Dearest 12 Year Old Avani - Earn Your Tomorrow's !

June 1st 2021 : Last year as we had a close knit family celebration at home, we made promises of seeing everyone in person for a real birthday party this year. Today, yet again, we find ourselves on video calls with our most loved members of friends and family. It has been a year more challenging, than the last. What seemed to be, only a momentary struggle with the pandemic, spiralled into a nightmare with the second deadly wave of the corona virus. While the world learnt to come to grips with their stories, we too lived through our suffering. 

We no longer have your great-grandmother around us in this home. Genie, who very fondly made you fall in love with dogs forever, is gone too.. Two deaths exactly a week apart, certainly brought about immense pain and a sense of permanent loss. There is a hole in our hearts which I'm afraid will never firm up. It brought back the feelings we had when panji-ajji passed away in the December of 2014. You pointed at the skies and asked me if she must have now reached heaven - You were just five then. 

Today as you turn twelve, You have learnt to express your pain, the sorrow of losing someone you related to, the grief of never being able to see them, the sense of never being able to touch them, feel them, or even smell them, ever again…! You still have an innocent resolve to break world records by being a mother-daughter pair who live to become centenarians. 

As a mother, I can only pray to God that may you be granted even the smallest of Your wishes true. But, I also want You to understand that our lives should never really be measured by how long we live, but by how we contribute in making this world, a better place to live ! 

So fret not, if we don't make the world record - There will always be a bright shiny star You can forever look up to ! 😇

If there is anything this pandemic has taught us it is this - 

"Death is a door through which every human will pass, a glass through which every human will drink - Death is, the only certain event of Life, once You're born". 

If one can learn to embrace this certainty without fear, one can truly feel fortunate for having being given an opportunity to contribute to humanity by showing Your Love ! As we express gratitude for being given yet another day as a gift, I want You to read this poem...

Have You Earned Your Tomorrow?
by
Edgar Guest

Is anybody happier because you passed his way?

     Does anyone remember that you spoke to him today?

This day is almost over, and its toiling time is through;

     Is there anyone to utter now a kindly word of you?

Did you give a cheerful greeting to the friend who came along?

     Or a churlish sort of "Howdy" and then vanish in the throng?

Were you selfish pure and simple as you rushed along the way,

     Or is someone mighty grateful for a deed you did today?

Can you say tonight, in parting with the day that's slipping fast,

     That you helped a single brother of the many that you passed?

Is a single heart rejoicing over what you did or said;

     Does a man whose hopes were fading, now with courage look ahead?

Did you waste the day, or lose it, was it well or sorely spent?

     Did you leave a trail of kindness or a scar of discontent?

As you close your eyes in slumber do you think that God would say,

     You have earned one more tomorrow by the work you did today?

                                                     As a Mother, I can only say, 

Let Your answer be a "Yes", every single day !

In a world where there are and must never be any free meals, I wish You all the courage to Earn Your Tomorrow's !  

Stay Brave and Be Kind ! 😚

Happy Birthday Dear Ava, Love You to no ends...!!! 💗

Hugs, cuddles and kisses... 😘
- Mumma.  

Once on Your Lips.. Always on Your Hips !!

Have u ever thought that chocolate could influence your childhood in profound ways ? 

A dairy milk always taught me to “share” and “eat in moderation” owing to its pre designed cubes ! 

Whereas a 5star always taught me to indulge ! 

Right now .. I feel like having this entire bar .. even that 25% extra and I know that happiness is only going to be momentary and guilt ?? 

Once on ur lips .. Always on ur hips 😃😃 ! 

No wonder why I’m still a dairy milk fan ! 😇 Chocolate taught me to love ! 💕💕😃😃

We were, we are and we always will be "The SuperAwesome Family !! "

Dear SuperAwesome's, 

As I sit down to pen this, the smell of the soil from the raindrops that God surprisingly blessed us with last night, makes me want to relive an entire monsoon with all of You - like a child, all over again. :)  

While there is no rewind button to our existence, I'm glad we all had a chance to create new memories for time immemorial ! 

The five days spent together cannot possibly be captured in a twenty minute movie and neither can our experiences as a family, but the journey of those five days has been reflective of how all of our lives have panned out so far...

On our way, we've soaked it all in..!! 

Those long winding roads, at times gave us a sight of the deep dark valleys - never making us forget, how we were trapped into those at one point in time. 

Somewhere along the road, we got a  glimpse of the treacherous mountains - always reminding us of how vehemently we've bounced back, standing tall with all our might and pride today. 

We stood by to witness the waves, banging against those rocky stones on the beach, the noise they made, the splashes of salty water they left - bringing back flashes of some of our biggest disagreements - but eventually, even they retreated to unite with the ocean ! 

Sometimes the water currents were so strong, as though trying hard, to remind us of how we all needed to get back into motion to save ourselves from sinking in grief. 

The other times when we swam with the waves, brought back joys of the times we've showed confidence in traversing unknown territories and banishing our own fears..!! 

With every experience we've had over this vacation, there has been a parallel to the time we've both - failed and triumphed in our lives, together as one family !  

Fortunately, we are all the descendants of a legacy richest in its values and beliefs - the elder generation has served to be the best "Cheerleaders" one could ever ask for, while we battled it out on life's playground. 

