flying in 29th week..

While I pack my stuff for flying to India day after..my thoughts go back to Oct 2011, when my flew with my lil baby inside my tummy in my 29th week of pregnancy..

I had decide to go to India to get my baby..but had wanted to spend those special days with hubby as much as possible ,I stayed in UK till it was possible to fly safely , my friend flew to India in her 27th week. She had a safe flight and didn't report any issues..I had decided to stretch it till my 29th week. The booking agent had then advised me to bring along a fitness certificate to avoid any last minute hassles even though flying was considered safe for a woman with normal pregnancy till the 32nd week by most airlines.

I had a fit to fly certificate with me however ,when I went to the check-in counter ,the airline staff didn't even notice my bump...I inquired on my own specially since I had to take some extra efforts to get that certificate , even had to pay for it. He was confused and consulted a senior and then took my fitness certificate...I was happy to hand him the same!

Airports and railway stations are weird places, they seem to hold some special power to make me cry a lot for heaven knows why reasons, when I am left behind or am leaving someone behind! So as anticipated I cried a lot while leaving my hubby for immigration check and kept turning back and waving frantically till I could see him no more...silly me!!!

The immigration went smooth..during the security check I didn't walk through the screening door to protect my lil one from radiations. Pregnant women are given the leverage of skipping the screeners but are frisked instead.

When I stepped into the craft the air-hostess welcomed me and said she was informed of me flying in the craft ..hmmn special treatment! My cabin luggage was shoved up by a steward even before I asked for help.

During take offs and landings..I was holding on to my big tummy which kept shaking due to the vibrations...

As suggested by the GP , I took walk at regular intervals and had also worn those special flight socks to avoid swelling in the feet.

Apart from that everything else was normal..I remember the same steward served me before the others saying they are serving the special guests first...pregnancy is a beautiful phase of life ...when every one treats you with so much of warmth and affection. Everyone I met on the flight and in the airport gave me that sweet smile and helped me in their own ways .. be it simple things like no waiting for the lavatory in the flight or helping with the luggage.

Now I will travelling my lil monkey..wonder how the journey will turn up?

the most memorable day of my life...

..last few weeks of pregnancy I could never sleep at a stretch for long...with frequent trips to the loo.

it was almost morning around 5 , when I woke with a strange feeling of moist bed. I woke up with a feeling of disgust ..how shameful I was wetting the bed, I got up from the bed and to my utter surprise I was still not able to control it and it was leaking on to the floor. I recalled reading that such is the experience of water breaks...but it was supposed to smell like ammonia....some kind of strong foul smell I suppose. There wasn't any such smell.. I searched on the net but couldn't find any other clue to investigate.

I called my Hubby in London, he was in his Christmas party.When I told him he was like ok you go and get a checkup done in the morning...I had to explain to him that water break means that the baby is about to arrive. He immediately asked me to call up the gynaec. I called the dr and explained the situation  she was quite sure that it was water break and asked me to come to the hospital without any further delay.

The hospital was 25 kms away from where I was , I had picked up the hospital in the other side of the city where I was staying. I had presumed that was where from I would be need to go to the hospital and hence would be most commutable...I was not supposed to be here in my house. I called up my friend , thankfully they answered the phone at that odd hour, told them that I needed to be taken to the hospital.. my friend said he said he will be there in 15 minutes.

I thought of all the things that I needed , the first thing I picked up was my laptop....and can't remember what else. My hospital bag was not ready nor was it with me. I was pretty sure it was somekind of false alarm ..I wasn't getting any contractions, plus hubby was coming after two days..surely baby was gonna wait for his father..no?!?

I woke up my cousin sleeping peacefully unaware of the chain of events, told her we are going to the hospital..even she was quite shocked and sure at the same time that there was still time for baby to come. My friend came ,he was sure they are gonna send me back..and told me about another friend whom he drove to hospital couple of years back and how she was sent back. I started feeling a bit stupid that I had woken up everyone and was creating a fuss. On the way to the hospital I started feeling a strange sensation of a rigid tummy once in a while...my friend kept cracking jokes to take my mind off it.

We reached the hospital after an hours drive ...my inlaws were already waiting there. I remember happily climbing the few stairs at the entrance ..did I look like I was going to deliver a baby?.... not at all!

I was about to meet my baby :)

My gynaec had already informed the resident doctor to expect me and of the routine tests to be done...I was taken in the labour ward and strange devices seen only in movies so far were connected to my tummy...after the inital checkup she confirmed that it was the water break and I was made aware that the rigidness of the tummy were mild contractions.

Soon the gynec reached and did an internal checkup, reported a dilation of 2 cm...it started sinking that I was going to have my baby that day itself...I called up my hubby and told him to come as soon as possible...there was no time left.

