Yappy Budday!! - 23rd November 2011

Chittu’s first birthday fell on Wednesday, the 23^rd of November 2011. I was in a dilemma how to celebrate her date of birth. Finally decided on Monday (21^st November) what needs to be done and did the task that I am excellent at – preparing a TO DO list J

Primary agenda: A simple yet sweet party for my little beauty

Secondary agenda: No repeat audience as her aayushyahomam was also coming up on 11th December

Invitees: Very close relatives (S perippa, V, U & B athais, Twin A akkas, U athai’s daughter M & granddaughter SD akka, T paati & families), neighbors in our apartment and of course US (Me, S, Chittu, K paati, J paati, thatha, S mama)

Menu: Cake, Gulab jamoon, Samosa, Fruit juice

First task was to zero down on the cake & shop. Eggless was a unanimous choice and after so many calls finally Mcrennet was ready to give it in 1 day. My long time wish was to do annadhanam in a nearby Veda patashala and Chittu’s birthday seemed to be the apt occasion. So called up Thatha and made him fix that up. Given my not-so-predictable office return timings, we invited neighbors in our flat on Tuesday morning as early as 8 AM J Later me, S & S mama were off to Mcrennet to decide the cake. It was a chocolate eggless cake with a cute monkey hanging from a branch holding the number 1 in his hand. Through the day we called everyone and invited them all. Fortunately I returned from office pretty early that evening and went to the known shop from where we buy bondas regularly and asked that aNNa to have 25 samosas ready the next day at 5 PM. He was kind enough that he gave his number and asked me to call 15 minutes prior so that he will have them all hot. S mama bought some decorating banners, balloons, party pooper and hats. Both me & S had taken a day off the next day.

We both kissed & wished a dozing Chittu A very happy & beautiful first birthday at 12 midnight. I thanked GOD for the N millionth time for having blessed me with an angel. J paati sent out a text message with her wishes. The morning dawned serenely and the weather was just perfect. Being November, I was praying rains shouldn’t play a spoilsport. Thankfully Varuna Bhagavan had mercy on us. We got ready lazily and calls kept pouring in. We had a surprise caller - P akka, who inspite of her busy honeymoon packing remembered and called to wish Chittu. Love you akka. J paati had prepared gulab jamoon to be served in the evening. Chittu had her mangaLasnanam and I put on a new cotton skirt n blouse (lavender flowers in white background) for her and we reached the paatashala at around 12 noon. The age of the young boys there ranged from 5 – 18 and they were all staying away from the family and the level of responsibility & sincerity they displayed (be it doing the puja / rituals or serving food / water) at such a tender age just amazed me. And the commitment with which their gurus teach them and conduct the school was fantastic that I have decided to do this every year. Fingers crossed. Chittu became friends with all the aNNas and crawled and took tiny steps all over the lengthy hall. We also had our lunch there and Chittu ate dhal rice, few veggies and payasam. We came home around 2 and took rest for an hour or so. Again at 2.40 PM – her birth time we sang a round of Happy Birthday while she was half asleep. She later slept for a good 2.5 hours and woke up fresh as a flower at 5.30.

Me and S got up at 3, cleaned the house and started decorating when S mama came and joined us. Once all decoration was done, I started preparing semiya payasam, when S & S mama went over to collect the cake. J paati came at 4.30 or so when the two of us completed the pending shopping of fruit juice concentrate, return gifts, paper plates, cups, spoons, candle, knife etc. The list was very useful :P By the time we came home, Chittu had got up and was having her evening milk. I had bought her a coffee brown cut choli with exquisite work for the evening. I kept having second thoughts in mind whether it would suit her and whether I had taken the right choice for Chittu’s D day, but the moment she wore it and posed with her single krishnar kudumi, all my doubts and queries vanished and the chic piece of clothing looked damn good on her. Guests started arriving one by one and T paati took the job of decking up Chittu. In between J paati got ready and brought the samosas. Thatha was stuck in a meeting with his CGM and couldn’t make it in time and asked us to kick start as it was getting late. We did not want to blow the candles, so I had specifically bought a lotus candle which would light up when ignited.

Chittu cut her first birthday cake around 6.45 PM amidst the joyfully sung

Happy Birthday to you

Happy Birthday to you

Happy Birthday dear Chittu

Happy Birthday to you

and a number of flashes. Both me & S gave her a bite of cake and she seemed to like the taste of it. Followed by J paati, K paati, Pri akka, M anna, SD akka, Twin A akkas. We forgot to burst the party poopers immediately after the cake cutting and did it much later J A number of photographs were taken and refreshments were served. T paati gifted Chittu with a pair of leg-ins and tops, M anna gave her an electronic rabbit toy, Twin A akkas gave her a Tupperware container, Pri akka – a pearl beaded frock & skirt with overcoat, Neighbour SJ presented another frock and others some cash. She was a darling and played freely with everyone and allowed all of them to carry her. Chittu gave return gifts (crayons) to the neighbor kids who came in. To M anna, Pri akka, Twin A akkas - It was a Thank you card signed by Chittu holding my hand. Thatha came after the cake cutting and Chittu just thaavified to him once he was in and refused to get down. I had ordered Roti & Dhal for family members alone so that slogging in kitchen after the party is avoided and we had a sumptuous dinner. S perippa couldn’t come as he was held up in a client meeting and S perimma had a bad cold. So only Pri akka could make it. B athai’s hubby was travelling out of station and she got busy with packing and sent her son M anna. Rest all invitees made it with family and made the show a grand success. I patted myself on my back for having arranged and executed Chittu's first birthday party in the best manner and thanked my chithappa – Kutty thatha for having trained me by giving me the opportunity to handle the Twin mama / chithi’s birthday continuously for 7 years J

