Here are the facts: Nia and I only have 5 more months left in Malawi. Nick has closer to 6 months. We have to sell a crap-ton of stuff because we’re moving from a house with a big yard to a...
India
This is a collection of posts from our tour in Mumbai, India from August 2018 through July 2022.
Ever since Nia was introduced to Bollywood dancing at the Holi Festival a month ago she’s been Bollywood obsessed. We now listen to Bollywood music in the car, watch one or two Bollywood music...
T minus 3 weeks and things are moving right along. I wrapped up work last Thursday and am now in full-on selling mode. We’re moving through the stuff at a nice pace though, which should leave me...
Yo, yo, YO! Sarah here. I’ve been in major packout mode here but in my few moments of down time I like to fantasize about India. Sometimes these fantasies are amazing (like me spending a month...
Hello again! Aren’t you impressed that I’m posting for the second time in 24 hours?! We unexpectedly got pictures of our new place and I didn’t think it would be right to keep them...
We’re about 60 hours in to our stay in Mumbai and man oh man am I feeling optimistic. Jet lag’s a b*tch, as usual (it’s currently 3 AM) but even that can’t bring me down...
My daughter has no idea how lucky she is. Her new school, the American School of Bombay, is the crème de la crème. Every aspect of her education has been carefully crafted and shaped around the...
We are almost one week in and I’m floored by how quickly the time is going. It’s been a shockingly busy first week and I attribute that to a few things: 1. Nia’s school was already in full...
Seriously people. It just keeps getting better… Yesterday I joined a shopping tour that our Community Liaison Officer (CLO – my former job) put together. It consisted of 3 shopping stops + lunch...
My general approach to life overseas is to say yes to as many opportunities as I can, even if I have little information about what I’m getting into. As long as there are no safety concerns I’m...
Nick & I went out for a city tour on Labor Day (Monday, September 3rd), which happened to be the day after Janmashtami (see my last post). Dahi Handi is celebrated in the Maharashtra State (where...
The Hindu deity Ganesh (the God of new beginnings and remover of obstacles) is the patron saint of Mumbai. Mumbaikers LOVE him. Today marks the beginning of the 10 day Ganesh Chaturthi festival which...
Awhile back I posted the initial photos we received of our Mumbai apartment. If you’ll remember, it was pretty dang barren and the lighting wasn’t great (although, don’t get me...
Ughhhh. Not gonna lie. This week sucked. People who were gonna show up didn’t show. Orders that were supposed to be delivered were incorrect. Salads that were supposed to go down easy came up...
Hello – Me again. Good news. Alice, our housekeeper/cook/nanny finally started on Monday and I’m feeling much more capable of managing the household now (mostly because I’m not...
Twas a week of firsts, dear readers! The highs continue to be very high and the lows, while less frequent, still feel very low at these early stages. I will prevail though, so don’t you worry...
Hello friends – Can you believe I’ve been in India 6 weeks already? I continue to be shocked by how fast the time is moving and how each week seems to hold some fascinating new learning...
There is rarely a dull moment when taking Nia out in public here. She attracts loads of attention as a fair-skinned, blonde child (a rarity here, I’ll admit). It’s almost guaranteed that...
Oooh, I am embarrassed by how behind I am on posting this. Totally meant to get it up before going to Malawi (and then while I was in Malawi) but the time never materialized. But better late than...
Last Saturday we had the pleasure of attending the American School of Bombay’s Incredible India annual celebration. I continue to be in awe of the level of quality at which ASB does everything...
Nia turned 7 in October, and ever since she’s been struggling to define herself as a big or little kid. On one hand, she desperately wants to be seen as a big kid doing cool, big kid things...
Happy 2019, my dear readers! If your December was anything like mine, then it is only a hazy blur in the memory. And the weirdest part is I can’t even think of what we did that kept us so busy...
So I’ve been hard at work decorating for the last month. I’ve had furniture and mirrors hand-carved, slipcovers made, custom pillows & runners made, tons of painting done and 16...
I’ve mentioned in previous posts how much we love Nia’s school in Mumbai. They just go the extra mile in everything, which never fails to impress me. Take STEAM (Science Technology...
