If you are a bookworm living in the Toronto area, I think visiting Type Bookstore might just be worth your while.

Morph Maternity offers everything a new mom is likely to need, but what really gets my attention is the clothes for mommy. In India, it’s not so easy to get smart, affordable maternity/nursing wear. So Morph Maternity really fills a gaping hole in the market.

I love the awesome mommy-friendly tunics and tops below.

Very pretty, right? And doesn’t scream matronly. I also love the way the clothes are presented on the website. There is enough information about sizing and style that customers should not find it difficult to buy stuff from the brand sight unseen. They also let you know what stage of pregnancy the clothes are appropriate for/nursing options that are available. Very useful!

For example, the description for the green kurta is as follows:

Standard Overlap Nursing Kurta, Embroidered Patch with contrast colour at Neckline and Hemline,Cap Sleeve, Patent Applied Leak proof layer at bust region, Fit during and post pregnancy

Plus, they have cash on delivery options and free shipping for orders from India over Rs. 500/-. Really, you can’t lose!

I also recommend the elasticated salwars and kameezes for expecting moms. No more fiddling about with the stupid “nada”. I wish I had heard about this brand earlier during my pregnancy, I would have definitely picked up tons more stuff instead of relying on oversized kurtas and my one and only maternity jeans .

It’s not too late for me to pick up some snazzy post-partum nursing clothes though .

For picking up some cool mom or baby stuff, click on here to Morph Maternity.

First of, I need to acknowledge the top commentators this year:

• Jenny
• Veens
• Priya Iyer who is sadly not blogging any more. Priya, if you are reading this, I really miss your blog. Please come back!
• Laav
• Smita

Of course, I also have to thank the many quiet readers on this blog. I appreciate you all just the same .

I also need to give a special thanks to WordPress.com for featuring my blog on their Themes page and Judith for hosting the Literary Giveaway bloghop and sending over so many new visitors to my blog.

The latter part of 2011 was a little blah in terms of blogging. I have never been a very proliferate blogger but 2011 was pretty sad even by my standards. Only 99 posts! Pregnancy, childbirth, and now severe sleep deprivation have left me too drained to even pick up a remotely complex book. I have ended up sticking to gothic romances, and run of the mill thrillers, none of which inspire me to blog about it . Things are starting to follow a routine now, and so hopefully I will be able to read one or two interesting books that I have waiting on my shelf.

Another nice thing about my 2011 blogging year is the upgrade of my Google page rank. For the past 2 years, it has been a steady page rank 3. This year because of the increased user activity and back links, it has been upgraded to 4 and it’s something I am outwardly rather blase about to my friends, but inwardly, I am super thrilled .

So, that’s my thoughts on blogging in 2011.

How was your 2011? Are you happy about your blogging life last year?

I also hope all of you had a great Christmas and New Year and wish you a very happy and prosperous 2012!

Wish you all a very happy and prosperous 2012

Now, two weeks old, our lil Hemu is turning out to be a basket of surprises. For some reason, we were all expecting a baby girl and when he turned up, well, we were all caught a bit unawares. All the names we had thought about were girl names, and here we were with a boy.

We totally scrambled around for names coming up with various options before we finally named him Daksh. Unfortunately, our priest who was going to do the religious naming ceremony refused the name outright, saying that it conflicted with his birth star. What to do…we literally had only 5 minutes to come up with another name and finally came up with Hemanshu. And now, we are still trying to get used to the name.

I have to say that I am starting to like it a lot and believe that it suits the tot’s personality. However, he must be the only baby who has gone through 3 name changes in the space of 2 weeks >.<

Our little bundle of joy - Hemanshu

His appearance is also surprising mostly because he looks so much like the snubnose when she was born. I mean so similar that they could be twins. Except that Hemu is the bigger baby…well, technically. He weighed more than the snubnose at birth but he is much tinier with all the extra weight on his hips and thighs. Add a diaper to the mix, and he looks absurdly misshapen, with his tiny body, arms, and legs, accompanied by huge hips. Adorable, though!

