My Life, in the Year 2010 (Part 1)

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Life has its own way of rewarding us and one doesn't need to search for miracles happening in far off places. Miracles happen in you, with you and around you - very close to "home". It is the time of the year when everything & everyone around is in a holiday-mood, snow falling & settled over pine trees, everybody  draped in red and white fabrics, with bells jingling all-along , celebrating for surviving through one-more year and eagerly awaiting for the new year - to welcome and to be welcomed by 2011. I think it is a good thing to have a habit of looking back at each year’s end to see what all is left behind in the past 12 months.

So, as our beloved 2010 is coming to a close, here I am sitting on a wooden chair in my tiny bay area bedroom, with rain pouring outside, contemplating - 'How was this year for me?'. then it gave me an idea to highlight and share just a few things that happened in my life, each month. Immediately, I opened up a notepad, wrote all the months down and started scribbling. It was fun to do so, as I had to skim through all the photos taken, read the old blog posts and 'relive' the moments again. :-). Also linking back some favorites recipes that were posted then.

Alrighty then. lets re-visit the year of 2010 again, Shall we?

January

2010 didn't begin on a good note for me. I was suffering from a skin ailment right on my cheek and was showing no signs of reducing.  (after 2 more months of agony, I completely recovered. - God gracious.) 

Hey, but that didn't stop me from having fun. Ok! A big snowstorm had hit Washington DC- Virginia area  then with snow pouring down us for weeks together & it was the perfect time to make a SNOW MAN. :-). me and my roomate G had a blast making this cutie pie, though my other roomie R was not-a-tiny-bit interested in our fun task. Oh well! ;-). 

Also, this was the month where a bunch of us started the herculean task of posting a picture-a-day. Sadly, some of us (incl me) bailed out within the next 6-7 months, but these two ladies are doing an awesome job at it.

Favorite Recipes posted in Jan 2010 - Dal Pakwaan and Chilli Tofu

February

A happy person is not a person in a certain set of circumstances, but rather a person with a certain set of attitudes. ~ Hugh Down


...and Dennis is one such 'happy person'. His attitude towards life inspires you the most & he can make you brush off any thing in the most conflicting situations. His love for his wife after so many years is so immense that I nicknamed them - "Mr & Mrs Wonderful". I definitely miss those long chats of ours and  wish him a lots of happiness and hope both of them are having a wonderful retirement time. :-)

Favorite Recipes posted in Feb 2010 - Avocado Chimichurri Bruschetta and Fried Cauliflower

March

March was a month  filled with joy and butterflies-in-my-stomach excitement as I was getting married in less than a month!. I had to finish shopping from my never-ending list and there was a lot of decisions to be made right from what color of saree to wear to what food to be served for the guests to arrive. Luckily, the two superwomen in my life - my mom and my little sister (she is not little anymore, but she will be my little sister for life ;-)) took care of everything and made it a breeze. Thank you mom and Mincy for being there for me and making this whole process very memorable. Love you both and my dad too. He is the pillar of strength in my family and keeps us all *grounded* and close to reality. 

I also squeezed our some time to meet two lovely ladies (whom I knew until then only through their blogs) - Arundathi and Nandita in Hyderabad. We had a fun time getting to know each other and I wished it lasted more than a just a couple of hours. :-). Thank you both for coming to my marriage, You both were looking fabulous!.

..there was also a bittersweet moment at the end of the month when R, my long-time roommate for 2 years was leaving for a new job in Chicago. She is one of the best things that happened to me during my stay in Washington DC and will always cherish the moments we spent together.

Favorite posts of March 2010 - Roti on an Egg & these two roundups.

April

"Love knows no limit to its endurance, no end to its trust, no fading of its hope; it can outlast anything. Love still stands when all else has fallen.” 

~ Author Unknown

The *big day* had finally arrived and here I was tying the knot, with the love of my life. Words cease to exist to explain how happy I was (& still am). Thankfully, the event went smoothly without any major near-misses. Now that we are talking about S, I have to mention about the sweetest. warmest sister-in-law one can ever have and I am lucky to have one. - K, who blogs under the name of TastyTouch.
The most scary part for any newly-wed-bride is to survive through those first few initial days in her in-law's house. Fortunately, I felt no difference between my own and my in-law's house, largely due to the fact that K was there, to be the bridge between me & everybody in the house & to help me out whenever possible. Thank you K for everything and for just being there with me - at every step those initial 4 days!

This whole month I was busy gobbling up my mother's goodies back home, so nothing much cooked my kitchen . :-)

May

"May there always be work for your hands to do, may your purse always hold a coin or two. May the sun always shine on your windowpane, may a rainbow be certain to follow each rain. May the hand of a friend always be near you, may God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you."

~ Irish Blessing

Life most of the times, sometimes has its way to throw some googlies at you and you would never, ever see it coming. That is what happened to us, this month. S, who was working to NC for past few years had to move to Bay Area. Yep, East coast to West coast, which is a big change for me, as I had to leave all my life, my friends back in DC, pack up my bags and move with him to CA.

But, even the gloomiest outlook contains some hopeful or consoling aspect and the silver lining here was - I got to meet my long-time blogger friend DK. Until then, for 3 long years we had seen through each in every joy & sorrow and now for the first time, we finally met each other. I couldn't be more happier than this very moment, when I have the two people who matter the most to me are right there along my side!

Favorite recipe for May 2010 - Anaheim Peppers with Besan (Chickpea flour) stuffing (made by S)

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Phew! just 5 months and I am a bit tired already :-). I will take a break here and come back rested with my post from June to December, a little later.

[Update] - I am sending post to Valli's Best of Year 2010 event. I hope she wouldn't mind getting my 2010 wrap-up(s) in two parts. :-)

Until then, Have a wonderful week ahead folks.
Siri