colorful wear from hillary!

vanya received some very colorful and fun clothes from hillary in western sweden. hillary is my american friend from swedish class that just moved a few mths ago to the countryside of Åmål. we obviously had the good ol usa as a connection to chat in swedish class and while i was in the mid of my pregnancy she let me know that she had become pregnant now. so we were and are able to share swedish baby notes on where to buy what and how to get along in this swedish world. hillary hails from ohio and met her swede via internet as well...so now you know its a more common thing than you thought. love without borders!

loving the swimsuit..thank you! her first! and hope to use it at baby swim class someday. the onesies are too cute and as u can see..being worn already for the heat! and the skirt combo is so classy for her older months...

thank you hillary! and wishing you luck and good health for your baby due in october!

hard rock princess

viktoria bjorn, my swedish friend here was visiting san francisco last month and brought back some 'groovy' onesies for miss vanya. i guess, one cannot hold back from buying something 'rainbowy' when in san fran. we love them and can't wait for vanya to fit into these kick ass pieces.

skater princess

the vans...its gotta be the vans. can u believe they make vans in baby sizes? well...miss donna kadell, my dear friend sent miss vanya a pair. and can i just say, they rock?!?!

donna kadell is a OC friend of mine that is currently creating havoc in san ramon, northern california. she is a top notch designer that i met while at ingram micro and we happened to be cube neighbors. if anyone needs a cube neighbor, donna is the best. she laughed at all my jokes, and thats really all that i require for friendship. cause when u do that, it shows you have good taste. jokes aside (hah hah). donna and i learned that we did both share the same sense of humor and love of cats and perfumes...i mean we really know our perfumes and perfume bottles. so we continued our friendship thru the years and as with all my friends..we keep in touch via email and its been greeeeeat!

donna is a true friend, cause she actually mailed extremely heavy products from johnson and johnson via regular mail..now thats some postage my dear. i would've put that on the slow boat to china..but hey..whats a few bucks between friends.

we love the shoes and as u can see from the pic, vanya wore them and i think she looks like a skater karate kicking mama. she's asleep but i wouldn't dare wake her. thanks again donna, you're too swell.

sheena : queen of the orange county jungle

what can i say about sheena? she's the younger sis of my best/oldest (since kindergarten) friend keri..and when i was about 8 or 9 i told her bluntly that i didn't like kids-meaning 'her'!!! it was funny then and funny now. as adults and now moms, we share a lot in common and have become closer and nicer to each other.

sheena is mom to two cutie tots named daryn and kelsey and has her hands full of girliness! she has sent baby vanya the cutest pink parade of gifts from her very first dress to some very warm and cuddly pink winter wear with matching pink ugg like boots. plus some tan boots to wear while lounging around in her humble abode. we love it all and cant wait to grow bigger to fit into them...something to look forward too indeed. thank you!!!

i was also the best bridesmaid sheena could have ever asked for...i mean who else would pick a fight with another bridesmaid and almost make matters worse? ahhh youth and carelessness...long gone...we can only hope!!!!

im hoping our kids can all meet one day and laugh & play!

( click on image to see it larger )

:)

the coleman has landed

sarah coleman is a red haired goddess....and i used to work with her over at my corporate gig at ingram micro before leaving for sweden. she is a ferocious pisces and has that 'je nais se quois' about her 24/7. her kind trinkets of love were a lovely frame for one of the hundreds of pics of miss vanya, a 'laugh' bookmark that im now using for my journal, some calming tazo tea and some powerful beads for my birthing beads necklace.

sarah always has an interesting perspective on all things and such a free spirit, i love shootin the shit with her about the latest entertainment gossip. :) and she's always, always in style, like big glasses and head scarf while driving a convertible. she's not in kansas anymore.

tiny supplementals...

little miss vanya received some onesies that fit her 'snuggaliciously' from aunty christy and cousin isabella from arizona.
all the newborn clothes we had for vanya were just ginormous on her and these cute onesies were a little less huge at the begining and very helpful. and a designy photo album for the already hundreds of pictures taken of this growing jasmine. so thank you!!!!!

of course now, miss vanya is nearing her 2 mth mark and the onesies are now fitting perfect and useful since the summer heat is now kicking in, here in sweden. :)