It is not so much for the money, or the fame, or the power and neither the perceived notion of success that we have strived for. These, I'm glad each of us have, in one magnitude or the other, achieved as a by-product while we were focussed on looking out for each other.  

Our Family propels me to live for those moments when I turn back and I know for sure -  "I will see You All" with clapping hands and smiling faces, cheering me on... into the next day, the next chapter, the next challenge - reassuring me of a better tomorrow with all of your heart ! 

You may not hold my fingers any longer, but I do feel Your humble touch every step of my way ! 

And I'm glad our next generations will enjoy this very feeling - the feeling called "Family". A place where I belong, You belong, We All belong and the ones to be welcome Will belong... ! 

A place where "We feel at Home" will never be built with four walls - it will go on to become our abode only when, we will continue to have each others company - for Now and Forever ! 

" Each one for Everyone - Stay SuperAwesome ! " 

P.S : Here is the short film compiled by Abhi -  

Click on this link - best watched on the laptop or the TV screen - bigger the screen, more the fun. 

Scripted & contributed to by All of Us, where we ALL are the stars, the Celebrities of our own lives ! Time to sit back, relax and prepare for the next Block Buster Hit of the Year 2021 ! 

Cheers to MySuperAwesome Family ! :)   

Adding the 41st Rose to the Bouquet of Love...!

She was born to a Barrister Father and an Agriculturist Mother. A highly respected and cultured family of Akkalkot - the Bagul's. One amongst the four siblings, she was the eldest 'daughter' of the family who would go on to complete her graduation in Pune's Modern college with a Bachelor's in Arts.  

He was born in a village named Wade, that could not really boast of proper sanitation, healthcare, education or for that matter, even twenty-four hour electricity! In a joint family of three brothers of his father's generation and one amongst four sons and three daughters. Not to mention, this number would add up if he had not lost two of his siblings who failed to reach toddlerhood, owing to the absence of proper childcare facilities in the village. However, he would turn out to be so befitting to his family name "Maha-jan" - A Great Man !  

They both came from opposite directions of Maharashtra and rightfully owing to their upbringings - with completely opposing lifestyles. She came from a family who had domestic helps to even lay out her bedding each night and if the blanket was not laid out straight, she had a way to bring the roof down ! As a child, she once made a request for playing with rabbits and it was fulfilled ! One could easily believe she was born with a silver spoon in her mouth.

He toiled each month to make ends meet, living as a Bachelor's student of Science of Ferguson College in Pune. Making the transition from Wade to Pune in the late sixties / early seventies was almost synonymous to travelling to a foreign country in today's day and age ! The biggest difference probably being, the absence of capital, owing to so many children to be fed in the same family. 

To add to the ordeal, coming from a village which attached greater importance to holding a plough than holding a book in your hands, made it difficult for one to even dream of completing one's graduation, let alone pursuing his dream of medical studies - which to date, remains one of the most expensive educational investments ! After being digressed, he would still go on to complete his BSc, LLB, MLS - making the most of the situations at hand.. ! 

Their coming together, was like trying to bind the two ends of a rope - one could only imagine the immense transformation each had to go through, in the other's company. As tradition, culture, the patriarchal and socio-economic nature of the joint family in which she was wedded, would have it, the change 'She' underwent, was of greater enormity in comparison to 'His' ! Both of them had been extremely graceful in handling this transition - an important milestone in any marriage. 

41 years ago, they were married with an understanding that a "husband and wife" have the power to move mountains, if they join hands keeping in mind the same vision and zeal to pursue their dreams.

Today, they've become a living example of how one man's dream and his wife's love to see them through those dreams, can bring about a greater sense of equality in the entire joint family.. !! 

Yes, here is a couple, whose true purpose in life was to will-fully make immense scarifies, not just for their parents or children, not just for a generation prior and a generation after, but for the entire joint family. Because they understood, that the true meaning of a life well lived, is not in accumulating wealth, or indulging in needless materialistic pleasures, but it is in ensuring that the ones you call your extended family, are able to boast of a better quality of life - due to better education, better careers, better family relationships and better health. 

She was the 1st and only ever woman of her generation in the entire Mahajan family, to thoughtfully balance her further education, family relationships, kids, home and a fulfilling career! No one could relate to her tribulations - and neither would she ever try to explain or even seek empathy. But she was the true torch bearer of bringing about a change in mindsets, in ensuring that the next generation of 'daughter's' in the 'Mahajan' family, got an education that was great enough to see them employed and financially independent ! 

He was the 1st and most definitely, the only ever man, to have toiled to get even his cousin's children settled in fulfilling lives in Pune. He firmly believed, that a family with economic and educational disparity, is not a happy family. "Always take people along with You!" are his writings in Golden letters, that even I, will live by ! 

Together, they've re-written the norms of a contemporary fairytale "...and everyone lived, Happily Ever After... !!" 

A fairytale that 'We', as their children, loved to witness and take immense pride in ...! 

To Our Dearest Aai and Daddy - Wishing You a very very Happy Anniversary and an Eternally Healthy, Happy and a Prosperous Life ahead.. ! 