After a while he called back to let me know that the flights were totally booked and that he could make it only after 48 hours...I realized that even if he would taken a flight that moment he couldn't make it before baby's arrival. I started brooding, this was not the way I had imagined I had always thought he would be with me in the labour room and support me in the eleventh hour...I cried for a minute or two and then I was alright...so the moment I had been waiting all these months for was finally here...sixteen days prior!

The dr advised me to be shifted to my suite and said she would examine me again after 3-4 hours. I went to my suite called up my parents, who were also shocked and started to make arrangements to fly to my city.

I picked up my laptop and mailed my friends that I had gone in labour...how funny I was actually mailing friends from the hospital that I had gone in labour.

I had chosen to be a volunteer to share my experience of pregnancy for an awareness documentary that the dr was making...I did a small video shoot and was blabbering all about my excitement ...and remember quoting that the labour pains are quite ok and bearable.. not like what they show in movies....God must be laughing at me then and saying..'wait and watch!'

I had also decided to go for stem cell banking, but couldn't finalize the organisation , with the turn of events of last week . I called up one of shortlisted cell bank and explained them the emergency situation..after some time the personal came to my the hospital and I signed some long documents to complete the formality...managed to do it on time.

Around 11 am , I was called for further examination , before that a catheter was inserted in my wrist for the drips...I started feeling uneasy at the thought of the drip... that was just the beginning.

Another internal examination and I was told the dilation wasn't progressing well, I was put on external oxytocin to fasten the dilation. I was given a light meal which I just tasted for the sake of it , given a sedative to put me to sleep ..I was told I needed lots of energy later...I tried to sleep with the monitoring devices attached to my tummy....my mil sat by my side..I slept for sometime don't know for how long..woke up  and couldn't sleep any longer as I started getting regular contractions. It seemed bearable .. I had requested for an anesthetist ..the resident dr suggested I shouldn't take epidural as I was coping quite well ..I quite liked the idea...and the anesthetist was not called for.

After an hour or so...the contraction started faster and for longer duration...I was practicing the breathing techniques I was taught in the antenatal classes.. for sometime it helped but soon all that was in vein...I couldn't bear the pain...i was crying and screaming ...very much like the movies...but minus the poise ...."I am gonna die...I am gonna die!"

The resident dr was baffled and didn't know how to make me at ease ...called for the anesthetist but cause of the lack of notice ..it took him an hour to reach. Finally when he appeared, he looked like a fairy to me as he told me that in just 5 mins he will make me forget all about the pain....I remember him saying that I looked dead with fatigue already.

He inserted the epidural needle ...after 5 minutes I felt better but the pain was still not bearable..he had to give me an extra dose to keep me alive...soon I was calm and composed and even joking with the dr.

Around 10:30 in the night my gynaec arrived after being reported by the resident dr that I had fully dilated. Prepartion for delivering the baby started , I was moved into the operation theater. By this time I had started shivering very badly I felt I was in the Artic without any warm clothes on...apparently that was the side effects of epidural. The dr asked me to push, which I was trying my very best...remember the dr encouraging me and asking me to push more...don't remember how long was that but then she started telling the others " Fast ..baby's heart rate is falling....I was terrified....some more pushing .... an episiotomy cut...and baby was out! The dr confirmed what the radiologist had told me in my 22 week scan..its a baby boy. ..someone whispered its 11:05 pm...my gaze shifted to the clock hanging across..and cross checked ..indeed 11:05 pm!

I could hear the baby being handed over to the pediatrician ..meanwhile the gynaec was drawing blood from the placenta for stem cell banking.

my bundle of joy!

I was waiting to hear my baby's cry....seconds past by and still no cry...and then a shrill cry..Thank God!!!..The placenta had detached and the dr was sewing me..all done! A nurse was trying to draw blood from my veins...but even after 3-4 picks she couldn't find my vein for some reason....I was collapsing ..someone showed me my baby...a tiny white mass..can't remember exactly what he looked like ..and then I passed off...........

the jump...

In my thoughts ,I had always imagined myself working while carrying a baby..I assumed it would keep me engaged , keep me less aware of the the ups and down in health during the course of pregnancy. But ....with this sort of work environment , so much stress  possibly would not be healthy..working here was stressful and exhausting when I was my normal self ... I chucked those thoughts saying to myself ...shall cross the bridge when it comes...

I diverted my thoughts once again to my wish list..there wasn't anything else on it except the one that I had failed to tick off..the skydive!

It was December ..the weather was mostly clear but very chilling not the ideal time for such acrobats...still I picked up a day in that week which as per the forecast was sunny. Suggested my hubby another try for the jump and bribed him that I can sponsor his jump too...(cheating cheating ..I just said but never paid , he was the one spent a fortune on it :P)

He wasn't sure about his jump but at-least agreed to accompany me to the field.