: the bag :

this is a trader joe's bag that bobbi sent along with her box o goodies for vanya...she told me that this bag has been so popular, its flying off the shelves or not available and even has its own blog and followers!!!! crazy huh? i feel lucky to have received it now and just make the swedes drool at its lovely color palette and cool design. we'll be stylin' as i intend on keeping it in the stroller to use for our trips out and about. plus, swedes are just as eco-conscious as trader joe's and bring their own bags to grocery shop...so its a good thing. :) thanks again bobbi!!!

vintage wear from the hershey man...

bruce hershey...my dear friend that i met while being an art director at my days at ingram micro has been a trendy friend of mine for about 3-4 years now...

bruce is an internationally acclaimed photographer of humans and he does a fantastic job getting people to look fabulous in any light!!!

bruce a.k.a. mr.big is always checking out cool spots for great photographic shots and travels around the states for work and pleasure. he is fluent in spanish and spent some time in mexico...and can smoke a mean cigar...and loves talking about so many things over a good cuppa jo.
having a friend in bruce has enhanced my life three-fold.

bruce has sent some vintage wear for miss vanya...cool kitty cat prints for this cute feline.

and for a pic of bruce i found a pic of us at an ad club event...shows the fun nature of the spirit we have together!

work it bruce!!!!!

loving gifts from madame lewis

bobbi lewis....is a designer friend of mine that lives in los angeles and has sent some outrageously hillarious and fabulous presents for swindubaby a.k.a. vanya :)

bobbi is an abfab designer for trader joes ( shop created by god and loved by me dearly ) and has sent trinkets from there and an assortment of gifts, each of which made me smile from ear to ear and laugh as well. vanya's FIRST levis!!!!!!! who'd thunk they made baby sizes??!! and a hootchi mama top that will be worn with a tshirt when in india of course (dont want the authorities after us). products from wry baby...which are obviously for the creative minded and hillarious...and can be found at: a place in Monrovia called Suburban Martini. It's this little "round the way" store with fun, kitschy gift items and vintage clothing.

then bobbi has sent a unique gift..a trader joe's signature recycled plastic bag...which is gorgeous in itw own right with its fantastic designs and color schemes...and in sweden taking your own bag to the grocery store is the norm and we will be looking stylish...and bobbi informed me that this bag has been selling like hotcakes and is hard to get your hands on and it even has blogs talking about it and its coolness...only in america, folks :)

trader treats...nuts and chocolate...need we say more?






bobbi and i met when she joined the first ad agency i worked at in irvine, calif....and we've just kept in touch admist the moves and the fact that bobbi hated going down past the OC since she is now a bonafied LA chiquita banana. :) gotta lov the bobster!!!

from the frechette!

kadie frechette...is a fine female from whom i received some über cute gifts for vanya.

who is kadie? yes, anyone and everyone wants to know. well this chick came from new hamphsire to the OC and got a culture shock of her life when i started working with her at an ad agency in newport beach. little miss kadie had never experienced anything indian in her life and found the way i talked to my parents (when they called) hillarious! i change my accent when i talk to them and sound like apu's cousin. and she was in splits with certain names...and situations that just fascinated her. so it was fun to see a spark in someone who was honestly just curious and interested in something new. i remember there was even a few parental 'marriage set up' situations that were wuite colorful now that i look back on them.

anyway...kadie is a tough cookie, super fit and sunky mom of two cute kids and now lives in rancho santa margarita, california...kadie you want me to give out your soc. security number as well? heh heh....

kadie has sent the ONLY pair of shoes miss vanya has received...that are sooo cute..with giraffes on them ( sarah kerr is drooling - i know) and a long sleeve onesie that is super soft and perfect sized for when we make it to india in december - good for mosquito control with the long sleeves. and a pooh blankie toy that sits in vanya's crib as we speak...or write :)



thank you kadie!!!!! your friendship thru the years has been soo nice to have and im thankful for email that keeps us in touch. so now we have motherhood as well to keep us in cahoots!!!!

my sister from another mister : kelly early

well, to talk about my dear friend kelly, would require thousands of pages, hours, months...shots of vanilla vodka.

kelly sent us a ginormous box, very cute box (piperlime.com), filled very neatly with 3 baby bags of baby gifts! clothes..cute clothes for vanya...trinkets..very well thought out ones...sunglasses (hello, we're edging into 24hr. sunlight time soon), butt creme (says it all), hand rattlers (no, not baby snakes) that are so perfect and actually something we saw at the baby store and thought we shd get after swindubaby is a little older, baby laughs-a book about the 1st year by jenny mcarthy, baby einstein tunes, diapers (practcal and a brand that we use) and the most await 'haute burp cloths' designed and made exclusively by kelly..she is a master at sewing and creating amazing things. jamison, her daughter is a lucky girl as her mom is such a talented seemstress.