(P.S. Your children had better plans, but the lockdown allow's Us to wish you only with words today - We love you so very much ! )

Missing You Both Dearly, 

-Aarohi, Anant, Abhi, Avani and Sayli ! :) 

When you have the courage to say Goodbyes.. Life will greet you with new “Hello’s”!!

When you have the courage to say Goodbyes.. Life will greet you with new “Hello’s”!!

I was greeted with a very warm Hello, 8.7 yrs back on June 2^nd 2011. Since then, it has taken a battalion of extremely able people, to make my journey with Vodafone Idea a truly memorable one !

Brij : You truly lived up to being a “Friend indeed”. Thank you for recommending Ashutosh to consider interviewing me at least once… had it not been for that small push, I’d probably never be writing this email..

Ashutosh : The world needs more Men like You..! It does take a lot of courage to employ a lady who has been on a sabbatical of 3 long years to come back and start handling operations - You showed that grit ! I wish all men were alike in that sense… to bestow trust in women wanting to re-start their careers after a break ! You set the foundation for my years ahead with Vodafone, and it sure was a very strong one. I respect the sense of detailing you demanded from me and how patiently you had to put up with my ignorance of technical detail. It was these very qualities that we both strived to develop in myself, which helped me in my future roles. Thank You so much for being my best college senior

ever! J

Mr. Khatri : “You give a man some Fish and you feed him for a day. You teach a man ‘how’ to fish and you feed him for a lifetime !!“ I was only an ‘IBM middleware technologies / EAI’ resource before I fell into your hands - You taught me Telecom !! I would’ve never dreamt of understanding areas as varied as Dedupe to Interconnect, had it not been for your urge to ‘Coach’ me. When I stood up there in London as a Global Hero receiving the honour from Vittorio, the one person I missed was You – that was truly your award ! I was only receiving it on Your Behalf ! I owe every bit of the name, fame and honour to You – I always will. There will never be anyone I’d meet even in future, who would be as invested in my progress as You are ! Thank You Sir for being my best Coach !

Naresh Sir : Our’s may have been the shortest Boss-Subordinate association, but the smiles and laughs we’v shared while handling elephant sized issues with <<-->>, made the journey enjoyable. I salute you for your willingness to be open to your team member’s suggestions. However grave / trivial they may sound, you always had a patient ear and an open mind ! I still haven’t found an answer to your question : why would a global hero award winner want an AO hero award .. ? J

Vimit : It’s probably easier to hire talent for a job. It’s difficult to get a emotionally disturbed resource, to focus on delivering outcomes to the extent of the organization believing that You’ve hired the best man for the job ! When my entire family went through our most emotionally draining period, You uplifted my morale and helped me focus on my deliverables! You kept me away from the thoughts of taking yet another break in my career.  I’ve always said this because I firmly believe it – if there is just 1 person who is the best fit to lead the BA team, it is You. The human touch to you add to your interactions, makes you the best people manager we BAs ever had ! Thank You so much for being ‘You’ !

Mayuri : The sense of admiration I have, for your ability to handle the expanse, complexity and variation of architectural implementations is beyond express-able. Your ability to break humongous problems into chewable pieces and simplify solutions is what I am still trying to practice repeatedly, to the extent of making it a habit. In the barely 1.5 yrs we’ve spent together, there is a lot I have learned by watching you conduct white boarding sessions, evaluating options and presenting them in a convincing fashion to the extent of getting the results you desired ! A quality no ordinary being can master ! There will be opportunities galore when in future, I will recall your line of thinking.. after-all, whatever little I know of Solution / Integration architectures, I’ve learned from You ! Thank You so much for mentoring me and always guiding me with the much needed perspectives, which, only someone with Your experience could bring in…

Nirupmay Sir : The growth and development of People is probably, the highest calling of Leadership and if there is one leader who knows the pulse of his people, it will always be You Sir ! You’ve put me in the right places at the right times, even before I could ask for it. I would have been on a lost track, on a long winding road, feeling unhappy about having to carry on doing operations – a role I never planned to pursue as long term, but accepted for the lack of better prospects. For me, you will always be that God sent angel who had the magical abilities to put my career back on the right path – a path I planned to pursue when I started out as a Middleware consultant with Satyam, way back in 2004 ! I have seen myself transform under your Leadership. To change from an aggressive, loud personality, to an assertive, amicable one was easier when I was under your influence. I am always conscious of the one statement you made “Your brand is what people say about You when you are not around – what is your brand ? ”. As I set foot onto a completely unknown turf, I will surely try to create a brand, inspired by your candor, cause that is how I believe, I will rightly flourish as a professional ! Thank you sir and I will truly miss having You as “My Leader” !

A little bit of me - I will leave behind, a little bit of you - I will carry along. With every step I take forward, I will surely learn to move on… but I don’t think I will ever be able to leave…

I will miss you all dearly..

Wishing you the best that life has to offer…

-          Sayli

P.S: I never intended for this email to be this long.. hoping the name highlights reduced your reading time..

Regards,

Sayli A. Yadav

Solution Manager - Integration & ESS

Demand & Solution Management

Wishing Each One of You, THE BEST LIFE EVER ! :)

Hi – Good Morning..

