Indian princess bride

Emma is ONE!

Emma's Stats:

21lbs, 30"  **She is 14lbs heavier and 10" taller than this time last year!**

Activities: walking like a big girl, reaching on tippy toes to reach the counter/sink, over-handed ball toss, dances to music, eats finger foods, waves bye-bye, says "mama" and "da-ee" (daddy), at times says "no" and "ba" (bye), shakes head to say "no".

A few of her favorite things: pigeons, snuggling mama and daddy, nursing, tickle games, climbing onto furniture/chairs.

Fears: mechanical stuffed animals that quack/bark and move, strangers, men (well, all others who aren't Daddy, or the Granddad's).

BIRTHDAY PIX!

Wedding Crashers!

All you have to do if your baby is foreign, white, and friendly is to go to the store during this season and you are invitied to another wedding. This has happened twice to Emma and I in the past month. 

Last night we went to a wedding at 9:30pm and left at 11:45pm. The crowd was a tough one to get to know, but the bride was dear as she was the day I met her. Her one request was that we lift up her future happiness, and she had sad eyes when saying it. Parents can arrange marriages here for their children and pressure them in such a way that they feel there is no choice. They must marry this stranger. Even though my friend is a doctor, or will be after another level of courses, she is still able to be trapped like this. Bless her heart.

Emma and the bride.

When life hands you defective yeast, make chapattis!

Today, I decided it was time Emma knew the song "Pat-a-Cake".  I'm not quite sure, now that I'm older why the word "cake" is used in the rhyme since it seems they are talking about making bread.  Anyway, Emma and I sang the song several times today while making bread.

For those of you who like me are not in the know about yeast, that is NOT frothy yeast in that sugary, tepid water.  This, had I given it more importance, would have saved me over an hour to confirm my suspicions that something wasn't right.

Here, we struggle to keep the wheat flour in the bowl as Emma really wanted to gnaw the wire wisk.

She was great at patting the dough and smishing it through her fingers!  She really wanted to put the whole ball in her mouth, but thankfully I was able to thwart her plans!

After an hour of waiting, our dough ball was stagnant and exactly the same. The dream of fluffy wheat bread having flown out the window led to brainstorming what to do next. Since we are in South Asia, chapathis are exactly the solution! 

chuh-PAH-teez (n.)  a flat bread comprised of wheat and white flour, salt, and olive oil that is rolled thin and wide like a tortilla at Qdoba

Post-rolling this is a prize example of a chapatti. Most end up looking more like Australia, but this one is equally thin and round.

So, as the song goes in some parts of the USA (since there are several variations I've heard of Pat-a-Cake), "roll it... and throw it in a pan!"