Dear readers,
So sorry about not having time to record Abi's thoughts lately. Due to travel and then severe illness on my part and NItara's we didn't get around to it. I plan to complete the journal with Abi on the fight home, so stay tuned for the final entries. In about 56 hours we should be walking through our front door (not that anyone's counting!).
Sincerely,
Darshani
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Monday, June 18, 2007
Kodai
June 15, 2007
We are in Kodai! It is still in India. We rode on a swan boat. Daddy pedaled and I pedaled a little bit. Nitara was sitting in the middle, Mommy was sitting in the back, and I was sitting in the front with Daddy. The swan boat is yellow with a red beak. We had the man paint our shells with a dolphin and our names and it has birds, too. I think I will bring it to my class to show you what it looks like. I will bring it to my class so you can hear the ocean in it. The spirit of the ocean went into the shell and it carried the spirit all around the world. We stayed in a hotel with ducks in the back yard. The old hotel was so nasty! The floor was not clean, the couch had bugs crawling all around it and the blankets were not warm. We drove to a new hotel. The hotel is so nice. The nice blanket we slept in was so soft. I wish I could bring it home. It had some flowers. We rode on horses. Mommy was sitting with Nitara and I was sitting alone. My horse’s name was Monsieur and Nitara’s and Mommy’s horse was named Magic Boy. I have been eating naan bread with sauce made out of beans. It’s good! It has protein. I ate a banana split. The three flavors are butterscotch, strawberry, and vanilla, my favorite! This morning I ate five idlies with coconut chutney. We have a very special bear that goes from family to family. His name is Buddy the Bear because he has a tag on his foot that says “Buddy.” Buddy is special because he has a blue shirt that says, “Got eos? Get APFED http://www.apfed.org/.” Nitara eosinophilic esophagitis. That is eos. That means that you have white blood cells that think your food is germs so they start attacking it and they catch all the food and your esophagus (it sounds like e sof a gis) swells up! We have to put special formula in her tummy in a tube. Her pump is called Kangaroo Joey. One time we were playing the Noble Duke of York and then we started to get tangled up and soon we were very tangled up and Nitara started to pull on it and then the tube broke off! Then it leaked on Neville Mahmah’s bed. I said, “Emergency! Tube broken!” and then Daddy came running upstairs and then Nitara got in trouble. I got in trouble, too because I shouldn’t have played that with her tube. She should stay in bed and I asked her to come and then the tube started to pull and we couldn’t watch TV because we were grounded. Buddy is special because people take pictures of him, too. Buddy goes to different countries and states and colonies with other people that are infected or sick with eosinophils. He came in box that says Buddy the Bear. We put pictures in his photos album and then he goes to the hospital and people look in his album and they will not be scared anymore about getting operations or getting a needle in their wrist. Instead of that they will be brave because they will think about Buddy the Bear always. Love, Abi. J
Question: We're just wondering how you and Buddy are doing in India? Ansley isreally missing Buddy and hoping you guys are having fun together. Iwondered if she liked the pictures of me and Buddy in the little album?Love,Ansley (via mom) McCormick
Answer: Dear Ansley, We are back home in Chennai. Chennai is in the bottom part of India. Buddy is doing fine. We have been taking pictures of him in front of the waterfall! You can see some of them HERE (Mom's note: password is “photos”, see Kodai album). I liked the picture of you in your swim suit.
Question: Hi Abi, I love your blog, it's so cool!!! Your pictures are very beautiful. If Kailey could talk I'm sure she would ask you questions, but she's still a small baby, she's 1 years old, so she can't talk very well yet. Have you seen any babies since you've been in India? Do the babies in India dress the same as they do in the u.s.? and my last question I promise hehe, have you gotten to hold a baby yet? Hope you have a fun summer, Kim and Kailey
Answer: Dear Kim and Kailey, I have seen many babies. They don’t dress the same as in the USA. They dress with flowers around their neck and they wear fancy flower dresses. Sometimes babies do not wear anything at all. When they have to go to the bathroom they go where they stand. Little babies that do not wear diapers will have their mom hold them to go to the bathroom. Some babies wear panties, and some wear cloth diapers. Some babies wear paper diapers when they are traveling. Babies wear lots of necklaces and bracelets and stuff like that. They wear dots called bindis on their forehead.