Today, as the curtains come down on my 8.7 year long stint with Vodafone Idea, I cannot help but feel proud of having belonged to an organisation that was repeatedly, the most loved employer & consumer brand - and contributing to that, was every one of you .. all of our Partners (----) are the ones I worked very closely with. As I look back, the numerous exchange of views, counter-views, white boarding, brainstorming, evaluating options, went a long way in ensuring I learned from each one of you. You have been the very reason behind an enriched experience I carry out from here. I fall short of words to express my gratitude to You – Thank You !!

To me, Vodafone Idea has been no less than a finishing school of sorts….

To begin as a purely technical resource handling IT operations to graduating as an Integration Solutions Architect,

from walking in as an unsure, nervous mother back from a sabbatical.. to being a confident young professional presenting the work of IT to the Execo,

from being a men-tee to being a mentor to fresh graduates & new joiners,

from making small beginnings with the AO Hero to winning the Annual Global Hero award,

from hosting distinguished leaders at the IT town halls, to meeting CxOs,

from walking the red carpet in London to being the face of the Employer Brand,

from having an hour long extempore interview with the x-CEO to appearing on the TV channel (even if it meant only for a few mins),

from beginning with lessons in teamwork to getting lessons in Leadership,

from being called the 1^st lady of Technology to being known as a woman in the Zen state...

As I look back and reflect, my professional journey with VIL, made me feel like a ‘Super Star’ on most days… and yet, I swore and lived by my values of humility and utmost trust in my relationships with peers and seniors alike. I tried my best to never carry the baggage of success, but rather, the lessons from my failures to progress onto my subsequent challenging roles.

I cannot thank each one of you enough, for having contributed to my growth and well being. For having being there, when I needed your perspectives, opinions, knowledge and advice ! Thank You so very much for being a good Samaritan and a great Companion on my journey here.. ! You made it truly memorable…

A journey that’s been decorated with momentous occasions and landmark events, which I will savour for the rest of my life !

Wishing each one of you, THE BEST LIFE EVER ! :)

Stay Blessed ! :)

-Sayli 

  

Regards,

Sayli A. Yadav

Solution Manager - Integration & ESS

Demand & Solution Management

Dearest 10 Year Old Avani...

1^st June 2019 – Happy 10th Birthday Dearest Ava !!  

It’s a Hap-Hap-Happy Birthday ! A Hap-Happy Birthday to You ! 😊

Take a bow, take a bow, on your birthday, your birthday, show them how, show them how, on your birthday, a Hap-Happy Birthday to You !!  😊

Dearest 10 year old Avani !!  😊

As I start to pen this, Daddy is driving us through the ‘orange trees laden streets’ of Valencia – a beautifully laid out Spanish City of Arts & Sciences, famous for its futuristic complex of museums & theatres. What better way to bring in your birthday with a Summer Vacation break in Spain – one of the many cultural centres of Europe, the land of Flamenco music and dance, bullfights, fantastic beaches and lots of sunshine.

As you’re seated in the front seat with Abhijeet kaka, your chirping doesn’t stop – so really, that’s the one thing that hasn’t changed since the time you started to mumble as a baby!  😊  When inquisitive & chirpy kids like you go silent, it’s usually a cause of concern. A signal that your child is showing signs of withdrawal – and I would never ever want that! So, continue to be, the sparkling self that you are!  😊

I’m sure, your “what’s, why’s n how’s” will only get amplified and applied, in seeking answers to anything and everything – from “why can’t we have a pet dog?”, to the very existence of this universe. !  😊

As you turn 10 today, I can’t help but take myself back in time to being your age. I had just finished my primary schooling until 4^th grade, in Narmada Education Socierty’s Dr. JW Iryan English Medium School in Satara. We had shifted to Pune in our 1^st self-owned house, resulting from the innate desire of Abba and Lata Aajji to educate their children in the famously known “OXFORD of the east” !

Abba had made innumerable attempts at ensuring I got an admission to a convent school. Coming from an English medium in Satara, to a convent in Pune, I battled my own sense of insecurities as a 10 year old. My command over English was extremely poor, I had no idea what Grace, Poise or Diction meant – a criteria used to set the benchmark for “ladies-in-becoming” at the convent of Jesus n Mary’s St. Joseph High School Pashan ! It took me about a year, to get over my inferiority complex and soon, I too walked around with a sense of dignity and pride, a sense of belonging to my school and to our new house, that I still fondly call my “Real Maher” – cause that’s where I grew up with Anant Mama, Lata Aajji and Aabba - from a child to a teen to an adult!   😊

In those terms, I see a lot of the “Younger-Sayli” in Avani !   😊 Your sense of nationalism that comes from watching / playing a sport [while you chose badminton and I chose hockey], your divine sense of belonging towards the school, your overflowing love for family and friends, a great set of friends to call your besties, the way you unapologetically express yourself – nice, loud and clear, how well you are able to reason out arguments and express your disappointments, how cheerful you are with the smallest of wins and equally graceful with handling failures!