kelly and i should have met at the 'surprise girls scout pancake breakfast' in mission viejo around maybe 1981? she lived a few streets away from me growing up..we never met in mission viejo. then we both ended up going to design school in arizona..me in tempe at ASU and her in flagstaff at NAU...but we never met there. then we both returned home to the OC and decided to join a nat'l design group called AIGA...which is where we finally met and realised we both laughed at our own jokes..and were pretty damn funny. we keep tossing around the idea of going on tour - mahogany & ivory..it could happen. anyway...if you've ever spent time with both of us in the same room, you'd be laughing..cause well..you just would. and kelly is beyond talented as a designer and has a full fledged freelance career creating fabulous solutions for graphically challenged clients :)

thank u kelly for your creative and very nice gifts! and your mom too! man..im spoiled and lucky to have friends and their moms sending swindu baby loving gifts :) claudia...you are too kind..thank you!!!

oh and these gifts are coming in handy while im sitting in the room pumping away..like the swindu dairy factory i've become :)

june 1 : one week old!!!!

yes, friends...i have emailed most of you about our little arrival...but here it is officially on the web.

VANYA SOMESHWAR : 2.3kg : 45cms long: was born on may 25th at 2:25am at nykoping lasarett.
very healthy and happy and calm

mama and papa are proud, happy and blessed to have such a beautiful girl.

the gifts keep rolling in for swindubaby i.e. vanya...and i must say we are a bit overwhelmed.
for anyone still wanting to send us something...i'd like to request..no more clothes...we are full up with so many wonderful clothes from all of you...and she is a bit on the small side...so its going to be awhile before she even fits into all of it.

we came home on may 29 at 15:00 and her grandparents arrived from bangalore that same night. so it was a full day!

now we are at one week today...and things are going well...adjusting to all the new changes and roles.

we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all your support, love and supplies!!!! :)

more later!!!

may 22 : the bjorn has landed

my good friend and south indian compadre..anu ( in new jersey) has sent us a very essential gift for swindubaby. the baby bjorn! yeahhhhh!

who knew i'd be living in the country that invented one of the most popular and most bought baby carrier around the globe? there are bjorns everywhere and then baby bjorns too! hah hah!

a little background on my dear friend anu. we met in los angeles for an undercover project ( you'll have to ask me later about that) and became instant best friends. she was the manhattan babe and me the OC hottie. and we managed to meet up every now and then in our respective cities or bangalore, every now & then.

well, she's a newlywed and i was able to go to her 'indian' wedding this past oct. in bangalore. and that was when swindubaby was reeeeeeaaallly small :) it was great fun and allowed me to finally meet the man they call dan, her hunka hunka burnin love that finally made an honest woman out of her.

for those of you that are unaware of the indian wedding crisis situation...well, its what anu & i shared and went thru for a loooong time, while single, indian and getting closer to 30! she and i have stories we can tell till the elephants come home about all of our parental set ups and our own set ups that went array. but in the end, we always knew that we'd never settle for anything less than the prince charmings we now have.

anu and i share our cultural heritage, language (kannada) and life of an indian born outside of india...me the states and anu a bit more international with stints in iran, brazil, holland (most of her life), the phillipines, uk and india. whew!

so anu, we thank you so much for our essential bjorn and will use it immensly - i know!

may 21 : santa barbara to sweden

received some thoughtful gifts from a lady i truly admire for her tough style with a goddess heart. i speak of none other than madame tina long. my bosses boss at one time who became a good friend thanks to the shared sense of humor and dislike of 'thong enthusiasts' (you had to be there to get that one). she now lives in the calm serene of santa barbara, much to the envy of many im sure. she has a calm shanti about her that makes her a complete soul for great advice and friendship.

miss tina sent along a humorous book for guiding me thru the first year - which im certain to enjoy and a boppy cover that i liked and had on my wishlist! its so nice and colorful and had an indian feel to it, hence i think i liked it.

so thank you tina! swindubaby shall benefit from your thoughtfulness thru the miles :)

tracy strikes again

well, madame tracy just doesn't know when to stop..she keeps showering me or should i say, swindubaby with gifts!!!

