One of the Most Priceless Gifts of Life to Me - My Little Brother

Me and my Bro Harsh

Ironically, someone I have bullied all my life is also the one whom I have cuddled the Most :) ...Someone whom I have despised the most for staying with our parents when I was sent over to Nanu's Place for studies, is also the one whom I missed the most when away :) ....Someone who is the quietest part of my world is also my most trustable  and reliable buddy and my pillar of unshakable strength in times of need :) ...Yes he's my little brother Harsh(Rikki)...whom I always nudged and nagged but the fact is, deep in my heart, I am eternally grateful to God for bestowing him to me...he is indeed the most precious Gift Life has given me <3

As I think of him today on Rakshabandhan, sweet memories come flooding in...Our childhood days were indeed the best one could ever have..Earnestly, our age difference may not be much, but I have bossed upon him forever :P...right from always choosing the more chubbier puppy of our pets as mine, John and Maggi to making him eat the not so boiled and pathetically cooked Potato curry I made when our mom-dad were away (see Rikki, I admit it today)....A thorough gentleman he always was and is, my cutie pie always took all my justified and un-justified demands in his stride...

It's not that we never had fights..we fought like cats and dogs especially on report card days when I always outshone him no matter how good he performed..so was taken to task my mom-dad!He probably hated me than but the very next moment he was my protective little brother...

Can't stop myself from narrating a beautiful incident here..I was in class 8 than and he in class 4..Dad was posted in a small town of UP and me n Rikki rode our bicycles to school..I remember I had a ladybird and he had a Street Cat Bicycle...Suddenly an irritating young chap started passing obnoxious remarks and entangle his cycle in mine..My Little Rikki, without even minding that he may fall down from cycle as his feet didn't tough the ground, came charging in and started shooing him away inquiring what he wants and said that the girl was not alone , her brother is there with her....I could not help smiling at my little angel's grit and care for me :)

When I left for my hostel in Pilani, we wrote long letters to each other and looked forward to spending summer vacations with each other!

We spent the best times of our lives together when I got my first job in Tata Motors and he lived with me while doing his engineering...From Partying over with Chocolate Mousses to Shopping aimlessly till drop down tired to watching Cartoons for hours, we weaved beautiful memories,each moment!

Than I got married and we now live in different cities far off but not one day can we stay without talking to each other...Life has taken it's course but we still know deep in our hearts that if noone else, we are forever going to be there for each other, in every thick and thin....

I really miss him a lot and more so on Rakshabandhan...I still remember him collecting money all the year to buy a talking soft toy for me as a Rakshabandhan gift....Each Rakshabandhan we had spent together has been so precious, so priceless for us and is forever etched on our hearts....I wish so much those times come back again!

Most happy and Sad in Di's Wedding-My Rikki

However there is something that still appeases our hearts alike... it's the fact that come what may, nothing can diminish our love to shop together no matter how distant we are from each other...and so this Rakshabandhan we got on our favorite online shopping portal Jabong simultaneously and shopped gifts for each other to our hearts content...it felt as  if we were together still fighting over, arguing and than lovingly agreeing.... it would be sheer pleasure to dress up in these adorable apparels and accessories gifted to each other and click loads and loads of more #selfiewithsibling , as we meet up the next time...Looking Forward to it <3

                                                                -Truly Yours Roma

My Not so Perfect Culinary Skills add Spice to my Perfect Love Story courtesy TinyOwl

Hola My Precious Readers!

Narrating to you today about my biggest Food-fix of all times and how an ultimate savior of the current day would have averted my worries way back then...

Marriages are undoubtedly made in Heaven no matter they are love or arranged or by God's grace both, like ours.....but unfortunately not the eating habits of the two families....who too are united in a marriage!

And so is our case, while I belong to Vegetarian Baniya family my hubby darling's family is a pure non-vegetarian Kaistha one...where the culinary skills of the daughter-in-law are tested by getting a non-vegetarian dish prepared by her, as a compulsory tradition, post wedding...

While the love of my life has been training me for this and many other rituals for some months now after office hours, so that I impress his family and no questions are raised at his choice of life partner...it was not coming easy for me....for, first and foremost I have always been a struggler cook and cooking non-vegetarian delicacies was incomprehensible for me even further, forget about my comfort zone...

'S' (That's how I address my precious half for a decade now) was being extremely patient with me and I genuinely wanted to do this and acquire if not the expertise but certain basic standards in cooking the same....What a weird test of love it was...but as is said, "Love is Blind" !