Over the last year, you have been more than a daughter to me - You’re like my guardian angel,  😊 and I dearly love you so !  😊 As much as I love to give you varied perspectives on things - that you like to call solutions,  😊 you’ve made my life a lot easier with yours!  😊 And If there’s anything Daddy and Me wish for you, it is hoping that you are able to take more care of your eyes, apart from starting to write your book of “Values! “

And before I sign off, I wish to reinforce the dreams you’ve had as a child – at a tender age of 7, you already knew, exactly what, you wanted in life! Following in the footsteps of Mayura Attu, You wish to become a doctor for small children (child specialist / paediatrician). Inspired by Abba and Lata Aaji’s house, You wish to own a bungalow with not one, but two dogs  😊 – you even knew the breed of the dogs you want – a Mastif and a Boxer !!! (and Daddy always says German Shepherd) You want  2 children post marriage to a loving husband, a Girl and a Boy apart from the 2 dogs!!  😊

You also felt that Mayura Attu doesn’t charge any money for treating her patients and hence you would treat your patients for free!!  😊 I still laugh on recalling Daddy’s reaction to that !!  😊 However, at the same age of 7 you’ve been novel enough to say, that you don’t want a lot of money, but just enough money for our family and the house. And that’s why, after having that much, you would treat children free of cost, which I think you very well must!!

Remember, we are all here for bringing about a positive change in this world, through our Values, Knowledge, Wisdom and Work, and hence, it is always a responsibility of the privileged to uplift the less-privileged!

Lata Aajji also has a dream, that her grandchildren should be Nobel-laureates – I hope you achieve this for all of us through your great work!!

Wishing you a very Happy & a Healthy New Birthday Year June 2019- June 2020 !!  😊

Here’s Mumma making a promise to write you a letter for each of your birthday’s hereon – so stay tuned for the next !  😊

Loads of Love, Hugs, Cuddles n Kisses !  😊

-Mumma  😊

Hush Little Baby - AVANI's Favourite Lullaby :)

When Abhi's away, herez what I sing to AVANI and she loves it! :)

Hush, little baby, don't say a word,
Mama's going to buy you a mockingbird.

If that mockingbird won't sing,
Mama's going to buy you a diamond ring.

If that diamond ring turns brass,
Mama's going to buy you a looking glass.

If that looking glass gets broke,
Mama's going to buy you a billy goat.

If that billy goat won't pull,
Mama's going to buy you a cart and bull.

If that cart and bull turn over,
Mama's going to buy you a dog named Rover.

If that dog named Rover won't bark,
Mama's going to buy you a horse and cart.

If that horse and cart fall down,
You'll still be the sweetest little Girl in town.

So hush little baby, don't you cry,
Daddy loves you and so do I.

Change & Progress One Step at a Time :)

Heelllo and Welcome Back ! If you haven't noticed already, Life Less Ordinary now sports a Fresh New Look or at least, that was originally my attempt, as opposed to the last one which was simple yet cluttered. The biggest change, is the Labels - renamed to make more sense and dramatically reduced to a mere 10 ;) Google AdSense failed miserably in generating any revenues and hence occupies just one corner as opposed to 3 from my previous layout. Some of the posts that were saved as Drafts have now been published with the hope to abandon the "save as draft" syndrome ;) The last thing you may notice is that now you can actually React apart from Leaving Comments. So even though I missed on writing the quintessential 'Happy Anniversary to my Blog' post on Jan 17th when it turned 4 Years old, I was determined to make it look delectably appealing.

That is new about my Blog. What's new with me ? I am now well on my way to master my new found baking skills with the "Chocolate Sandwich Cake" with Chocolate Butter Icing topped with Roasted Flaked Almonds ! Never ever had the drive to put up a picture on my blog, but I am so excited that my very 1st attempt at baking turned out to be more than successful, that I can't help but share a picture of it with you guys ! :)


For the reciepe check this link out: I have been a Rachel Allen Fan for months now and this was a great starting point: http://www.lifestylefood.com.au/recipes/8948/chocolate-cake
But hey, topping it up with roasted flaked almonds is just an original addition :) by sayli yadav !

Njoy ! :)

To My Lil Gurl..

Since the point I dreamt of being Mum, I had You, in my Mind. From the time I was expecting, I had You in my Heart. Ever since you were born and now that you turn one, you have become My Whole Wide World ! You'd so believe my desire to have a girl, when you read the post dated August 7th 2008 on this blog on which Neha Aatya commented ! :)

Even though today, you turn a year old, for me you are a year and 9 months more, cause that is how long I know you and to your each passing year, those 9 special months will never be forgotten ! Your Dad n Me, were the one's to hear your heartbeat, even before seeing you in person ! Experiencing life within you, even before it takes birth, is an indescribable feeling which I am glad even you will luckily have an opportunity to understand and experience !

When we thought of you, before you were born, we always thought of a GIRL with long eyelashes, big eyes, dimpled smile, chubby cheeks and yes, a chubbier bottom :) and you were born with all that and even more - your chubby thighs which we love calling Chicken Wings :)

As Lata Aajji rightly says, you look 70% like Daddy (with dark shapely eyebrows, long thick lashes, dimpled smile) and 30% like Mommy (big eyes, chubby cheeks) ! :) While the color of your eyes resembles Baba Ajoba's, the color of your skin resembles Daddy Ajoba's and Kalpana Aajji says you get your voice from her - loud and clear :) your habit of being happy sitting at one place is what you adopt from Lata Aajji :) and I certainly hope that a spirit to fight all odds and emerge victorious is what Anant Mama will inspire in you!

