Wordless @ Western Ghats

Sunset

2010 @ Krishnaleela

With the New year ahead just in a few days I was wondering what I was doing last year this time . With some back to back reading I figured out we were fully engrossed in exams and projects . This year with the " Progressive assessment program ' CBSE schools have only two exams . Mid term exam and final exam . And with that our schedules changed a lot since last year .

Ruby and Pearl just has to study the every day portions and then , they are free .

And here at Krishnaleela we used the year for self-identifying and realising . WE were subtle . But we were also active . Kids were given complete freedom to follow whatever interests them . They are slowly loosening my ties on them and spreading their wings . I am watching them with awe .

This year Ruby had only group projects which they discuss among the group and do themselves . Parents just have to help the kids collect whatever they want . I sort of miss doing projects with him . We make a great team . But I am amazed at the ideas and organising put up by the little ones. So , I didn't have much to post on the projects .

One other major step was Ruby started reading by himself . It had become a bit difficult for me to answer all his questions . But now I just have to see that library is well stocked . He uses his text books just as an index. He depends more on outside reading . And he carries all the relevant books to school to share with his friends .

Pearl has also started reading and every day she selects a book that I would read to her . And later she would read it on her own . Nobody asks her to . But she does this by herself. Now that she has this dance program coming up at school she is busy at school and home trying out the steps . If any of you plan to visit us, I warn you ! Please keep some time aside to watch her dance :D

This year the only major problem from the school was /is dictations . One of the teachers is conducting a dictation program every day /any day . In fact the students do it. Any of the student dictate 10 words every day and all those who score less than 8 marks has to get a signature from the parent . With the students searching for the toughest words Ruby comes home with a score ranging from 0-5.

We were following a good spelling curriculum at home . We concentrated only on the key words according to his standards with out much pressure on him . And he was doing extremely well .   But this dictation has spoiled every thing . Now we don't even speak about spelling other than for playing scrabble and flip words or to type on the internet . I don't know why the teacher wants to torture the child every day of the week. It could have been done once a week or twice .

Ruby has been exploring his artistic skills with great enthusiasm . Now he is identified by his classmates as the one with great colour sense . And I too feel , his colour combinations are excellent .

Me and Pearl have been through many trial and errors to bring her temper tantrums under control .  But it seems it would be wiser to leave her like she is .

I went through some major metamorphosis . I have some how managed to get a hold on my short temper which I did not think would be possible in this life . And I have finally found out something called 'patience' really exists. Now I can actually see people even when I am in a high temper and think beyond the moment which really is an achievement . And I realised life is not a one day match . It will not provide answers overnight .

The only thing man is entitled to do is " Celebrate every day of life and don't miss even the small moment of happiness life brings " .

Between me and hubby and the ten years left behind we discovered that we will stick together through thick and thin . With every year we walk together the beauty of couple-hood is growing . May the years ahead bring more beautiful moments .

And with all these 2010 is slowly fading away and I plan to make this my sticky post until the New year and spend the holidays with lot of cuddles and snuggles in our own little world , unless I stumble upon something really interesting to share with you .

A very very Happy Christmas and Happy new year to YOU !

[caption id="attachment_2769" align="aligncenter" width="410" caption="image courtesy - Google search"][/caption]

Farm and food

[caption id="attachment_2743" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="fruit"][/caption]

Plantain laden with fruit waiting for its owner .The sight that welcomed me when I went to my old house last week. We shifted from there seven months back.

I don't miss the house , I don't miss the land , I don't miss my neighbours , I don't miss the calm and quiet.

I miss my plants .

I miss the sparrow family that lived in our bed room sun shade . They also go to bed along with us . We hear them chirping even in the night .

The bulbuls that lived in the mango tree in the front yard . The sun birds and wag tails and the butterflies that frolicked my garden . The parrots , yellow mag pies and  mynahs that came in and out of the tree holes as they liked . The quail couple , spotted cuckoo and the group of crow pheasants ( uppan ) that visited the back yard. The Mangoose family .

The jasmines and tube roses in the front that I planted especially to fill the threshold with their sweet fragrance in the evenings .

Mandaram , Shoe flowers , Rajamalli , Kongini poo , Nandiarvattom, Golden trumpet flowers .... I miss them all.

Now , coming back to the Thursday challenge ,

[caption id="attachment_2744" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Food"][/caption]

'Paneer Pasanda' as we called it . When we tried to make it at home after our scrumptious meal at 'Oottupura ' , Vytilla.