the elephant throw is sooooooooo friggin soft, i want to use it! this baby sure is lucky! and even though we're not into any set color schemes..the throw looks so nice in the stroller too!




thank you sooo much!

the birth bead arrival

the birthing beads of positive energy and strength have arrived! the Complete Strand for use in Baby Showers and Blessingway Ceremonies to be added to by guests, friends, and loved ones: 7 semi-precious beads representing the seven Chakra Energy Centers within the body.

well, saying i was completely speechless and happy would be an understatement to getting the most amazing gift anyone can receive....specially chosen beads by many of my near and dear friends for me to have when i give birth and for my journey now as a 37 week pregnant woman. to feel the presence of all of you here so physically far, but spiritually close is very special to me. and i thank you for it.

the notes sent with the beads from each of you was very heartfelt and i was just driven to tears while reading them and by reading the letter tracy wrote to me as to how and why she came up with this beautiful way to celebrate me and the new life about to come into this world. i'd be lying if i didn't say that at times i was feeling alone-without having friends around for physical support and to see me in my growing glory - but the arrival of these beads immediately put to rest all those feelings as i felt like everyone was right here in my little town of nykoping. so it was just what i needed and im so grateful to have received it.

here's a geographic and historical reference of each friend that sent a bead:

[ hilda hayes ] mission viejo, california : my 2nd mom from south africa, girl scout leader extrordinaire : mother to my best friends keri & sheena

[ ella troutman ] berkeley, california : fun-filled daughter of keri and big sister to newborn hayn troutman

[ christina maez ] gilbert, arizona : my best friend from college at ASU, hottie half punjabi and new mother to isabella :)

[ elizabeth ploppert ] idaho : former co-worker at ingram micro in orange county and fellow design group board member

[ dina mcmillin ] tustin, california : former co-art director at ingram micro and fellow taurean with a killer baking talent and mother of two darling boys sean & evan :)

[ keri troutman ] berkeley, california : my best friend since i was 5, partner in crime in girl scouts and mom to hayn & ella

[ shannon leonard ] venice, california : former co-worker at ingram micro, warm spirited, creative bead goddess

[ marinka roehl ] chandler, arizona : college friend, croatian hottie and loves jason patrick

[ sheena panchak ] ladera ranch, california : younger sis of keri and the kid i used to beat up as a child, proud mom of two girls daryn & kelsey

[ tina long ] santa barbara, california : former co-worker at ingram, all-round goddess and just gets me like i get her

[ daryn panchak ] ladera ranch, california : 3-yr.old (soon) daughter of sheena and cute as a button with those big blue eyes!

[ sue segade ] laguna niguel, california : former co-worker at mbd design and fellow cat lover who took care of my dear siamese sushi despite his mysterious ways and soon to be proud grandmother :)

[ sarah kerr ] olney, england : my brit bud and wife of fellow mission viejo wannabe, jim, lover of all things giraffey and my supplier of the best tea by fortnum & mason :)

[ tracy sellman ] plymouth, minnesota : my carpool buddy while at ingram who turned into my goddess friend, choc.chip cookie supplier, OC runaway and mother of adorable roland :)

[ doreen caldera ] boston, mass : my first boss at my design internship in phoenix as a student and current design goddess at her own firm, saltworks.

[ donna kadell ] san ramos, california : my graphic design cubical neighbor while at ingram my first time round with whom i just always stayed in touch with, who made the move to northern calif. after being an oc skater/surfer brat :)

[ kelly early ] orange, california : my ivory sister from another mister, seriously, we're the same person in different shades, im funnier but she's got better shoes. i should have met kelly in girl scouts but we ended up meeting as designers the late 90s.

[ paul caldera ] boston, mass : husband of doreen and partner boss at my first internship, good, honest italian-american and dog lover

[ viktoria bjorn ] nykoping, sweden : my only swedish friend in sweden and im lucky!

