Performance review to a dad on Daddy's day

What's the buzz all about? I didn't understand a few years ago when I was in US doing my usual weekend shopping...
I saw many dad's with little ones at shopping marts... T-shirts written 'my dad is best', posters with 'dad and kid doing fishing', mugs, cards etc etc... What were they celebrating?

Daddy' day?!!! It didn't quite mean to me then!

Now a few years passed by after the little girl's arrival I saw more meaning in it than ever... So I was planning to celebrate it. To me, this day was more important than Diwali or Pongal where I just sleep off the day! I took the kids to the nearby park... They had a good time there... 'don't want rice' was ok today :) Fruits were served to them, gulfi ice cream was allowed (they get it e'day anyway when I am away at work :)) ) I ordered food from outside, I made the dish he likes it much and... I felt like saluting my dad! I made molagai bajji for my dad, lemon rice & boli for my husband... Two brilliant dads I know in great intimacy and without whom my life would have been different - am sure it wouldn't have been for the better...

3 years and no one round of performance review for chinnu's dad?! What a manager I am :))
Let's do it today :))

Performance review for Father of Isha Krupa:

Being a working dad, he managed his responsibilities very well and was able to juggle around the tasks given to him.

He quickly donned the role of dad as soon as the little one arrived. It took a while for him to understand what was going on. But he rendered all support required during the crucial time.

As the kid grow up, he played the role of 'good cop' while mom played 'bad cop' for giving food and medicines :) I think he did an excellent job there too.

He taught mom Ramayana and all linked stories, now that mom and kid are independent story tellers. While mom can spin new stories on the fly... Kid can recite Ramayana and Krishna story with all the character names well.. Remarkable achievement for all of us!

Participation in daughter's day today activities:

Bathing the child - On request
Brushing the teeth - when asked for and they both do it without hassles, where mom has to struggle for hours!
Feeding her - Almost every week night when mom not available. He has scaled up so much nowadays! He has learnt the knack after all :)
Doctor's appointment - always available and have not missed anything.
Birthday and b'day celebrations - Not as excited as the mom, but he gives due importance. He is not a person to care much about b'days, esp. mom's b'day ;-) but I think kid's day is important to him.
Time sharing - Excellent between Chess and kid!!! Chess has been his passion for the last 4 years. You may want to check out his ratings at chess.com! He's deemed to become a chess trainer one day!
Time management - Awesome!!!
Kissing - TOOOOO much :))
Hugging - much to the mom's jealousy!

Now the final verdict...Though he deserves a better rating, we can't have more than one "top" rater in one family. So we are forced to give 'Exceeded expectations most of the times'. Now who is the top rater - It is none other than the daughter herself. She takes the cake - 'Exceeded expectations all the times' :))

[Oops... Have I let the Corporate rating secret out??!!]

Anyways, when you go ask her 'do you want mom or dad', she says 'I want both of them'... She deserves it for all the things she does and doesn't ;-)!

Both mom and dad are ok with 3 (in a scale of 1 to 4, 4 being highest)!

Conversations with the little lady :)

Little Conversations with my kid

1))
We were in our usual night patrolling just before getting to bed, almost close to 12. We usually bid good night to all the 'bow wow!'s on the street and the lizards on the wall... So today, we saw a dead mouse ran over by a vehicle
Isha: Mom, What is this? Is it a horse? [the mouse was so out of shape, it appeared like a sea horse]
Mom: No Chinnu, it's mouse... Mouse was so mischievious, that it came so fast on the streets and was ran over by the car...
Isha: Is it? Poor thing [she was very concerned by now]
Mom: let us be more careful, let's go home...
Chinnu: Mom, I'll ask dad to apply medicine to the mouse and i will beat up the car. lets go to bed. i am feeling sleepy...

2))
Isha saw a black mole in my arm and below is our conversation around it

Isha: amma, what is it?
mom: oh, it is an insect bite [i didn't want start something new and handle a series of questions :)]
isha: was it painful?
mom: not really chinnu
isha: i will kiss the wound and then you will feel better [and then she bent down to kiss the mole]
is mom feeling ok now?
mom: yes, chinnu
isha: once i see the insect, i'll smash it.

3))
One afternoon, my aunt, one of her favourite persons other we both was sitting alone in the balcony, lost in thoughts...
Little lady started the conversation

isha: what are you doing here, nanny?
aunt: i am just sitting alone
isha: why are you alone?
aunt: i dont have anyone
isha: why so?? I am there for you right? then whats the problem!!!
come here...
aunt: whatever she was worried about vanished and she was so full of joy at the little one's words :)

4))
This conversation happened almost a year back and this was with her grandpa
They both were waiting in the bank counter

grandpa: isha, get me some money
isha: i dont have money grandpa
grandpa; ok, it is alright... go, ask mom
isha: [she was sitting on his lap... slightly stretched, peeked into my dad's pocket, saw the few rupee notes and then uttered]
see, you already have money right, then why are you asking me? [un kitta kaasu irukku illa, appram enna?]

And the list is endless... :)

My husband slapped me!

I did it! It took 5 years and several months to happen. Finally he laid his hands on me. Hey wait...! This was for a big blow! Yes, he slapped me! It was not easy for either of us. It took several hours to reconcile. Atleast to talk to each other. On top of this, we visited his mom's place that night. Did that help or cause more trouble? Lets see... With not too much of sham we did, they found out something fishy was going on between us. So we were forced to get into terms faster. I too was not interested in making them(my parents-in-law) wonder or worry for a longer time. While everyone was contemplating what caused all this, the eldest soul in the family, his grandpa (he is like my own too), decided to get some story out from me. While I didn't let out the entire drama for there is nothing much to be said, profound advice started pouring in, from e'one there (except my in-laws) on what! how to keep him (my husband) happy!!! On any day, I wouldn't have taken it. For whatever reason, I stayed calm. I went ahead to convince them, 'we will be ok' (and we were after a while). We returned home after 2 days. On the way back, I simply commented, ' There is nothing wrong with them (grandpa and others there), just this society is fabricated that way... It is a male dominated society, you cannot expect much from it' Let me also tell you, my in-laws and family are the best one could get! The entire episode along with reconciliation happened very fast. The visit did help reduce the tension between us.

However the weekend is not over yet. Isha was not OK with her health. She kept falling sick and still is... That evening, she was so adamant on eating something which is not good for her health. I admonished her with a loud voice! That's it! She broke into big time tears and started saying with her weeping voice, 'Amma vendam' (I don't want mom). I heard her say that for the first time. I was always her favorite person, not anymore :( Somewhere I am turning to be stricter mother! Thus she added more to my weekend blues which finally got over.

Uff!! I am happy it got over... I despise such weekends, I am better off without such tormenting ones!!!

Oh Yes! We are ok and happily married for 5 years and 5 months now with a little princess :)