Day 6 #Loveuary❤ – Friends

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Friends.

The brothers and sisters we choose for ourselves.

Those who don’t stick with us because they have to, but because they actually want to!

I pride myself on being a friendly, approachable person. It does me well in life in general, but in my job too. This way, I manage to accumulate many acquaintances, too many for me to profess a feeling of love for!

My friends range from those I met at school all those years ago, to university pals, wok colleagues, old and new, and mummy friends. Not forgetting the all important blog pals I have!

But there are those that I have a deep feeling of love for. Not romantic, or anything like that… not friends with benefits (I have a husband, you know, and he is lovely!)

My closest friend is one I met at university. It will be 24 years in October since we met, and our lives became entwined.

Nadia. My darling sister from another mother.  I have written about her here, but this was long ago.

Our friendship was a bit of a shocker to some.

A Sikh girl and a Muslim girl… best friends while in the walls of our university, there were ‘wars’ occurring between the Punjabi Society and the Islamic Society. But that mattered not a jot to us. We were two young Asian girls, thrown together in a situation neither had been in, where we were given the freedom to live alone, and the trust to enjoy life but to be ‘good’!

We were studying the same course too, which helped forge our friendship. Ask Nadia now, and she still says that we met as I chatted her up by the pigeon holes!

But we spent 4 years living in the same halls, then the same student houses. She was privy to my innermost secrets, personal, family, everything. As I was to hers.

I was welcomed with open arms to her parents home in the holidays, and I gained a whole new family, with an older brother, three more sisters, and a wonderful surrogate set of parents! And this was echoed for her when she would come and visit me!

After qualifying, we went our separate ways geographically, but that doesn’t mean we were to be separated. What are phones for, eh!

Despite being in separate towns, our bond remained strong. She was a key person in my wedding, staying with me for a whole week beforehand, and it was her (my) sister who did my henna too!.

All through our friendship at university, and beyond, I just wanted to see her happy, to fall in love with a guy who would worship her and give her all the love she deserved. It didn’t happen straight away, but just a few years ago, I was so happy to be there by my sister’s side, for a whole week, to celebrate her wedding!

This is one friend who I love with all my heart. That friend who, even if we don’t speak for weeks on end, will be there at the drop of a hat for me, and vice versa. After a long break of not talking our conversations are never stilted, it’s like we just take up where we left off!

I hope that everyone has a friend like this. One you know will be with you forever. ❤

A shining light
A beacon
Always there
Through thick and thin

More sibling
Than friend
Wiping tears
Making you grin

Your partner
In crime
Your conscience
in life

Sometimes
Causing trouble
Others, saving you
From strife

A soul you need
beside you
Your best friend
You have found

A soulmate
Of a different kind
To keep your feet
Firmly on the ground

Ritu 2017

Love you Nadi ❤

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Remember, feel free to take part in #Loveuary! Just ping back to the daily post, as in this one for today! And if you are at a loss for a prompt, then visit my rules post here for a list of prompt suggestions!

My New Mugs From Jivana Style!

I love tea.

I love to have a good mug to drink from too.

When we moved into this house I ordered some lovely personalised mugs for the four of us, from a website called Jivana Style. They are great! They have these characters that are Indian, or West Indian in appearance that feature on cards, keyrings and all sorts.

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You can get wedding cards for mixed marriages depicting the couple as they really are! I loved them! A little niche that catered for what I like!

Slowly I bought some for my parents-in-laws, brother in law and wife, then my own parents, brother and sister in law. Sam Alfred was the contact I had there, a lovely lady who helped me personalise all the mugs, choosing colours and characters to suit each member of the family!

Imagine my devastation when they slowly broke… It was inevitable… But I was unable to reorder for various reasons.

I found their website again recently, and placed an enquiry email with regards to getting some new mugs but got no answer for a couple of weeks. Fearing the recession had got them, I tentatively rang their number, not expecting a reply, but it did get answered, and Eddie Alfred answered. He hadn’t received my original email, but was so helpful in arranging for me to get new mugs in the designs I wanted!

He also told me that, sadly, Sam, who I had dealt with previously, had passed away a couple of years back. I’d never met her, but had dealt with her a lot over the phone and by email, so felt a little sadness.

Anyway, after little less than a week, my package arrived… and

Tadaaa!

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Here are our family of mugs! The pictures and colours selected by the kids too! Lil Man wanted to be playing hs drum, and he got what he wanted!

Thank you so much Eddie, they are fantastic!

I recommend the company to everyone for a personal service, and a great range of products too!

Eddie asked me to spread the word with regards to the website as, since Sam’s passing, business had been slow. I asked him if he minded me blogging about them, one way to put them out there, and he was more than happy, so here is my little post!

