Lately, we’ve introduced the practice of a daily quiz over dinner. Both the kids have dinner with us, so it’s a fun way to engage them in conversation, teach them about interesting things and make learning & quizzing more enjoyable.
The kids take turns to choose the “subject” and also take turns at answering questions. A few days ago, they chose History. Here’s what happened next…
Papa: Pumpkin, tell me, who is known as the Father of the Nation? Pumpkin: I know, I know… Gandhi Jayanti ! (Jayanti means birthday celebration) Papa: Well, you’re close. It’s not Gandhi Jayanti, but Gandhi ji. Papa: And, Tiger, what is Gandhiji’s full name? Tiger: I know this one – it’s Gandhiji Bachwani.
Papa: Pumpkin, tell me, who is known as the Father of the Nation?
Pumpkin: I know, I know… Gandhi Jayanti ! (Jayanti means birthday celebration)
Papa: Well, you’re close. It’s not Gandhi Jayanti, but Gandhi ji.
Papa: And, Tiger, what is Gandhiji’s full name?
Tiger: I know this one – it’s Gandhiji Bachwani.
(We’ve been teaching Tiger that every one’s full name in the family is XYZ Bachwani. So, that’s what he figured!)
Another day, another quiz. This time, the topic was Birds…
Papa: Tiger, can you name a pretty bird? Tiger: Yes, a pretty bird is… peacock! Papa: Very good! Now, Pumpkin, can you name another pretty bird? Tiger: (Before Pumpkin could answer) I know, I know… Another peacock!
Papa: Tiger, can you name a pretty bird?
Tiger: Yes, a pretty bird is… peacock!
Papa: Very good! Now, Pumpkin, can you name another pretty bird?
Tiger: (Before Pumpkin could answer) I know, I know… Another peacock!
Now, you know.
It was a little over two years ago, when I first spoke to Pumpkin about taking her to a “snow place”. Since that time, on numerous occassions, she used to ask me when we would be making the trip, and I would always reply that we would go soon, and that these things take a lot of planning, and even if we go there would be no guarantee of actually seeing snow.
It had been bugging me for a while now – the fact that it was a promise not yet fulfilled. Something or the other would come up each time we planned an excursion for the family. And, the “snow” vacation just did not happen.
But, I was determined to make it happen before the year ended.
The more I researched the idea, the more I realized that perhaps relying on the good fortune of the weather or enduring the trials and tribulations of what goes by the name of “tourism” in India, may not be the best way to go about it. So, I started the hunt for indoor snow resorts / theme parks and after exploring Dubai and Singapore, finally settled on Bangkok’s Dream World / Snow Town.
Bangkok is a destination that I am very well-acquainted with, and it would be a great way to introduce the kids to the sights and sounds of a foreign culture! We had been talking about taking the children for an international trip, and were waiting for both to be the right age. Tiger had just turned 3, and Pumpkin was 6 and a 1/2. The timing was perfect. As luck would have it, a popular travel site was also running a special promo offer for Bangkok during that period, with a free entry to Dream World!
We took an Air India flight out of Mumbai as the timings were most convenient. (I still can’t see myself taking an international flight that departs in the middle of the day!) The service apartment suite on Sukhumvit Road was cozy and well-managed. Dusit Zoo was delightful. The day spent at Safari World was enchanting in so many ways, the most memorable of which was feeding the giraffes! The afternoon we spent in Rotfai Gardens & Butterfly Park was simply magical. And, Dream World / Snow Town was literally a dream come true – unlimited rides for the kids through the day, and we touched snow.
All the planning and preparation had paid off, and I was able to fulfill a promise to my Pumpkin. Seeing her face the first time she touched snow was a memory I would cherish for a long time. And, Bangkok would never be the same again for me…
Thanks to a re-tweet by a friend, I discovered a really well-written piece by Natasha Badhwar (Indian Express) on what it means for her to grow up with her kids.
The essay is generously laced with humour and insight, and has a lot to offer, not just for those of you who may be trying to understand what parenting involves, but also for young parents like us who can use some welcome tips to help us make the most of our experience! Here are some excerpts…
We are parents of three children, but don’t let the number distract you. The more they are, the better pictures they make. The more they are, the more time off a parent gets. The higher the sense of achievement when one gets anything done at all. Like being on time for the school bus… Like everyone else around me, I embarked on parenthood with my own set of delusions. Eight years into the game, I’ve lost a lot of the wisdom that had seemed a natural gift. I feel lighter. My learning is inconclusive and contradictory and doesn’t work all the time. Quite like the children I learnt them from. After all, it’s still early years. I call it a game, because that inspires us to play. Play demands creativity, one gets better with practice and if one keeps up the spirit, then laughter and fun comes along. Play can get difficult; it requires fitness and training.
We are parents of three children, but don’t let the number distract you. The more they are, the better pictures they make. The more they are, the more time off a parent gets. The higher the sense of achievement when one gets anything done at all. Like being on time for the school bus…
Like everyone else around me, I embarked on parenthood with my own set of delusions. Eight years into the game, I’ve lost a lot of the wisdom that had seemed a natural gift. I feel lighter. My learning is inconclusive and contradictory and doesn’t work all the time. Quite like the children I learnt them from. After all, it’s still early years.
I call it a game, because that inspires us to play. Play demands creativity, one gets better with practice and if one keeps up the spirit, then laughter and fun comes along. Play can get difficult; it requires fitness and training.