Stepped out in the dark at 6:30 in the morning , the morning was extra chilly the weather guys reported the temperature in London  -2 degree , the outskirts would be even more cold... reached the diving center around 8:30 ,when we reached there were another person waiting for the event.

check...check..all ok ?!?

We went to the registration desk..where I announced to the receptionist that I had made no booking for the day. I explained that I had come earlier when it got cancelled due to foul weather. He was surprised and then said since I didn't make a booking they will not be able to entertain me...my excitement dampened that very moment. The receptionist kept staring at me for a while and then burst out laughing saying he was just pulling my leg.
Next was my turn to give him a surprise....I told him , my hubby was also keen to jump and that even he also had not made any bookings.....the surprise was a pleasant one for him..as the business was very dry in the cold weather.

We were asked if we needed photographs? For the photographs, the photographer was to jump with us the very next second so that he could take picture of us floating in the air..which meant we were to pay for his jump as well..an expensive affair but I wanted the pictures..and also the video, someday when I am very old I would watch it perhaps with my grandchildren ...lol !!!!

We were given a briefing of 30 mins or so..sign languages and signals that we were to follow during the fall...verbal communication wasn't possible while the fall was in progress..We also practiced landing tactics for a smooth one to avoid any injury.

Lastly we signed a disclaimer that we took the entire responsibility of our actions and under no circumstances shall hold the school responsible for any mishap, accident , injury or death that was unlikely but might happen...we understood that skydive was a dangerous sports. As I signed it I casually asked if their were any records of any such incident..just a broken leg during landing I was told !

Moments before getting into the craft...with instructor

We changed into appropriate attires..we were asked to keep wearing our jackets and warm clothes underneath as it's gonna be much more than freezing up there..we even wore two hand gloves, one on top of the other.

It was time to get into the small craft...and then all of a sudden millions of butterflies started fluttering in my stomach...we all were assigned an instructor and were to be fastened to him just before the jump..each went inside with their respective instructors.

Once we were all inside, the craft started..still remember the craft creeping high steadily in a somewhat  slow fashion ...cause I could hear my heartbeats ticking like a clock even through the deafening roaring of the open craft... the land started growing less visible and the view more and more beautiful but breathtaking. After five minutes or so we reached the altitude of 12000 feet and were ready for the jump.

there goes my hubby !

My hubby was the first one to jump....I watched him being fastened to his instructor , glasses down .. perched on the door he tried to look down but the instructor raised his chin up..we were instructed not to look down while jumping..and then in seconds he went down...I saw him falling and was totally dumb struck!

I was next..too numb to feel anything not even the freezing gushing wind ..can't remember the sequence , just that  I closed my eyes...and jumped. I remember I had a couple of somersaults in the air ..and then felt the tap on my shoulder which meant I was to open my arms like a bird...the free fall was over and the parachute had been opened.


Now was the time to enjoy the view...to be frank it was happening too fast, I can't actually remember how beautiful was the view..just that it was beautiful and looked hazy..cause my eyes were watering, no I wasn't crying it was the wind ! I felt a bit in control and then my instructor let me control the parachute for couple of minutes..it was nice , a slight tuck on the left to turn right and vice- versa but  a lil extra pull and the fine balance was lost making me go round and round....and dizzy! I let the instructor handle it..couldn't care to bother myself with more dizziness! After some flying like a bird, it was landing time.

I can fly...

I thought of the guy ..the one who broke his leg while landing, he inspired me to lift my legs extra high while landing..phew landed safely..and voila I had done it..jumped off the craft ...and yet standing on my feet soundly..but where was my hubby?!?..no where to be seen...he still had not landed! Somehow he was in air for longer , jumped before me and landed after me ! To my relief he landed safely within seconds !

Next I realized my feet were numb with cold..gave me an idea of what frost bite must be like...kept hurting me for an hour after which I was all right!

Headed back home after our adventure ...it was evening. My hubby had his Christmas party the following day and needed to shop stuff. We went shopping and I did the honor of paying the bills..brought a nice black suit and shoes to go with them for him...that was the first time I spent my own pounds!!!

Clap clap...well done!

one more off the wish list..on 9th Dec 2010..that was a very exciting day of my life...very memorable..I pumped a lot of adrenaline, lil did I know that time that exactly one year after, on the very same day I was gonna pump not just adrenaline but also Oxytocin and Beta-endorphin ....my life would take a leap into a beautiful super duper hectic roller coaster ride far more exciting than this jump!

clink..clink..clink

clink..clink..clink!!!

....I could hear some pounds jingling into my account ,which unfortunately had been struck by drought for quite sometime now.... the most interesting part about doing a job is that every time the month ends and a new month starts , you discover a certain euphoria! The thought that I was gonna earn again...made me happy and I ignored all the other intimidating aspects.
Then began the shopping spree , some formal wear shopping..shopping does make the world a very happy place to live in !

