"Not on my naan!"

"Not on my naan!" were the words that came from Owen's lips the other night at dinner as I went to put other food on his plate and he didn't want anything to touch his naan. The words struck me as funny and I started to laugh which of course made Owen very mad but I explained to all 3 boys how those words were different from anything I ever thought might be uttered from their mouths. Naan is a staple for the boys - especially the naan made by our chef, Bali - even without a tandoor.

A picture of Owen and Yug (Micky's son)

I'm very delayed in this posting because we haven't been able to shake the Delhi belly thing in our house and it's been a loooong week. First John and I were sick, then Matt had a bad tummy thing and then Owen got sick with a high fever for two+ days (that was the worst part). Unfortunately, John started running a fever AGAIN yesterday - exactly one week after the first fever and Matt is still wrought with tummy trouble. Oh well, we knew it would happen - and everyone just says this means we'll be acclimated going forward. I was naive to think we were going to escape it.



On the fun front, Owen had a small dance recital at school to celebrate Baisakhi (the Punjabi harvest festival). I couldn't stop smiling. The Indian kids are tiny compared to Owen and the punjabi clothes they wore were so colorful and fun. In the picture, you can see Owen's head a top the rest in the back of the crowd. Kindergarten here is different than in the US - NOT play based. They start the morning practicing writing at a table and there is LOTS of erasing until it's done just right. I have to laugh as I watch Owen's face sitting at his table. "Are you kidding me?" is written all over his little face. His teacher puts different pages in front of him and asks if he wants to do it and he just scowls and says "no" and she just laughs because she wasn't "really" asking him at all. All the same - it's great for him. He's never had much interest in coloring inside the lines but now he can (if he wants to).



The Agra trip was great and our Driver Micky brought his wife and son along for the weekend. It was a last minute decision to ask him if they'd like to join us and John and I weren't sure how the invitation would be received but it went over with excitement and glee. They happily joined us and played with us and we all saw the Taj Mahal together for the first time in our lives. Micky's wife - Pooja and their 7 year old son Yug sat in the front of the car with Micky for the whole drive while the Kelley clan occupied the back. A full house made for a fun and interesting weekend. There were a couple awkward moments for me like when they dropped us at the hotel and went on to the guest house but Micky assured me it was clean, nice and appropriate for a family (not just male drivers). The next day, after a couple phone calls, the hotel extended guest privileges to Micky and family so they could play in the pool with us. I was very happy they joined us and I think they had a nice time too. Just SO different from all the rules I've ever known.

The Easter Bunny made it's way to India, albeit a couple days late and the box torn wide open, but it was VERY exciting. Thanks Grandma Joan. It's fun to get items we don't see here like crayola modeling magic, pokemon cards and baseball cards. The boys are asking more and more about home and I feel like we will all benefit from an extended trip home in June/July. Jack has even said he would like to go to camp so if we can make that happen we will.

Our household help has been changed up a bit. Fewer people and a much quieter day. We only have one cook and he only cooks for our family now so our kitchen is less busy. For a bunch of other reasons, our aya (Ricki) and our housemaid (Pria) are no longer working at our apartment. Our household now consists of one cook (Bali), a houseboy (Anand) and our driver Micky. I will hire a new aya in time but I want to take my time and find a good match for the family (including the existing staff).

Life is good here. I'll write again soon!