He also looks somewhat apologetic. Even when he cries, he looks and cries in an apologetic way as though he is sorry for the bother he is causing. And oh yes, he cries in a series of funny porcine grunts when he is extremely hungry…totally hilarious! Am I a bad mom for waiting to feed him till I hear his grunts? I can’t help it, it’s so cute to hear him go Oink, Oink, Oink

I just know that he’s gonna be such a barrel of laughs in the years to come.

Warli Art Using Sand

Using principles of symmetry to draw a ladybug

Bright Concentric Circles ala Kandinsky

More Concentric Circles

Painted Tiles Arranged Around an Urli Full of Flowers (Art work by Snubnose and her classmates)

And my Personal Favorite - Tree at Nighttime

P.S. Please ignore the typos in the photo titles. Obviously, her art teacher does not use spell check >.<

My husband K doesn’t really take part much in lucky draws, competitions, and stuff like that. But, when he does he almost always wins. I mean since our wedding, his win ratio has been pretty astounding. Two years back, he won a competition on Radio 1 – two air tickets and some additional vouchers for a holiday to Sri Lanka! Radio 1 is an extremely popular radio channel here in Bangalore, and believe me, it’s seriously difficult to even get connected to the music jockey, let alone manage to win something decent.

And again last week, he got lucky when we won vouchers, this time from Radio Indigo, for a Sunday brunch at High 5 Tapas Bar in Alila Hotel, Whitefield.

This is a pretty new hotel and still under the radar for many in Bangalore. However, it seems very popular with Whitefield residents. The place was buzzing with activity and there were tons of people who seem to be Sunday regulars (merely judging by their comfort/familiarity levels with the staff).

The bar is located on the 5th (High 5, get it ) floor of the hotel and has an open terrace and swimming pool with wonderful views of the surrounding areas. In fact, the relaxed ambience and wonderful service is one of the highlights of the place. We easily spent about 3 hours there, just chilling out, enjoying the food, and the place.

Here are some photos:

The Awesome Eternity Pool (photo taken from Alila website) Our photo didn't really do justice to this one

Both the snubnose and me are swim freaks, and nothing gets us more excited than an awesome swimming pool. I was kicking myself for not getting her swimming costume so she could cool down nicely in the pool. Never mind, maybe next time.

Instead, we consoled ourselves by lounging around on the deck chairs and enjoying the views and the pleasant breeze.

Lounging on the sunbeds

And the poolside tables

Oh, and what about the food! Well, taking into consideration that I am a vegetarian and a completely non-adventurous eater, I would say the food was exotic. There was plenty of food and cocktails available as part of the brunch, but not too much that was to my taste.

The snubnose and I stuck to the omelets and the pasta dishes, and we enjoyed them thoroughly. They were really very well-made. K’s chicken satay was also very satisfying as were the spinach dumplings, antipasti, and breads.

We stayed well away from the glass noodles with squid, and the tuna dishes. However, these items probably suited the large numbers of Europeans who were frequenting this section.

The desserts were a bit of a let-down. The gulab jamuns were as hard as rocks and I left them alone after one bite. Also, considering the huge spread of dessert options (almost 8-9 varieties), I didn’t find even one chocolatey option, which is a total fail for a chocoholic like me.

So, I would give the food a good, but not awesome rating. The regular pricing is high (about Rs.900 per head), and if you don’t drink or if you don’t eat non-veg, well, then it’s a bit of a raw deal. However, if you like to drink, then it’s pretty good. They have unlimited cocktails, and their bartender is pretty inventive, putting out a variety of cocktails for us to try. The vodka with cranberry juice was seriously awesome, and if I was not preggo, I would have definitely done more than taste a mouthful.

But overall, we ended up pretty satisfied, after all it was a prize, and we got to discover a really nice place too .