Still remember the first day at work....wouldn't go into the depths of describing....it was just okish...the first week went fine. Started to get to know colleagues bit better...had a few Indians among them. ..they  made the workplace jolly ..and very soon I discovered something that was common among all of us , the " He's so sick!" feeling...and that the feeling of disgust was common made it easy to bind better with my colleagues..we would keep on cracking nasty jokes about the subject in discussion.

However within a month. , trouble started. One morning my manager asked me to come to the conference room for an important discussion....I expected some kind of lecture on my style of work, or code of conduct. But it was much worse than that....I was asked to switch roles and fill in for another colleague going on vacation, from the support team.The matter was proposed to me in a very polite tone ...but it was not poised as a choice. What was even worse, I was not just to switch teams...but was supposed to juggle between the two teams , based on priority of the tasks assigned.

The organisation I was working for had small teams ..the numbers of heads in each team was so few that every single person's presence was required to run the day to day activity smoothly, any person going on vacation needed a temporary replacement. The head of the support team was going on a long vacation ....so I was shifted into the team. I started working in the support team , both the team heads would want me to finish what they asked me do... What difference did it make to me whether it was this task or that ...both were tasks for me. I was finding it difficult to meet the expectations. Thankfully this situation lasted just four days as the support team head went on vacation from the fifth day and then there was no clash of interests, I would do whatever was asked to be done. The months went past fast...support jobs are a pain...listen to all sort of cribbing clients from every corner and with wierd ascent..asking about various things in the vast application, was really challenging. I was happy when the head came back.

Next my team mate from the development team was going on vacation, so I was required back in the development team. Those two weeks without my colleague seemed like two months..as I received undivided attention from my manager...slowly the two weeks crept past.

My teammate was back..and now another person was going on vacation - the Manager ! I never felt better..the feeling was more relaxing than me going on vacation.There was a festive mood in our corner of the office..everyone in the team was beaming with joy ! We couldn't even wait for him to step out of the office space and started celebrating and cracking nasty jokes...while the other teams were amused at the way we were enjoying ..more like juveniles set free from remand homes.

Now that I was a bit relaxed , I started thinking more about things on my personal front...I had been so busy that I was missing everything else...I had not got a chance to spend a penny from my salary so far...I decided it was time to free some pounds from my account....

the aftermath..

worried me... I comforted my ownself.

Shrugged off the worries...and I thought to myself I need to be strong. A lot of damage has been done ...but then it could have been worse! With God's grace the fire was not catastrophic..things were still under control. Just as my friend had explained..it was a warning that "I needed to be more careful !!!"

All that was required now, was some planning followed by swift execution of the plan ,after all I didn't have much time. All that I had done in the past two months had been ruined ...if on a scale of 1 to 10 the house was say at a scale of 1 when I started working on it two months back,with my efforts I had scaled it up to 8 , but now it had downgraded to "-10"....needed a lot of work, I started planning, what all needed to be done :

- Get the broken glasses removed from the house.
- Painting the house ..which involved major reshuffling of each and everything in the house.
- Curtains , bed sheets, furniture cover everything needed to be washed again
- Deep cleaning of everything that had a coating of soot.
- Glass in the window replaced.
- The burn't idol of god replaced with new one.
- Arrange the rest of the things in place , dispose off all obsolete things accumulated in the house
- And above all cover up all that had happened from everyone in the family.

Day 1 : Just went passed calling and chasing people over the phone to get things done. Managed to get the curtains down from the rods...never ever did I feel that I had to be dependent on people for such trivial jobs as getting the curtains down....Curtains looked ok after 3 rounds of washing....thanks to the good old machine! The glass had been removed from the house. The black look had lessened.
I cleaned the silver idols.... kept brushing them with all the home remedies I knew of..but they still looked burn't.

Day 2: Things moved , the painter turned up and started the painting work , the window glass person came to take the measurements.Other issues crept up...a drainage blockage in the kitchen causing water to spilling all over the place.The geyser in one of the bathrooms had stopped working. The maid had to work very hard and was somewhat getting tired of my demands and instructions.

Day 3: Painting still in progress...maid decided to ditch...which meant no home made food.My sweet cousin decided to take up the cooking and cook some delicious Bengali cuisine that I had been salivating for...night time we decided to go out , which in turn meant I started driving again after 3 years when I was almost 9 months heavily pregnant.
The glass of the window had been replaced. I had manged to dispose of a lot of junk with my cousin's help... and some domestic help that I had arranged.
Interview of maids in progress..no suitable found yet!

My friend came to see me at night, I had sorted out the old technical books and some sound tracks for his  library ..he was surprised at how the house looked and commented that doesn't look like the fire had done that much harm that I had narrated over the phone. My efforts had paid off..but only I knew the emotional drainage I went through to bring the house back to that stage.