Question: Abi, this is Adri. I like the pictures of the homa. I think your dresses are good. I like the rangoli on the floor. I have a few questions. Has your Paathi taught you to draw rangoli? What was the ceremony like? Why was there rice in your hair at the end of the homa? What is the rice for and why was it in your hair? I am going to go dress up fancy now in my pavadai and then read a book about India. Love, Adri
Answer: Hi Adri! My Paathi didn’t teach me how to draw rangoli. The fire ceremony is in the middle of the floor outside. And there’s blocks around it. The priest was there. Actually three priests. They prayed for Ganesha and we saw a little baby Ganesha. There was fire. Everybody put some wood in the fire, sticks. I threw in flowers and rice. It was hot. It was smoky. The whole house got smoky so we closed the doors. Paathi put all the rice in my hair because it takes out my bad thoughts. It brings me good luck, too. I have a string around my wrist so I can study well in my school. Nitara’s is for eating well. Mommy’s is for studying well, too, in college. Daddy’s is to do well at work to make money.
Question: Hi Abi! My name is Caitlynn (this is my mommy's blog name though) and I wanted to know if you are having fun in India? Do you miss Arizona? Or would you like to stay in India for a long time. I'd love to visit there someday, but untill then maybe you can tell me some unique things!
Answer: Hi Caitlynn, I’m having lots of fun time in India. I bought a purse, I bought a fish keychain. I put my Littlest Pet Shops in my purse. Do you know what Littlest Pet Shops are? I have been taking pictures of Buddy the Bear in front of a waterfall, a real one. I miss my kitty. Her name is Maya. I have my pet fish and I also miss them, too. I would like to stay in India for a long time, but I wish I could bring my pets. I like my own school. My school has small classes. I had 18 classmates. Next year I am going to be in First Grade. I’m going to Miss. H’s class or some other class. School kids in India wear uniforms. They are navy blue uniforms and there are pink uniforms and yellow uniforms and green. The girls wear big braid loops on the sides of their heads. The boys have short hair so they can’t have a hair style like girls. Some girls have shaved heads.
We are in Kodai! It is still in India. We rode on a swan boat. Daddy pedaled and I pedaled a little bit. Nitara was sitting in the middle, Mommy was sitting in the back, and I was sitting in the front with Daddy. The swan boat is yellow with a red beak. We had the man paint our shells with a dolphin and our names and it has birds, too. I think I will bring it to my class to show you what it looks like. I will bring it to my class so you can hear the ocean in it. The spirit of the ocean went into the shell and it carried the spirit all around the world. We stayed in a hotel with ducks in the back yard. The old hotel was so nasty! The floor was not clean, the couch had bugs crawling all around it and the blankets were not warm. We drove to a new hotel. The hotel is so nice. The nice blanket we slept in was so soft. I wish I could bring it home. It had some flowers. We rode on horses. Mommy was sitting with Nitara and I was sitting alone. My horse’s name was Monsieur and Nitara’s and Mommy’s horse was named Magic Boy. I have been eating naan bread with sauce made out of beans. It’s good! It has protein. I ate a banana split. The three flavors are butterscotch, strawberry, and vanilla, my favorite! This morning I ate five idlies with coconut chutney. We have a very special bear that goes from family to family. His name is Buddy the Bear because he has a tag on his foot that says “Buddy.” Buddy is special because he has a blue shirt that says, “Got eos? Get APFED http://www.apfed.org/.” Nitara eosinophilic esophagitis. That is eos. That means that you have white blood cells that think your food is germs so they start attacking it and they catch all the food and your esophagus (it sounds like e sof a gis) swells up! We have to put special formula in her tummy in a tube. Her pump is called Kangaroo Joey. One time we were playing the Noble Duke of York and then we started to get tangled up and soon we were very tangled up and Nitara started to pull on it and then the tube broke off! Then it leaked on Neville Mahmah’s bed. I said, “Emergency! Tube broken!” and then Daddy came running upstairs and then Nitara got in trouble. I got in trouble, too because I shouldn’t have played that with her tube. She should stay in bed and I asked her to come and then the tube started to pull and we couldn’t watch TV because we were grounded. Buddy is special because people take pictures of him, too. Buddy goes to different countries and states and colonies with other people that are infected or sick with eosinophils. He came in box that says Buddy the Bear. We put pictures in his photos album and then he goes to the hospital and people look in his album and they will not be scared anymore about getting operations or getting a needle in their wrist. Instead of that they will be brave because they will think about Buddy the Bear always. Love, Abi. J
Question: We're just wondering how you and Buddy are doing in India? Ansley isreally missing Buddy and hoping you guys are having fun together. Iwondered if she liked the pictures of me and Buddy in the little album?Love,Ansley (via mom) McCormick
Answer: Dear Ansley, We are back home in Chennai. Chennai is in the bottom part of India. Buddy is doing fine. We have been taking pictures of him in front of the waterfall! You can see some of them HERE (Mom's note: password is “photos”, see Kodai album). I liked the picture of you in your swim suit.
