Looking up to the sky
There is a lot that the last two years have taught all of us. For the ones who parent little children , it was about embracing the chaos and changes that were beyond our control.
We at home realised even more through all this, the importance of giving our child experiences to remember, doing things together as a family. The key was appreciating what we have, anticipating a new experience, savoring it together as a family and making random, little memories that you will someday remember and it will bring a twinkle in your eye and a smile on your lips. Just like one fine morning while driving to school pick up spot, Papa talking about potholed roads and teaching Ira the concept of the path of least resistance! Each time we drive through that road in question, this conversation will be etched in our memories.
Have actually listed some of the randomest and not so random things we did. Random because many a times these were unplanned, some of course planned keeping covid and safety precautions in mind.
1. Cooking together- Get Ira to help with sorting greens, sauteing onions, cracking and beating eggs. We also progressed to having Ira make one Sunday breakfast a month. Simple sandwiches to pancakes from ready mixes. The idea was to enjoy the process. Being a foodie, she did like it but was exhausted cooking for 3 people!
2. Game evenings- Uno Flip, Ludo, Scrabble, Taboo, Pictionary Online topped some of the games we played at home this year. Most Mondays of the year were no screen days and we ensured we played a game together. But again, that was not the only day we played games.
3. Drawing, colouring and some craft too- we drew, coloured and made things together. Independence Day evening we did a picture with our hand prints. Prompted by a family activity from school, we also did a dot art. We learnt some origami finger puppets and even butterfly bookmarks. We spent an evening this week colouring cupcakes and just imagining the different possibility was so much fun!
4. Treks, parks and more- The last two years when covid was in control, we also managed some early morning treks. Read- waking up at 4am and leaving home by 5am. Ira loved being the trail leader and would pack her trek bag with all essentials, including first aid kit and her whistle. How do we manage such early mornings? We are all early risers and some time in nature is motivation enough. We also managed to visit cubbon park a few times. Walk in the park with friends and fur friends just made our day.
5. Reading together- While our mornings begin with coffee and books, some recent happenings meant we changed our coffee time. But the reading habit continues and now is punctuated across the day. Ira got introduced to Harry Potter books this year and what a ride it has been. She is on the 5th book now, as I write this blog. And has also begun reading a book titled, The Vedas and Upanishads for Children by Roopa Pai, gifted by Mr. Chatterjee, who she recently met.
6. Cycling with Papa- Ira also transitioned from a balance bike to a normal bike recently and Papa taught her some bit of road cycling. Wearing her helmet and mask and following directions, navigating traffic with Papa right behind her, she did rides upto 2.5 kms distance.
7. Adventure, Climbing and Skateboarding- Ira had begun climbing classes but they were disrupted due to the second wave. Those 2 days in the week made her super happy. She has a fabulous coach and we hope to resume that soon. She of course continues her Karate classes. Ira has also begun learning skateboarding by herself and recently, we took her to a skateboarding workshop where she was coached. She now wants to join classes and we are figuring that out. Post that session she said she was hapiest to be out of home and do all this kind of stuff. And yeah, she skateboarded and enjoyed bum-boarding too :)
Fun bum-skateboarding
8. Travel- We managed to do some holidays within the state and all of them were in the Western Ghats. Perfect place to relax, do nothing and just be. Some of these places we managed long walks, short treks, a trail walk through paddy fields where we fell and feet got stuck in deep mud too. We also played in a creek and looked up at the open sky and counted the clouds in the mornings and stars at night.
We love travelling and love to pose in style
9. Pretend play and Do nothing days- The year was challenging for the Pramadhs in many ways and we found solace in little pretend plays with Ira. A restaurant scene, solving a mystery or travelling in an imaginary place. Also, do nothing days at home when we do nothing much. Sometimes, cook up a storm of dishes literally because foodies love such days.
10. Journaling your experiences- writing happy chits to writing her little journal, the thought was to capture what am feeling, how am expressing it and why am feeling that way. This is a wip and our little human being reminds us constantly that there is so much happening in that little mind.
So, as we brace ourselves for 2022, we look up to the skies and hope that this is a better year for everyone, we have experiences we learnt from, make the most of and cherish, also experiences we create because life is precious. So, next time you eat that fluffy puri, remember to poke the puri to make that little hole and then enjoy the goodness of it all, the Pramadh way!
Puri poking is serious business
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