Jenny From The Bangalore Block

Monday, 13 August 2012

Kabini with Katie

To say that "we are fans" of Orange County Kabini is a huge understatement. We LOVE going to Kabini so when Katie was here we made sure that we squeezed in a quick trip with her.

Welcome Back, Sir!

Waiting to take a ride

Oh Boy! Here she comes!

Saddle up!

What a Sweet Gal!

David approached the elephant much like you would a horse, slow and steady and then she let him pat her trunk!

Holy HAIRY tail!

There they go!

Lovin' It!

Mommy & Katie's Turn! YAY!!

That's one super-sized-sniffer!!

Boys are using their super powered snouts to determine if the size of the terd increases the size of the stench because those are some

MASSIVE meadow muffins ;0)

Elephant Shower

Katie's Turn!!

Coffee Time while the sun goes down.

Serenity!

Getting the drums ready. It's almost time to DANCE!

The nightly tribal dance

So much fun!

Up bright & early for the jeep safari! REALLY hoping to spot a tiger this time around!!

Bright Eyed & Bushy Tailed!

Doesn't she look like she has a bindi on her forehead?

They came out of the woods and then they went running across the path behind our jeep! SoooOOoooo CooOoooOoL!!

Do you see it?!

Zoomin' in a little closer....we didn't see a tiger BUT we were so excited to see a....

Leopard!!! Craziness! In the wild...we saw a LEOPARD! WOW!

Watch Tower!

Leopards aren't the only ones up in the trees!

This is what the locals build up in the trees to keep a watchful eye out for predatory animals that might have wondered onto their land and would do harm to their livestock.

He DID see the leopard but the "waking up before the sunrise" thing got the best of him.

See Katie's little treehouse visitor? Top left corner!?

He was a true life "Curious George" & Katie couldn't scramble off of that rope net fast enough to get away from him. I don't blame her. I am not a fan of those banana eating, fang-toothed, red-rumped, tree-travellers!

For the record, Fido is NOT a fan either!

It was actually comical to watch. The monkies were totally mocking the dog. They'd jump up and down on the rope net and "Ooh-ooh! Aah-Ah!" at the him and he'd reply by leaping up at them and giving them his most ferocious, "Arff-Arff!" If was perfect timing though b/c Fido kept the monkies distracted so Katie could scurry down to a safe distance from the disgusting imps.

I AM a FAN of this Fella :0)

Now it's time for the afternoon boat safari!

Busy Villagers on the Rivers Edge

No matter where you are from there seems to be a common tie between little boys and showing off for a camera!? They LOVE it!

Our mode of transportation through the river for the boat safari

The locals mode of transportation on the river.

This type of boat is called a coracle. As you can see it sits very close to the water surface and is shaped like half of a walnut shell. Haven't ridden in one myself yet but don't you worry! I'll make sure it happens before I leave India :0) Gotta try it!

Row, row, row your coracle...

Apparently, the coracle is not only from transporting humans. No kidding! They are putting a MOTORCYCLE (called a two-wheeler here in India) into their boat!

CRIKEY! Check out the size of that croc, Mate!

I'm just thinking if I was one of those guys riding in a coracle with a motorcyle I might be a little nervous about the boat tipping!? Shucks! You flip over that boat and you're swimming with this guy! YIKES!

Oh, Bother!! (said in my best Winnie the Pooh voice!)

Geesh! So nevermind the people in the coracle! We've got boat troubles of our own! I don't know much about boats but when it stops, sputters and doesn't start I think it's safe to say, "We've got a problem here!" I sinched my lifevest a little tighter but let's face it I didn't want to have to swim anymore than the next guy! I've just witnessed a super-size, sharp toothed, log rollin, carnivore crunchin... CROC in this river and I'd really like to take just take "swim in the river" off the "To Do List" altogether!! Oars! Yes, that's it!! Do we have oars?! I'd be happy to man a rowing station!!!

Dope! (Said in my best Homer Simpson voice!)

Oh, Yes Sir! That there be LAND!!! We may not be on the Titanic & we certainly did not hit an iceberg BUT we've definitely just crashed into the countryside! What do you think firstmate, Erica? Should I start to panic!?

Fantastic! Look! It's more signs of crocs!

See those fresh mud skids up there on the bank? Do you think they sense the nature of our "strandedness"?!

"Hey Pete! Got us some fresh meat just down the river a spell! You hungry?! Let's go check it out!"

Luckily, it just seems to be part of boat ownership. If you own a boat you must be prepared for random breakdowns and you must know how to fix them on your own b/c that's exactly what happened. The ships captain came be-boppin' on to the back of the boat, did a tweak, a turn & a twist and VIOLA! We were back in business. No croc swimming for us today! "See ya suckers!" ;0)

Aw! Mommy & Baby

Whoa! Big Daddy!