Like I told you, our's was a love cum arranged marriage and you can understand the tremendous pressure we were in to be able to satisfy everyone who have agreed to our decision.....

Finally the D-day arrived, a couple of days after our wedding and I must say S's Family was extremely kind to me with my elder brother-in-law even helping me in the kitchen as the ladies were suppose to stay out of kitchen for this ritual..I remember making "Kasuri -Methi Chicken" and it smelled really good...

My heart was content with the aroma and I was just about to serve it, when my parents arrived with my maternal uncle and aunt...

Alas, I knew they would freak out at the smell of non-vegetarian food even.. but not utter a word in reverence to "Ladkewaale family" though...at the same time, I remember I had not cooked any vegetarian dish..so what must I serve my parents and relatives...This was the biggest food fix I have ever been into...An amateur cook in me has just battled to make a non-vegeratian delicacy and have still not sailed through it that a new test has baffled me...I tried to relax...reminding myself of Dr. Asthana's laughter therapy of MunnaBhai MBBS :D

I have often been in such fire-fighting situations at work and had come our with crazy solutions..so I immediately started evaluating the options at hand without loosing time...At the spur of the moment it struck me that "Kadhi" is the most savored dish at my mom's home...I pulled out a bowl of curd from refrigerator and instead of wasting time making pakodis, made "Onion Green-Chilli Stir Fried Kadhi" as quickly as I could...Undoubtedly , I used all my sincerity and dedication to cook this one too guys, in double pressure (Grin!!)...

By this time 'S' walked into the kitchen and wiped those drops of sweat on my face for he knew how I struggled cooking and here I was doing it all ,that too clad in a Saree and heavy Jewelry...His unspoken love and trust as always boosted my confidence and that was all I needed that moment!

The dining table was soon laid...his parents and my parents both liked what I had prepared for them with so much love and respect and I was bestowed with so many blessings alike from both sides...'S' and I stole a love-glance at each other, his mission has been accomplished and my oh-so-perfect cook hubby has finally infused some culinary creativity to his new wifey too :) :)

To my surprise, my hard-core non-vegetarian In-laws loved my "Onion Green-Chilli Kadhi" so so much that even till the present day, after almost a decade of our wedding, too, whenever I am travelling to Allahabad, they insist I make my special Kadhi! 

Today, whenever I remember that incident, I can't help smiling back! How I held my heart in my mouth, and left no stone un-turned to come to everyone's entire satisfaction!!

I Wish I had a Wonderful App like TinyOwl, those days even, to order yummy food of my choice almost instantaneously and that too with fabulous discounts (which come from time to time), from a restaurant in my area that is best as per users ratings <3

You can download the Impressive TinyOwl App here : Android and iOS...It is definitely worth a try and I bet once you use it, you won't live without it...

For us our TinyOwl acts as a Blessing in Disguise  for Hubby Darling now doesn't need to spend hours grooming me in Kitchen rather Order food from Bed and spend together some Cozy Perfect Moments <3 ! Sometimes, I feel my not so perfect culinary skills, thus add spice to our otherwise perfect love story :) ... 

My Little TinyOwl also saves me when I have a series of guests at home and makes me spread my smiles of contentment and no worries....

We have been using it for sometime now and love it features..while it is capable of automatically picking up the area we are in, we can effortlessly swipe through to order a Pizza or Pasta, Chinese or Mughlai ...all from our home....in exact delivery times monitored on this awesomazing App..we have thus forgotten the long waiting times and traffic woes to reach our favorite restaurant...rather love to relish our favorite cuisines at home, over a movie...what more, we even earn some Tiny owl cash and free meals as our referral joins this lovely App and enjoy the same as well....

Ah! Ah! Ah! Gone are the days of my Food Fixes
Those worries and Painful Emotional Trips,
When my not so perfect Culinary Skills,
Made me feel weak in my knees,
Whenever I saw a heap of Friends or Relatives..
Coming over for a friendly Treat!
Now That I have my TinyOwl...
Why out of fear, my stomach would growl,
My TinyOwl is my Ultimate Savior..
who makes me win hearts,
Just by a few swipes and in no time whatsoever!

Airtel 4G : Our Magical Wand to Stay Connected Forever

No doubt, internet has changed the way we live...and has become a necessity today...Right from paying all my bills online to my online blogging world to having a video chat with my forever touring hubby, I rely on internet heavily....While I can't be more thankful to be a part of this cyber era...for ages, I have fought pathetic network speed woes while connecting to the internet often missing a lot of critical timelines...

