my get away.

Thursday morning I helped Graham and the kids get on the train at the bustling Old Delhi station.  They were headed home without me.  I kissed him and snuck away without making a scene, fully realizing that this was the first time that I have been away since starting our family 5 years ago.  I lightheartedly walked off the train feeling free with just my pack on my back and plane ticket in hand.  Like most mothers, my life is full of attending to incessant requests, demands, tears, diapers, messes, emotions, details and needs.  As I rode in the taxi to the airport, I noticed that I could actually look out the window and observe, think about and process India without having to answer a question, make a plan, get someone a drink of water, or hold a squirming baby on my lap.


A friend invited me to attend a conference at a resort in Goa(a southern state on the coast of India).  It was designed for North American women working in India and other surrounding countries.  The focus was on bringing rest, refreshment and support.  I did benefit from laughing and networking with other women who share the same experiences and challenges, but what I most enjoyed was the solitude.  


I did a lot of beach running, swimming in the ocean, eating, journaling, and gaining perspective after 9 months of very intense cultural adjustment and transition.  I fell more deeply in love with Graham and the kids as I was away, but also realized that in whatever shape or form, rest and solitude is essential.


Graham did an impressive job with the kids while I was away.  For the first 2 hours after I returned to Mussoorie, Everett was upset with me and would not let me hold him and kept trying to hit me.  He must have been confused and wondering why I had abandoned him.  I had intended on bringing the kids some of the chocolates from the conference, but instead decided to eat them up myself before arriving back.  I figured while on vacation it is okay to be a little selfish.  I did bring them some sea shells that I had carefully hunted for one morning and for them they were just as good as chocolate.  

These shells are now in Hudson's treasure box.

The dichotomy of India.

I feel almost guilty posting this one.

Tea break on the train back home.

October was an eventful month.  More to come...

the day to day...

These days...

Graham just finished speaking at a college retreat in Rajpur for students from Nagaland.  He had to do a lot of prep and present four 1-hour sessions.  He enjoyed being around a group of smart, deep thinking students.

I have been enjoying running the trails with a new friend Kaaren.  We have found some beautiful routes that traverse the Gharwal villages in this area.  It has been exhilarating to combine a love for this area and the people with running.

Hudson and Priya have both just had language explosions.  Hudson in Hindi and Priya in English!  It happened with Hudson last week trying to communicate with a Hindi speaking friend in our car.  He just started pulling out so many Hindi words and putting them all together.  It happened with Priya one night before bed.  She just started telling me about animals and her birthday and every thing that was on her mind!  

Everett is still not walking much.  He is far too stubborn and zippy at crawling.  He has a new black eye this week.  I have lost count of how many he has had in his short life.  He is on the move.

As a family we are looking forward to another trek into the Himalayas this coming week with dear friends Tommy and Sarah coming from Oregon to visit.

Memorable moment of the week...

We walked as a family to get our weekly food at a local store.  Hudson and Priya were waiting on the front step of the store facing the street and people walking by.  They were both singing at the top of their lungs, “there is no place like Nebraska...GO. BIG. RED.”  We both looked at each other and smiled.  They have not idea.

A couple of snaps of life this month so far...

Date night run.

Sweatshirt weather.

"Lizard on Priya's shoulders!!!"

Nap time.

3 in 1.

Working hard to speak.

Last night Priya's teacher said "She followed my instructions from clear across the world!"

Thanks to a generous donation, we were able to get a direct internet line at our house.  For the past 8 months we have struggled with a horrible connection.  This has made it difficult to stay "linked" to our family and friends at home, but the biggest impact has been on Priya.

We were so thrilled when the MOOG Center in St. Louis(a very well-known, leading program for deaf education) agreed to take Priya on as a distance student via the internet since there are no programs north of Delhi for children with cochlear implants.  We attended one of their conferences in the summer of 2009 with a 6 day old baby(Everett) and were extremely impressed with their program.  We were assured and at ease moving to India knowing that they would be following her closely, helping me know how to teach her and giving input into her progress.  Then we arrived and unexpectedly experienced 8 months of slow to no internet, horrible skype connections and many sessions with her teacher Laurie cut short or cancelled due to our technology failures.  This has often left us questioning our purpose and decision to move here.

I am relieved to announce that with a new internet connection we have had 2 one-hour skype sessions with no problems and very positive evaluations from Priya's teacher.  I am almost afraid to post this for fear that the internet will again become problematic, but for now we are delighted.

Parent Summer Seminar in St. Louis.  Everett is 6 days old.

 Barb taught Priya at our house in Omaha since she was about 3 months old. 

Visiting with Laurie (Priya's instructor at the Moog Center) clear across the world.

Laurie helps coach Carrie through the intricacies of encouraging Priya to speak. 

dangly earrings.

We have been trying to get Everett to walk and he usually just pulls his feet up and refuses or stands for a really long time and then plops right down.  It is no wonder, because he really is very fast and efficient at crawling.  If I turn my back for just a minute or two, he has made his way somewhere in the house or outside and is pulling things off the shelf, getting into the trash, pulling at wires, climbing up the loft, onto chairs and tables or has found some water and is completely wet.  Who needs to walk when crawling offers so much mobility?

Last week we went to a little friend's 5th birthday party.  Everett decided to take his first steps motivated by a lady's dangly earrings across the room.  I should have known that this would do the trick.  He loves jewelry that he can pull on and try to eat.  We are glad this milestone didn't happen when Graham was gone on his project trip.  Graham kiddingly instructed me to push him down if he tried to walk while he was away.  He hasn't done much walking since, but still was a moment that we will remember!

"No I will not put my feet down and walk daddy!"

Standing is no problem.

You did it!

Before we know it little Everett will be running around like this guy.