Double Bonanza

We had a busy last week! It was Diwali, of course :) And to add to the festive mood, we had Halloween the next day!

Growing up, Diwali used to be my favorite festival. On further thought, it still is. First there were the new clothes, Diwali holidays(with lots of homework too, but we always tried to finish the homework before the festivities began), the delicacies prepared by mom (my mouth waters whenever I think of those), the prayers (and the subsequent rituals) and most importantly the fire-crackers (Dad used to get loads of crackers & we used to divide them equally amongst the three of us and then further divide our own share into three more parts, for bursting them for three days). We hardly cared about the environment those days and just had fun with our friends. Ahh, the good old days!

I wish Angel could experience the same thrill for Diwali as I did. All I can do is try! Try to make Diwali memorable, something that she would remember fondly and celebrate spiritedly when she is grown up. 

And try I did. So I mailed her teachers explaining the festival giving some details & pictures. Next I heard is they read a book about Diwali to the class. They even tried to make rangolis. So the children colored the coarse salt and left it to dry one day and the next day they arranged it in different patterns. It was a beautiful effort!

We live in a carpeted apartment, so we couldn’t make the traditional rangoli (also, I have never made a rangoli before and I don’t have any creative genes) so Angel and me made play dough rangolis!

We also did 3D paper diya craft activity, just so that some excitement rubs off on her.

I made some sweets and snacks so that it feels like Diwali is approaching. 

Angel loved the ladoos, she gobbled them and requested for more. The 1^st batch of ladoos is finished already and I am already getting requests for the second batch. That is a huge thing for me since she hardly likes eating, forget about requesting something for making a second time!

We were so glad that Diwali was on a Sunday this time. So on the day of Diwali, we got dressed and headed for Arya Samaj. I had tried to call them a couple of times, but couldn’t connect with them and we found that it was closed. So we headed to a temple next and attended the prayers. In the evening we went to the same temple again to burst the fire-crackers. Angel was skeptical at first and even afraid, but after watching us for some time, she tried her hands at holding the sparkles and later told me that I was right and it was fun :) We had some time in hand so went to Swaminarayan temple next as J* had heard from his colleagues that it is beautifully decorated. To our great surprise, we could find the acharya khichdi in the food court they had specially put on account of Diwali which was missed the last time we went there. I had to eat it (even though I was done with my dinner) as its one of my few favorite foods. We left with full stomachs and beaming hearts.

Angel’s teacher had requested me to share the picture of Diwali with her so that she could share it with the class and Angel described to her friends that what was what. The teacher later told me that it was a great learning for other children and the children were sharing stories of Diwali with their parents J

The next day was Halloween and Angel, being the fan of 123 Sesame Street, dressed up as the Cookie Monster. 

We also carved a pumpkin for the first time which we picked from a pumpkin patch. Angel was not happy with the happy face and wants a scary faced pumpkin for the next Halloween. 

She also went for ‘Trick or Treat’ for the first time and returned with a bucketful of candies and treats.

We had a wonderful time this year while celebrating the double festivals!

One Year!

Today we completed one year of moving to Toronto, Canada. It would be an understatement to say that time flies! On the other hand, I feel that so much has changed in the past one year. We are no longer unsure of our steps and ways and the city no longer feels unfamiliar. Apart from the bits and pieces of home sickness and a few complaints from the winter, our stint has been pretty good.

There were a few glitches for us here about which I will talk some other time and since this is supposed to be a post on a positive note, I will just jot down the things that I am really thankful for:

- New friends. Now people who know me will know that I can’t make friends easily. So it took its own sweet time and now we do have a couple of good friends here.

- New experiences - which is obvious since I had never lived in any other country apart from India

- The public libraries – I think I have already said enough about them

- Angel’s school – I love her school as much as she does (if not more) and I am so thankful for the school, the teachers and the staff who look after her and take care of her in our absence

- The predictability of traffic – I know exactly how much time is required to travel from place A to place B and plan my activities accordingly which is a great perk

- The community centers – where various classes are held for children and adults alike. Did I mention that I have started learning swimming?

- The city – it’s so vibrant and colorful. Also the location, you can travel to the beaches, the mountains and the plains within a few hours’ drive. Also, you can choose to lead a life you want, I mean, it’s so multicultural that you will always find the people and neighborhoods of your liking.

- The Indian grocery stores, restaurants, temples and communities – these make us miss India a little less.

- As much as I dislike winters, with the same intensity I love the other three seasons of summer, spring and fall

- Last but not the least, our jobs - because of which we are able to sustain here

These are the things that are on the top of mind right now! So what are some things that you are thankful for around you?

Pick(y)-Eat(er)

Summer is finally here and we are loving it. Its so difficult to believe that at the place where we were battling -30 degrees Celsius touches +30 and above these days. We make the most of all the weekends. We have done a lot of hiking, visited a couple of beaches and explored the nearby towns and cities. In fact, each of these deserve a separate post in itself, and I will try for the same!

So last weekend we went for fruit and vegetable picking. It was a new and a wonderful experience for us. There were huge, lush farms of various fruits and veggies. And those were the yummiest berries I had ever tasted in my life. While picking the strawberries, I couldn’t help but exclaim, “I feel that the strawberries are calling out to me and saying, ‘Pick Me! Pick Me!’”

After a heartful and a bucketful of picking strawberries, next we went to the raspberry farm. After picking up a few, Angel uttered, “I feel like the raspberries are calling out to me and saying, ‘Eat Me! Eat Me!’”

No prizes for guessing that raspberries happen to be her favorite berries J