Question: Hi Abi, I love your blog, it's so cool!!! Your pictures are very beautiful. If Kailey could talk I'm sure she would ask you questions, but she's still a small baby, she's 1 years old, so she can't talk very well yet. Have you seen any babies since you've been in India? Do the babies in India dress the same as they do in the u.s.? and my last question I promise hehe, have you gotten to hold a baby yet? Hope you have a fun summer, Kim and Kailey
Answer: Dear Kim and Kailey, I have seen many babies. They don’t dress the same as in the USA. They dress with flowers around their neck and they wear fancy flower dresses. Sometimes babies do not wear anything at all. When they have to go to the bathroom they go where they stand. Little babies that do not wear diapers will have their mom hold them to go to the bathroom. Some babies wear panties, and some wear cloth diapers. Some babies wear paper diapers when they are traveling. Babies wear lots of necklaces and bracelets and stuff like that. They wear dots called bindis on their forehead.
Question: Abi, this is Adri. I like the pictures of the homa. I think your dresses are good. I like the rangoli on the floor. I have a few questions. Has your Paathi taught you to draw rangoli? What was the ceremony like? Why was there rice in your hair at the end of the homa? What is the rice for and why was it in your hair? I am going to go dress up fancy now in my pavadai and then read a book about India. Love, Adri
Answer: Hi Adri! My Paathi didn’t teach me how to draw rangoli. The fire ceremony is in the middle of the floor outside. And there’s blocks around it. The priest was there. Actually three priests. They prayed for Ganesha and we saw a little baby Ganesha. There was fire. Everybody put some wood in the fire, sticks. I threw in flowers and rice. It was hot. It was smoky. The whole house got smoky so we closed the doors. Paathi put all the rice in my hair because it takes out my bad thoughts. It brings me good luck, too. I have a string around my wrist so I can study well in my school. Nitara’s is for eating well. Mommy’s is for studying well, too, in college. Daddy’s is to do well at work to make money.
Question: Hi Abi! My name is Caitlynn (this is my mommy's blog name though) and I wanted to know if you are having fun in India? Do you miss Arizona? Or would you like to stay in India for a long time. I'd love to visit there someday, but untill then maybe you can tell me some unique things!
Answer: Hi Caitlynn, I’m having lots of fun time in India. I bought a purse, I bought a fish keychain. I put my Littlest Pet Shops in my purse. Do you know what Littlest Pet Shops are? I have been taking pictures of Buddy the Bear in front of a waterfall, a real one. I miss my kitty. Her name is Maya. I have my pet fish and I also miss them, too. I would like to stay in India for a long time, but I wish I could bring my pets. I like my own school. My school has small classes. I had 18 classmates. Next year I am going to be in First Grade. I’m going to Miss. H’s class or some other class. School kids in India wear uniforms. They are navy blue uniforms and there are pink uniforms and yellow uniforms and green. The girls wear big braid loops on the sides of their heads. The boys have short hair so they can’t have a hair style like girls. Some girls have shaved heads.
Friday, June 8, 2007
Question and Answer
Question: Today is Tanner’s 11th birthday. We celebrated with his friends by having a pool party and birthday cupcakes (his safe ones, of course!). We were wondering if birthdays were celebrated any differently in India than they are here. Hope you guys are having a great time!
