The Royal Ascot

Horseracing is a big part of the British sporting culture. There are 32 races a year, 9 of which take place in Ascot, a town about one hour away from London. The Royal Ascot horserace is globally known and combine both high fashion and sport.  The Queen is a racehorse owner herself and attends the 5 day long event every year. The Royal procession marks the start of the race on each of these 5 days. Once again, I was in the presence of her majesty, the Queen.

I was so happy that I was able to attend this year. On the fourth day of race week, they have a Ladies Day. When I said the Brits love to combine fashion and sport (think Kentucky Derby), it wasn't a joke. There is a dress code. A hat is required and must be a certain length and width. Dresses must be knee length and cannot have straps. The rest is fun and games!

We took the train into Ascot and when we arrived we were surrounded by beautiful people all decked out on a gorgeous day. It was the perfect place to people watch. I did not come across any hat that was the same. Each of them were unique and beautiful.

Once we had our bubbly in hand, we set out to place some bets. After about 10 minutes of trying to figure out the "proper" way to bet, we gave up and did the simplest form of betting. For each race we picked 2 horses and bet "each way" and put whatever amount we wanted down. It wasn't the highest return, but one of my horses finished last and I won 10 GBP! My friend Sejal's horse won first and she won even more. It was loads of fun:)

The name of a highway in Dubai! 

This chart made my head hurt

Silver Line baby! 

At the race there are 3 enclosures and we had tickets to the Queen Anne Enclosure which is right next to the Royal Enclosure. The Royal Enclosure is super expensive because as you can guess, it hosts the Royal Family members and high society. Although it was highly guarded, a few of us got lucky and snuck in:) We didn't see anyone though but it was such a nice view of the racecourse. All in all it was a spectacular day and I'm so glad I can cross this off my list!

Happy Half-Birthday Baby Boy!

So I meant to send this on Friday, the 17th, but I was hung over worn out from the Ascot Race the day before. More on that later...

How is my baby boy already 6 months old?! Time is flying and I'm savoring every moment. Even though his sleeping is still a work in progress (back up to 10 hours now), nothing gets this baby down. When I go to him at 5:30am and bring him into our room so he doesn't wake up Riya, he giggles and reaches out and cups my cheek with his little hands. It makes me melt. He already knows how to get himself out of trouble. What a charmer...watch out ladies!

He is still so chill and laid back, its awesome. He is still willing to nap on the go, which I love. He started solid foods this month and his favorite combination is green beans and pears, just like his big sister:) He has also developed an explosive new skill set, which makes sense as to why he can't be bothered to sleep! He loves blowing raspberries, jumping in his jumper, and sitting upright. He also enjoys reading books, especially when Riya reads to him. He has grown to 27.5" and weighs 17lbs.

I know I'm biased, but damn this is one good looking kid-

All in a Days Work

Recently I was left alone with both kids for 9 days. This is the longest I've been solo, and with a toddler and a baby, oy ve! But we survived. The kids did great, it was just me being on double duty that was exhausting. During this time I also (very stupidly I might add) decided to potty train Riya. This meant I had to keep her home from school for 3 days plus the weekend.

A few months back when Ram told me the dates for his second annual work trip to Cali and asked if he could extend it to the weekend to go to Vegas and catch up with a very dear friend that he hasn't seen in 5 years, I said yes without hesitation. However, at that time, I had no intention of potty training Riya. We received word in April that she would be moving up to the 3 year old class in May, so I wanted to wait until she adjusted.

But as the weeks and days passed, Riya's desire to be diaper free kept growing and I couldn't ignore it any longer.  So as Ram's trip drew near, my anxiety reached a whole new level of WHAT DID I GET MYSELF INTO?! Being solo with both kids is hard though I was beginning to feel more confident about doing both of their bedtimes by myself. We had a routine down and Riya has become quite the little helper. But add potty training to the mix and whatever false sense of security I felt as Ram walked out that door last Sunday morning, left with him. Just the thought of potty training exhausted me. All the books out there said, block out a whole 4-5 days and focus solely on your child. You will not do laundry. You will not clean. You will not look at your phone. You will do nothing but watch your child. These authors either have only 1 child or a plethora of help. I don't fall into either category.