Day 4: Painting was over..the house looked neat and clean no one could tell there was a fire in the house..except for the window. A heap of clothes that no longer fitted me and neither had the remote chances that I would ever fit into them some day, made its way into the wardrobes of the domestic help I had hired. Old books , papers, old shoes ...I had disposed most of the stuff. I had manged to get the curtains back with the help of an electrician who had come to fix the geyser.

All the people who had come to work in the house ,kind of pitied me .... a pregnant women living all by herself...trying to get things in place.They were all very kind to me..and each took an extra effort to help me. Many thanks to all those people, I shall always remember their faces..be it the security guard, the electrician , the errand boy or the maid who ditched me ..but still stood by me and did her part when I needed her....but most of all my cousin who was staying with me!

Thanks to all these people, the house looked much better...one could comfortably live in it now.It was ready for my parents who were coming after a week. I had even manged to decorate it with some artifacts..now, only if I could find a suitable maid.

But all this work,stress and tiring phase of the last month of pregnancy had turned me into a grumpy old nag...me and my dear cousin had a row...reminded me of our childhood days when we would keep fighting over all things small and silly... some harsh words vented out from both ends.
She was to cook a lovely chicken meal that I was yearning for days...but in my anger I asked her not to trouble herself and ordered some pizza online instead.

By night I was too drained...I felt unwanted and lonely ! I had reached my wit's end now ... couldn't take it anymore....no one wants such a dramatic pregnancy..certainly it was nowhere close to what I had imagined  to be...I had only dream't of being loved and pampered to no end...being fed all kind of delicacies I had craving for... I needed my parents and hubby so much.It was already Thursday and hubby was flying in on Sunday.. phew...almost there. Thankfully my sweet baby was cooperating well with mommy , so far I didn't get any false labour pain...smiling to myself .. I dozed off to sleep!!!

A year back...

Exactly a year back , this time I used to have sleepless nights, shifting gently from one side to another most of the night ...waiting. Waiting and wondering when will my baby come ..how would the labor go .. waiting for my hubby to come to India. The world seemed to revolve around me ..I was the apple of everyone's eyes....parents always treated me like a queen , but now so did hubby and inlaws ! Those were such good days, perhaps the most beautiful days of my life!

 That day,I was waiting for another person , my cousin sister she was coming to visit me and was going to stay with me for a week..I was meeting her after three years ..I was excited !

She came the following day , as planned we were to go and stay in my own house for the next couple of days. Right now I was staying with my inlaws. Our house had been let out to tenants and had just been vacated. The house needed a lot of cleaning , quite a few things needed to be arranged..in preparation of the coming baby and the rest of my family who were to fly in from different corners of the world. For the past two months, since I landed in India , I would visit my house every two weeks , try and get things organised....but with my big tummy I wasn't able to do much or get much work done from the maid...it needed more time, so with my cousin joining in I was looking forward to getting everything settled.

We started in the afternoon ...finished couple of tasks on the way ...did some grocery shopping also and reached home by evening. The maid was already waiting for us ..she cleaned the house and was cooking our dinner in the kitchen.

I was in a jolly mood..felt so nice to be in my own home.

I had just finished my Puja and decided to lie down for a while..it had been a long tiring day. I was about to dose off when I heard my cousin screaming from the next room. Must be screaming for some silly stuff I thought and walked to the room ...just to freeze...I saw something that I had only seen in movies so far....FIRE !!!

an OMEN?

The candle I had lighted while praying  had fallen off , perhaps the strong breeze from the open window..the plastic rack had caught fire...it was blazing with rage! I stood there shocked...the maid came running with a bucket of water and threw it on the the burning rack which was kept near the window ...the thermal shock made the glass window burst..pieces of broken glass flew in all directions..I still couldn't react to what was happening. My cousin and maid shoved my to the next room ...I could hear them pouring more water ...and then the sigh of relief ..the fire was arrested ..but the black fumes had spread everywhere..to my room also.
I was choking..I went into the balcony for some fresh air. The lights had gone off I think..can't recall everything was dark and reeling to me anyways...

After some time when I went in,I noticed the white ceiling of the room had turned black with soot..there was a layer of black on all the walls of the house...curtains , the bed-sheets , furniture everything looked tarnished .There was a foul smell all around...ashes lay all over the floor. The maid who had just finished cleaning the house started all over again .Took her more than two hours to  scrub off the black mess.

I called the supervisor of the society who's a kind person and had always helped me with the knick knacks of the society and maintenance work..I explained him the situation and he promised to be there in a short while..

What was I to do..I was scared...and wanted some comforting but who could I talk to about this ? Not my parents..they will be dead scared..hubby in UK..he would only worry and be of no help !! Inlaws ... they will ask me to come back immediately.