Like all the other babies in the world, You too are an adorable baby ! :) We are the ones who gave you your name and you would be the one to redefine our identity - to make us proud for the kind of human being you will grow up to be ! Like all other parents in this world, I am completely clueless about who you will grow up to be, or what you will choose to do with your life. God Forbid - On our Journey together, if I were ever to be seperated from You, I would want you to always remember ...

"There will always be 10 people more successful, powerful, affluent, wealthy, luckier than you - at the same time there will be 10 others who would be less fortunate or less-abled than you : Do not ever let anyone else's successes/failures be the yardstick for your own accomplishment. Understand the importance of good relationships, the value of time, the worth of being healthy - chances are that you will have the true satisfaction of a Life Well Spent ! Enjoy the Journey, Make the most out of each phase in Life so that when you look back, you Smile and Thank God for what he Gave U !" :)

I will always Love You to Eternity more than anything and anyone else in this World !

Happy Birthday My Love and Bless U always ! :)

Cuddles, Hugs & Kisses

- Mumma ! :)

Are You The One Other's Love To Befriend?

At the end of a conversation with your acquaintances / companions / friends have you ever felt full of energy, enthusiasm, self belief and motivation as against pessimism and bouts of negative energy that makes your head spin ?

Have you ever wondered why some people always manage to leave a positive impression and leave us inspired by their presence and interaction ? What sets them apart from the rest ?

Well this is what helps us in becoming the people we love to interact with:

1: Accommodating: They are always willing to help. They will walk the distance to get you out of any troublesome situation. They will help, when you are in need, but will never invade your privacy or try to be intrusive.

2: Non-Judgmental: They never judge people or think they have the right to criticize someone Else's way of life.

3: Respectful: While being polite and courteous themselves, they also respect other people for who they are and the choices they make for themselves.

4: Appreciative: They are quick to complement every nice thing they notice.

5: Optimistic: They always see the good in any person or situation.

6: Keep Positive Company: In spite of being the most open minded and understanding people, they never fear getting rid of people who repeatedly insist on bringing negativity in their lives, even in the most adverse of their times. They are not afraid to tell negative people to get out of their bubble!

7: Follow the 90-10 Principle: As my Mother often tells me, no Human Being is 100% saintly. 90% of every person is a good human being and 10% of every human being is a Villain. Each one of us has a Villain within us, who at some point or the other, unknowingly emerges without warning. When we accept this truth, it is easier to deal with people and maintain lasting relationships.

Have you observed a quality you would love to adapt, from a person you love to spend time with ? Wish to share it ? Then go ahead and leave a comment ! :)

My Year Twenty O 9 In A 1 Pager !

It's been an overwhelmingly challenging 2009! Although the number of posts on my blog dramatically reduced, there was sure a lot I could've penned down and shared with you all. The house hunt in the 1st quarter saw Abhi and Me shift from our old 6th floor apartment [with a non-functional lift forcing me to climb 112 steps a day] on Midland Road to this new 1st floor Home on Grove Road in Luton.

Shifting home when you are 8 months pregnant can be a daunting task, especially when the lift to your apartment does'nt work. But Anshuman (Abhi's long time friend) was our God Sent Angel who came to the rescue and everything fell into place. It was now time for my In-Laws to arrive and yes the much awaited Baby !! :)

I've had the most memorable Pregnancy (Doing Yoga, Pilates, Swimming, Brisk Walking on the Treadmill, Using the Cross Trainer), Labour (26 Hours in Labour with 4 hrs 38 mins of Active Labour) & Birthing (Forceps & Episiotomy owing to AVANI being a healthy 7.7 pounds at birth on June 1st 2009 9:08 PM UK Time) experience one could ever imagine.

The only thing that broke my heart was AVANI needed special care immediately post birth and was at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit for 7 whole days and later we spent an additional week in the hospital owing to the Intravenous Antibiotics she was being given to prevent her from catching on any infections in future. Those will remain the Llllloooonggessssttttt 15 days of my life !! I counted every second till we were home.. truly !

Soon there was cheer all around - I was a new 1st time Mum with Abhi by my side and both my Parents & In Laws to offer me all the help I needed - And I truly needed a lot of it !!!!!! When all felt well, both our [Abhi’s n Mine] Parents were sent off on a Europe tour - Paris, Venice, Florence, Rome in their 1st Lap. Switzerland & Vienna in their 2nd lap. London, Stonehenge & Cambridge on days in between.

It felt truly very satisfying to see the 50+ Mums in Jeans & T Shirts, Trousers & Kurtas and the 60+ Dad's in Dark Sunglasses, branded sports shoes & posh Cameras ! :) It just felt like they deserved every bit of this experience - they'd worked so hard all their lives, this was truly their most memorable break - one that will be treasured by every member of our families for generations to come. "AVANI ne Avani Daakhavli" soon became my Mum's patent saying ! :)

Come October and the Home felt empty. We had started to miss the presence of each of our parents and soon we started to count days to December - that time of the year again when we fly down to India ! :) It was a treat to walk into our very own hard earned 3 BHK apartment, currently under construction in the plush suburbs of Baner. This purchase truly remains a landmark achievement of our wedded years together. However, the Salisbury Park Residence too, has its own charm and its very own irreplaceable place in our lives. Christmas Day we celebrated our 4th and our 1st ever Anniversary with AVANI ! :) The last 4 years have been a very realistic journey together, full of up's n down's and surely the bond only gets stronger with time.

