Discussions of a fairy tale and more

This post is from last year and was in 'draft' . A conversation with Avi - 




Avi loves Mythology and a few days ago we talked about Hindu Mythology a bit. This is just an example of how my five and a half year old's thought process works.

While reading Cinderella's fairy tale Avi's questions led to the concept of death, step mother and so on. This is how our conversation unfolded -

Avi - Am I going to have a step mother when you die?

Me - Well I hope I don't die too soon because I want to raise you and take care of you.

Avi- But what if you do?

Me - Umm.....I don't know , may be. You see, all step mothers are not like Cinderella's step mother. Besides If I die when you are all grown up and have a family of your own, Daddy might be very lonely and need company so he may decide to get married again. 

Avi (thinking and nodding ) - Well, if the Hindu mythology were to be true , then that thing you told me about will leave your body and come back to earth in some other form (here he is referring to the 'spirit' as 'that thing' because he can't remember the name), so you would still be here. 

Me (not sure how to steer the conversation or if I should at all and marveling at his thought process) - Well, I guess in a way but since I will not have the same body, you won't recognize me.

Avi - That's okay, as long as you will be around.

Me (nodding and sighing ) - yeah !

I did not make effort to prolong the conversation with my sweet little child who absorbs things like a sponge.  

Weekend of October 2nd 2010

Saturday - Pumpking painting class in the morning at Jordan Hall Arts center. Avi and Neev painted their pumpkins black , hot-glued bat wings on the sides and sprayed silver sprinkles to create the most adorable looking fat bat pumpkins as Avi called them. Quick bite at Quiznos and then to Bond Park for Fire safety day where Avi did a 'Fire combat course'. Step 1- go on the bouncy slide , step 2 - go through the tunnel, step 3- roll over the inflated big bed, step 4- hammer the wooden log between the wedges, step 5- move the injured guy ( a life size doll), step 6- pick up the hose, step 7- attach it with hydrant, step 8 - blast off the water on the house. Hilarious I tell you watching a 5 years old doing it. A ride in the toy fire truck around the park and then later children's concert by Roger Day. 'Its a no -no to kiss a rhino , muah, muah, muah, muah............ouch was hilarious to sing. 

Sunday - A day full of activities on Saturday followed by a lazy day at home with family.

What else comprises of a good weekend?

Avi , Neev and TaeKwonDo

Boys have joined Taekwondo and I think its worth the fee just to see them in their uniforms. This may be the only place which allows to train kids beginning at age 4 and Neev because of his size looks super cute in his uniform. On their first day, as much as it was entertaining seeing Neev following the instructions, it was tough because he is one of the yougest in the class and had no clue whatsoever. I listened to Ooh....look at him....he is adorable.....he is so young.........comments from other parents and wondered if I put him too early in the class. Three weeks into training and my charmer has picked up the steps pretty well and his front kick is awesome. He is following the instructions and his focus is improving. We'll tackle the form in time.
Avi as usual is taking it seriously and  loving it. He is all about testing and getting the white belt and can't wait for August when hopefully he qualifies for it.

Ashwin's visit

My brother-in-law ( my sister-in-law's husband) was in States for a business trip and spent a weekend with us before returning to India. Avi and Neev instantly bonded with 'Fufa Ji' , thanks to their common interests in sports. Be it Wii or the real field, they had a great time playing together. Upon learning that Ashwin also took piano lessons for sometime, Avi asked him if his teacher gave him any stickers for a job well done. Ashwin said no. Avi further asked if she gave him any high fives for a song well played. Ashwin said no. Frustrated , Avi asked, ''well did she atleast TELL you that you played well ?" We broke out in a laugh which lasted several minutes.

North Myrtle Beach Vacation

After 4 weeks of OBX fun, it was time to spend another week in North Myrtle beach,South Carolina at the beach house with Anurag's cousin Atul Bhaiya, his wife Lisa, their adorable 3 years old son Jack, Atul Bhaiya's mom and Lisa's family. Weather was warm and breezy, just perfect for getting wet and lounging. The ocean was different here than outerbanks. Waves were mellow and beach was sloping, making it easy for kids to go much further into water without getting the feeling of being in deep. Around noon the water pushed its way into some areas of the beach and formed little pools of warm seawater, making it a great substitute for hot tub. Avi and Neev loved their sand bath in these pools while we soaked the sun to the hilt. Anurag taught kids to tickle the little fish. Avi learned to body board and we clicked some great shots of him riding the waves. He was captivated by sand and seashells and Neev loved to be in the water . At the end of the trip Avi got a huge collection of sea shells and they each got a shark tooth from Michelle as a souvenir.

One of the days we went to Barefoot Landing, a nice tourist place with board walks along the inter coastal waterway. The place is full of dining, shopping and entertainment options. We enjoyed seeing the tigers, ligers and their cubs. It was hilarious to see Avi and Neev in magic mirrors.

Another day we went to the local carnival and kids loved going on the rides with their cousin Jack.

Lisa's eldest sister Suzie is a dessert queen and we were treated to delicious cakes every night. We enjoyed meeting with everyone and spending another laid back week at the beach. I certainly could get used to this !