An evening conversation after father's day celebration at the daycare between Jr. and me.
Me: didn't you say you were hungry at the function ? Daddy is going to make some Adai (south Indian crepe made from Lentil flour, red chilis and curry leaves). Do you want some ?
Jr. : Yes daddy.
Me : Here you go (and I give her a piece)
Jr.: This is so voraikkardhu (hot and spicy). I don't want it.
Me : (after tasting it) No, it is not! You have to eat at least one.
Jr.: No, I DONT WANT IT.
At this point I decided that the usual coaxing, cajoling, threatening etc. will not work. So I decided to take the same batter for 1 Adai and made 4-5 little adai's. They looked cute.
Me : I have a surprise for you. Come to the kitchen and see what I have made.
Jr. : (looks at it)You made baby adai's for me !? Give me one.
San who was busy feeding the little one, came back and was very impressed that I managed to get something inside Jr.
That "#1 DAD" medal that Jr. put around my neck at the daycare function.. I think I earned it!
Have a wonderful Father's day. I know you were invited to my daycare for Fathers day function. That too on Friday evening at 4:00. I know you will have to miss the weekend last minute planning meetings and come, which also means your phone will ring friday night and over the weekend and mommy will do "Pilliar eyes" at you all weekend. Thanks for coming!
This year I am surprising you, again! I know how you are really happy with whatever I give you on father's day and act surprised and give me a big hug and a kiss. I have given you trinkets made from paper bits, pieces of cloth left over in the tailors shop, ice cream sticks, old pepsi bottle lids, and things that look like they were picked from the street by my teachers who are hell bent on teaching me valuable subjects like economics at this young age. I also know that you really liked the ice cream stick "I love you daddy" tag I gave you two years ago and display it on the rearview mirror, but the rest of my gifts are nowhere to be found!
This year I am giving you the "#1 Dad" medal. I know you like this one too. You were wearing it even after you came home! But as an additional surprise, here is what I have done with my teachers. We have a brand new mousepad for you with my portrait on it!! Now, now. Stop crying. I don't know if you are really touched by my going the extra mile, or if you are shedding tears for the fact that this daycare actually shelled out money for a gift! Either way, I am happy for you. Now you can finally show your co-workers that you got a commercialized product for a Father's day gift that stands up to those coffee mugs, photo frames, etc. that you will see tomorrow. I know daddy. I know. We live in America.
I give you my usual love and you are still the best!
Love
Jr.
ps. I have another surprise for you. I have taught the little one to say "de da, ove you". I was actually going for "Daddy, I love you", but it is a question of time before she gets the "I" and the "L".
pps. Mommy thinks you are expecting too much. You can't seriously expect to start "onnu vitta mama's rendu vitta marumaan day" just based on the gift potential.
From
Daddy
To
Jr.
Sub : Thank you
Dear Jr.,
I actually always love the time and effort you put into the father's day gift. All these things don't really matter. I love you all the same. You already know that you girls have me wrapped around your finger, and you put that knowledge to good use! When I was a kid we never even knew about a special day for father's or mother's. We knew childrens day was November 14th and that too because it was more of Nehru thatha's birthday than anything else. For us every day was father's day. We "paduththied" daddy all the same, on father's day or on any other day. You do the same.
Keep the trinkets coming. Who knows, at this rate, I might actually talk to your teachers on suggestions for next years gift. I also have to go find out if mommy bankrolled the mousepad and is not telling me.
You are a darling.
Love,
Daddy.
Ps. you are doing some great work with your little sister in building her vocabulary. I can also see that you have some strange hypnotic hold over her and see listens to you more than she listens to me. Please remember, we are a team. We are counting on your new powers to help the family.
pps. Mommy tells me that she had nothing to do with the mousepad. I am really impressed wih your daycare now! I will ask for a USB drive with your photo on it for next year's gift. I was not serious when I came up with the other relative's days. It was just to make a point with mommy.
From
The #1 Daddy
To
All daddy's out there (with or without the medal)!
We had promised ourselves a one day trip to Big Sur, when we had visited Julia Pfeiffer Burns park last Christmas. This week we finally made it. It was also a little anniversary treat.
We were all having a good time, until...
The little one decided to walk a 0.3 mile steep trail by herself. She would insist on holding my hand, her mothers hand as well her blanket wedged between her shoulder and head and walk the trail at the same time. Talk about having your cake, eating it too, and more.
Any attempts to lift her and walk, would end up in a wail, falling on the floor head first, a rolling action of the torso, with her butt held high in the air and legs kicking, all at once. A motion so complicated, yet executed in such a fashion that spiders, centipedes and other organisms with complicated body structures would dedicate temples in her honor.
We were at the bottom of a waterfall view point, when this tantrum (which I call Combo #1) started. I picked the little one up and started running. San, Balaji and the few other hikers present, were trying to find out what I was searhing for. It was a weird sight with a guy running around with a screaming, fighting kid on his shoulder, looking at the ground.
I was literally searching for "ground"! Combo #1 starts with "falling on the floor". When you are on a steep trail with rocks and roots everywhere on the ground, the surface doesnt provide the adequate banging cushion for a 19 month old kid! These manouvers were perfected on carpeted floors and the little one is still learning the concept of relative hardness.
Granted, it was not as glamorous as a Harrison Ford, Tom Cruise or Mel Gibson trying to find some field in a foreign location, to land their bullet ridden plane with the tail in flames. But I was in effect trying to do the exact same thing. Safely land the little one on a flat surface so she can start banging her head on the floor and teach the wild life at Big Sur a thing or two about showing displeasure. I kept running and finally dropped her on a wooden bridge. She promptly bumped her head on the wood, put her butt high in the air, did the kicking and screaming routine.
By this time, everyone in our little travel group caught up with me. I was expecting a pat on the back for saving the little one's head. But they did not understand why I even dropped her on the ground in the first place and gave me the "how cruel?" look.
They did get to see Combo #1 in gory detail multiple times as we walked back and have probably forgiven me by now.
I am still working on a video blog of all the different tantrum combos. The compiled movie will hit your screens sometime before 4th of July!
Here is the bridge, and the little one crossing it before she entered her phase.
And in other news, got the new camera on Friday, :) And in other other news, will get the lens only on Monday, :( !!! So the photo and video you see were all the work of the old S30.