We continued the tradition of hosting our friends over for a New Year's Eve Party. This time we added one more couple to our Social Circle and it only gets bigger with each passing year! :) The 3 weeks of holiday in India felt too short and soon we were back to the snowing Luton and into The New Year 2010!!

AVANI's Birth, Purchase of a 2nd Home in Pune, A European Holiday for our Parents, & Getting back into Shape in just 8 Weeks Post Birth were things that proved 2009 to be a Landmark Year of my Life ! Hope yours was equally memorable and herez Wishing you and Your Loved Ones a truly Fulfilling 2010 ! God Bless US ALL!

Lotsa Luv N Luc As Always,
- Sayli :)

As You Retire Today...

Hi DAD,

This is a mail I had been planning to write for a really long time to come..
Today, June 14th 2009 is one of those Big Day's in your life.. the one that you would remember for years to come..
I could'nt have wished more to be there by your side and witness the tremendous nostalgia that you may be feeling at this point in time..

As you look back at 33 years of your professional life in the private sector, you sure do have a lot to be proud of !!!

There have been tremendous amounts of up's and down's, a few which We as a family are all well aware of...
a lot many that you may have kept to yourself or even between You and Mom for all the right reasons..

Whatever was the case, that Trademark Laugh of yours always echoed a sense of happiness and well-being in you and is truly one of the things I personally admire the most..
You have been a gr8 DAD to US inspite of all the wrongs we did, and the small amounts of pain that we have caused you..

Your 60 years are truly the ones worth living by each one of us.. your birth to a farmer DAD, a childhood spent in a typically fulfilling rural setup, your teenage spent away from home and loved ones, then your adulthood spent in Pune - the very place which transformed you to a true HERO - with those polished manners, fluent english, great clothes & a personality that others could only envy having...

Your time spent dating mom, writing to her, playing badminton together, staying put in Akkalkot for a while.. getting married, beginning a life in a 1 room apartment on prabhat road, becoming a DAD, being responsible and accountable enough for the progress of the entire JOINT MAHAJAN family, proving to be the strongest root of the Extended Family Tree and treating everyone's illness with empathy, fulfilling all of our wishes and desires.. you went out of your way to help, protect and nurture all of us very positively...

Today as you retire and tomorrow as you turn 60 you couldn't have wished for more fulfillment and a sense of satisfaction that you feel right now I am sure.

Congratulations DAD and CHEERS to LIFE !! CHEERS to The MILESTONE 60 Years DADDY !! :)

Just as you had dreams for us and we fulfilled most of them, Your Children too have a Dream for you ..
We wish you all the Health, Wealth, Happiness and the longest carefree Years Ahead !!

Moving to your "Biggest Dream Come True Luxurious Bungalow", Being a Grandpa to AVANI, Coming Home to your Daughter on your 1st Trip Abroad, taking time out to Sight See the Beautiful Europe - yours is the kind of Retirement everyone can only Dream of !! But you are actually going to live it to the tee !! :)

We all wished a lot to be there on this important day, and nothing can make up for our presence by your side today. Neverthless, I just wrote in to remind you how PROUD we all feel for everything you have achieved so far and wish you luck for every little thing that you set out to achieve in the years to come..

May GOD shower his Choicest Blessings on You - Today and Forever !!

Lots of Luv,
- Sayla Beta :)

"Happy Anniversary" To My BLOG ! :)

A Year - Yes!! That’s how long I have been blogging now! One of my resolutions in 2008, was to start a blog. I did keep at it a lot in the beginning but towards the end of the year, I felt as though I was too caught up to write about anything at all...

But there definitely was a lot to talk about! The things that didn’t quite make it to my Blog List were aplenty:

