Bleak

This afternoon during Evan's nap I took Vivian and Simran to - where else - St. Edwards Park. Within a few hundred yards of the car park the trail became a tangled mess of fallen-over dead trees and vines. Simran commented that the park looked very depressing. We imagined it to be the perfect setting for a depressing sad story. Vivian confused the word "impressive" with "depressing" and Simran helped her out. We passed a spooky tree stump - the remains of a tree struck by lightening. The stump was curiously filled with rocks and stones. Then we arrived at the knotted rope that hung down from a branch over a deeper portion of the creek.  We could almost imagine what it must look like in summer with children swinging off the trees and splashing into the creek. But today it looked desolate.

Vivian and Simran started weaving scary snippets into a scary story. By the time we walked back to the car they had quite a tale put together. They continued to build on it. Till we arrived at Amy's Ice Cream where the goodness of rich cream and chocolate wiped away all traces of bleakness.

Trip to Ramsey Park

Late Saturday morning the moms went to the movies. And Tim and I rounded up Evan and Ava and Vivian and walked to Ramsey Park.  As close as they are, Ava and Vivian are strong opinionated young ladies. Which means there is that tiny bit of respectful distance in their dealings. Evan on the other hand just loves Ava and doesn't hold back. But this last month Vivian and Ava seem to have grown even closer. It is fun to watch them together.

On this morning they ignored all structures specially built for children - like playscapes and swings and slides. Instead they ran to the top of the bleacher by the baseball field. And then they spent the rest of their time climbing inside this very twiggy brushy bush. From what I could catch of their conversations it appears that they imagined themselves to be wild girls who lived and slept in that bush.

A Bike Ride

On Thursday afternoon I had barely settled into the arm chair after a nice hot shower which was after an hour of soccer and a workout at Red Black gym earlier that morning when Vivian asked me to go outside with her. It was cold out there and I was tired and I almost said "No honey, stay indoors and watch a movie". A few minutes later we got warmly dressed and Vivian rode her bike to Rosedale School. Along the way she stopped to hug the old oak tree. Then we sat in the empty school park on the swings and chatted with each other for quite some time. I told Vivian how much I valued times like this. I think I embarrassed her into admitting the same.

Then Vivian said she wanted to go to the monkey bars which are on the other side of the school. After which we walked past the small vegetable gardens and she pointed out the vegetable plants and herbs by name. And then we were at the memorial garden. We walked by statuary with tiny plaques attesting to the short lives of many Rosedale students. Vivian asked me to read a few of them aloud. We finally arrived at the memorial wall. Vivian asked if I had known any of the dead students. I recognized several names, specially the two from this year. Vivian hugged me and softly slipped her hand into mine and we quietly walked back to her bike. A hundred yards down the street she was back to her normal self.

Happy Birthday Carol

Carol turned some respectable number of years old on Christmas day. Nicolle baked her a cake that contained a lot of strawberries. And the party was princess themed. This photograph is from Carol's perspective. It's hard to spot the tiara on her head in the foreground but it's there.

My dad woke up from his turkey-incuded after-lunch nap, took in the the pink explosion and tucked into the cake and ice creams.

Turkey

I have never quite developed a taste for turkey. The best I can say is that occasionally I find a crispy piece that includes some skin and it isn't bad. This year I prepared the bird in Carol's oil-less frier (an oxymoron for a name but it's actually quite descriptive). It took just two and a half hours to produce a perfectly crispy golden brown turkey on the outside with moist (and still tasteless) meat on the inside with absolutely no fuss.

Before I put the turkey in the frier I plonked it down in front of my dad who was napping at the table after breakfast. He opened one eye and then went back to his nap. When it was done I put the cooked turkey back in front of him. He considered it for some time. Then he asked me how I had obtained it. He didn't believe that it had been cooked on the deck outside just a few feet from him during his nap. This is all new to him - it's his first Christmas in Austin. If you are wondering, Hyderabadi's usually don't celebrate Christmas with turkey.

