5 Sure Signs That I'm Getting Older

5 Sure Signs That I'm Getting Older (Possibly wiser too?!!)

1. Once a wannabe dance extraordinaire, I zoned out during Zumba class last week (it was a 20 second day dream before I realized I wasn't salsa'ing), but I actually enjoyed the smoother, slower movements of yoga and pilates. This is rather strange considering I once walked out of a pilates class a couple of years ago because I found it boring. 

I have no clue what this sudden mind shift is all about, anyone care to explain?! By the way, not a good idea to forget to move in Zumba or else you may get cha cha cha'd by the person next to you, not to mention the glares...ooops!

2. I dreamt I was 20 years old, and was being pursued by a hot guy. When he proposed I didn't willingly oblige and melt in his arms, not only did I decline the offer, but proceeded to lecture him on the importance of completing college, finding a stable job, saving money and then consider these romantic frivolries.  WHHAATT!!?!!


3. I would boast that I could sleep anywhere, anytime, just lend me a comfortable pillow. Thanks to the grueling training by my two kids, if I am woken up in the middle of the night, there is absolutely no way I am able to fall asleep. it takes at least 3 hours to fall back into a restful slumber, sometimes it's not even worth the effort so I am up at all odd hours of the morning these days.

4. Twitter? Flickr? Tumblr? I can't keep up, technology is moving way too fast for me to keep up to date. I give up, i'm turning into my parents. The way I see it is, as long as the iphone is cool, so am I, heaven forbid the day some other company takes over the universe and my iphone becomes a thing of the past, so too shall my coolness quotient take a beating.
(BTW, you can like me on Facebook here:

hint hint!)

5. Glee, the most amazing show on the planet, i've been hooked since the pilot almost 4 years ago. Like I mentioned earlier, my secret goal was to be a performer and this show provided a way to live vicariously through the characters and witness their amazing talent. Now, I watch the show through a slightly different lens. I watch it as a kind of case study dealing with the realities of being a teenager in America. It's a way to educate myself on how to deal with my kids when they turn to me (hopefully) with their teenage issues. Yes, I know, a little bit over prepared, just slightly, but what can I do, i'm a mom now!!

Bindi's Bazaar is Back in Town

I'm Back!

A Summary of What I've Been Up To plus 3 Huge Changes.

It's been a long while since I wrote my last blog entry, a lot of reshuffling and reorganizing has been taking place, both with the shop and at home. It sort of started out with planning my daughter's first birthday, that took on the scale of nothing less than a wedding reception. I tend to take on several projects all at the same time without realizing how much effort it takes to get through them all, all the while juggling two kids. Well, baby number 2 had a great party, we were so happy to have all our close friends and family from all over town and Bay Area celebrate with us. The day went well including the cupcakes surviving the 90 degree weather. I had so much help from my neighbors, friends and loved ones that in the end we managed to pull the butterfly/princess theme all together! 

After the birthday weekend I felt as though I had been hit by a bus, I don't recall ever feeling so tired in my life. It took 2 weeks and a strong reflexology foot massage to get over the fatigue. 

During that 2 week recovery period, I had no energy left to do anything other than think, a lot! I began to think about the direction in which I wanted to take this blog and the store. I realised that it was time to make a few basic changes, it's just that those basic changes took over 2 months to set straight and there is still a whole lot more to be done! 

So here are the major changes:

1. Name change: I'm no longer using KurtiTown as my business name. For one if you're not Indian, it's way too hard to pronounce correctly. Second of all, the name kind of limits my scope, I don't want people to think that all I house are tunics. Where did the name Bindi's Bazaar come from? That was courtesy of the fine ladies of Corporate Rejects, but why did I choose that one out of a whole myriad of possibilities? Well I will save that for another blog entry.

2. New website: I now have my own website which gives me the flexibility to design my little portal on the internet, I like being able to create a layout that I choose, and to be able to add multiple pages. This is where I have to admit most of my time in the last couple of months has been spent. Check it out at www.bindisbazaar.com

3. Merged my blogs: I started out my KurtiTown blog and the Mommy and My Time Blog at the same time, only the latter wasn't supposed to be linked in anyway back to KurtiTown. It was meant just for me, a space where I could be my true, sometimes sarcastic self. A blog where I could pour out my heart and soul without having to worry about being judged since no one would know who wrote it. Hah! I hadn't realised that this blog showed up on my blogger "complete profile" and a few of my close friends had read my entries. The feedback I got was surprisingly positive and when I mentioned that I may not continue it, there was a resounding "no"! Apparently I had articulated exactly how my friends felt and what they dealt with on a regular basis while raising their own young families. So rather than hide this from the world I decided to take ownership of what I had begun and incorporate it into my regular blog.  