So you can very well relate, the news that Airtel 4G has arrived was such a stress-buster and motivation to a cyber buff like me...Airtel is like always the first to roll-out the 4G Services in India and that too across 296 cities,touching every nook and corner of our country... Mind-blowing, isn't it !!

I was mesmerized to watch it's lightening speed Commercial (Embedded below) and was almost swept off my feet to witness what a admirable technological advancement this is!! Almost instantaneously I made up my mind to acquire my Airtel 4G Sim as my mobile is compatible with it...I was further elated to know that 4G Services are being offered to us at 3G Prices and Guys this treat of awesomeness does not end here...You won't believe, all it took me to get a FOC 4G Sim was a Tweet with #GetAirtel4G to @airtelindia !! They have made it such a cakewalk! 

The very thought of owning the fantastic surfing speed made my heart go gaga for the same I could not stop my heart from fantasizing all that it would not do uninterrupted on the web!

I can now utilize my travel time for quicker mail response, to listen to my favorite songs or watch a movie or take a sneak peak to social media to refresh at work...No more long waiting times to upload pics and videos to my blog posts and blowing off my mood and thus igniting my creativity to it's best uninterrupted! 

I will also use these unbelievable speeds to start Video blogging on the move now more professionally as is the need of time, download worthy educational video-es for my little munchkin and finish off all my bills payment and banking related work too, through my phone,online...While I can do all this and much more on the go at a adorable speed during my long commuting times during the day, I can have Quality time to spend with my little boy and hubby...So indirectly I also earn those magical grins and lovely smiles :) ...

And when my precious half  is travelling, I will now catch a glimpse of him and have a heart-to-heart tete-a-tete with him anything and from anywhere without disturbance of waiting for either of us to reach a better network...Love will now not be confined to location and time (Blush-Blush)! 

We will now reside in an era where Skype and Google hangouts shall always let us stay in touch with our loved ones despite of physical boundaries...

While these were my first thoughts of comfort of what I intent to do with my #Airtel4G , I undoubtedly look forward to much more with the astoundingly impressive speeds!!

So Folks if you too wish to upgrade to 4G all you need is to place a request for free home delivery of an Airtel 4G Sim or tweet for it, grab a 4G Compatible device and acquire a plan that suits your needs the best and enter the world of absolute bliss.....

I am all set to experience our Magical Wand to Stay Web Connected Forever, my Airtel 4G ...Are you ??

A peep into the Paradisaical Abode of my Dreams

Can't agree more to LIN for his above Quote.... My home is the place where my Soul Rests in Peace and gets ecstatic Joy in abundance, no matter where I have been and for how long...I have to satiate my craving to be home, to my own world of warmth and ease crafted to perfection, with textures, colors and exquisite artifacts, I have so lovingly collected over a period of time...My Home is thus a significant part of my life and indeed it ought to be..

For I have not only woven my dreams here,

But also, planned to realize them without fear...

For I have not only resided here for years,

But also where I have woven a lot of memories precious...

For it is not only the place to which I belong,

It's the place, where I have danced, umpteen times, to all my Heart's songs...

Hence, Most truly, My home is where my heart and soul are and if I am told I have been bestowed with a Super-Power to design it the best way to a Paradisaical Abode of my Dreams, it would indeed be the greatest happiness of my life..So here I grab the most priceless opportunity rendered to me by Team Godrej Interio and bring to words the dream home, I have forever envisioned....

I am a dreamer who loves castles where the King and the Queen resided with my prince charming..I would thus love to have my walls painted in striped woods with a king size cozy bed completely my perfect cozy corner...where I am mostly stuck in with my lapy to delve into my literary world....

It would be really awesome, if I have a rainbow and a scenery painted to my side wall, when I am lost in my world of fantasies, as a writer-composer, this would act as a perfect canvas to enhance my imagination....The vividity of the rainbow will drown me in the right mood to weave the perfect script!

The Frontal space of the palatial castle of my dreams, would be in gentle shades against serine white backdrop, to manifest upon me the calm and composure that I love to enjoy in solitary  mood...I love the subtle and the meek, white generally soothes my heart's desires and I am miles away from the Bright colours scattered in my space, and rather always stick to the sober and gentle and so this setting tinkles my soul and strikes just the right chords....

I would also love to adorn the fourth corner of my dream home, which I often amusingly and lovingly call a Writer's Den, with some chosen paintings and a comfort space, for just the two of us ! State of an Art, sleek, designer and artistic!