Hello everyone – Greetings from frigid Mumbai (overnight lows of 70 F). It’s no Minnesota snowstorm but we’re staying warm with extra layers. The Indians just can’t get over...
Hey Everyone – I’m short on time tonight, so no narrative along with this post. I will, however, come back later in the week and show you some more close-ups and explain what I was going...
I’m glad so many of you enjoyed my recent post about how I had decorated our apartment. I thought for today’s post I’d go into more detail about my design vision, the unique items...
I’ve never been one to take many risks when there was the potential for injury. I was so injury averse, in fact, that I earned myself the nickname “Safe Sarah†from my family during my...
We recently learned about the Cat Café Studio in Mumbai (near Versova Beach) and decided to check it out one Sunday. The premise of the cafe was simple – come sip coffee and munch on some food...
Three months ago I noticed that I had this strange little scratch on my chest. What was odd was that I didn’t remember scratching myself. So I slathered it with ointment each night, waiting for...
So unfortunately the surgery thing didn’t go as planned this morning. We got to the hospital at 7 AM and they were VERY disorganized (seemed to be just opening but I can’t imagine how...
I’m sure you’re wondering why I haven’t been writing these last few months. Well, it was a combination of things – lots of end-of-year activities, still finding work/life...
As I mentioned yesterday, I’m a wee bit behind on my blogging due to my computer dying. But I didn’t want you to miss all the excitement from April and May, so I’m just going back...
I feel someone tapping me and catch sight of the clock – it’s 5:58. “Mom, wake up!” Was it Christmas? Oh heck no. Even better. It was self-led conference day. What are self...
Wasn’t expecting to write again this soon but jetlag has kicked in full force and I am wide awake as of 3 AM today. Speaking of early mornings, I wanted to introduce you to a new 2019 practice...
It’s my favorite time of year in Mumbai – Festival Season! For the next 3 months it’s non-stop festivals. This week is Janmashtami (Lord Krishna’s Birthday) & Dahi Handi...
Oye. How did another month pass without me blogging?! This full-time working thing is getting in the way of me keeping you updated! I’d apologize, but it’s really work’s fault, not...
October has started out in spectacular fashion. The 9 day festival of Navratri just came to an end on Monday. During this festival Mumbaikers honor the divine feminine by worshiping a different Hindu...
October has been such a stellar month. We’ve had three 4-day-workweeks in a row. And here’s the best part – Nia had school on 2 of the 3 days we had off of work! You know what that...
Hello everyone!! What happened to January?! I could have sworn I’d blogged last month but I guess that wasn’t so. Sorry ’bout that. Will try to compensate for that in February! When...
I haven’t written about Nia in awhile and I know she’s one of your favorite subjects so today I’m devoting an entire post to her! Nia is 8 now and continues to evolve as a little...
Hello dear readers – Goodness gracious, can you believe it’s mid-February already?? Everything feels like a blur lately, which is largely because work has been so intense. Happily though...
My 40th birthday is just around the corner (July 9th) and as a result, I’ve been thinking a lot about the concept of aging. I had a sobering moment the other day when I heard an old favorite song...
I was feeling so good about things. Virus reports everywhere, yet nothing in Mumbai. Mind-blowing, given how many people are in India and what close proximity they live in. Now, it may just have been...
Uff da. It’s been a hard 4 weeks hasn’t it? I, for one, am EXHAUSTED. Trying to work, oversee school and cook/clean left me feeling hopelessly ineffective at all 3. There’s a reason...
Ughhh. I’m embarrassed to write because it’s been sooooo long. Was my last post really in October?!!? All I can say is that COVID fatigue has hit hard and writing feels like way too much...
I was so delighted with how many of you took the time to read my post yesterday and comment. Made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside….which makes me want to do it again! I guess that’s...
Howdy blog readers! Happy Tuesday to you all. Please note that I am writing my third blog post in two weeks (woot woot). Really trying hard to write consistently and get back in the habit of blogging...
Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash Have you noticed how during the pandemic there don’t seem to be any “good” options anymore? I definitely have. So much so, in fact, that I even coined...
Photo by Chris Liverani on Unsplash As my fellow parents can attest to, this last year has given us the “opportunity” to revisit prior grades alongside our children. I have had the...