And here we all are. The kids and my dad are already digging in. The rest of us ate on the porch. Next Christmas I am going to add steaks or a nice fish to the mix. Even if they have to be dragged in kicking and screaming.

Princesses Cowgirls and Doggies

Vivian found a red cowboy hat and red cowboy boots under the Christmas tree. Then she discovered that there was the perfect pouffy princess dress under the tree with her name on it. She put the dress on - on top of her pj's. And then she put on her tiara and all was good. She never came back to her hat and boots.

So this evening when I asked her what was her favorite Christmas gift I was surprised to hear that it was the boots and hat. "That's what I really really wanted!" My cowgirl princess. Evan loves his well-worn cowboy boots. He got a cowboy hat to accompany them. We can't yet seem to get him to wear them together though.

Surprisingly, a day later when we were back in Austin, Jo asked Evan if he liked what he got for Christmas. He said he did, but then he commented that Santa hadn't got him everything he wanted. What didn't you get, Jo asked. "I didn't get a doggy". Now I am beginning to think that he real wants a doggy.

Fun at Grandma's

We spent two days over Christmas at Carol's. With Nicolle's family and my dad. These photos show why the kids enjoy it so much.

My World

We took a family picture. I balanced my camera on a old TV carton that I dragged out of the garage while eight grand kids, Carol, her two daughters, Michelle, and three of four dogs arrayed themselves on the stone fence beside the driveway.

After this Jo and Vivian and Evan stayed sitting on that fence for a few more seconds. It was enough to take this second photograph. Evan is surprised. Jo and Vivian are unusually serene. And there is a bit of the hill country in the background. My world in one picture frame.

Baby Wipes from Santa

This is Evan's first real Christmas. He was too young in 2010. And jet-lagged in Hong Kong in 2011. But he's still thankfully not steeped in the commercial nature of things.

On Christmas morning he woke up and announced loudly to the world as he does every morning "Mamma, Daddy I is awake". I picked him up and took him to the living room where Jo was already up. Resting on the top of the couch was a new packet of baby wipes. In front of him under the Christmas tree and around it were piles of gift-wrapped bundles and boxes. And in front of all that was the wooden toy work bench that Jo and I had assembled the night before.

Jo said "Evan - look what Santa got you!". And Evan looked down at the packet of wipes and replied happily and excitedly "Santa got me new baby wipes!"

"No - over here" Jo pointed helpfully.

"Oh - Santa got me a work bench!"

Luke

Vivian and Evan got light sabers for Christmas. Evan immediately got into it. The sabers unfortunately look much better in the photographs then they do in real life.

One of the names we had in our back pocket for Evan was Luke. Just so I could tell him "I am your father". The force is strong with this one.

Little Afghans

To say that I hate the gift giving and receiving part of Christmas would be stating it strongly. But just by a bit. So this Christmas right in the thick of the gift portion of the day an event took place that warmed even my Grinchish heart.

Back in the day when Carol had fewer grand children than fingers in one hand she went all out and spent a considerable portion of December finding the right gift for each grand child. But when the number approached and then surpassed the players in a soccer team she discontinued that practice.

This year the grand kids were expecting the usual card and cash. But then Carol said that she had done something a bit different. Eight soft squishy gift-wrapped packages were dug out from under the tree and distributed by the older cousins to all the kids. Then, at the same moment they ripped the wrapping apart to find a personalized afghan for each.

Since early summer Carol had carefully hand-crocheted each afghan. She had selected the pattern, size, and color for each child. She had done all this in secrecy, managing to hide it from all of us, even Jo. And she had shipped five of them off to her grandchildren in Florida and Korea in time for Christmas and wrapped the other eight and put them under the Christmas tree. Wow.

Laguna Gloria Afternoon

The other afternoon Vivian and Neighbor Ava and I went to Laguna Gloria to kill a few minutes. The girls played and had a great time. After we finished there we wandered into Mayfield Park next door where Vivian showed Ava the peacocks and the place behind the archway. Then they settled down for a photograph in the garden and Vivian explained to Ava how we come here to celebrate Arjun's birthday. "Simran's dad is dead so we plant flowers in this garden."