Answer: Dear Tanner, Happy Birthday! I asked my Paathi how birthdays are celebrated in India. For babies who turn one year old they put flowers on the baby, they shave their head, they pierce their ears, they have a special homa which is a special puja with a fire to give the baby a long, nice life. For older kids they put on new clothes and go to the temple in the morning. They pray for a long life. They go to the place where the kids live without their parents because they died. The birthday kid will give them money and food. Then they have a cake party and eat Indian food. They play games. They decorate the house with balloons. Anirudh is having a big big big Hawaiian party at a hotel because lots of people are coming that they won’t fit in the house. Love, Abi.
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Question: Hi Abi,Sounds like you're having an exciting time. I really like the photo of you drinking from a coconut. It kind of looks like you're still in Arizona. How is India differnt from Arizona? A teacher - always asking questions. I can't wait to hear all of your stories when you come back to school. Have a great time.Mrs. Thomas
Answer: Dear Mrs. Thomas, I miss you. How is Seamus?
Things that are different in India:
The steering wheel’s on the wrong side
Cows with no spots
Make different food. Some are sweet, some are spicy, some are oily, some are sour (yogurt).
Very crowded in the streets
People are honking so much
Other people clean your house
They were beautiful clothes. The ladies wear saris. The men wear veshtis or lungis sometimes.
Some people wash clothes in the washing machine if they are lucky. The other people wash them in buckets with their hands. They dry the clothes in the fresh green grass.
They spray their bums off with a sprayer in the bathroom. If there is no sprayer there is a pouring cup.
They have lots of bees in the tree outside the window.
They have big trees that are very green. The leaves are big. There are lots of flowers and mango trees.
They have bad mosquitoes, too.
Love, Abi
Answer: Dear Tanner, Happy Birthday! I asked my Paathi how birthdays are celebrated in India. For babies who turn one year old they put flowers on the baby, they shave their head, they pierce their ears, they have a special homa which is a special puja with a fire to give the baby a long, nice life. For older kids they put on new clothes and go to the temple in the morning. They pray for a long life. They go to the place where the kids live without their parents because they died. The birthday kid will give them money and food. Then they have a cake party and eat Indian food. They play games. They decorate the house with balloons. Anirudh is having a big big big Hawaiian party at a hotel because lots of people are coming that they won’t fit in the house. Love, Abi.
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Question: Hi Abi,Sounds like you're having an exciting time. I really like the photo of you drinking from a coconut. It kind of looks like you're still in Arizona. How is India differnt from Arizona? A teacher - always asking questions. I can't wait to hear all of your stories when you come back to school. Have a great time.Mrs. Thomas
Answer: Dear Mrs. Thomas, I miss you. How is Seamus?
Things that are different in India:
The steering wheel’s on the wrong side
Cows with no spots
Make different food. Some are sweet, some are spicy, some are oily, some are sour (yogurt).
Very crowded in the streets
People are honking so much
Other people clean your house
They were beautiful clothes. The ladies wear saris. The men wear veshtis or lungis sometimes.
Some people wash clothes in the washing machine if they are lucky. The other people wash them in buckets with their hands. They dry the clothes in the fresh green grass.
They spray their bums off with a sprayer in the bathroom. If there is no sprayer there is a pouring cup.
They have lots of bees in the tree outside the window.
They have big trees that are very green. The leaves are big. There are lots of flowers and mango trees.
They have bad mosquitoes, too.
Love, Abi
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
Tirupati Trip June 5- 6, 2007
First we got to a temple. It was a very very very very long trip! It smelled sweet. It was like a big maze. And we went through the whole thing, and we slept at a hotel. And the next morning we got out of the hotel and went to another temple. It was much bigger than the one we went to already. We woke up very very very early. We went through a maze to see the very important god. It was a very long prayer to wake him up. And then we saw a curtain, but he was still not waking up. Then we did another prayer. Then he finally woke up. My mom and dad went up to a big big mountain. There were 3750 stairs. My mom and my dad climbed up that many stairs! That’s a lot! On the way back we saw coconuts. And we drank the water out of it. And we ate coconuts. It tasted a little bit like jello and water mixed together. We saw a horse with a man sitting on it. We saw cows with their horns painted. But they didn’t have any spots like American cows. We saw ducks in the pond. We saw pigs, goats, dogs, and we saw our first cat in the temple. We have a very special cloth. It had golden threads. It was used for putting on god. We get to keep it! Hurray! We saw lots of ducks, more than we ever saw. It was a very close view. We saw a truck carrying lots of rice. It was just like a stack of hay driving. And I got to ride with Daddy first, Mommy second. Well I got in lots of fights with Nitara. Especially bragging. And we are at Anirudh’s house now because we just got back. Anirudh had new toys. And I got a toy from Kamini Athai. I have new bangles. I bought the bangles in the temple. Paathi said I can have them. You wear them on your arm. Their colors are yellow, orange, pink, red, blue, green, white, purple, and black. They’re made out of plastic. They are like bracelets. Bye bye for now! I will see you next time and type another blog. Love, Abi.