Oh, and before ending this post, I should make a mention of an awesome TV room that adjoins the bar. They have a huge projection screen on which movies are screened. Kids who start to get restless can sack out on huge bean bags or a play mat and watch movies while their parents chill out in the next room. It’s a great idea to save parents from whining/restless/misbehaving kids. They even have a babysitter of sorts who maintains order.

So, last words…we had a great time there. This is probably our last major outing as a trio before the new baby arrives and I am glad to say that we made the most of it .

Huge thanks to Radio Indigo and Hotel Alila for this offer. We definitely will be making another trip there. The snubnose insists on a go at the pool, you see.

And here’s a last snap to show how satisfied the snubnose was at the end of the lunch…

A happy jig in front of the Christmas tree

Our original intent was to try Vietnamese food at Phobidden Fruit, something none of us had tried before. However, we chickened out at the last minute (we are all strict vegetarians) and were unsure about the amount of choice we would have.

On an impulse, we saw a signpost for Kobe Sizzlers and immediately decided to give it a try. Situated on the quieter side of CMH Road in Indra Nagar, Kobe Sizzlers has a very nondescript, almost vanilla appearance. The interiors are also pretty plain. But, the food? It’s pretty yumm.

All of us opted for sizzlers with some minor variations. Mine was a standard vegetable sizzler that I customized with pepper sauce and noodles. Another one we ordered was the Chef’s specialty – a Paneer sizzler.

All the sizzlers were delicious and extremely filling.

A photo of the veg sizzler - Photo taken from the Kobe website

Don’t be fooled by the above photo. In this case, the actual sizzlers looked far more delicious and substantial. I probably ate an entire day’s worth of calories in that single meal . But, the taste is totally worth it and I am already planning on bringing my family here when they next come to visit.

After that humongous meal, I was all set to go back to work, but the sweet-toothed friend amongst us insisted that she must have dessert. So, then off we went to try A Spoonful of Sugar – a bakery that also serves some basic small eats.

Located in a small side-street in Indra Nagar behind Nilgiri’s Department store, this place is very easy to miss. You have to go specifically looking for it to spot it. I guess that’s a good thing too, because it’s really teeny, probably can seat only 3-4 tables at a max.

Their menu is extensive, but they seem to make only limited quantities of stuff.

Some of the stuff on display at Spoonful of Sugar

We ordered a tiramisu and a chocolate walnut cake and shared it amongst us. The tiramisu was mind-blowing, really light, fresh and fluffy. It just melted in the mouth. The chocolate walnut cake was good too, but a little heavy for my taste, especially after coming out of a super-heavy meal. Altogether, it was an extremely satisfying experience, and I highly recommend both Kobe and Spoonful of Sugar.

Warning, the prices in both places were higher than I expected. Not many people would appreciate spending Rs.150 on a tiramisu or Rs.350 and above on a sizzler, but for me the taste was absolutely worth it. I rarely eat outside and on the few occasions that I do, it makes sense to pay a little extra for good quality.

Why? Well, there is no subtle way of letting out this news. We are expecting a new addition to our family in December. It’s been very difficult keeping very quiet with this news all this time, but there were plenty of ups and downs in my pregnancy journey that it just seemed wiser to keep it quiet until things settle down.

I first found out the good news when I got my blood tested for a nasty bout of flu sometime in March, and my life has simply been a roller-coaster ride since then. Where did the time go?

First thing I did when I found out was immediately go online and look up the Chinese Birth Calendar, which is supposed to provide accurate gender predictions. It’s a boy!! and chances are the calendar is at least 50% correct .

Also, 2011 is the year of the metal rabbit (Chinese astrology), and this is what metal rabbits are made of:

RABBIT INFANT AND CHILD
Young Rabbits are very sensitive children. They tend to let their emotions get the best of them and will cry with no remorse. At school, these children often get teased for being so sensitive and become branded crybabies by other boys and girls. Rabbit children are especially close to their mothers and maintain a wonderfully close relationship with them throughout their lives. They depend on their mothers for advice and support and will reciprocate when necessary. Rabbit children are desperate for stability and routine and require a sort of scheduling to do their best work. Like the adult Rabbit, Rabbit children are likely to be quite interested in the arts, particularly in music, a subject in which most Rabbit children thrive.