Our Little Angel

Evan is a brat. And a scheming turd with manipulative powers far beyond his normal cognitive abilities. But every once in a while he is just adorable and lovable and cuddly and funny and caring and polite and charming at the same moment. It's hard to remember those moments so I am glad that they made a Christmas ornament at school to remind us. He's even got a little halo in there.

An Afternoon at the Saucer

A week ago by mid-morning both Evan and Vivian's teachers had called in and said that the kids were not being themselves and could they perhaps be sick. I drove around and picked them up. By the time we got home, they were miraculously cured. They spent the rest of the morning horsing around. By mid-afternoon it was in the low 80's. A beautiful sunny day. We all drove over to the Saucer for some beer and soft pretzels. The last perfect afternoon of 2012.

Fuego al Cañon

Vivian and her class at Magellan performed Fuego al Canon - a Venezuelan holiday song. Then they sang Five Little Turkeys. Followed by Tue Tue - a Ghanaian song about harvesting yams. And finally all the students in the school sang the Magellan School song - which has lines in English, Spanish, and Mandarin Chinese. A lot of languages and perspectives and another small step towards the making of global citizens who will hopefully serve this world better than my generation is.

Vivian wore this white and black dress - minus the dupata and the hat - for the school concert. If you spot her in the school song video let me know.

Back Home

We were at Carol's for Christmas. Returned home this evening.

Crazy was home alone while we were gone. She expressed her displeasure loudly and eloquently. Then she started ripping up tissue and other Christmas wrapping. I think she's saying "Welcome home" in her own way. That or something un-bloggable.

Happy Birthday

My dad is 89. We think. Because his official birthday as recorded on his school certificate and thereby everything official that followed is January 19 1924 though he thinks he was born on December 22 1923.

Here's a photograph in the original leather frame of my dad and mom before I knew them. I have included this photo as opposed to others of just himself because I knew him as a part of a partnership. I only started to think of him as an individual after my mother died a few years ago.

This is a photo of him eating his dinner tonight. Even in Austin - surrounded by grandchildren and Jo and me he is a picture of loneliness and isolation. Vivian and Evan - is this how you will know me if I get here?

Yesterday - after many years - I heard Bob Schneider's cover of New York Fairy Tales and it sent a shiver down my spine.  Bu - Happy birthday. If I get half your wisdom and a fraction of your humanity I'll call it a day. Cheers.

Back Again

Apologize for the radio silence. Evan summed it up for all of us when Karen asked him how he was feeling the other day. "Karen - I had diarrhea in my mouth". Not literally. But it must have feel that.

Evan was our patient zero. Friday evening saw many a diaper changed. On Saturday morning he threw up on Jo. Which prompted her and Vivian to drive away to Houston for Brandon's 6th birthday as quickly as they could. By dawn on Sunday Evan and Grandpa were puking in tandem. Jo and I mostly dodged the worst we think. Vivian didn't feel a thing. Till last night when she came back from school feeling like she was coming down with something. Evan's stomach is better but now he seems to be catching a cough. And my Dad looked like he had put it behind him it till early this morning. I hate to leave you with that mental imagery. Here's something better.

So we are a mess but getting better. Meanwhile Alu is coming to Austin on December 31 to mind the ranch while Jo and the kids and I go to the beach. Four months of not traveling for fun just about did me in. Wait - don't snigger just yet. I bet you have a couple of "first-world-problems" too.

A Lesson Learned

Sometimes I find myself saying the same thing to Vivian or Evan over and over again several times a day. With no effect.  And then infrequently days or weeks or months later it may take hold. Which makes me wonder about the speed at which their neurons are making connections (or not).