Kuzhual Inidhu? Absolutely NOT :)

A detailed post about Chittu’s first birthday and mottai (mundan ceremony) is pending. I know that, but since we are going through an exciting chapter of parenthood and babyhood – The kick start of memorable மழலை phase J I wanted to write about what Chittu is speaking, what she can understand and do so that I don’t miss capturing these beautiful moments

1.       Chittu can say அப்பா & அம்மா– loud & clear. She uses it to call us / just like that. At times even if we answer she would keep repeating appa / amma whoever she is calling. She can say it in normal / konjal / emotionless tone. She can identify us in person & in photos

2.       She can say மாமா & தாத்தா – All the above points for appa & amma hold good here too

3.       Initially it was பா – now it is “ஆட்டி"  – Well, that is her பாட்டி.  She can differentiate well between J paati & K paati – both in photo & in person

4.       அத்தே is அத்தை

5.       பாப்பா, அக்கா, அண்ணா – Anna being the most favorite. She classifies them by age and calls them using the appropriate relationship

6.       Unki (Un-key) = Uncle – This again based on age classification

7.       Q: K mama eppdi ma bayamuruthuvaa?

       A: Bends and relaxes all 10 fingers with her lips curled like an “O”

8.       Anyone who is old is thatha too. Even Shirdi Sai is thatha for her. She points to the calendars at home and says thatha. She looks at the Mother calendar and says அன்னை

9.       She calls K mama by name Kaathi & his wife S as Inya

10.   She calls J paati as Dheya and me as Dhethi

11.   Q: Ummachi kapaathu chollu

       A: Aachi & folds her hands to pray and does the namaskaram

12.   J paati sprained her leg & K paati sprained her hand.

      Q: Paatiku kaila / kaal-la ennama?

      A: Ubbo meaning Uvva

13.   தோ தோ / bow vow is dog. Maaa (voice comes from the throat) / இம்பே is cow. She can identify them and answer the question “Maadu eppdi ma kathum? / Tho tho eppdi maa kathum?”

14.   Q: Thatha eppdi ma tho tho va koopduvaa? A: Ch Ch Ch Ch

15.   Q: Thatha eppdi ma maada koopduvaa? A: Pa Pa Pa Pa by folding her lips, the exact sound that thatha makes

16.   Q: Kozhi eppdi ma kathum? A: Ko Ko Ko

17.   Other identifiable animals – Duck, From Fffff we have now move on to Piss (meaning Fish J), ஆனை, Monkey, கியி (can mean parrot / peacock), காக்கா

18.   S’s colleague had bought a toy cat from Bahrain which can mew too. Chittu looks at it and says miyaa J

19.   All toys as மம்மை for her i.e.பொம்மை

20.   We show her rhymes, ABC, animals in the laptop. It all started with thatha showing her a barking dog in youtube. So whenever she sees the PC / laptop she starts saying Bow Vow and she wont allow us to do our work until we show her cow, dog, goat, cat, elephant, fish, parrot, peacock and some rhymes

21.   When we sing Baa Baa black sheep – she says Baa Baa

22.   She can point to her தலை, கண்ணு, மூக்கு, காது, வளையல், தோடு

23.   Q: Mottai maNdai enga ma irukku? A: Points to head

24.   Q: Mudi enga ma pochu? A: Shakes her hand & gestures காணும்

25.   She can identify and say bike, caa (car) buch (bus), It started as aatum and is now auto, thaen (train)

26.   Whenever she sees rice / our lunch boxes - its மம் மம், vegetables – it is காய், idli – it is இட்டி, dosa / adai – its ochai, papad – it is அப்பம், பால், dates – it is daych (as soon as we open the fridge she starts saying daych and vice versa – when we ask her where dates is, she goes near the fridge) For all eatables, when we ask her yaarukku ma? Most of the times we would hear “நான் நான்” irrespective of whether she is hungry or not

27.   She can identify & say apple. She just loves banana, apple & chikku. S mama used to buy bondas regularly from a known shop & it is Chittu’s most favourite that she wouldn’t allow anyone to have it unless someone gives it to her.