I have learnt so much over the last 6 months through my children and business, met some awesome people, and strengthened old friendships, which have helped nudge me onto the correct path. I am so excited about the future and its possibilities and am looking forward to your company!

Loaded Veggies & Cream of Wheat Upma

This winter season has been pretty rough, since the week before Christmas we've gone through 3 ear infections and 2 colds, so when I heard the first dreaded cough last night, I knew I had to go all out to drive this infection away. I decided to make upma, which is a hot vegetable pudding usually made from semolina but a good friend once suggested I use cream of wheat instead as it has lots of good stuff like iron, calcium and its not too bad in protein content either.

Upma is very simple to make, you can use almost any vegetable you already have in your refrigerator, and with ingredients like ginger, tomatoes and turmeric its a great boost to the immune system.

Ingredients to make 4 hearty servings:

1. 1 small onion, diced
2. 1 tomato, diced
3. 1 tbsp freshly shredded ginger
4. 1/2 cup of each: corn, peas, carrots, zucchini, bell pepper ** (all larger veggies should be diced)
5. 1 tbsp turmeric
6. 1/2 tbsp salt
7. Cream of wheat

Ingredients for tempering/seasoning:

1. 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
2. 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
3. 1/2 tsp asafoetida powder (also called "hing". Don't get turned off by its odd smell, I promise it smells a lot more pleasing after it hits the heat! Hing is great for digestion and is said to help fight the flu)
4. curry leaves (not necessary but if they are lying around in your fridge then you may as well use them as they provide a nice aroma to the dish)
5. 3 tbsp of ghee or cooking oil

(If you don't have any/some of the seasoning ingredients it's ok, you can still carry on with the recipe.)

Method:

1. Heat the ghee/oil in a pot on a high flame
2. Add the mustard seeds and let them sit until you hear the first "pop"
3. Add the cumin seeds and drop the flame to medium
4. Add the asafoetida and mix well
5. Mix in the onions, curry leaves and ginger and let the onions cook until they are golden brown. Make sure you have enough ghee/oil to coat the onions, adding a little more if necessary.

Seasoned onions, ginger and curry leaves

    6.  Add the tomatoes, cover the pot and let them cook until they are nice and soft
    7.  Add the remaining diced vegetables and enough water (2 cups) required to prepare the cream of wheat.

8.  Mix in the turmeric and salt, cover the pot and let it cook on a medium/low flame until all the vegetables cook and the flavors come together (which is about 10 minutes).
9. Bring the pot to a boil, now is a good time to check the salt content and to adjust the taste if needed. 

10. Mix in the cream of wheat as per the instructions on the box, or if you're like me, just keep adding the cream of wheat until you get the consistency you desire. 

And there you have it, your loaded cream of wheat, soothing comfort food and the veggies are soft enough that even the fussiest of toddlers wont realise what they're putting in their mouths!

** Here is a list of vegetables that can be used in upma, its really up to you what you use and what is available: corn, peas, carrots, zucchini, bell pepper, broccoli, asparagus, spinach, squash, potato.
To make this a more adult flavor, you can add green chilli's and red chilli powder to the recipe at the time when you add in the water to the veggies.

Enjoy!

Revive and Makeover Your Sari

If you had a typical Indian wedding, chances are that you ended up with a truck load of saris that you loved at the time but are now dated, worn or you just don't have an occasion to wear one. My case is the latter, I would love to wear a sari but i live in a town where there are not too many opportunities to drape one on. Most of my saris have sentimental value and I simply feel guilty keeping such brilliant fabrics folded and stored in the least used section of my wardrobe. I can hardly bear to part with them, but at the same time they're just collecting dust and over time they will begin to disintegrate.

So began my brainstorming endeavor to breathe some life into those six yard saris. If you don't have a sari but would like to try out some of the ideas, the goodwill and thrift stores have some great finds.  As anticipated, a lot of these ideas require some skill in sewing, but if you're like me and don't own a sewing machine and would prefer not to deal with it anyway, you can always enlist your local tailor or dry cleaner to make some simple stitches for you. The results are awesome and cost much less than if you purchased them in some of the bigger retail stores out there, besides, you end up with an item that you have a real emotional connection to. 

