Little things, Big memories...the Ira way

There is a lot I have been wanting to write about in the last few weeks. They are little things that have happened. Little things that have created big memories! Little things involving our little human being.

The pace at which our little one seems to be growing, her thoughts, her desires, her articulated speech, her want of privacy, her 'i am still a baby' , 'i can do on my own'...all this and more. The other day we walked into Nilgiris post her Karate class and she walked around the chocolate rack and picked a book! A part of me was thrilled. But I also think it is because she has been gifted a lot of chocolates recently. Still, that little moment made one big memory.

Our holiday last month had many beautiful moments. There is one that will stay with me forever. The way Ira took to train travel, marking her territory on the top berth with Papa and spending time reading and playing uno. They do surprise us at times, don't they.

Recently, she has been constantly wanting to be occupied. It could be a board game, an activity, story telling, some physical play...just about anything. Matching up to that energy can be exhausting. We took her to her first concert recently. We have relied upon moments when she helps clean methi and sort veggies, flying kite on a weekend morning and hoping there is wind, being all excited about diy projects. Recently, we got her some activity kits and with Papa's help, she made shells and gifted them to friends. Today we made a windmill.We have to as parents keep figuring out new things to do and in between those moments, Ira finds to do something different with the old toys she has. They form characters in her stories and they walk and play and dance and sing, while she speaks all their dialogues, ofcourse.

This weekend has been about doing little things, absolutely unplanned! Ira loves donuts and we do let her indulge once in a while. We also managed a relaxed breakfast over lot of chatter and excitement about stirrers! She actually loves to hoard them. The little pleasures of childhood. The little things that create big memories.

#Ira #Iraisms #IraAtFour #TalesAtFour #LittleThingsBigMemories #Happiness #Gratitude

Ira at Chitra Santhe 2019, her first

January 6th, 2019 will be another milestone for us. We took Ira to Chitra Santhe 2019. For years, P and I along with some friends have blocked our calendars for this annual event. It is beautiful to see various forms of art in diverse mediums and the different things that inspire people. There are some themes that seem common every year- Buddha, Ravi Varma inspired portraits of women, Sadhus. As we stroll down the Kumara Krupa Road and bump into other friends who are art enthusiasts or who just live colour or who are there to meet other friends or who come to every event at CKP. It really doesn't matter. There are some who come to religiously buy the postcards, calendars and book marks often created by the Fine Art students, the themes new every year.

This year as we braced ourselves for the long walk, considering parking was prohibited post Nehru circle; we wondered how would Ira take it. She just began walking and insisted on walking by herself. Papa set some ground rules telling her that she can walk by herself in that growing crowd but has to ensure that they can see her and she can see them at any point of time. She seemed particularly taken by the paintings of animals, especially cats and dogs. She would walk past, look and say...see this! One of the artists asked her is she would like to draw something that a didi had drawn. She obviously was in her own world and walked past. The caricature person did grab her attention for a short while, but she wasn't intrigued enough to get one done of herself. After walking a distance, she wanted to be perched on Papa's shoulders and take the tour.

This continued for a while till a child holding a balloon caught her attention. And then we began the balloon wala hunt as we walked to more stalls. She was thrilled to get a balloon puppy and cotton candy. We do wish there were more activities to engage 3-4 year olds and not just stalls selling things they can buy. But it is important to clarify that this experience was not with a hope that it will inspire her to be an artist. As parents, we can only provide our little ones new unique experiences. What they make of it and how they build a world their own is an unknown intriguing palette.

For now, our little girl is happy drawing monsters and scribbling colours on a plain sheet.

#Ira #Iraisms #TalesAtFour #IraAtFour #MakingMemories #ChitraSanthe2019