They came, they saw, they conquered…

 …..and left us with loads of memories for many more years to come.  Wondering who are ‘they’? What am I referring to as I appreciate their presence? Well, this ‘they’ stands for my family who visited us in the US of A. As my sister, brother-in-law and little nephew made their debut appearance in our home away from home, every single moment was precious to the core. While their version of story will describe the experiences and adventures in a foreign land, my version shall talk about the happiness of spending time with them. Suddenly as me and husband switched roles from being NRIs to local folks for their guided tours, this stay blessed us with varied experiences and interesting memories.

     From converting our ‘some-what’ bachelor pad to a child-proof apartment, from hunting for a child car seat to watching videos to fix it well, from planning trips to managing time, as we geared for their arrival, we realized that the preparation was much longer than their actual stay.

     With a cute toddler of 22 months and loads of luggage, as my sister and brother-in-law crossed the Pacific Ocean in a long air voyage, their efforts, patience and courage definitely deserve recognition. Writing a blog to their name will be my little way to thank them for such an exciting experience as it gave us the happy opportunity to be ‘the hosts’. While it will be unacceptable to call ourselves as the best hosts, I hope my sister will get into action soon to praise us well! As I look at their stay as one long enjoyable dream, I feel it lasted only for a few hours.

     Memories of their preparation are more loud and clear as we exchanged messages about what to bring, what to plan and what to expect. Soon as their arrival day approached and the fun started, it was time to bid them good-bye! This short stay of few weeks was exciting to show them our side of life in a foreign land. Every single moment was loaded with facts, information and data as there was so much to share. Presenting the happy, sad, memorable, not-so memorable and difficult shades of life in a different country seemed to flow as a movie, as we kept them occupied all the while.

Confession:  This post may tend to get too personalized, but I promise to stay away from such a temptation!

The cutie pie: Coming to the little toddler who was the hero of the entire event, I believe his glory will demand a separate post! While we always wondered about what must be going on in his mind, our curiosity was directed towards does he realize that he is almost 8000 miles on the other end of the globe? His excitement of watching airplanes from land was totally evident, but does he realize he too sat in one such plane, up above the ground?

    While he is too small to understand any of these things, we enjoyed every single bit with him. From enjoying free rides on his stroller to see the world around to sitting in a special seat inside the car, from exploring the toy section in every mall to enjoying home cooked and outside meals whenever and wherever he wished, the little guest was undoubtedly the king of the trip. His enthusiasm, support, smiles and interest added life to the entire experience as he joined his parents in the adventure. His unique language, broken words, mischievous acts and cute demands shall stay alive in our house as he added life to our apartment walls and floor.

The elder hero: No wonder my nephew is a cutie pie as he grabs his looks from a handsome father (and yes, a beautiful mother!) An enthusiastic member who showed interest in every single adventure that we planned, my brother-in-law brought energy to the trip. Be it trying out novel cuisines or making delicious food for us, he was the culinary star of the tour. Our appetite and taste buds will definitely miss him a lot as he introduced us to some amazing new dishes. After leaving my sister and brother-in-law inside Walmart for some peaceful shopping, the outcome was delicious dinner for several days in a row!

The gorgeous queen: I cannot dare to finish this post without talking about my sister who was the gorgeous care-giver of the entire experience. From planning meals for the little kid to organizing travel bags for our short trips, from making home-made meals as we demanded to taking care of every member, my sister was the backbone of such an interesting experience. The credit for successful accomplishment of a long journey with a little fellow in hand goes to my sister as she planned every bit to detail. With enthusiastic eyes and excited mind as she explored all the places and experiences with us, it was amazing to feel the energy.

   As these memorable days came to an end quickly, we truly enjoyed it to the last bit. While it was impossible to prolong the happiness, we are only left behind with valuable memories to cherish for a lifetime. It is during such times when you realize – wealth, ambition, career or assets will never be able to replace the joy of spending valuable moments with loved ones!

  Till we create more such memories, I wish each one of you also create several memorable moments to last a lifetime!

P.S: Dear Sister and Bro-in-law, you should be grateful that I did not reveal any deep secrets about your excessive shopping! Well, you are welcome!