[ annemarie wyder ] switzerland : my mayday bday friend whom i met thru tracy and just kept in touch with and now we're euro neighbors :)

i got viktoria's bead in person...cause, well she doesn't need to fly to meet me, just drive down the street :) so i share the bead giving moment :)

my fancy friend - ginny

the girlfriend connection reaches worldwide -as ive mentioned before and coast to coast in the grand 'ol US of A.

my friend Ginny, orginally from florida, lived in paris, newport beach, san francisco and now the great big apple-manhattan. we met during her stint as a paper rep in the OC and the professional relationship turned personal as we found out we enjoyed each others company and had our dear honeypie richard along for a fun gang indeed. well madam ginny, the fashion designer extrordinaire has an eye for clothes and all things trendy and has sent some ultrariffic soft goodies from baby gap. every piece has been chosen with care, i can feel it and its in a range from newborn to 6mths! how nice!!!! i miss the gap terribly and am so happy that swindubaby will be clad comfy & stylishly. the camouflage leggings are crazy cute and as she and i discussed...if swindubaby turns out to be a boy, we can just nip off the lace or not. ;) the red track suit is reversible...oh so cute.

well...baby clothes shopping is too fun & cute..i can feel it!!!!

then another thing madame ginny introduced me to..is an expensive treat..which is Kiehls products. an institution of americana of course and oh sooo rich. she has been toooo generous in sending baby cremes/cleanser and a few products for me...one called silk groom which is too, too good to tame curly hair and me!!!!!

and as if that wasnt enough, she has sent something i will definitely use while in the hospital...fashion/entertainment magazines!!! i will need reading material and this qualifies as that for me as i'm a magazine addict, so i thank you for that weighty treat :)

thank you fancy friend...a term coined by my parents that just holds true through time..we'll always have a chuckle with that.

powerful stones

my dear annemarie also sent a special gift for me, some amber beads for strength. they are beautiful and i hope to wear them while at the hospital..and before...and after....for the strength she has sent along with them.
again, so thoughtful and beautful. thank you annemarie :)

AND...

i feel pretty confident in saying that no mom to be has EVER received a box of BERUHIGUNGSTEE!!!!! gezundheit!


dude...im pretty damn lucky.

being euro and all...

i guess i've become a bit of a snob...we've decided that swindubaby will be shitting only in swiss diapers.


[apologies for the un-ladylike language-but its the only way to convey such humor]

thanks annemarie! your practicality is precious! :)

and no swiss gift would be complete without the delicious swiss truffles! mmmmm

swiss diplomatic connections...shhhh

swindubaby and we are just overwhelmed with this worldy connection and generosity of friends. baby gifts from switzerland arrived yesterday from my mayday baby-bullish partner in crime, annemarie and her darling rony.

switzerland, the land that everyone thinks i moved to. since no one really knows where sweden is, but everyone has heard of switzerland...home of chocolate and all things diplomatic oh and yes, those alps. my first taste of switzerland came from a packet of swiss miss hot chocloate that i used to eat instead of drink..but childhood issues aside....madame annemarie has sent some very fun/creative/practical gifts...as expected from a great mind. we bulls stick together.

how the heck do i know a chick in switzerland? Well, for that we must thank that sassy sellman, Tracy..she used to work with annemarie at a swiss based co. in the OC. They became friends..kept in touch and then a few yrs. ago while miss annemarie was loitering in laguna, i met her with the sellmans and lets just say, an instant taurean friendship was born. Taureans are pretty good that way. So we kept in touch, I moved to Sweden, we met again in England for Jim & Sarahs wedding 2 yrs. ago and got to meet her tall half (heh heh), Rony. Rony and JP became fast friends at the wedding-since they both knew no one else and felt lost, they took refuge in trying to communicate their frustrations over some pints and not understanding british humor too well.




the swiss treats that arrived were: a hillarious bib, cute socks, tiger rattler, ergonomically cool bottle, bandana, spoon/fork set and a traditional swiss cow with bell (so cool).

mayday : gifts from my taurean sister in the OC!

dina mcmillin - my co-worker at ingram, cookie/cake maker extrordinaire and another gorgeous taurean has sent some very thoughtful gifts for swindubaby! each one i opened up i was 'oohing' and 'ahhing'. her designers mind came thru as she has taken the time to really pick out some very nice pieces. couldn't stop laughing at the clever onesies and loved the softness of the full suit that will look too cute on baby! thank you dear friend and lets hope we can share a piece of cake at rutabegors again, well, how 'bout we each get a piece. :)

MAYDAY : MAYDAY

im actually growing old during my pregnancy..is it possible?
why yes, cause its my birthday today. but im not worried about the age thing, cause i still got it goin on...seriously..its all in the mind people. plus, im living in a country that has parades today and considers it a national holiday. how could i possibly complain?

feeling fine at 34 and knowing that life will never be the same again. :)