Only one person I could confide in.. my friend staying close-by ..called him and narrated the tale... cried a lil bit over the phone too...I was scared..but not of the fire it had already been extinguished..but before dying off it ignited sparks of superstition in me..from some deep corner an eerie voice kept asking.....God's idol on fire.. is it an omen? No matter how hard I tried the thought just kept haunting me..... I had no peace of mind, what should I do?

Mum's first Bday!

Last week was Mum's first Bday!

Roses in the morning ..with a cute Bday card from hubby made it a different day than the rest.

Bday wishes from family and friends like every year makes the day special..especially with social networking sites, where people keep posting wishes!The whole day is filled with Bday wishes! Makes you feel happy and special!

But what really made it special was the sweet smile from my baby...looking at my baby and cuddling him most of the day..was what I did all day long!

I thought to myself, this year I already have the greatest gift a women can have....my lil bundle of joy..let me buy a gift for my bundle of joy!

I did some online shopping and got my sweetiepie a gift! Winnie the Pooh !

I never thought buying a gift for someone else could give me so much joy on my Bday :) When I gave my baby the toy he was puzzled to look at it.He thought it was another baby...kept looking at it for a while and then gently touched it..trying to poke and play with this baby..this is the way he interacts with other babies too..was a treat to watch him play with Winnie that way :)
Evening a friend dropped in with a bunch of rose and chocolates..feels good when friends visit just to make you feel special!

Another friend dropped in with some home made sweets....she made them for my Bday! How sweet! And she's a great cook..her cookery book would sometime in the near future:)

Evening hubby had got some snacks and pastries ...followed by some Pizza for dinner :)

Nothing extraordinary , a quite and unusual way to celebrate one's Bday and yet I want to remember this day, years later..so this post!

almost time ......Is it?

...so as per The Plan I have had folic acid tabs for almost three months or more. So now it was time, I thought from next month onwards I would try for a baby:)

And as I mentioned earlier I am the technical type, so I went into intricacies of basal body temperature and cervical mucus as well...I like to be aware of all technical aspects whether , to implement or not is a different story!

The long goodbye to alcohol was done...I had given the spirits farewell more than three months ago ,by drinking gallops of wine ...

Was already eating healthy, had been gymning regularly for years now, blood test and thyroids were all normal.I had doubled checked on the thyroid as I have a history of thyroid in the family , plus as a teenager I had hypothyroidism.

Was all set....I was happy and excited and looking forward to conceiving!

....just the very next week, things started taking a different shape.The company where I had been interviewed last month, were now recruiting for a junior/ mid- level developer.The manager whom I had happened to impress, called me for another round of interview, this time by the technical team lead.

Once again, I went for the interview.I still remember waiting there at the hall and then the interviewer coming.He had a weird air about him."So this is the guy I will be working with if I get through...too bad!" those were my thoughts looking at him.

The interview started , and within 10 minutes I started regretting ever coming for it. Somehow the guy and I were not in sink.He kept on grilling me on topics that I already told him that I have not worked on.Soon I was loosing my patience and finding the tone of my voice reflecting the irritation building inside me.I was thrilled when the interview got over ...I thought "ThankGod it didn't go well..I don't have to work with this slimy creature!"

I left the building in a haste, turned back thinking ..am not coming back here and gave a sad but relaxed glance at that posh building!

Coming back , I told my hubby that it didn't go well and not to expect anything.A week later, I got a call from the consultant, telling me that he's sending me offer letter soon.I had managed to get myself a job!!!

Can you believe it..all the while when I was hunting for a job , no one bothered to interview me. And now when I wasn't even looking for one..I got a call out of the blue and even got an offer after a messy interview.

Secretly I was praying that I don't get it..and I knew if I were selected I wouldn't be able to refuse the offer even though I had detested the sight of the team lead, let alone working with him!

So here I was with a new job ...definitely the baby plan had to be dropped for a while...just as the cliche goes (Wo)Man proposes, God disposes!

The next in the WishList....

Europe tour was done for the season....parents from India and sister from US had visited us in London..summer was happening but now that it was all over ...life was suddenly slow and boring now with nothing new.

I live life by days...a dear friend once commented on my life style that I needed a short term goal to keep myself engaged and happy .In the absence of something to look forward to,I turn gloomy and contemplative!

The usual facebook activity..checking what friends are doing ........ then I saw a video, a friend had posted that rekindled a hidden desire.The video was about his skydive..just by watching the video I almost felt the thrill and passion of the sport...just before he was jumping, I could feel my heart fluttering and then going numb as he jumped! I had been wanting to do this for long...

The first time,I had thought of doing it was when I saw one of my batch-mates skydive pictures. I had awed her courage then and secretly sworn to myself, want to do this before I die!