Thus began the daunting experience of potty training. Riya started out very strong and we had no accidents on day 1. Day 2 the resistance began (expected) and it was clear that she knew exactly when she had to pee and poo but pooping while seated was our sole issue. This is a common road block in potty training, so I was very proud that she at least was making the connection and getting to the bathroom on time. The sitting while pooping thing would come, it just takes time. After 5 very long days with both kids, I sent Riya to school and was so happy to hear that she did great. No accidents! And it stayed that way for the rest of the week.

I am beyond proud of my little girl, who is acting all grown up. Although this solo venture was tiring for me, the kids had so much fun bonding with each other. I cannot help but beam with pride when I look at these two:

Copying Rayan. LOL

Riya can never have enough cuddles with Rayan <3

Daddy's home!!!

Master Rayan is 4 months old

Over here they call little ones "Master" or "Miss," I love it! Master Rayan is no longer a newborn. Now that his reflux is miraculously gone, this boy is BUSY! In the last month his skills have exploded. He is rolling on both sides, kicking, cooing, laughing, smiling, grabbing toys, trying to sit up (!!!), and started teething. He is sleeping 10 hours at night and has a love-hate relationship with his swaddle. He is standing tall at 24.5" and weighs 14 lbs (just under 50th percentile for both).

He is such a happy guy. He hardly cries except when you try to feed him milk through a bottle. That is not happy hour at the Aiyer household. The clock is ticking on that transition, but it's our only struggle right now, so I'll take it.

Now marks the beginning of a series of cute phases. The simplest things crack him up and he doesn't need much to be entertained. He stays right where I left him and when I return its all giggles and smiles:)  Don't grow up Rayan!

I see parts of my Dad in him sometimes which catches me off guard. But mostly I think he's the spitting image of Ram. Both my boys are quite handsome, don't you think?

Peek-a-boo!

Windsor

This past weekend was a long weekend (Easter and Bank Holiday), so we decided to take advantage of the four day weekend and set our sights on a town nearby called Windsor. Its home to Windsor Castle, a residence of the Royal family. It was built in the 11th century!

We were so excited to take Riya to the Windsor Castle and Lego Land, but the weather did not cooperate. On our first day we took it easy and walked around town. Its a really charming city and we had beautiful views of the Castle from our stroll down the main street. But on that day the line for the Castle was hours long, so we had to forgo our afternoon tour, and ended up not making it back:/ But we took pictures from the outside!

Fun Fact: those black poles sink down to the ground if you have the key code:) 

We purchased tickets in advance for Lego Land on Sunday (Easter). We were so excited for Riya to experience her first theme park. It was a bit of a trek to get from the entrance all the way down to the main area, but when we got to the part of the park for under 3's, we were pretty disappointed. All they had was a play area and even that was not appropriate for Riya. Disappointed, we decided to stroll around for a bit to check out the other games and rides. But suddenly there was a big clap of thunder and within minutes it was pouring rain. Luckily the kids were safe and dry in the stroller with the rain covers on them, but Ram and I got soaked. It rained and rained and feeling defeated, we decided to head back to the hotel. The rainstorm put our kids straight to sleep. Ha!

Riya does not like her picture being taken unless she asks for it! 

Little cities built in Legos

Lego London!

Looking at the weather forecast for the next day our stay, we were debating on whether to leave. Forecast called for 100% rain and heavy winds. In the end, we decided to stay and enjoy our break from reality. London had the same forecast so I'm glad we stayed. The city is close enough for us to try again another time. It was so cute to watch Riya entertain herself in the room without wanting to play with any of the toys I brought from home! That was a huge milestone in and of itself:)

Picture time!

Saying "Cheeeeese!"

She loved talking on the phone, haha

This girl loves a view