If we were having coffee together we’d be marvelling at how we were already in the 9th month of the year. The year seems to have sprinted past, I’d observe. And you’d laugh and tell me I say that about every year. Which is true. The years seem to be rushing past. Somedays I still … The post If we were having coffee together – 11 appeared first on Obsessivemom ..read more

We all have good days and bad days, right? Sometimes we jump out of bed ready to tackle the day ahead. And then there are times we get dressed and go to work simply as part of routine. But then there are ‘those’ days, the ones where you drag yourself out of bed and the … The post Five things I do when I don’t want to go to work appeared first on Obsessivemom ..read more

A few words of much-needed advice for my teen as he leaves for college. The post 10 things I’d tell my teen before he leaves for college appeared first on Obsessivemom ..read more

It's been raining cats, dogs and any other animal you can think of (big ones, basically). And it's making me happy, for a change. The post Rainy days and Sundays always make me smile appeared first on Obsessivemom ..read more

I unlock the door and enter. I switch on the lights, deposit my bag on the living room sofa, change and get my dinner. The house is quiet. Too quiet. The moment I become aware of it, the silence seems to grow and surge. Within moments it is all I can think of. Close on its heels follows the thought, ‘I am so alone’. Before the feeling can overwhelm me, I reach for the TV remote and navigate to my current favourite sitcom. Mr Kim’s comforting Korean English calms me down and soon I’m smiling along with the Kim family. It’s been a while since I’ve been home alone, 18 years to be precise, ever ..read more

Let me begin with a cliche – each child, each parent and each parenting journey is unique. No parent truly knows what another one is going through.  That said, moms of older children have a wealth of experience and can help and support other moms. However, sometimes their well-intentioned comments can unintentionally add to the stress and frustration of moms with younger children. I know because I’ve been on both sides. Here are some things moms of older kids should avoid saying to moms of younger kids. It’s just a phase Yeah, well, she knows that. It’s more than obvious that her child ..read more

I got a call from my dad yesterday. Then again, today. That’s unusual. Not because we don’t talk much but because he isn’t a just-like-that-call person. He’s more of a say-hi-when-mom-has-called kind or ask-for-adhar-card-number-and-say-bye kind. Each time I do call him, twenty seconds into the conversation he’ll say ‘Chalo phir‘ and that is that. Which is why, his calls are momentous. This time the reason was — Mangoes. Yes, Mangoes. This is how our conversations went: Hello Hello beta, Reached home safely? How are the mangoes? Spread them out somewhere or they won’t ripen properly. Haan ha ..read more

Ever since we shifted to this house almost six years ago, the road outside our apartment complex had been in a terrible state. It’s an uphill climb and the way is littered with loose rubble from the empty plot bordering it on one side. On the other side, is a mall with three parking outlets opening onto the road. Each time a vehicle drives out we have a mini jam. The monsoon adds to the chaos. I drive up and down this road four times every day and I have nicknamed the road DWTH – disaster-waiting-to-happen. Then, a month ago repair work began. Before we could celebrate, with a few meters of ..read more

Fact: I hate leftovers. Fact: I hate throwing away leftovers. Fact: I hate creative complicated recipes about what to do with leftovers. Now that I have that out of the way let me get on with my story. At 5 o’clock one evening, I opened the fridge for some milk for my shaam ki chai and I spotted a bowl of leftover chhole. That bowl had been sitting in the fridge since last night’s dinner. I’ve said this earlier and I’ll say it again, leftovers are a pain. The trouble is, either everyone wants them (depending on whether it is higher or lower in preference compared to the current menu), which ..read more

As a blogger/writer my biggest challenge has always been consistency. Building writing discipline has proved to be bl**** damn hard, perhaps because I find it hard to prioritise my writing. Sometime last year I decided to change that. I planned to write at least two posts a month, no matter how busy I was, no matter how tough life was, no matter the quality of posts I published – I’d update my blog twice every month. It hasn’t been an easy year by any means. I made multiple trips to Lucknow. I went for a physical bloggers’ meet. I was there for my father’s surgery, I started a new business ..read more