And following my heart I did search about the places where it was done.Found a couple of skydiving schools, all of them were quite far offs. Lil disheartened but all right I thought can't expect everything handed over in a silver platter.Then I found out the charges and my dreams were dampened , a whopping two fifty pounds per person!!!! The excitement went down and gradually I let the thought elude my mind...

But now looking at this friend's video I was all excited again...I looked at the video couple of times and asked myself "Do I have the courage to jump off the plane from a height of 13000 feet??!!??" And I heard a meek voice saying it's scary but I want to do it.

The more I thought of it stronger the voice grew within me.Though such sports are done under expert guidance ,there are always some amount of risks involved in such sports! I definitely wanted to do while I was a free bird.. definitely before having a baby...so it was time to pursue this wish!

My hubby who almost never objects to anything or says no to any of my demands, gave in.But he refused to do it himself!!! He is the sporty type but I guess he didn't feel the price justified.

I booked a slot for this Tandem skydive , the available dates were after a month, quickly I booked the slot....and waited eagerly for the D day.It was the month of September and the weather was bad.As per the rules of skydiving if the sky in not clear on that day, the jump couldn't be conducted as its essential for the jumper to clearly see the Drop Zone from the exit point from the altitude. Wind speeds must also not exceed 15 knots , else one would land elsewhere after jumping!

Meanwhile something unexpected happened, out of the blue I got an interview call.The role was of a technical support person a bit mismatch but still I was asked to go for the interview the very next day, the bane of being in technical line..I was totally out of touch with the books and didn't know what to do, still I went just to check what it's like to have an interview in UK.It was a very simple one, the asked me to come for the next round,a written test after 2 days on Monday...I brushed all that I could in the weekend burning the night oil!That Monday when I arrived,I saw a handsome guy was being interviewed for the same position.Not caring much I wrote my test..I did very well in the written test, the manager was impressed!
I left with high hopes...end of the week they came back just to let me know that they offered the role to the not so after all handsome guy,who was more experienced and suitable for that support role.

Now it was just a week left for the dive, the weather was bad, the whole week the forecast showed rain and clouds.Hope against hope I waited, luck might favor who knows!
Just a day left...the weather wasn't reliable but then sometimes it turns better than forecasted....that night I didn't get good sleep..to be frank I was a bit nervous..in fact quiet a bit nervous.

Morning , the weather was bad..but the tickets were already booked so we decided to go and see the place and try our luck.It was two and half hours journey from there...as we left London and went North the weather kept on getting worse.By the time we reached there, it was raining Cats n Dogs.In the station we met another guy who had come for the dive...the three of us went to the Skydivingcenter just to discover the event had been called off cause of foul weather :(

Didn't get the refund of the booking amount, instead was offered a date after 2- 3 months.That was too late.....

Atleast I tried ,may be sometime in the distant future, I thought and made myself content! So this one stays on the list!

..one more off the list....bags packed!!!

When I was moving to London,many of my friends envied me saying that now I would be able to tour most of Europe...deep in my heart I had this secret dream of seeing all of Europe!!

That was quite a dream...most countries in Europe are expensive destination. Plus UK's not the part of Schengen treaty , the extra burden of getting a Schengen visa makes it all a task that needs a lots and lots of planning.

With a small baby, travelling would be a distant dream...I thought.....so that summer I wanted to see as many places in Europe as possible.

Swiss was the first European country we saw that summer.Had applied to Swiss embassy for the Schengen visa that summer, had got a multi-entry visa for three months.

The top destination Swiss was already covered...The beauty of Swiss is known to all! There aren't words to describe the beauty of this country.Its simply breathtaking...and also a very expensive destination!

..the next country that we toured that summer was Italy.Saw the beautiful "eternal city" Rome, and I knew why its one of the top tourist destinations of the world.The most enchanting was the Trevi fountain, never saw anything so beautiful.

The Ancient Rome had a haunting charm about itself the Colosseum, the Roman and Imperial Forums, the Pantheon were all breath taking.Saw the world famous St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican city , still remember climbing the 320 steps to the top of the Cupola..and view from the top made it all worth climbing those circular stairs!

Went to the much hyped City Of Venice.Visiting Venice was a dream...but it's one of the places that didn't live upto its expectations...frankly speaking the city is overrated....but the Venetian masks aren't..got a feathered masquared mask from Venice

..one of my prized possessions.Oooh and did see the Leaning Tower Of Pisa too! Quite amazing is the tilted tower!

Two countries visited...big hole in the pocket ..yet the greedy traveler inside me wanted more... so what next?But ofcorse the City Of Love - Paris.

Hmnn..but it wasn't that easy..needed some cajoling for "The Hubby" to give in :-)
After some sweet talks , convincing and more convincing hubby dearest gave in and my dream came true!!

Endless tourist spots, the city has more than one can imagine Notre Dam, Louvre - MonaLisa , Eiffel tower ,Montamartre, Arc de Triomphe,Champs Elysees , Pantheon, Moulin Rouge all done..done ..done!!!