I especially love the analogy about parenting as a “game”. Being a father of two kids myself, I know how much work can go into being a good parent. And, at the same time, the act of being a parent can be so incredibly rewarding and filled with joy, that it can get quite impossible to explain to any non-parent, on a logical level, why so many of us opt to have children! That’s why the “game” analogy makes perfect sense.
But, that’s not all you can get from Badhwar’s write-up. Here’s some more…
Parenting demands that we have to be more present, rather than absent. It’s easier to be away at work, far easier to be stuck in traffic every day. Parents love Mondays. If you work at home, you get to send the kids away, if you work outside, you get to send yourself away. Monday is parents’ secret Saturday. But eventually, our children will give each other what they get from us… So I make a game out of this too. We are all crew and cast on a film set. Sometimes I am allowed to raise my voice because I am the Director. I always make up for it with my crew and actors afterwards, because you know, I need them on the sets tomorrow. This film depends on their motivation, I couldn’t pay anyone to act in this one…
Parenting demands that we have to be more present, rather than absent. It’s easier to be away at work, far easier to be stuck in traffic every day. Parents love Mondays. If you work at home, you get to send the kids away, if you work outside, you get to send yourself away. Monday is parents’ secret Saturday. But eventually, our children will give each other what they get from us…
So I make a game out of this too. We are all crew and cast on a film set. Sometimes I am allowed to raise my voice because I am the Director. I always make up for it with my crew and actors afterwards, because you know, I need them on the sets tomorrow. This film depends on their motivation, I couldn’t pay anyone to act in this one…
If you’re still wondering why parents enjoy parenting so much, I’ll offer you some more of Badhwar’s words, in response: “They remind us of what we were like when we started out. What we can be like, what can be reclaimed.”
Simply put, children are reminders of the best that Life can be.
The “Tidbits” series I started many moons ago, has proved to be very popular among the readers of this blog. With this post, I now introduce little Tiger’s antics to you…
Earlier today, as I was getting ready for work, I saw little Tiger upto some of his naughty antics in my room. This is what happened next…
Papa: Tiger, which planet have you come from? Tiger: (Gives me a mischevious smile and points his finger towards the sky!) Papa: Yes, I know it’s up there. But, what is it called ?! Tiger: (almost instantly) Zoo Ba Gaa! Papa: Really? Is it a fun planet? What does it have? Tiger: Food! (with a lot of emphasis and a big smile on his face!) Papa: Oh! Sounds fun. What kind of food? Tiger: Chinese… And, many other restaurants…
Papa: Tiger, which planet have you come from?
Tiger: (Gives me a mischevious smile and points his finger towards the sky!)
Papa: Yes, I know it’s up there. But, what is it called ?!
Tiger: (almost instantly) Zoo Ba Gaa!
Papa: Really? Is it a fun planet? What does it have?
Tiger: Food! (with a lot of emphasis and a big smile on his face!)
Papa: Oh! Sounds fun. What kind of food?
Tiger: Chinese… And, many other restaurants…
By the way, Tiger just turned 3 last week.
Thanks to a link posted by BossLady, I discovered a brilliant writeup in the Post on people’s inability to comprehend what stay-at-home-moms do all day long !!! Carolyn Hax attempts to answer the question: “Why don’t moms have time for a call or e-mail?”, and succeeds admirably, I might add…
When you have young kids, your typical day is: constant attention, from getting them out of bed, fed, clean, dressed; to keeping them out of harm’s way; to answering their coos, cries, questions; to having two arms and carrying one kid, one set of car keys, and supplies for even the quickest trips, including the latest-to-be-declared-essential piece of molded plastic gear; to keeping them from unshelving books at the library; to enforcing rest times; to staying one step ahead of them lest they get too hungry, tired or bored, any one of which produces the kind of checkout-line screaming that gets the checkout line shaking its head. It’s needing 45 minutes to do what takes others 15. It’s constant vigilance, constant touch, constant use of your voice, constant relegation of your needs to the second tier. It’s constant scrutiny and second-guessing from family and friends, well-meaning and otherwise. It’s resisting constant temptation to seek short-term relief at everyone’s long-term expense. It’s doing all this while concurrently teaching virtually everything – language, manners, safety, resourcefulness, discipline, curiosity, creativity. Empathy. Everything.
When you have young kids, your typical day is: constant attention, from getting them out of bed, fed, clean, dressed; to keeping them out of harm’s way; to answering their coos, cries, questions; to having two arms and carrying one kid, one set of car keys, and supplies for even the quickest trips, including the latest-to-be-declared-essential piece of molded plastic gear; to keeping them from unshelving books at the library; to enforcing rest times; to staying one step ahead of them lest they get too hungry, tired or bored, any one of which produces the kind of checkout-line screaming that gets the checkout line shaking its head.
It’s needing 45 minutes to do what takes others 15.
It’s constant vigilance, constant touch, constant use of your voice, constant relegation of your needs to the second tier.
It’s constant scrutiny and second-guessing from family and friends, well-meaning and otherwise. It’s resisting constant temptation to seek short-term relief at everyone’s long-term expense.
It’s doing all this while concurrently teaching virtually everything – language, manners, safety, resourcefulness, discipline, curiosity, creativity. Empathy. Everything.
Read the entire post. It hits the nail on the head!