Happy Little Turtle!

Three Musketeers!

Here I am!

Enjoying my last few moments on the safari &

taking in the amazing sunset!

Simply amazing sunset. Truly God's Handiwork!

Beautiful!

Time to leave Kabini and head back to Bangalore.

What a lovely time we had with Katie. We were all sad to see her go.

Come Back Soon!

xo We LOVE you! xo

Sunday, 5 August 2012

Indus Swim Meet 2012

Disclaimer! Disclaimer! Disclaimer! If you do not like to read stories such as: "My kid did such a great job!" "WOW! Look at how amazing my child is!" this might not be the blog entry for you!? Although, I do not intend to be one of "those" Mom's - I will admit that I was one PROUD Mommy and that I am definitely tootin' a big 'ole horn about how FAB my kids were at the swim meet at their school. ;0) So, if that didn't totally turn you off and you weren't saying, "Oh Pa-Lease! SPARE ME!" You might actually be able to stomach this entry and hopefully you will enjoy it! So, in the spirit of the Olympics and the kids returning to school for year TWO...here is one of our favorite days in the primary school last year. The inter-house swim meet!

Rachel, Erica and Michael all participated. David will be old enough to participate during
the 2012-2013 school year. I have always known that our children LOVE to swim what I didn't know is that they are actually PRETTY GOOD at it! YAY KIDS! :0) They compete against other kids within the school at their same grade level. Boys against boys. Girls against girls. Our children are all sOooOOoo different from one another and even in this event their personalities came out.

Michael is a competitor but mostly he just loves having a "fun" day with his friends. Rachel HATES competition. She kept asking, "Do I have to do it? Do I have to compete?" Erica has "vicious competitor" flowing through her veins. Knowing that it was a competition made it that much more fun and she worked that much harder to "win".

You better believe I was there poolside, donning my sunscreen, big shades and Woot-WoOOOoooOtin' it up for my Babies!

Mikey's BFF and "twin" Arttu!

Mikey Lookin' In the Mirror. Oh. Newp. No Mirror. That's he and Arttu looking at each other! HAHAH! TWINS, Right!?

Getting serious now. De-fogging the goggles. (I thought he was checking the water temp! HAHA!)

My handsome little Skin-n-Bones Baby!

A whole line-up of some of Michael's best buddies getting ready to compete against one another.
1 - Arttu, 2 - Michael, 3 - Wills, 4 - Gregoire, 5 - Jacob

Listening for the "START" whistle

Checking & Verifying their times
They competed in several races and did all sorts of strokes that I could never HOPE to be able to do. After competing in
free-style, breast stroke, back stroke, and butterfly Michael got 3rd place in the breast stroke!

Although he looks like a GRUMP he was VERY pleased with his medal. (He actually wore it all weekend long! HAHA!)

Could OUR Michael be the next Michael Phelps?! ;0)

Erica's Turn!

Gettin' Ready!

SoooOOOooOOO Happy!!!

Erica was chosen by the Hercules House Captain (Sacha, in the blue) to swim in the relay. Erica did the backstroke & free style.

At first, Erica was really nervous and not so sure she wanted to compete in the relay but upon further encouragement from her Mother ;0) and the other girls she agreed to do it!

Go Keeka, GOOOOooooooOOOO!

YAYYYY! Victorious!

One more time...

In her element!

YES! Hercules relay team brings home the GOLD again!

Good Job, Girls!

The Champion Cup
Winner of best overall girl swimmer in her grade

Proud Mama! Way to go Erica!

Rachel's Turn!

Focused.

Rachel and Erica competed on the same day. Same time. In all honesty, at times Rachel was having a hard time being all "smiles" and "Congratulations" to her little sister that was sweeping the competition. Rachel truly is a GREAT swimmer but the competition was TOUGH. So, even though I tried to remind her, "Keep doing your best, Rach!" "Don't give up!" "Swim hard until the last moment b/c you never know when the person next to you is starting to get tired and that's when you pull ahead and beat 'em!" (Can you tell I LIKE competition!? Haha!) So, she listened but didn't really seem to internalize it. It was more of the, "You're my Mom so you HAVE to tell me I'm good at this" kind of listening. Thank goodness, my friend, Vanessa was on hand b/c she gave Rachel a pep-talk before the lunch break and don't you know it....My little sweetie came back from lunch and swam with a new determination, worked her butt off and came home with a third place medal! Sometimes hearing the same ole jazz from someone BESIDES your Mother can make a world of a difference. Thanks, V!!!