Some Lovely flowers on the Window Panes,will accentuate the placidity and bring in mildest yet heart-pleasing aroma!

The smiling white and Red Flora shall stand as a window of optimism to gladden the saddest heart and my white castle as a whole would be a paradise on earth even the fairies would envy!!

I am Already going all gaga to fantasize it and crave so much that the Paradisaical Abode of my Dreams , becomes a Reality :)

It's past midnight folks and I Wish to skid to deep sleep into this Cindrella's Castle and wait for the Godrej Interio Team, to use their Magical Wand to make my dream come true...

I hope you enjoyed the dip into my crazy desires and earnest endeavors of an Stupendous Castle-Like Home, I have solemnly carved for the princess in myself (Ahh!, Must not I pamper myself sometimes), as much as I did.... Good Night! Sweet Dreams!

“I am participating in the  Upload and Transform #HomeCanvas activity in association with Godrej Interio and BlogAdda. If you are not blogging, you can still be a part of this activity. Here’s how”

It's rare that I am turned speechless......"Straight From The Heart" Turns ONE!!

Writing and expressing almost for infinity now, It's rare that I am turned speechless and it definitely has to be something really overwhelming to choke me buddies!!

And the Reason this time is your Love, Warmth ans Care as I complete one fruitful and enriching Year as a Blogger....

Yes, the Fruit of my Passion and Labor, My Blog "Straight From the Heart" Turns 1 in a week's time and my heart's Joy,knows no bounds <3

Though the evolution process continues enabling me to embed my roots deeper and stronger as a writer, certain Heart-warming Milestones like winning the Coveted "VWoman of the Year" Award, sure leave me humbled and reinforce my belief that I am on the right track...

My Blog has become my breathing space and the voice of my heart ever since I gave up my Flourishing Swedish Career and in an integral part of my Identity and so are you my dearest friends, family and my esteemed readers!I dip and sink but you become my Silent yet mightier power to bounce back!

As a small gesture of appreciation for the same, I bring to you my First #BlogAnniversay #Giveaway where the #MostLoyalFan will be gratified with a Gorgeous Designed Black High-Low Dress with Sequinned Shoulders!!

All you got to do is share with us your most memorable moment or pic in the comments below, share this post, and follow us on G+

Undoubtedly the Most Loyal Fan and the Most heartwarming Entry takes home an astoundingly gracious Designer outfit for their Closet <3 <3

The Contest Closes on 08-Sep-2015 and we would love you to be a part of our grand celebrations until than <3

All the very Best, Folks....Love u all, Truly Yours Roma

Infusing Creativity in our Peanuts thru' #ColgateMagicalStories: Constructive Parenting(My lil Angel's Masterpiece)

Hola Mommies and Daddies!

Greetings to you, Straight From The Heart.....

You would recall, how I have been emphasizing on Buddy Parenting in my earlier posts, which brings out the best in our kids in the softest possible manner...and one of the best way to do so is to indulge our little ones in constructive thinking, giving wings to their imagination (Scientifically, we term this as Constructive Parenting whose immense power cannot be refuted)....In line with these principles, in our Super-Special DIY Rendezvous Today....I bring to you a creative fun weekend treat for your munchkins!

I know, you won't agree more, that our little peanuts are actually bundles of immense energy and thus it becomes imperative for us, to channelize this energy positively and in the right direction ...which is undoubtedly not an easy task and keeps us on toes always, to discover a new challenge that can stimulate their creativity in a fun way!

Especially a weekend like this when my little one is confined to four walls of home because of being unwell...I wanted to discover something that the creative freak would absolutely love....

That's exactly when I stumbled upon the #ColgateMagicalStories video on the web (embedded below) and was almost instantaneously swept off my feet for I have discovered exactly what I needed to interest my little prince and let his creative juices to ooze out....

Yeah, Colgate Cavity Protection Toothpaste packs with the wondeful dream Magical Castle and characters, were now on my mind and I headed straight to the nearby grocery store to pick them up and surprise my little wizard (who loves building and narrating stories ever since he was even tinier)with the same...

Haah! But my cyber-savvy 6 year old sunshine was a step ahead...he has already watched the Video and pounced on me with the warmest hug and his mystical grins...

Arsh( My son): "Wow! Magical Castle, This is what I wanted Momma, Love u, love u, love u!"

Me: "Love you too Darling!U didn't tell me you desired these so much??"

Arsh: " ............."! (Priceless Grins again )

Me : "I just thought let's spend the weekend building TOGETHER a lovely Magical Castle !"

