear door went bust. How many of you have heard the eeeeeeeeeeeehhhhh sound of a bad power lock? That's what it was. So I ended up going to the junkyard, and pulling the actuator from a wreck. I've really come to like this place because they pretty much leave you alone. I can get to practice on lots of cars before finally breaking into my own. And the age-old rule of DIY projects applied here - the right tools help you get the job done quickly! Before this, I never knew there was such a thing as a door panel tool.

Now onto the stuff the kids have been doing...

The day before they left, we had complete power outage for two days. You can't tell here, but the room is pitch black.

Priya's tree is growing up with her

The kids loved camping out at grandpa's backyard

Cooking breakfast in the mess tent the next morning

Home repairman

2010-06-14T09:06:00.003-05:00

For a couple of years, Tish has been complaining that the washing machine was acting up. Supposedly, it would wash just fine, but then miss the spin cycle, leaving the clothes sopping wet. For the sake of people Googling out there, let me put in some keywords here. We have a Kenmore 90 series washer, 110.23932200. At first I thought it was a faulty lid switch. Since the washing cycle works fine, the motor shouldn't be the problem. Then Tish showed me what the problem was. After the wash cycle is over, you can hear the motor run, but the drum is not spinning. Then, if you hold the lid switch down, and give the drum a couple of good turns, something will "catch" and the drum starts spinning. To make a long story short, it was a bad clutch. For those who drive stick shifts, you know if you don't let go of the clutch completely, the car never moves. Same thing here. A $40 replacement part, and I saved $200 in not calling a repairman in.

Panel off, motor disconnected, transmission assembly out

That's the motor in the lower right corner

The agitator shaft hooked to the transmission assembly

The very top circular part is the clutch. It was full of gunk (this picture is after I cleaned it) from worn pads.

Replace clutch, put everything back together, and we have a happy washing machine!

Priya's first White Sox Game

2010-06-14T08:55:00.002-05:00

Priya had been asking for quite a while to go to a White Sox game. So through the generosity of some friends we went to a game for free on Father/Daughter day. The seats were great - along the third base line, right over the home team dugout. The game was an afternoon game, so after a little while, it got pretty hot, so we just wandered around the stadium, spending some time in the kids section.

Ending out the school year

2010-06-14T07:40:00.011-05:00

Priya finished her two years of pre-school at Angel Academy a few weeks ago. The experience was invaluable for her in terms of social development, and getting a good start in reading and writing. For kindergarten, we have decided that she will be going to Highland Christian School. The other choice was Lansing Christian. The latter is three minutes from where we live, while Highland is a good 10-12 minutes. But for both Tish and I, our spirits responded very differently when we took a tour of both schools. Lansing is still very old-fashioned in its approach to education. Highland is a lot more progressive, and the general feel of the place is also more joyous. So at least for the first year, we will try out Highland and see how it goes.

Priya refining her circus skills

The Good Neighbor Parade

Priya as the class "helper"

Armaan following along in the Pledge

Priya describing the weather of the day

Priya with her American Girl Doll, "Priya"

Twinkies

With a zoo membership, visits will be often

Let me get that appendix out

There.. all better. Drink up.

Lay still while I deal with you

Graduation from pre-school

Traveling in style

A mini vacation

2010-05-01T09:30:00.005-05:00

We got an unexpected offer a few months ago. Friends of ours had extra days left over in their vacation timeshare, and offered it. So we had the opportunity of going to a Wisconsin Dunes waterpark for free! We went with our friends Todd and Susan. It was a great time. The kids never got tired of going in the water every day.

A little catching up first...

Skylar's birthday poster

Best friends

This kind of stuff would be cute, if it wasn't in my backyard

Getting pretty good at self portraits

Collin had a great time too

Happy 5th birthday Priya!

2010-04-07T10:53:00.011-05:00

This year Priya's birthday coincided with Easter weekend. It was also Priya's "golden" birthday. For those that are not in the know, your golden birthday is the one where you turn as old as the day you were born. So Priya was born on the fifth, and this was her fifth birthday! If you're older than 31, you're out of luck - nothing to look forward to!

Coloring Easter eggs at grandma's with cousin Trace

Priya was thrilled Sheena sat with her

Kavon just loves Armaan

Collin came to pay a visit

"Buddy night" at Priya's pre-school - No Moms Allowed!