What else could you ask for?! So many benefits rolled into one, here let me list the wholesome goodness of sari craft for you, since i'm already in a list making frenzy:

1. Recycling and reusing material is eco-friendly

2. You finally bestow a functional purpose upon your sari

3. Declutter your closet, give yourself an excuse to go buy clothes you will actually use

4. Fill your home with memories 

5. Enjoy the satisfaction and pride that comes from spearheading your own project

6. Plus the gushing compliments from you're friends!!!

7. If executed efficiently you will actually save money too!

6. The end result is a "one of a kind" item, we're all about being unique at KurtiTown!! 

So, here is the list of things you can make:

1. Ever seen those pillows and cushions at Pier1 Imports and thought "I could so do that"? Well now is your chance to get cracking!!

2. Table runner and matching place-mats. It would be so cool to use the end part of the sari "pallu" as the runner since it is the most decorative part of the sari, and use the body of the sari to make co-ordinating place-mats.

3. Why stop at the dining table, let's use the rest of the sari to make pot holders and decorative aprons!!

4. Cut out a small square from a thin cotton sari, put potpourri in the center and tie up with a ribbon. Now you have classy looking air freshener. Use it in your bathrooms and closets too!

5. Use the same idea above to wrap gifts for special ones.

6. Imagine a beautiful gold, embellished sari border glued to the cover of a journal or cookbook. Great idea for a personalized gift!

7. Cute baby girl summer dresses, smocks and skirts made from your cotton sari

8. A little more ingenuity required, but how about a stuffed toy made from sari fabric. A whole bunch of little elephants, giraffes and tigers sitting on your window ledge in vibrant colors would look so cozy and fancy too!!

9. How about "India" themed Christmas decorations, that would be awesome.

9. Small silk purses, zip bags and messenger bags too!

10. My favorite idea, make some curtains and use a fabric liner if needed to block the sunlight out. 

Add character to any room using your own saris!

11. How about making art out of your most precious and exquisite saris? Frame a part of the sari in a large wooden or vintage looking frame. You can take this further and make an entire accent wall by using a single or combination of sari material with an assortment of frame sizes.

12. Use the sari material as quilting squares. 

13. Duvet and day bed covers.

14. I have seen this in India, where they make a thin mattresses out of saris and stuff it with cotton. Great to roll out when the guests arrive, throw in some matching lounge pillows and logs and it will be a sensation!

15. Stitch sari borders onto the ends of bath towels and hand towels to add a glamorous, personalized touch!

So there you have it, with a little investment, you can tap a huge resource just sitting in your closet...waiting for you....ok well let me know if you have done any sari makeovers in the past, or you can even comment about other ideas and thoughts!

KurtiTown...global, colorful, unique

A real mother's day

Hope all the new and veteran moms had a great Sunday doing whatever it is you enjoy! There was an article doing the rounds on Facebook which I personally believe was written for me, the brutal truth about a typical day looking after the kids so I thought I would share it with you, the original  link is:
 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/amber-dusick/mothers-day-gift_b_1508212.html


I was actually lucky enough to have my husband take the babies off my hands for a while...read the article to understand what I mean!!


Written by Amber Dusick (on Twitter: www.twitter.com/AmberDusick)

Mother's Day is coming. I'm a mother, so I'm supposed to be honored and pampered and people are supposed to worship at my feet and stuff. More than usual, that is.

Since my kids are young, much of this mother honoring stuff falls on the shoulders of my husband. I know this isn't fair, since I'm not his mother and all. So I make it easy for him by telling him exactly what I want.

Unfortunately, I have never gotten exactly what I want. In fact, almost no mothers ever get exactly what they want for Mother's Day. There must be some miscommunication going on.

I'm going to try to clear it up.

There are tons of traditional Mother's Day gift choices. The hardest thing is figuring out which one to pick:

Flowers? Jewelry? Candles? Chocolates? The answer is NONE OF THESE THINGS.

Things like chocolate and flowers are fine and dandy. But they are totally unnecessary!

No, those traditional gifts aren't the very best way to show appreciation.

To uncover the best Mother's Day gift ever for a mother with young children, you have to take a look at her life.

Mothers get up early. They are tired.

Mothers allow uninvited guests into their personal space. They are never alone.

Mothers perfect the art of eating with only one hand. They eat very fast.

Mothers even use the bathroom with the door open. They have no privacy.

And so much more.

Mothers of young children are amazing. They do all of these things! For free! Daily!

So what will make mothers feel appreciated for all of those things that they do?

To not have to do any of those things. Just for one day. Or a half day? A couple of hours?

Seriously. Just a little time off. And it doesn't even cost anything.

Paneer Butter Masala Recipe

Paneer Butter Masala Recipe by kurtitown on polyvore.com

Red Rose

One of Earth's finest creations, the red rose...


Featuring KurtiTown's latest additions to it's sari collection...visit our website for special Earth Day and Mothers Day offers.