A FEW HIGHLIGHTS OF OUR FUN DAYS....

It has been 2 months since my surgery. Although I still depend on a walker to be mobile, I have been enjoying some outings with my family and friends in the past month. It is helpful that the shopping centers here offer wheel-chairs to their customers who need them (very common in the US of course :), but growing here only in the recent years). I even went on a couple of outings with a wheelchair that lacked a footrest! But that did not stop me from shopping and having fun, mind you! 

The most wonderful recent experience for me has been the INOX movie theater recliner seats . Since I am unable to sit in the regular movie seats because of my injured-operated foot, my hubby has been getting us the expensive, (but not-so-expensive version, because we watch the movies few weeks 'after' the release) recliner seats, which the entire family has come to love now. We recently had a dinner and a movie(X-men) outing with a friend and thoroughly enjoyed it. BTW, X-men movie is plain awesome! I understand the story better now, LOL. Kids and I are looking forward to watching the rest of the X-men movies again sometime this week.

Inox recliner seat..:)

Say 'hello' to my feet, hehe...

The slightly swollen right foot is the injured-operated foot. 

It swells up when I have my foot hanging down for long.

A very interesting thing that happened recently was that the kids split from us to have  lunch on their own in UB city. Parents and kids could not agree on one restaurant. So we decided to let the kids split up to eat on their own. DH and I ate at Rajdhani(had a pretty fun date by ourselves 'without kids'...gosh after so many years!!), while the kids went to a French place by themselves. They handled the meal choices-order, payment and tips. I felt very strange to not have the kids with us, but I know this is very much needed for their growth. They need their own time of fun and experience without us. And this is going to be more frequent from now on. 

Kids on their own..

(I told my dh to sneak out to get a pic of them without their knowledge:))

We have been to the Rajdhani restaurant before. The interesting thing about this restaurant is that they 'serve' food to your heart's content as per your needs ( a common practice in India in many restaurants, of course), so wastage is minimal. And the  restaurant offers dishes from Gujarat and Rajasthan, which are so different from the regular North Indian (nothing but Punjabi restaurants) we are used to in the US. We love this restaurant! This is definitely a place to experience for the folks from abroad.

Dh and I on our lunch date at Rajdhani, UB City! 

It has been raining everyday here!! BUT I love the rains. Except, it becomes a problem to dry clothes on the terrace. But DD has figured out by trial and error that the rains come down pouring only in the afternoons / evenings. She gets the laundry-drying done in the morning hours. And loves her time on the terrace, which she once complained so much about doing the same...:)

Enjoying the monsoon season..:)

Driver on the wheel...Thankfully!

We are enjoying our British Council Library visits. It is true that ANY book that both kids want to borrow is NOT there in the library. In fact, the librarian gets very defensive when he is unable to find the books that my kids want in the database. But my kids are less frustrated these days(what a change!). Life in India puts you in a Zen mode, LOL, with time ie! I think we are there now!!

OTOH, there are tons of UK text books on various subjects in the library. My son likes the IGCSE -- Cambridge texts on Physics, Chem and Bio. He has picked the O, A and AS level books and comparing them this week. They are very colorfully done, but unsure how they compare with the AP books from the US. This is a popular curriculum (along with IB programs) in many of the B&M schools here. My son finds a way to keep himself amused with science/math subject books -- either comparing the content/explanations or admiring /critiquing the font chices, while my daughter finds fiction and general math books to read and relax. 

Few picks by DS...

Visit to dad's office cafeterias to hang out is much liked by all here! Kids love hot samosas, veg puffs and pastries from these cafes!

DH in the far out end getting some goodies for me:)

Our repeated attempts to meet with an Origamist locally here was successful only this month. My kids have done Origami before on their own and along with their friend S, who is an origami-specialist:). But after a long time, my kids get to indulge in some fun Origami creations, hear some interesting stories and participate in discussions with the Origamist on weekends. It is going to be raining Origami here for the next couple of months :-). 

A few pics....

Working on a puzzle....

that becomes a dog...:)

A cool surfer with the wave from a single sheet...

Knight on a horse... made of single sheet

Turtle