My Lady of the Lantern

Figlia told Gracy that she needs to inform *me* to not have babies like M again. (Figlia and M are pretty much Tom and Jerry, and no peace can be expected at this point of time in our house.)

So M is fully weaned from the bottle, and is very responsive to potty training. He is diaper-less for all the while unless he is napping or at night. He does ask for a diaper when he has the serious business to take care of, otherwise, he just goes to the loo by himself. Figlia's summer vacations are about to end. She goes back to school from the coming Monday. M would be starting Nursery this year.  What M still does not have it down is a) shampooing his hair, and b) brushing his teeth. He does brush, but is inconsistent with it. Washing his head will hundred percent lead to him crying. 

What do we do with bizarre dreams? I had a very vivid dream of having to go to another city, and planning to book a train seat for myself. I did not do it till the last day. And when I stood in line, and I got a reservation, it was relieving. But then I also realized that I hadn't made any accommodation arrangement in the other city. Then I thought that it would perhaps be okay if I just reached the new city and then checked out the surrounding hotels. This city is the one that I went to last year for an academic conference. Meanwhile, I have also seen my father in the dream, and my father has a mole on his derriere, and I thought that his mole had become so big. How does it all inter-mesh, I can't exactly tell, but it was one confused dream.  Huh. 

I came back from visiting my parents this Monday, and joined office the very same day. Here's the great news....coming home from the train station, I realized that M thought he left his bottle in the train. Bam! I used that clue, and today we are on Day 3 of him without his bottle. He whined the first day, but has been super okay about not getting it now. Bottle weaning achievement unlocked.  Yesterday evening, I gathered all his bottles, spare teats, spare lids and the ilk and hid them away. I was really cherishing it.  My sister - in - law gave a Math workbook to Figlia the day we were to return back, and Figlia has already finished half of it. My mother was very impressed, and thinks that Figlia is good at Maths, and has a flair for it.  What Figlia also has a flair for is - whining. Today morning, she was upset because I asked her to either leave the room, or turn on her belly and sleep a bit more. I only asked because I was wrapped in a towel post-ba...

I am home alone with just M for a few days. Gracy comes over for the day, and then when I go home, it is just the two of us. My "how will I manage" anxiety that has perpetually ingrained in my soul since Figlia's birth, has really come down. It is still there, and raises its head every single time M makes a demand I did not expect. I enjoy taking a quick shower before going to bed for the night, and ever since I had children, I gave up on locking the bathroom door from inside. With M, I have actually been keeping the bathroom door wide open when I take my bath, because Mister knows how to latch me from outside / will have something urgent just when I am soaped over/  there is no other adult to supervise or unlatch my door.  But for the last two nights, he also insists on washing all his cars/dumpers/backhoes at the same time as I am showering. So, he comes in. I turn off the shower, he proceeds to a bucket of water, soaks his automobile, takes it out, lets the w...

There is some excitement up at workplace. I am handling small bits of two major (accreditation/affiliation/qualitywuzz) activities that are currently on roll here, and yeah, I am tired even before I have entered the thick of it.  Then, there is another thing. There haven't been many opportunities for career growth here. The last time we had interviews for the higher faculty positions was when I was away from here (pregnant with Figlia, 2011), and then again last year.  Last year I had applied but an entire segment of interviews was chopped off because the panel pointed a few deficiencies in the way applications were taken. The interviews for the lower rungs happened, but the lot of us who went for higher ranks were pretty much left out to dry.  Then, it helps my chances to know that the Director's daughter who has the same specialization and belongs to the same department as me, is also competing for the same position as me.  Then, the years that I m...