The Big Day: 3 weeks away

The date is set, the priest is booked, the guests (mostly extended family) are invited, and it is happening next month!! We have zeroed in upon a date for the “griha pravesh”, as the formal ceremony of entering a new home is called in most parts of India. And that means lots of activities, preparations, and running around. I am excited and nervous at the same time. :)

I promise to give a grand post on the actual event (with lots of pictures thrown in) but may just be sporadic in my postings this month because of you-know-what….

In the meanwhile, my hunt for Ganesha statues led me to a website I actually freaked out over…. Catch more about that here.

And wish me luck for the big day!

How It Goes...

Just thought of giving a low-down on our progress with the house. We are slowly inching closer to our dream of moving in. Each weekend is spent in getting something done for this newest member of the family.

Like last week we got iron grills put up in our balconies to beef up our security…. And add to the hanging garden I have pictured in my mind’s eye. I made sure our fabricator put up iron hooks on the grills from where I can hang some leafy beauties.

The next biggest item on our to-do list is to get a “pooja” done…. the actual ritual of getting a priest to perform “havan” (a religious rite involving consecration by fire) to mark a formal auspicious start of our lives in this new abode.

Have I told you that our house is very near to a railway track, and we can see trains passing all day? My kids, aged 2 and 4, love it…. After all you got to be a special kind of lucky to watch those long, winding trains gushing by, hooting loudly. :)

Blue Pottery Planters

Ever since I saw the lovely tiled window sill that the builder provided in our kitchen, I have been scouting around for the right kind of planters. And finally I seem to have found what I was after…. Cute blue pottery planters - just the right size and shape for a lil’ herb garden. Can already imagine curry leaves, coriander and nasturtium blooms in them. :)

What I love about my planters are the designs on them. They don’t seem to have been crafted by a very experienced hand as you can see occasional squiggles going awry. But therein lies the beauty… they are quite different from the usual blue pottery designs that one sees around (like the ones in the picture here).

Agreed that my pieces aren’t half as bright but what the heck!They match the décor and colour scheme of my kitchen perfectly, and that is what matters.... Any ideas about what other herbs would work in a kitchen sill garden?

Terracotta Finds

Here’s a peek into the first few things I bought for the new house. Mostly decorative items that caught my eye as I visited a "haat" in the city. A "haat" is an open marketplace where rural artisans display their wares. We’ve been lucky to have a new one open in the city recently. More on that in a later post….

Going back to my new buys, the first was this teeny weeny terracotta tile that displays the Hindu symbol of auspiciousness – the Swastika. My husband wants to put this right above our main door. :)

Then came this terracotta planter that had been hand-painted in such vivid, beautiful colours. Can’t wait to plant a tulsi (as the Indians call the basil) in this pretty piece of pottery.

I'd love to post pictures of both these items, but I'd rather that you see them when they are in-action in the new house. Till then... have a great week ahead!

The handover

This weekend we finally got possession of the house. As the finishing touches were put in place, and the keys handed over by our builder/contractor. What a bunch it was! At least a dozen keys to God-know-how-many doors of the house. :) But it felt good to hold them… all shapes and sizes sitting snugly in our palms, as me and my husband celebrated with an embrace.

Another new start, another beginning… isn’t life so full of possibilities!

The never-ending story begins...

We are in the process of acquiring a new family home. Not that this is our first stab at realty purchase. But the first purchase was more out of necessity than any flights of fancy (financial constraints notwithstanding). This one comes closer to being a dream house.

Only, it is still a house – all mortar and bricks, with the outward trappings slowly falling into place. The tinkle of laughter, conversational chatter, drippy laundry, clanking cutlery…. and the warmth that a living space exudes, is still missing.

This blog aims to capture the essence of turning the house into a home, little by little, inch by inch. Stay tuned…