Author: gundara

Thanksgiving 2025

| gundara

Thanksgiving and Shriya’s wedding week are all in one this year. Aanika was thrilled to see Jatin come out of the train arriving home! The photos below cover Brunch at mom and dad’s house the day before Thanksgiving to welcome the out of town family, then the evening of Thanksgiving which was a quiet and lovely hangout at home (just the 4 of us and Billy and Brownie) followed by the premier of the much anticipated Stranger Things 5 Final Season Part 1. I even tried to put the Demogoran shape into the burnt pumpkin pie! (total fail – but a funny memory). read more

Fall 2025

| gundara

There’s always a variety of fun stuff going on (memories being made) that aren’t necessarily attached to a special occasion. Below are some memories I would like persevered from Fall 2025. We’re getting used to Jatin living at UC Irvine, and enjoying our time with him on weekends when he comes home and our precious Facetime Video Calls. Daddy was inspired by the lighting job Nick did on our house so they have started to install lighting throughout Mom & Dad’s home as well. Mommy and Daddy hosted Diwali Dinner. Aanika was very excited to see the holiday decorations come out before Thanksgiving! I’m continuing to play with all the fun stuff Ai has to offer (you’ll see a vintage Bollywood poster of Nick and I down below). Jatin’s Nana & Nani came to his dorm and treated him to a lovely meal out in Newport. Reunited with Jwalin & Sonal from Cardservice Intl, and we ran into the Stovall family after so many years at the movie theater! And, I started to rock the beautiful Slytherin purse Neeru gifted to me. All in all a lovely, blessed Fall. Continuing to have lunch and coffee dates with girlfriends (Wanda and Aiysha) this month 🙂 We also discovered old Town Newhall. read more

Halloween 2025

| gundara

Halloween 2025 was all about puppies in our house. Since Aanika loves her villains and dressed as Ursula last year, Cruella De Vil felt like the perfect choice, and she fully committed by keeping her wig on all day at school and through trick-or-treating. A few weeks before Halloween, I was invited to Maria’s annual costume party and decided to match her, which made Aanika so excited when she saw her mama transform into Cruella before she even got to wear her own costume. I also made it to the annual Zumba Dance Halloween Hangout as a kitty cat, and Jatin came home for the weekend to hand out candy — making it a fun, festive Halloween all around. Anyone say puppies? read more

Jatin’s 18th Birthday

| gundara

Jatin’s 18th birthday fell on a weekend so he took the train home from school for the weekend! We had Mommy and Daddy over for our tradition of cake and gifts and had a low key celebration as this little baby of ours is officially an adult! We are so proud of him and all he’s accomplished so far. Most of all he’s a kind and caring human which make’s our hearts happy and bursting with pride. Love you son! Happy 18th Birthday and cheers to a lifetime ahead filled with good health, love, peace of mind, happiness, laughter and abundance of all the wonderful things in life. read more

Vani’s 46th Birthday

| gundara

Feeling blessed to celebrate another trip around the sun. Nick treated me to a Descanso Garden’s dinner and lights event called Carved and we had mommy and daddy join us for cake time. Cutie pie Jatin came home from school to celebrate also! We went to see the latest Tron Movie in theaters as well. Dear Universe, thank you for all your blessings!

Aanika’s 14th Birthday!

| gundara

Our beautiful princess Aanika turned 14 years old this year. She’s become quite the spunky, naughty, beautiful darling of all our homes. We adore her and her silly, mischievous, sweet disposition. She had mini cupcakes at school and her friend Alex gifted her silk flowers for her desk 🙂 He also wants to make sure she meets him at the 8th grade dance in the spring and she must wear a red bow in her hair so he can find her in the crowd on the dance floor. Aaniku’s Nani & Gulu joined us for sushi and cake and gifts. Wishing you the best year yet our beautiful child. May all your wishes come true and may all your days continue to be bright and full of love, life and good health always. read more

Shriya’s Tea Party Bridal Shower

| gundara

Neera and I hosted Shriya darlings bridal shower at my place this weekend *yes one weekend after moving Jatin to UCI! It was a good distraction. The theme was whimsical, garden tea party. Bright, colorful, and a little over the top! Shriya’s favorite color is blue so we encouraged guests to wear blues and florals for the event. We gave each guest a silk rose *in their tea cup to wear in the hair or clothing. Indian tea, heavy snacks, cakes and fruit were served. Devi was in charge of the games, Mommy made her delicious tea sandwiches and Geeta and the girls helped with all the setup in the morning. It turned out spectacular. Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald tunes filled the air while chai and champagne was sipped. Can’t wait for the wedding! read more

Jatin’s Going to College

| gundara

Well after all the months of anticipation, hard decisions, shopping, researching, planning the weekend finally came where we moved Jatin into UCI. He chose a Sunday move in so he could have his weekend with the family. Since he’s the Toy Story generation I have always known I would save his childhood toys and re-create the going away to college scene as the toys watch him leave. He was a good sport and took some adorable pictures with Aanika as they played with their toy collections and then I got the awesome shot of his toys saying goodbye. It was perfect. read more

Summer Vacation 2025

| gundara

Jatin, Nick and I had a lovely trip up north for our usual California Xtreme video game hangout and family time! We broke up the journey by staying in Pismo Beach on Thursday night. We spent the day at the beach and dinner followed by some pool in the evening. We also went to see the rocks where hundreds of birds live. Beautiful and smelly!!! I love Pismo Beach. Can’t wait to get back out there.

We had matching jackets made for the boys to wear with the SlikkNikk brand and a custom sweater made for me 🙂 Jatin officially “debuted” as Slikk-J rather than SlikkNikk Junior 🙂 The boys also were trying to figure out a “sign” for “SlikkMob” which lead us laughing a lot 🙂 We had a lot of fun joking about that throughout the trip! read more

Jatin’s High School Graduation

| gundara

Our kiddo has graduated from Chatsworth Charter High School from the Magnet Program. He worked so hard throughout his grade school years, even during virtual covid school! We are so proud of him and excited to see what he accomplishes next. We hosted a Graduation Party for him the Saturday just before graduation *which fell on a Monday evening. Neera, Nikki, Naya, Naveen, Mommy and Daddy joined us for photos at the house before the ceremony. Aanika and this kiddos stayed home while we attended the ceremony. The most fun part of the day was after the ceremony running after Jatin for an hour through the crowds and just watching the pure joy and excitement on all his friends and families faces. Pure love, nostalgia, and open hearts knowing that this chapter has ended but new adventures are coming. Congratulations Jatin!! We love you! read more