Well I didn't think of any more trips that summer ...it was July end, summers were almost over but more importantly the Schengen visa had expired.So for then Europe had to wait..but I did seen enough of it to take it off my list!

..........time for that forgotten Wish List..

.......the folic acid shopping..I remember reading reviews and checking for different brands and composition. I read some people developed nausea or bloatedness with folic acid and got one that was lactose free as I am a bit lactose intolerant at times!

I had three months time before I started trying..then the thought creeped into my mind that once I conceive life would not be the same...I would step into the world of responsibilities and duties, the carefree lifestyle would be a thing of the past.But then I wanted to give up carefree life very much...and yet I thought of all the things that I wanted to do..may be it was time to go over that forgotten wishlist before I said adieu to my carefree days!!

One of things that I always wanted to do and that needed a good physique was learning horse riding...

My first memories of a horse are that of a park ! Its a common thing in India to have horse back rides for small kids around children's amusement parks.Even after trying hard I cant recall why I didn't get on the horse but my younger brother did.

Many years later , when I went to Shimla with my sis , I rode a horse for the first time. Horses and pony rides are quite a respite when sighteseeing steep climbs .Among other things I remember a funny incident that happened there....I and my sister both took horses and my sis was trailing behind mine. The guide had explained well how to maintain body posture and the horse was well trained too.

All was fine , I was enjoying the beautiful landscapes when suddenly I heard a prolonged cry aaaaaahhhh ... I turned back to see that it was my own sister who was lamenting it and I actually saw her falling off the horse in a somewhat slow motion fashion.Thankfully she was lucky enough not to get hurt or roll of the cliff and we could enjoy the rest of the trip.How she had manged to fall from a walking horse is still a mystery! I still wonder and keep laughing to myself whenever I think of that incident.

My love for horses started with the Shimla trail !


Couple of years passed by. By then I had finished my college and had started working.

My friends and I went for a short trip to another hill station called Matheron a beautiful hill station situated 60 kms away from Mumbai on Shyadri hills.
One of the unique things about Matheron is that the only means of transport there is horses and hand pulled rickshaws.Vehicles are banned here and is a true "Pollution free town".Once again I had a chance to ride a horse, however this time I wanted more.I wanted to learn to gallop and not just sit on it.So in our 2 days tour , I managed to take 2 days crash course on riding a horse..the experience was exhilarating.

As much as I remember the beautiful experience I also remember the after effects of it.The next 2 days I had a very tender back and had to take off from work cause of the pain.

Couple of years passed and I had almost forgotten about how much I had enjoyed horse riding. I had changed cities and was married then.One day I saw an advertisement in the newspaper about a beginner's horse riding camp being held in the outskirts of the city. The classes were scheduled on early mornings weekdays.So impelling was my desire that even tough the place was very far and we also had office after , I still coaxed my husband to join the class.We went at the mentioned location just to find out that the classes were all full and were not taking any more students...I came back with dampened dreams.

But now in this city of London with such a wide choice of Equestrian schools I knew my dream of horse riding was going to come true.




I joined horse riding classes for couple of months..I thing off my wish list..clap..clap clap!!!

The PLAN

...the more I thought of it, the better it sounded..a new lil member in the family :)


When I look back I feel happy about my decision to wait all the while till I was totally ready for my baby..

Everyone who is a mother feels blessed to be a mother such is motherhood , yet some who have hurried into it at times feel that may be they were not ready that time and have regrets in some corner of their mind.Have a baby when YOU want to have...That's when you will enjoy the journey!

Now that I was happy with the idea, it was time to prepare for it!The first thing I did was went meet a Health Practitioner here looking for some advise!What I was expecting was possible health checkups etc...but the lady was indeed stupid and all she advised me to do was get cosy with my hubby...what an ass she is!!After that incident ,couple of times when I ran into her, I had a hearty laugh thinking about it all over again.

Thankfully the trip to India was coming up soon...once in India we went to see a gynaec!We went for a consultancy and I still remember that evening when we were still waiting at the reception for the Dr.....both of us were feeling so shy that we were actually contemplating running off....but we didnt!!!

The gynaec was a nice lady..she realized that we were uncomfortable and made sure that we were at ease.Among other things, she reminded me of the Biology Chapter of 10th std.

Many of my friends are still to start their family..here's a list of the top things that I remember the gynaec told me about :

Taking Folic acid tablets from 3 months before planning to at-least the full first trimester.

Check on Thyroid levels and a routine blood test.
Healthy eating and exercise.
No alcohol while trying actively.

Also I read a lot of articles, here's the site that I follow till day BabyCentre
If you are the techinical type :P , a good understanding of the ovulation calendar and understanding the basal body temperature is a good thing.

So as the first step ..I went shopping folic acid tabs!