28.   She likes bread sticks (plain) and biscuits (ordinary & cream) too. During my friend M’s baby shower, another friend A gave her an Eclairs (I had never given her any chocolate before and that was the first time) She did not know that she had to break it before giving and gave Chittu a full piece. I was closely looking at Chittu so that she doesn’t choke, the sweetiepie made it through by biting and nibbling it to pieces and finished the whole chocolate in a matter of 7 mins.

29.   She knows Kakkar = Cooker, Ichi = Mixie, Baatil = Bottle, தூத்தம் = Water in the kitchen

30.   When cooker whistles / when we put on the mixie / when train passes by, she closes both her ears with hands and says தத்தம் (சத்தம்). But satham is the keyword. Even when we say sathamaa pesu she closes her ears

31.   She started climb the stairs  from 15^th October 2011 and first she stood on her own was on 17^th October 2011. She took her first step without support on 12^th November 2011. She is a pro in getting on & out of the bed, getting on & down from the sofa.

32.   The moment she started walking, it was not at all slow, she wanted to walk real fast and thereby was falling down frequently

33.   She has 6 teeth in all now – 2 in the lower jaw, 4 in the upper jaw and is a biting queen

34.   She asks என்ன? For anything and everything – the inquisitive Chittu

35.   She makes a gesture of calling and says “வா வா”

36.   She keeps the index finger on her mouth & nose and says “Sssshhhh”

37.   She says aachu by shaking her hand & showing an “இல்லை” gesture. She uses the same gesture for காணும் though she doesn’t say the word

38.   She can put தாளம் when we sing ஸ ரி க ம

39.   Whenever there is a song and we ask her to dance – She raises both her hands and points index finger to the sky – the bhangra style and sways her hips on either side. And says “ஆட்டு ஆட்டு” meaning பாட்டு

40.   When she falls down we say பாத்து / அம்மாடி, she repeats it – பாட்டு / அம்மாயி

41.   Appy can mean Happy Pongal / Happy New Year / Happy Birthday depending on the situation

42.   Dech is dress, Poppi is thoppi referring to her monkey cap and பூ is flowers

43.   Initially she used to kiss without a sound and used to make a big fuss when we ask for it. Nowadays she gives it as soon as I ask and with a sound, though it is still a rare pleasure to her dad

44.   She is a highly expressive kid. She hugs / kisses / at times even beats and bites and shows her affection in all possible manners

45.   When she bites or beats me, I scare her saying பூச்சி will come & take her away. I put on some untuned channel in the TV which shows grains and have told her that is poochi. So when she bites / beats in excitement, I ask her “Ammava kadichaa enna varum” She says “ச்சி, and looks at the TV, shows her hand as if she is beating and says போ போ”. Another maska mechanism she uses is as soon as she bites and I stare at her, she kisses me and konjifies amma, amma J

46.   Once she pulled out J paati’s eyes & cheeks that it hurt and she shouted at Chittu – ஏய்…for which Chittu changed the action as if she is mildly pinching paati’s cheeks and taking the fingers to the lips and as if she only tried to give her a kiss. How clever!!

47.   When we ask her to bring something for us and direct her properly, she gets it for us. Whether she would hand it over to us or not, depends on her interest towards that object

48.   She knows the difference between TV remote & Mobile / Chordless. With the remote she points to the TV and tries to change something. With the mobile / chordless – she says Aboo and walks away from us showing as if she is engaged in a very important conversation. மொளச்சு மூணு இலை விடல. She can say Mobi (mo-bye) which means mobile

49.   She knows to ring the bell & put the switches ON. Whenever she sees the bell / any switch – she calls out “bay bay”

50.   She can say and identify ball. When we were walking on the road with B athai, Chittu called out aloud - BALL looking at one in a nearby shop, that athai was so impressed and immediately bought her one

51.   When we say Kaanume and close our face with hands, she knows to remove and give a sly smile. Earlier she used to remove one hand and by the time she removed the other, I will close my hand 1. But now, she cleverly holds the little fingers of both my hands and removes them at one go

52.   She raises her index finger and merattifies everyone with a terror Aaaaa which comes from the throat

53.   She knows the art of moraikkardhu by frowning the eybrows and shrinking the eyes

54.   She feels shy at times for nothing and places the cheek on her shoulder and smiles

55.   She is a little destructive which keeps me worried. She throws away the toys, always looks at the base and opens the battery slot & throws away the batteries, breaks the parts and puts them into her mouth – she got a green automatic bus for her birthday which has stopped working now because of this act of hers (thankfully this has reduced now), tries to remove the eyes of the beautiful crawling baby that P akka bought for her many months back. She used to take two big toys in both the hands, get up from the floor all by herself and throw it away. After she started walking, she has kind of forgotten this

56.   The latest addition to her profile is adamancy – Nobody should leave her and go when they go out, We shouldn’t take away anything from her hands forcefully. If we do any of the above, she lies down on the floor and starts crying & shouting at the top of her voice with absolutely no tears at all. I am worried about this too.

57.   I am trying to potty train her in the Indian styled rest rooms starting yesterday. I take her to the bathroom at regular intervals and make her sit when she does the job. Have to wait and watch how well she copes up.