Loving December...

togetherness times in jaipur

*loving december as it gently makes its way for the New Year..

* time of  snow man,christmas bells,christmas tree,santaclaus reindeers,christmas cards and gifts..

*christmas carols in air,ringing of the bells in the church

*christmas prayers..

*wonderful time of the year,

*white fluffs of snow

* cold and frosty mornings in december

*hot chais which helps us keep warm

*screaming of my little one when she has to put sweaters after sweater

*hot air from the heater

*hot warm baths

*warmth of the quilts

*its in december that we got married, 

*sweet remembrances of that time, still lingers on throughout December

*celebrations of wedding anniversary

*Love the quiteness in celebrations,only the two of us and the little one that adds joys to our life;

*trip to a place to celebrate our anniversary

*my favourite  chrysanthemums in bloom

*anticipation of holidays of my little one

*litchis and strawberries over  crowding the fruit markets

*christmas tree yet to be decorated

*on goes the lists endlessly..

*so you all know how to love december ,isn it

*love it more than anything,coz you have to wait another year for it.

     Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas 

Tea Pot Cafe

A Visit to the Tea pot cafe and having endless cups of tea and pastries happened during the last summer vacations.But the post comes a bit late.

Tea Pot cafe is a delightful cafe on the main streets of Fort Kochi for tea lovers,a perfect and cosy nice little place for your afternoon tea: 15 different brands of Indian teas (they serve coffee as well), pastries and countless teapots as a design element.

Actually our search for an afternoon tea after walking through the streets of FortKochi led us to Tea pot cafe.We were led us to the mezzanine floor where we could actually see the beauty of the kettles hanging from the roof.

We had a really nice time at the Tea Pot Cafe.Just can't number the things we ate ,(because we ate too many things) but the tingling taste of the tea, still lingers on the tip of my tongue...eagerly looking forward for our next visit.

Nowadays....

A cold misty morning in Delhi,todayLoving the wintersunshine as it makes its way through the windows

Having tea with sunshine

Noticing the patterns that light makes

Loving light ,as I have not loved it before..interesting

Reading quotes about light

Quotes make us think...

Do not anticpate trouble or worry about what may never happen.

Keep in the sunlight"Benjamin Franklin"

Winter annuals get planted in pots in the terrace

Lettuce and Dhaniya seeds waiting to be sown

Hot soups get ready by 7 o clock in the evening

Watching loads of images on flickr and getting inspired

Inspired by baking seeing loads of photos on flickr and blogs

Thinking of baking some day

Winter Mornings..

*on winter mornings the house is still dark and cold and then the alarm rings

*cuddling in bed on cold winter morning

*i drag myself out of the bed

*hot elachi tea boiling in the kitchen

*the cold breeze makes it way when i open the door leading to the balcony.

*it hits my face softly

*loving the golden glow of the winter morning sun

*sunlight fills my living room,creating patches of warmth

*adash of pink bright cushions bring in cheer to the winter

*romancing with my pink cushions

*lot of guests at home during winter

*drawing and painting with my little one

*mythical and magical flowers of rajnigandha in the living room

*the heavy fragrance of the flowers filling the corners of the home

*you never forget your experience with tuberoses,

*enjoying the winter sun in all corners of the home

*enjoy the season,a nip in the air and a warm blanket around you.

*enjoy your day!

A Rainy Day at home......and a Banana leaf ..

rainy days were there again.....they arrived along with me to our home town.moist red earth with a' cacophony of green' green moss on the walls,ferns fill the crevices of the walls:

giving me company is "Where the rain is born",compilation of excerpts from great authors.

All of my favourite things on a banana leaf platter,tea, books and raindrenched flowers and leaves..are the rains coming with a singing note,I thought they did....as the writer "MT"says rain is like a mother,it bursts out when you least expect it to ,when you go close,thinking it is in a good mood in remembrance of things past,I listened to very old music,played with harmonium,sang old songs during when it rained,I lazed on the bed and remembered all thats old that i could the wild thrashing of coconut palms on the windows this rains,woke me up from my small afternoons naps did the raindrops make craters on the ground?still remembering the the sundive through the holes and rafters of the old traditional house we have down south the sky visited my house as raindrops and sunlight, filtering through the holes in the mouldering palm leaf thatch always used to look at the patterns it makes and sometimes felt they danced in our rooms...

seated on the old bed on the verandah,i used to look at the rains and the moonthe sharp distant sound of a pebble hitting the water in the well, "clung",we used to play throwing pebbles of different sizes,the bigger the pebble the stronger the sound...memories stab my heart...how beautiful the solitude was when it rains startled by the call of ,Amma crying out our names to have Kanji(porridge with rice)...its time to leave you all in solitude.hope i got you all into my world for a small time..

the days gone by....with kancheepurams and marigolds

*festivities are over

*but still i here a cracker or two in the air,is it of a marriage in the park nearby?

*been away from blogging for awhile

*many a things happened during the autumn

*autumn passed with contemplation

*my little one turned five

*another birthday passed by:

*I turned a year younger :)

*lots of dreams and aspirations

*my brother got married

*been to Kerala

*enjoyed the radiant evenings at home

*jewellery,malii poo flowers,marigolds,kancheepurams and laughter

*so nice to be with all at home

 *Its great to be back.thanks to all of you for checking on me.Have a  great weekend everyone!

Happy Deepavali !

Wishing you all lovely blogger friends a very happy and bright Deepavali !A festival which brought me back many shiny memories.Deepavali is the time to celebrate new beginnings.

Today let me take you around the festivities at home.I always look forward to let my creativity flow as I set about decorating the house with rangoli,flowers and diyas.

Welcome to our sweet little home ,where we lit 108 Diyas .Those were the lights of faith and worship lit towards welcoming the Goddess.

The day is very special as the entrance gets adorned with colourful rangoli .Early gathering of flowers,making garlands to adorn the doors and house,the early morning oil baths ,the naivedyas, prasads and flower offerings and betel leaves for the god.All Urulis and small brass vessels get filled with floating flowers and floating fragrant candles.Lights of the diyas and fragrance of the oil lit lamps,dhoop, agarbattis and the candles get infused into the air.The then Calmness enveloped us. My little one had some small sparklers which she played with for a while.

I wish you all a very happy Deepavali and I hope it brings all of you joy ,laughter and wonderful memories.

(Images and Ideas by Lakshmi Arvind,Please do not use the images without prior permission)

Shubh Deepavali...

*Its Festival Season.

*The "Festival of Lights".

*A Flurry of activities to be done.

*Love and Laughter in the air.

*The fragrance of Oil lit lamps ,Marigolds,home made Turmeric and Kumkum.

*Home made sweets and the smell of ghee wakes our senses.

*Do read celebrationsdecor ,my other blog where i keep posting the decor and designs of "Deepavali"

Kashi Art Cafe-Fort Kochi

"Kashi Art Cafe" A Quaint cafe that houses an art gallery showcasing the finest works by contemporary artists,a relaxed space where art meets the enthusiast.An airy tropical garden cafe with a restful ambiance.The interiors of cafe gave us the feeling of being in an oldmansion with a story to tell.

Situated in one of the colourful streets of Fortkochi was the cafe.Architecture resembled the traditional Kerala,have a seat outside the cafe and look into the streets.Todays menu was dispalyed on the black board outside

Who wouldn't not love to sit here under this shade?

A closer view of the Sivalingam and the Shadows, as you enter and so its name Kashi (God Shiva)

Surrounded by green,lends a tropical feel and an unusual coolness in the air

An old antique vessel for heating water and tea

Inbuilt seating arrangements and i loved the use of two colors on the walls

.

Its simply great!