Videos from NYC

Here are some video clips from our trip to New York...

Ananya talking on our carriage ride


Gadget toys are the best!


Squealing with delight in FAO Schwartz


Swinging in the park


If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands!


Sliding in Central Park


Stepping out some tunes on the BIG piano


Mommy and baby feeding Marcello the horse

New York, New York

After my cousin's wedding, Pooneet, Ananya, and I spent a fantastic 3 days in Manhattan. We stayed at an amazing hotel right across the street from Central Park and were there the one week where it was perfect summer weather! Pooneet and I were a little skeptical about how much we'd see or do with a baby in such a big city, but it turned out to be the best trip to NYC we've ever had. We devoted our daytime to making sure Ananya had fun and then each night, we got a babysitter to watch Ananya while we met up with friends and belatedly celebrated our 4 year anniversary. Fun times all around :)

Each day, we went to Central Park and played on their numerous playgrounds. We went for carousel rides (a first for Ananya and she was probably the only kid on it not crying!), visited the zoo and saw polar bears, snow leopards, and penguins, fed animals in the petting zoo, took Ananya on a horse-drawn carriage ride of the park and fed our horse, Marcello. We walked around a lot, and saw all kinds of fun things, like FAO Schwartz, Rockefeller Center, Magnolia Bakery, and what was to me, the most amazing and overwhelming Whole Foods I've ever seen (45 cashiers!!). We took Ananya to lunch with Pooneet's cousin, Shveta, to Tavern on the Green (so magical!) and even had a semi-celebrity sighting at Bouchon Bakery (clearly eating was a major part of our trip!).

Pooneet and I had a great time meeting up with our friends, and then he took me to a most amazing anniversary dinner at Jean-Georges for a lavish multiple course meal! So as you can see, we had a super fantastic trip to New York and can't wait to visit again!















Here are some more pictures from our trip:

Mohan Family Wedding

After a wonderful vacation in Hawaii, we came back home to San Francisco and a week later, headed to New Jersey for my cousin Aparna's wedding. Ananya, again, was fantastic on the flights, and made lots of new friends on the plane! The wedding was a fun family reunion - with Ananya's Baby Avva and Venkappa Thatha flying in from India - and Ananya had fun playing with Anjali and Ajay, and seeing her cousin Sonia whom she last saw a year ago in Maui.

We enjoyed being at my Kittu Mama and Shoba Aunty's house for the pooja and then the next day, we celebrated the wedding and reception at a beautiful venue overlooking the Hudson Bay and the NYC skyline. We then got to visit Sarayu and Eshon's house, where Ananya also got to meet Jagannath Thatha and Lily Avva.

This was the last Mohan wedding for this generation....strange to think that Ananya (or her cousin Sonia) will be next!














Here is a slideshow of more pictures from the pooja & wedding:

Aloha!

Pooneet, Ananya, and I just came back from a week of vacation in Maui. It was our first vacation just the three of us and we can easily say that it was one of the most memorable trips we've ever taken! We were definitely nervous about the flights, but Ananya was a champ (getting upgraded didn't hurt either) and took naps and made friends with pretty much everyone around us. Phew! Maui itself was wonderful and we spent each day swimming in either the ocean or the pool (Ananya would be in the water for over an hour at a time!), going out to eat (she loved eating out and saying "hi" and "bye" to everyone in the restaurant), going for walks by the beach, playing in the sand, looking at birds, and finally getting to wear summer clothes that we haven't been able to wear in cold SF! On this trip, Ananya perfected saying "mama" and walking nonstop (she no longer crawls), and learned to point to her knee, head, and tummy. Excellent!




Here is a video of Ananya at a sushi restaurant



Ananya having fun on the beach



Chillin' in the pool



First time fun on escalators

August wrap-up

Here are some pics from some fun times we had at the end of August: going to my work picnic where Ananya and Pooneet went on a slide for the first time, playing on computers, having fun with Sarada Aunty and Naseem Uncle, celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi, and spending a weekend with Dadu and Dadi in Atherton where Ananya played with all her aunties and cousins...and Pluto the dog!

So much walking!

Ananya spent the weekend at her Dadu and Dadi's house, where she got a ton of walking practice. Ever since then, she's been all over the place! She has pretty much given up crawling and just loves to walk now, which makes me sad to see the crawling/baby phase go and excited to see how much she enjoys exploring the world upright.

Cousin Ajay's 1st bday

Ananya celebrated her cousin Ajay's 1st birthday. Since she now knows all about turning 1, she had a lot to teach her cousin. Of course, she also couldn't resist giving him a big birthday kiss!