Very nice! I am not too sure about the cry baby part though . The snubnose was a colicky baby and really ran roughshod all over me through the early months, so I am really hoping that we get a break with the next one. Also, I was an inexperienced, panicky mom, and I hope I am more experienced this time around.

As per Western astrology, the baby could turn out to be a Sagittarius or a Capricorn . Chances are 50-50 either way.

So, here I am now, about 35 weeks along as huge as a whale, desperately trying to complete all pending office work before I go on leave two weeks from now.

As for reading, I am seeing some increased strain on my eyes, so I have pretty much switched over to audio books and e-books. E-books are great because I can read them in low light (very nice for uncomfortable sleepless nights), and I can modify the font size to suit my comfort. I love this feature so much, and I highly recommend e-books for elderly people, or people with vision problems.

Audio books are a slightly different story. Maybe it’s the book I am currently listening to, but I have a tendency to drift off, and then having to rewind to listen to it again. I don’t think this will ever be my favorite way of consuming any reading matter.

Anyway, for now I am giving a hard stop to my personal updates. It’s really difficult to know where to draw the line. I could keep on rambling like this for ages.

In terms of my blog, I hope to keep updating it for as long as is feasible, but I am not going to kill myself over it. If I read a book, but don’t find the time to blog about it, well it will not be the end of the world.

All depends on how smoothly things pan out in my real life over the next few months. I do plan to ghost in and out of the blog world, commenting on my favorite blogs, and keeping in touch with close virtual friends.

That’s the plan. Let’s see if I have the time and energy to implement it .

The Tulleeho Book of Cocktails

I do peruse recipe/fitness/technology/child-rearing related non-fiction, but I don’t read them from cover to cover, which is why I feel uncomfortable recommending or dissing non-fiction. How can I comment when I haven’t really read for pleasure, only for knowledge, and that too specific bits of information?

I didn’t have a problem reviewing this book however – The Tulleeho Book of Cocktails by Tulleeho Inc. is a pretty awesome book that I devoured from page 1 to the end.

Why this sudden interest in cocktails? I don’t even drink all that much. However, my husband is quite the drink connoisseur and I have always fantasized about whipping up fancy stuff to entertain him and his friends…the only problem is that I am a novice and never knew where to start.

This book came in pretty handy for me. It starts off with a brief introduction explaining the different types of alcohols (rums, vodkas, whiskeys), the type of equipment required (different types of glasses, stirrer), and more requirements for garnishes (limes, fruits, spices).

It’s comprehensive enough that a user doesn’t have any nasty surprises waiting while mixing a drink. I have tried out so many food recipes and realizing midway through that I don’t have some essential ingredient so I am really grateful for this introduction. I also especially like the pictures that they have used to show what they mean. Remember, I am a novice, so I didn’t even have an idea what a shot glass is supposed to look like. So far, so good.

Now on to the recipes. There are plenty of recipes for all kinds of occasions, palates, and comfort levels. Even if you have never mixed a drink before, there are several cocktail recipes that are simple and goof-proof.

There are some pretty complicated recipes also for the more advanced. However, the techniques could have been explained in a little more detail. For example, there is a cocktail recipe that involves “flaming” a drink. Now, this is stuff I’ve seen bartenders doing in movies, and it definitely looks complicated and dangerous. I would have liked a bit more hand-holding in sections like these. But, that’s just a minor quibble. I do know that the next party I host is definitely going to include some cocktails from this book.

This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com. Participate now to get free books!

So, when I saw these youtube videos of Peter Jackson’s diaries, I loved them and had to share them with you all.

I am so going to be following his video updates until the movie comes out end of next year. What about you? Are you interested in The Hobbit, or are you done with the series?