Aw! So proud of you Rach!

Rachel's friend, Sacha, congratulating her!
As a sidenote-Sacha is such a GEM! She was truly tickled and delighted for Rachel when Rachel's name was called as a medal winner. She was a great encouragement to Rachel throughout the day and as I watched Sacha win and lose races throughout the day (MOSTLY win) she was gracious at both! And THAT is not something you see very often! In fact, I overheard a little girl in Erica's age bracket, medals clanging around her neck, walk up to another child and say, "Soooo, how many medals did you win?!" (Already knowing the answer was NONE as all you had to do was look at the poor childs empty neck!) and as the child dropped his head and his eyes shifted to the ground he sadly said, "None." To which the little girl relentlessly replied, "Oh yeah. Well, I've won two and I'm probably going to win A LOT more." (Um, Hello, MEAN GIRL!) Oh man! I had to retract my Momma Bear claws b/c I wanted to march right in between the two children and launch into that little girl my lecture about the difference between being a gracious winner and loser.

Erica was also REALLY happy for Rachel!

It was good for them to spend the day cheering

for each other.

3rd & 4th grade cup winners

Erica & one of her good friends, Jean-Baptiste.

(We will miss you this year, Jean! Keep in touch!)

Ended the day with a little friendly swim-competition between the Dads!

(Only the ones that wanted to get involved)

Now for the Mom's!!

(NO! I did NOT compete! Haha!)

I can swim to save my life but in terms of doing actual "strokes" .... fuhgetaboutit!

Very proud of ALL my Babies! Doing their personal best, overcoming obstacles, pushing themselves and having a successful and FUN day with friends!

Saturday, 4 August 2012

Sheer Bliss®

Had an absolutely heavenly...divine... & completely Blissful® experience recently when I was able to take a tour of the Bliss® Chocolate Factory here in Bangalore and of course every experience is better when you share it with friends!

As we entered the factory each one of us was handed a small white bundle and instructed to put it on our head. Ooh! A shower cap! Chocolate showers for all! (Surely, I've died and gone to Heaven...A CHOCOLATE shower!?) Okay. No. Not really. It was just your average run of the mill hairnet. A very good idea whilst walking around edibles to cover thy head, I always say! (Ew! And let's not even think about what would happen if I found a HAIR in a piece of chocolate. Tongue extended. Dry heaving. Oh, GAG!)

Are we lookin' Pa-ritty Snazzy or what?! :0)

Chocolate Molds

Our guide told us all kinds of interesting things about the type of chocolate they use and the quality and honestly as I sit down to write about it....I can't remember any of the details. :0/ I think the smell of the chocolate affected the memory portion of my brain?! I simply could not concentrate on what was being said. I was eye to eye with rows and ROWS of chocolates. FANCY chocolates! And he told me I could eat as MANY as I wanted. SHUT-UP! You can't be serious?! (He was! BUT! I did exercise restraint!)

Ooh! Actually! You know what?! I do remember ONE thing. Okay. So, you know when you eat a chocolate and afterwards you get that funny "film" feeling on the roof of your mouth? You know, like there is a thick trail of sludge or something stuck up there?! Uh huh?! That's BAD chocolate. Poor quality chocolate, to be exact! It's true. He said, it's the oil they have added to the chocolate. Probably vegetable oil. Ew! That's nasty! Of course, that doesn't happen with Bliss® chocolate b/c it's great quality and oh so yummy in my tummy!

In the packaging room with My Peeps & our tour guide

Praline Passion!

My new favorite flavor! WOWZAHZZZ!

OOH! It's all coming back to me now (okay not all of it but bits and pieces!) I remember something else he told us! You should not CHEW your chocolate. Newp. You put it in your mouth and let it melt! According to him, a humans mouth is the perfect temperature for melting chocolate! Who knew?! Chocolate should also be eaten at room temperature to fully appreciate the magnitude of its flavor.

Strawberry flavored chocolate! My 2nd favorite!

I guess I'm a "fruity chocolate" kinda gal!?

Gold-Foil Wrapped Chocolates

HAND wrapped too! (Wow! That's a lot of work!)

Baileys Irish Cream!
It's just as good as you'd imagine it would be!

Chili-Chocolate

This was definitely the most exotic flavor I tried. I didn't LOVE it but I liked it and I was glad I tried this funky, slightly spicy candy concoction!

They also have an amazing bakery division of Bliss® chocolate that we were able to poke around in as well. Wow! Seriously! These guys were making works of art. Their hands worked with ease and I stood there in awe (had to shut my wide-gaping-mouth so I didn't drool into the cake batter!)