Thursday Challenge this week  "FOOD" (Farmers Market, Vegetables, Meat, Cooking, Restaurant,...) Next Week: TOYS (Dolls, Games, Stuffed Animals, Athletic Equipment, Construction Toys, Art Supplies,...)

Where nature is the teacher

 



 



 

Wordless Weekends

This is my weekend corner . The place where I wait  every weekend - Saturday and Sunday while Ruby and Pearl take their key board and music  classes respectively .

To my left in level with the balcony is a mango tree which is always bustling with chirping sparrows , sun birds ( adakka kuruvi ), bulbuls,  mag pies, and wag tails .

In front of the balcony are two banyan trees which are frolicked by flocks of parrots and magpies . And when they bear fruits the number is just increased by double . It is almost one year now since I started to watch them .

I enjoy the silence here . I use the time to catch up with my Sis and Bro , to pester my friends with phone calls and messages , to read books , to plan my week ahead and to make silly notes like these .

Pearl comes in between during the break to check on me . Most of the parents ( ie. real people who are concerned about their child's education )prefer to sit inside the classroom in a corner, like prisoners to see if their wards are learning the lessons properly or more possibly to check if the teacher is taking thee classes properly . And love it that I get this place to myself I don't care to enlighten them :P

[caption id="attachment_2716" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="image courtesy - google search"][/caption]

Right now a green bird just flew away from my side :D ( from google I found out its name is 'blue winged leaf bird' , but in my mother tongue we call it 'pachapanamthatha' the sweetest of birds ). And a sparrow is chirping sweetly from the branches of the mango tree  :)

I am not risking a snap of the birds as they keep on hoping from branches to branches . I am afraid I may lose my guard and end up on the ground trying to chase them . Now only my pen fell down through the rails .

Right down is a soda filling station and two small girls are enjoying some bottles they sneaked out from there . They are staring upwards to see who threw the pen at them .



Oooh!! Finally I got a sparrow in focus . But , I have got company here . A boy has come to the terrace of the adjacent building with a funky looking mobile in his hand . By the looks of it he has come to check who this mad woman is , busily taking down notes and clicking photos of their house .

He is clad completely in black and I wonder if he is Mafia king or just another Swami . He is trying hard not to give out that he is looking what I am doing .      Ah !!!May be they don't have a license for the soda unit or are doing some other dark business there . I wonder if they would set some body to 'sketch' me :P

By this time Pearl is back from her classes and I move on . My only worry is that classes are only for one hour :)

Legos Helipad

"Thursday Challenge : CONSTRUCTION" (Houses, Streets, Commercial, Equipment, Vehicles,...)

Next Week: FOOD (Farmers Market, Vegetables, Meat, Cooking, Restaurant,...)"

Spiderman Duo

The Butterfly flap Book

Pearl wanted to make a huge butterfly and write a story on its wings . After so many discussions we decided to make a flap book . And after trial and errors and patch up works to cover the mistakes done we ended up doing something like this .

Pearl is now seriously into reading. I had done enough and more spelling and reading lessons with Ruby eons ago that even now I cringe when I see a spelling book or think of giving a reading lesson. So I haven't done anything with Pearl unless asked for . But she is exploring herself and with great enthusiasm .



Recently we are into this reading game where one has to stop and give up the turn to the next person when they make a mistake . Pearl is all set that she wouldn't allow any body in the house to read . If she can't read a word she keeps on repeating it until her turn comes. Ruby sits aside and keep looking on us as though we are mad people . As much as he likes to read nobody can drag him into a reading game :D

Minnie and Daisy

Thursday Challenge BROWN" (Animals, Soil, Coffee Beans, Trustees, Furniture,..)Next Week: CONSTRUCTION (Houses, Streets, Commercial, Equipment, Vehicles,...)

These two cuties are Pearl's pets . Minnie and Daisy as she calls them ( after girl friends of Mickey and Donald) .

She brought it from her Aunt's house when they were just few weeks old .

Once she even took it her school in a carton to show it to her teacher and friends . And guess what , Most of the kids hadn't seen a rabbit in their whole life !!!

The snaps were taken by Ruby .

As for the 'Thursday challenge' , I was under the impression this week's theme was rain and clouds . So logged in to post a snap of summer rain from my archive . But ah ! I was so wrong . Any way it has happened so may times before . So if you really want to see any 'brown' please look at the earth beside the rabbits :P

Our reading Swing