Password: photos
Sunday, June 3, 2007
Movie
From Abi's mom: we are going out of town for a couple of days to a temple called Tirupati. Before Abi was born we went there to ask for a baby (after a long time waiting). Less than a year later, she was born. When she was one year old we took her to the top on my back, about 3-4 hours walk. At the top her head was shaved in the traditional way. Here's a little movie about Abi's life that shows some pictures from our last trip to Tirupati and beyond.
Movie
Movie
Saturday, June 2, 2007
Question and Answer
Question: Parker and Sabine want to know what your favorite part of visiting India is, and the not to favorite parts are. They want to tell you to have a great trip too!
Answer: Dear Parker and Sabine,
My favorite parts are giving toys to Anirudh that I don't need anymore. Idlis and dosas are my favorite foods, and I have a special room that I can sleep in. It is so fancy that I don't want to leave it. I do not like to sleep very long because I would miss the beach. I was going to the beach and I slept too long because my body didn't do well on the time and my body is still used to Arizona time. And I do not like to say goodbye to my toys. Bye bye! by Abi.
Answer: Dear Parker and Sabine,
My favorite parts are giving toys to Anirudh that I don't need anymore. Idlis and dosas are my favorite foods, and I have a special room that I can sleep in. It is so fancy that I don't want to leave it. I do not like to sleep very long because I would miss the beach. I was going to the beach and I slept too long because my body didn't do well on the time and my body is still used to Arizona time. And I do not like to say goodbye to my toys. Bye bye! by Abi.
Friday, June 1, 2007
I am in India!
First we drove from our house to California. It was very cold in Los Angeles. I rode on the bus to the place were the planes were in Los Angeles. And then we took another bus and then it took us to another part of the airport. And then off went our suitcases slipping off because it would be taken to our plane. And then we got on the plane. It was really long and boring, but I could keep myself company. I watched TV on the back of one seat. It was a very very very long trip. But if you want to hear the sound on the TV you have to have earphones. And then it was finally time to get off. We got off at Taipei. And then we took our same plane and our same spot. And then we went to Malaysia. The airport was very boring. I ate raisins and I played on the stairs. But the favorite was the elevator, because it was beautiful purple. Mommy and Daddy were acting busy. And then we took another plane. It was the same! And this time it wasn’t the same spot on the plane. And then I watched some more more TV. And finally we got to India! The airport was noisy because all the cars are beeping. And the bathrooms—well, the toilet, there’s another kind of toilet in the ground but I’m really not going to tell about it. Missing in the bathroom was the toilet paper. You have to spray your butt! And then we got out. But when we got out it was very very noisy. We heard cars beeping, we saw lots of people, and it was really crowded. And then we got to Kamini Athai’s house. And then we got to sleep in a special room that’s very cool. It’s very very very very very hot! The air is sticky and there are mosquitoes. Bad bad mosquitoes. Can you remember what Athai means? Can you remember what Mahmah means? And my body is confused of all the day and night. When it’s nighttime my body says it’s daytime. When it’s daytime, my body says it’s nighttime. Bye bye for now! I will see you next time and I will do another blog.
Note from Abi's mom: Abi took several photos of the Taipei and Malaysian airports, as well as some flowers in the lobby of the Malayian hotel where we stayed for a few hours to freshen up during our layover. You can see them here. If you do not have a Costco membership it's okay- just sign up for free at the website and you can still view the photos. If you want to see more photos (the ones I took, not Abi's) feel free to view my blog.
Note from Abi's mom: Abi took several photos of the Taipei and Malaysian airports, as well as some flowers in the lobby of the Malayian hotel where we stayed for a few hours to freshen up during our layover. You can see them here. If you do not have a Costco membership it's okay- just sign up for free at the website and you can still view the photos. If you want to see more photos (the ones I took, not Abi's) feel free to view my blog.
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