January 2008:
· The Sensex touching its highest ever peak of 21K
· 'Nano' is born. The world's cheapest car costing Rs 100,000 unveiled at 9th Auto Expo in Delhi by Ratan Tata.
· India's largest IPO by Reliance Power to raise Rs 11,000 crore (Rs 110 billion) opens. The issue closed on Jan 18 but was hammered in the market on debut. The company issued bonus shares to retain investor confidence.
March 2008:
· Tata Motors announces agreement with Ford Motor to acquire Jaguar Land Rover for $2.3 billion.
May 2008:
· Premier League champions Manchester United win the Champions League by beating Chelsea 6-5 on penalties in Moscow after the two sides were level as 1-1 following extra time.
June 2008:
· The hike in Fuel Prices: In the highest ever price raise, the government announced a Rs 5 a litre increase in petrol, Rs 3 on diesel and Rs 50 per LPG cylinder together with customs and excise duty cuts to combat spurt in global oil prices.
· Tiger Woods, battling crippling pain in his left knee, defeats fellow American Rocco Mediate in the first sudden-death hole of a US Open play-off. He takes the remainder of the year off after undergoing reconstructive surgery.
· Spain claim their first major football title for 44 years with a 1-0 win over Germany in the European championship final in Vienna. Liverpool striker Fernando Torres (pictured) scores the only goal of the match in the 33rd minute.
July 2008:
· The most-watched Wimbledon final in eight years (Federer vs Nadal: 5.2 million viewers): Rafael Nadal defeats Roger Federer in an epic, rain-interrupted, five-set Wimbledon singles final to become the first man since Bjorn Borg to win the French Open and Wimbledon titles in the same year. Federer was bidding to surpass Borg and become only the second man to win six consecutive Wimbledon titles.
August 2008:
· Rising prices of food items like fruits, vegetables and milk pushed up inflation to 12.63 per cent.This was a 13-year high for the inflation numbers in India. Inflation was 4.24 per cent during the corresponding week in 2007.
· August 8th – August 24th: The most-watched global event ever (2008 Beijing Summer Olympics: 4.7 billion viewers). 43 world records and 132 Olympic records were broken during the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing. A spectacular opening ceremony in the futuristic Bird's Nest stadium precedes an immaculately organised Beijing Olympics. In the pool, Michael Phelps wins an unprecedented eight gold medals, including seven world records, to better the record set by fellow American Mark Spitz 36 years earlier. On the track, Bolt breaks the world 100 and 200 metres marks in the greatest exhibition of sprinting witnessed at an Olympics. China head the medals table, with 51 golds, ahead of the United States.
· Apple's iPhone makes India debut.
September 2008:
· Seven-times Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong announces he is coming out of retirement and plans to race in the 2009 Tour.
· Lehman Brothers collapses, marking the savage financial tsunami which led to dozens of banks across going bankrupt, and pushed the entire global economy into a tizzy from which it will take at least two years to come out. Many business have shut shop, millions of jobs are being lost even now, and the stock markets across the globe have plummeted like never before.
· Global Financial Meltdown begins.
October 2008:
· Sachin Tendulkar overtakes West Indian Brian Lara's world-record Test-runs tally of 11,953 on the opening day of India's second Test against Australia at Mohali.
· Tata Motors pulls out of Singur, where it planned to set up the mother plant for Nano at an investment of Rs 1,500 crore (Rs 15 billion).
· Tata Motors announces new Nano plant will come up at Sanand in Gujarat at an investment of Rs 2,000 crore (Rs 20 billion).
· TCS acquires 96.3 per cent stake in Citigroup Global Services Ltd, the BPO outfit of the American bank, for $505 million. Tatas bid to buy Jaguar LandRover
· Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines form operational alliance to cut costs.
· Jet Airways lays off 1900 of its employees in various work profiles. Two days later, company Chairman Naresh Goyal orders reinstatement of all the sacked employees.
· ICICI Bank was the target of some major rumours. Following some reports, investors feared that their deposits in the bank were no longer safe.
November 2008:
· History is created, Change Comes to America: The Democratic Candidate, Barack Obama had been voted America's 1st Black President.
· The crash of the Rupee against the Dollar the lowest ever on November 24th . The bankruptcy, sale, restructuring and merger of some of the world's largest financial institutions has caused cataclysmic disruptions in the international stocks and money markets.
· Terror Trails across Mumbai: The November 26th 2008 Mumbai attacks were a series of ten coordinated terrorist attacks across Mumbai, India's financial capital and its largest city.
December 2008:
· Negative Growth - The Indian industry saw its output shrink for the first time in 15 years with a 0.4 per cent year-on-year decline in October, as the impact of the global economic downturn deepened in the country. From a dazzling 12.2 per cent growth in October last year, industry recorded a negative growth of 0.4 per cent in October this year, partly due to a dip of over 12 per cent in India's exports.
· State-owned telecom operator MTNL launches third generation (3G) services.
· India's fourth largest IT firm Satyam Computer announces acquisition of Maytas Properties and Mytas Infra for $1.6 billion.
· Satyam calls off acquisition after angry shareholders response. Since then, four of the company's independent directors have quit.
· Country's third-largest software services provider Wipro agrees to buy Citi Technology Services Ltd from Citigroup for about $127 million.
· World Bank says Satyam barred from doing business with it for eight years.
· Reliance Petroleum commissions its 580,000 barrels per day refinery at Jamnagar.
· Economy and markets under tremendous strain - Stock market benchmark Sensex closes trading for the year down 69 points at 9,647.31. It had peaked to 21,206.77 points in January 2008.
January 2009:
. India’s Biggest Corporate Fraud: Ramalinga Raju and his brother Rama Raju, accused of committing a Rs40 billion fraud that threaten to shake the very foundation of Satyam Computers, are in jail There are fears over the adverse fallouts of the Satyam fraud on the international reputation of the exports-driven Indian IT industry.
. "Slumdog Millionaire": A Mumbai underdog's rags-to-riches story, 'Slumdog Millionaire', swept all the four categories it was nominated for, winning the best director award for Boyle, the best music score for Rahman, best screenplay for Simon Beaufoy and also in the category of best drama. Rahman, who the coveted prize for his music score 'Jai Ho' in the film.

This time around hopefully I will pen down a lot more than I did in 2008 and celebrate yet another Anniversary next year on Jan 17th ! :) Till then keep visiting ! :)