Diveagar & The Circus

Our Trip to Diveagar

Last weekend, Chris took us and his team to a place called Diveagar for teambuilding activities. The TIAC team left at 8:00am on a bus and we left in our car around 10:00am. After a very long, windy ride, we arrived around 2:30pm. Upon arrival, I felt very queasy and thought it was car sickness. We checked into our room and had a bit of lunch. We then walked about three blocks to the beach on the Arabian Sea. It was a beautiful beach and the water was nice and warm. It didn’t take Anna and Max long to get wet. Anna scouted for shells while Max crawled/plowed through the water. We decided to head back to our room to change into bathing suits. Just after we entered the gate, my “car sickness” got the better of me. I will not gross you out with details, but I spent the rest of the afternoon and all night in a very sick condition. Chris took the kids back to the beach and they had a great time. We did manage to get some great pictures and we visited a Ganesh temple on Sunday afternoon before we left. Several years ago a Ganesh idol made of pure gold was discovered in one of the supari baghs (gardens) in the village, making it a bit of a tourist attraction. Max went to the doctor for the second time in a week on Monday for a cough that he cannot seem to kick. Anna and I went to a circus on Tuesday, which was a first for both of us. It was two and a half hours of acrobats, animals, ice skaters, and numerous other sights. Chris and I also celebrated our eighth anniversary on Tuesday with dinner out. We attended a John Deere party on Saturday and went to the pool near our flat on Sunday. While it seems that we a constantly busy here, life is pretty routine now that we are all settled in. Today was Max’s first birthday. We cannot believe that the big guy is one already! Time sure flies when you are moving half way across the world. Since the pictures and video are not yet downloaded, I will save the party details for the next update. Please take care and feel free to drop us a line or give us a call. Until next time!

Birthday Pictures

Anna's Birthday & Max's Milestone

Greetings once again from India! Chris’s TIAC team made it to the finals in the John Deere cricket tournament and their game happened to be on December 29th, Anna’s fourth birthday. We went to watch and Anna told everyone who would listen that it was her birthday. After the TIAC team beat out the IT team, they secretly went out and bought Anna a cake and sang “Happy Birthday” to her. It was really sweet and unexpected. When we returned home, our driver Kiran gave Anna a beautiful blue party dress which she absolutely adored. We had her “Dora the Explorer” party on Sunday with about eight kids and their parents. We had Papa John’s pizza and it was fantastic. The party was really fun and of course, there were too many gifts. It took a while for all of the Christmas and birthday excitement to subside, but life is slowly getting back to normal. We didn’t do much of anything for New Year’s, since Chris had to work on New Year’s Day. School resumed for Anna on January 3rd and she seems to be enjoying it. She has a friend Zoya that she speaks of often, but I think she’s in another the other class. Max’s big news is that he now has four teeth and is a full-fledged walker! Please check out the short video at the following link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csh4Ow7eMtA. Although it is hard for us to see, his grandparents think he is huge compared to when we left. We are planning our first trip to the U.S. in February. Chris has a conference in Phoenix and Anna, Max, and I are spending a month there with Gramps and Grammy. Grandma Sally is coming for a week, as are numerous aunts, uncles, and cousins. We cannot express how excited we are. We are also looking forward to our eighth anniversary on January 15th and Max’s first birthday is on January 22nd. Never a dull moment! Well, until next time, please continue to keep our family in your thoughts and prayers and remember that you are always in ours. Take Care!