Arsh: " Yeah Mom, I can't wait to check what I get inside the boxes; Here I go.............."

And the unending chit-chat and immense fun began...Since I myself love crafts, this was the best way to indulge in quality time with my tiny-tot in an activity that's my favorite too :) 

Day#1: For the next few hours followed the thorough inspection, some innocent smiles,some focused scissor work, getting together the nitty-gritties, the adorable scrutiny of the characters and discussions with mom-dad around them...

And the hardwork continued Post Lunch...While we were allowed to give mechanical help and share our ideas, our sunshine meticulously did his Castle building....followed by the cutest smile of satisfaction, as wide as River Nile!

He narrated to us some wonderful facts and fruits of his imagination like his Colgate Magical Castle is located on an island, at the center of a SEA which has red water and lots of colorful stones!He even used a red satin cloth and colorful stones from the aquarium, to bring his imagination to reality!It was really amusing but heart-warming too , to see his imaginations run wild...He had his own unique way of looking the characters....a lot inspired by real life! 

Day#2: Our next day was so enriched by some lovely cute and admirable stories around the King, Queen, The Prince and the Princess as well as the strong Knight who resided in the Magical Castle..They were extra special for us as they came with the biggest lesson from a child that ill health cannot deter the mental strength, as he kept churning his brains, though not being on peak of his health....I recorded the story that I loved the most as he has named the Knight - "Colgate" and has made this Colgate Knight make the "Charming Prince" bid goodbye to Toothache Forever!!Here's the video of our interactive mastii while building the #ColgateMagicalStories <3 <3

He titled it "Arsh's Colgate Magical Story"....Priceless Video for me of some priceless moments...Thanks to Colgate's Awesome Initiative of #ColgateMagicalStories touching lots of hearts and spreading Positivity, Healthy Habits and Quality Family Time <3...This indeed made a perfect DIY Idea for us....with a crazy fun and educational value! Astoundingly Impressive, isn't it ?? 


Trust you enjoyed Arsh's Candid Straight From The Heart Endeavor to create and narrate his "Colgate Magical Story to save the Prince Charming"  as much as I enjoyed being a kid with him during the same :)

                                                                    -Truly Yours Roma

This Rakhi Treat your Loved ones with some awesomeness of sweet memories through Parcelled in

Greetings Lovely Sissies and their lovely bros!

Stumbled upon this lovely video of Parcelled.In, and could not resist sharing it with you all, to make this Rakshabandhan extra special for all of you....Yes, this Rakhi treat your Loved ones with some awesomeness of sweet memories through Parcelled in <3 <3 which is a mindblowing facility for you to send something for your loved ones right from your doorstep to their door step hasslefree..Check it out !!

Web Surfers Paradise: Airtel 4G Arrives

Hola My Gorgeous, Genius and Indigenous Readers!

The Cyber Freak that I am, web speed is of utmost significance to me and I guess to most of us in today's smart phones and tab rich "Gadgety" Scenario...and the desire and quest to get the best and the fastest network and keep challenging the best has become the way of life! Good, isn't it?

Yes, I love speed and was swept of my feet to watch this astoundingly convincing video (embedded below) of the latest buzz in the town, Airtel 4G....it not only proves the undeniably rapid speed of Airtel 4G Network but also throws an open challenge to the masses that if we discover a network faster than them, they will pay our bills for a lifetime! Impressive, Sure to Stay! Watch it, to believe it Folks.............

This technological advancement supersedes all expectations and shall coax one and all to adapt it at the earliest....For I see it's benefits are umpteen..Faster response to mails, quick rapid glance of Social media, no window opening times to blow off your moods ands even watching a movie are the ones which strike me immediately! Woohoo <3

Tantadan , suddenly there comes a voice from the prudent brain, what price you pay for the same...makes sense, everything great comes at hefty prices....sorry..but this is where we go wrong...with Airtel, 4G speed is being offered to its customers of 3G Pack at no extra price! Isn't that further alluring??

Personally, I can't wait for it anymore..so let me check out what are my requirements to experience the Best in Class Airtel 4G Network...

All in all,one,  I need a 4G compatible handset which luckily I possess(you have umpteen options for the same, suiting your pockets)....two, I need a 4G Sim which I can request Free on my Airtel and get it delivered Free of Cost at my Doorstep and third get MyPlan suiting my requirements and usage...Woila, that's it! We are done and ready to venture the world of uninterrupted suppa-rapid network <3 

I am all ready to enter My Airtel's 4G Network Paradise.....Are you ??? Check it Out <3