Holiday greetings from our home to yours - 2015

A TOAST - adieu 2014, welcome 2015!

To friends and family, for always being there.

To my parents for being your usual effervescent selves, your “normal” is a constant source of inspiration.

To my father, for pampering me every single day with your “adrak wali chai” (ginger tea).

To my mother, for piping hot and delicious food! Lucky me! ;-)

To Lake George, our spring destination, for the incredible time we spent there. We shall be back.

To river rafting and para-sailing, new experiences for us. Oh! what fun!

To The Albrook School, for giving an all round education to Taran and Roshan, and more importantly, for giving them values which we hope they will forever imbibe. We shall always be grateful!

To Newark Academy, for accepting the boys as 6th graders. We are grateful to you for taking on our troubles ;-)

Getting ready for the hike - Sulphur Mountain, Banff, Canada

To the Canadian Rockies for opening up vistas that we never knew existed. Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper, you have forever made a place in our hearts and memories. On our return flight, while I was reminiscing about our trip, I remarked to the boys, "I felt we left a little bit of ourselves there." Instantly, Taran responded, "Yes, I dropped my baseball cap on our last hiking trail in Jasper!"

To Sulphur Mountain in Banff. We hiked 5.5 km to the summit and enjoyed every bit of our journey as well as the awesome panoramic views from the peak. 

To the wildlife we spotted in the Canadian Rockies - 10 bears, a dozen elks, bald eagles, a wolf, mountain deer, and the list goes on. 

To canoeing in the Banff river where we took a group canoeing trip! While we canoed upstream, our guide/coach happily pulled Ritesh’s legs as Ritesh was tiring out the fastest. He even exclaimed. “Sir, the one with the red cap, can you please watch your wife and follow her as she is doing an excellent job!!!” Why is it so difficult for Ritesh to realize what even strangers can gauge in a few minutes?! ;-)

To touring a glacier (Columbia Icefield), a first ever for the Idnani family. Touring the Triple Continental Divide (one of only 2 places in the world) was surreal. Here the glacial water flows to 3 different oceans – Pacific, Atlantic and Arctic oceans from this area via the Columbia, North Saskatchewan and Athabasca rivers.

To a summer that was filled with family, friends, play dates, lunches, dinners, swimming, tennis, watching a baseball game in the local stadium, movies and lots of fun trips.

To amusement parks (Hurricane Harbor and Hershey's Park), for bringing the child out in each one of us! 

To New York City - from the cruise on the Hudson & East river, to Central Park zoo, to Statue of Liberty/ Ellis Island, to becoming engulfed in a giant bubble in Washington Square Park, to playing baseball in the Upper East side with our friends - the city entertained us like never before.

To the Met, a treasure we only partly explored this summer. The artifacts made us feel as if we had witnessed history if only for a few hours.

To movies/ musical nights/ stage shows, for providing an avenue to the arts that we lack genetically!

To improv, chorus, dance, orchestra & digital art - activities that stretched Taran and Roshan's mind and imagination for the first time ever.

In Florida - Chess Nationals!

To chess, for all the fun, travel, tournaments, friends, coaches and for embracing our family. We enjoy every bit of it and a nice way to round off the year was a top 5 finish for both boys in the Nationals in Florida. Thank you coaches!

To chess again, for the patience it taught Ritesh & me when we played along with our boys in a team tournament. This time, it was the boys who taught us the basics and reminded us to focus on our boards. Phew!!! It was tough!

To our running/ walking buddies for their willingness to motivate us and to slow down their pace while training with us.

To half marathons that Ritesh and I participated in and Team Idnani's first 10K as a family. An easy one for the boys while I huffed and puffed to the finish line.

To my uncle, Narendra chacha, for the daily phone calls, regular meetings and above all the unconditional love! 

To my nieces and nephews for the unlimited delight and excitement you bring to our lives.

To Reiki and SGI members, for personifying absolute happiness. 

To a winter break that was filled with friends, family (a special shout-out to my brother and his family), skiing (another "first" for the boys), holiday parties, movies and good, fattening, junk, delicious food.

To time spent with my girlfriends, connecting with folks over WhatsApp and Facebook, and celebrating birthdays (some milestone and otherwise), anniversaries, festivals and holidays with friends/family. May we continue to create special moments this year and always.

Relaxing in Jasper, Canada!

To smiles & tears, laughter & sorrow, success & failures, aches & pains, for keeping us grounded, modest & humble.

To Taran and Roshan, for the non-stop entertainment that they provide us, their wit and logical arguments (While I agree that "Jr. Idnanis Vs Sr. Idnanis - the case of the iPhone" - was nicely done, the jury (grandparents) was biased).

To Taran and Roshan again, may you always carry your childhood with you!

To 2015 .... may the new year bring 365 days of opportunities for you.