Please, go check out their website!

www.desicards.co.uk

 

I Attended A Big Fat Indian Wedding…Again! #Loveuary❤ Day 5.1

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of going to a wedding. A great event to go to in this month of love1 #Loveuary!It was my Hubby Dearest’s cousin getting married, and as previous weddings in their family have shown, it was going to be a grand affair…

Grand indeed!

The decor was amazing, both in the Gurdwara and in the reception venue, which happened to be The Dorchester Hotel on Park Lane, in London! (very La-di-da!)

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Aside from a huge vase with an arrangement suddenly exploding in the middle of the ceremony (Goodness knows what happened there!) there was nothing amiss. It was luxury from beginning to end!

When we arrived at the reception venue, there were little envelopes with our names on them. No simple seating plan here… inside each envelope was your table number! And then at your place on the table, we all had personalised menus, with our names on them too!

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And the food… oh the food! I can assure you that my diet went totally out of the window yesterday! From the absolutely amazing breakfast buffet, to the canapes, the starters, to the main lunch, and the desserts, wedding cake and petit fours, there was no space left in my stomach!

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There was a band and singer playing English songs for the initial part of the party, then we had a celebrity guest, Sukhbir Singh, a Bhangra Singer, originating from Kenya, and now living in Dubai. I felt a little at home here as I knew exactly who he was… his songs played at many of my own family functions, but there were a lot of people, the bride’s mum and sister to name a few, who didn’t know who he was!! He was accompanied by four dhol players which perked my Lil Man up no end, as he also plays the Dhol!

And the couple themselves… Well, here they are, taking their Lawaan (nuptial rounds), cutting the cake with a rather large sword (Eek!) and sat at their table. Beautiful couple, wish them every happiness!

Okay, I know you will ask… here is me dressed up in my new outfit too!

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It was a lovely day, the rain didn’t disturb us, and the whole experience was extremely elegant! What a wonderful day!

(I’ll be working hard to rid myself of those extra calories for a good few weeks, though, I think!)

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Day 5 #Loveuary❤ – My Blogily

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When I started this blog a short 2 years ago, I had no idea of the world I was stepping into. It was just meant to be a  little release for me, but certain blog-quaintances, turned into real blogpals, and there was a core few that I began to look forward to interacting with each day.

That went from being friends to something more. I gained new ‘brothers’ and ‘sisters’ in this time, some who I will only address as that because they have so much importance in my life! These core, I addressed as my Blogily. My blog family.

And I was so excited to actually meet them at the Annual Bloggers Bash last year after so much online interaction! I felt like I knew certain folk so well. We connected. It wasn’t just an admiration of a person’s work, but a love, of sorts.

Blog love means you care for someone, you show concern when they are not around, you miss them when you are not able to connect with them, you support each other through thick and thin, and you can be truthful too.

At the awards, I met my core blog family, and I was able to connect with others, on a more personal level, so now my blogily is more like a true Indian family, with many branches, and levels of relationships.

I can truly say that my day is not complete without even a little interaction with you all, my blogily! Love you heaps! ❤

I am just giving you a taster of the song ‘We Are Family’, which I rewrote the lyrics for, to be #We Are Blogily’, and if you’re brave enough, me singing it too!!!

We are blogily
I got all my bloggers with me
We are blogily
Sit up ev’rybody and type
We are blogily
I got all my bloggers with me
We are blogily
Sit up ev’rybody and type
Ev’ryone can see we’re together
As we walk on by
(Hey) and we write just like bards with a feather
I won’t tell no lie
(ALL!) all of the people around us they say
Can they be that close
Just let me state for the record
We’re blogging posts in a blogily dose
We are blogily
I got all my bloggers with me
We are blogily
Sit up ev’rybody and type
We are blogily
I got all my bloggers with me
We are blogily
Sit up ev’rybody and type!
Living life is fun and we’ve just begun
To get our share of the world’s delights
(HIGH!) high hopes we have for literature
And the books we write
(WE!) no we don’t get depressed
‘Cause here’s what we call our golden rule
Have faith in you and the things you do
You won’t go wrong
This is our blogily Jewel
We are blogily
I got all my bloggers with me
We are blogily
Sit up ev’rybody and type
We are blogily
I got all my bloggers with me
We are blogily
Sit up ev’rybody and type
We are blogily
We are blogily
We are blogily
We are blogily
We are blogily

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Remember, feel free to take part in #Loveuary! Just ping back to the daily post, as in this one for today! And if you are at a loss for a prompt, then visit my rules post here for a list of prompt suggestions!

Spidey’s Serene Sunday – Part 103 #Loveuary

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“Having somewhere to go is a home.
Having someone to love is family.
Having both is a blessing.” – Anon

I’m keeping it short and sweet today. Spidey found this one and it ties in with my #Loveuary challenge, where this week I have been writing about love and the family!

Truly, blessed are those that have a family to love, and you can love those who aren’t tied by blood with as much force, as your real family!

Have a loving, happy Sunday Peeps!

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