Life isn't simple. It isn't easy to tell right from wrong. Or to process all that shit that is thrown at you from every side twenty four hours a day and to filter out the yogurt ads from the stuff to keep. That's what I worry about. How are Vivian and Evan learning the important stuff? So imagine my surprise when I learned something today. Something I have apparently been told often but never heard.

So here it is. Squeeze your butt together when you are standing up from a squat. Jen has said this to me a hundred times but I finally heard it today. And then I back-squatted two hundred pounds. Certainly not Atlas. But just squeeze together and you will be rewarded.

It has taken me four years to hear this very simple instruction at the gym. I will be more patient when Vivian and Evan don't appear to grok my wisdom the very first time. Repetition has it's place. Neurons march to their own beat. Such is life.

Christmas Cookies

Tonight after dinner Jo and Vivian and Evan made Christmas cookies and decorated them. Vivian carefully and meticulously decorated five cookies for her Magellan teachers and Ms. Mary. Evan decorated one cookie. Then he devoured it. And then he licked the beater and himself clean of icing. And finally brought the party to a close by dumping a quarter of the bottle of green sprinkles all over himself and the table. Grandpa didn't care and peacefully put down a couple of cookies while the kids moved on to their next activity - showers.

Afterwards as we surveyed the mess Jo said "I don't think I'm going to do this again. I don't enjoy it and it leaves a mess."

At the End of the Day

Jo and I take turns tucking the kids into bed. They each get to pick one book that we read. Then they get to keep that book in bed with them for the night. Vivian started the tradition when she was scared at night. A book gave her comfort. Evan would rather have spiderman or a light saber but he's embraced the book-in-bed tradition too.

St. Edwards Again

Last Sunday Vivian asked to go back to St. Edward's Park for her morning walk for her marathon. It was a warm overcast day. The kids roamed the park with a certain familiarity and confidence that is nice to see. Vivian is becoming a keen observer of nature and took paper and pen along to record patterns in nature (the current unit of enquiry at school is patterns). She was excited to discover wave diffraction in the ripples of the shallow creek - just a couple of steps away from chatting about the double slit experiment!

The Joys of Writing

It's the time of the year when our preparation for the Rosedale Ride reaches it's first frantic pitch (the second one is about two weeks before the ride). This year we have a young volunteer who is going to work on the Rosedale Ride blog and facebook pages. I was explaining to her today that when you get used to writing a blog one just has to do it. It obviously doesn't have to be great or even good. But when you have a hundred ideas in your head there's little peace till you put them down on "paper". And you are forced to observe because you can't write without observing.

But there's another huge joy to writing. Knowing that there could be one person out there who finds your drivel worth reading. This is a photo of Jo's Aunt Jo (not an accidental name coincidence) and was taken by her daughter who prints out this blog for her mother to read. The cat is surely wondering if it's worthy to line her litter box.

"Best Photos of 2012...

... of both Vivian and Evan together (that have not been published too many times on the blog before now)"

March 2012, Morjim Beach, north Goa.  Our second trip to Goa in less than a month. We were there with Arjun's family. The white sand beach is terrific. The wind not so much.

March 2012, Goa. Drove around all day trying to visit a spice garden rather unsuccessfully. The kids fell asleep soon after I took this photograph inside senior Simran's vintage M&M.

March 2012, Hyderabad. Vivian gets to sing and dance two Bollywood songs for her school day. Which means every moment becomes a performance. Evan does his best to follow along.

March 2012, Hyderabad. Cleaning out our flat in preparation for moving back to Austin. Evan got the trike and Vivian a scooter for Christmas. They got really good and rather reckless at driving around the flat.

April 2012, Hilo. Our first night back in the USA. Kids enjoying some downtime after flying from Hong Kong to Hawaii via Tokyo.

June 2012, Bora Bora. Morning ritual on the fore trampoline of the sailboat. Evan didn't jump off the boat and Vivian was in her island girl element.

August 2012, Austin. Home sweet home. Bath time with cousins.

October 2012, Austin. Chefs hats and aprons all round - awesome birthday gift from Vivian to Dad.