Thoughts Opinions & Memories | But I Smile Anyway...

Spidey’s Serene Sunday – Part 196 – Anniversary Special

18 Nov 2018 41 Comments

by Ritu in #bloggers bash, Audio, Family, Spidey's Serene Sundays, Thoughts Opinions & Memories Tags: Anniversary, Blog, Blog Post, Blogger, Blogging, Quote, Serene, Spidey

“A wedding anniversary is the celebration of love, trust, partnership, tolerance and tenacity. The order varies for any given year.” – Paul Sweeney

Thank you, Spidey for this.

Today marks our 17th wedding anniversary.

There have been ups and downs, sadnesses and joys, kids and pets, houses and cars, and lots and lots of family stuff!

He asked me what I wanted for my gift… I genuinely want nothing. I have all I want. Him, our kids, our kitty, our family.

I can say, hand on heart, that there is no one else in this world who I would want to have spent over half my life with so far (20+ years dating!)

I love that man that is my Hubby Dearest, more than I can express in words, and I count myself as a blessed one to have him in my life.

Happy Anniversary to my soulmate ❤

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And a little of 18th November trivia, for you all too! There are a good few other special days celebrated on this same date…

Mickey Mouse’s birthday – he’s 90 this year!
Princess day – maybe I’ll get treated like one (unlikely, as I have a child who is currently being sick everywhere – more Cinderella than Princess!)
Apple Cider Day – Cheers!
Occult Day – ooer!

And a good few more!

And traditional wedding anniversary gifts for the 17th milestone?

Wine and Spirits!

So… tell me, what would be your ideal anniversary gift? 😘

Have a peaceful Sunday Peeps ❤ And enjoy your week!

The Wedding Day

18 Nov 2018 47 Comments

by Ritu in Family, Thoughts Opinions & Memories Tags: Anniversary, Blog, Blog Post, Blogger, Blogging, Indian wedding, Sikh Wedding, Wedding

So, I have led you, briefly, towards the main event.

If you want to check out the wedding build up, click here.

This time 17 years ago, one of the biggest days of my life played out. The day I finally became Mrs Bhathal!

All dolled up and ready to meet my Prince! This was our last family photo as a foursome. Soon another would join us ❤

We had a magical ceremony, where we took the four laavan, or rounds, of the Guru Granth Sahib, making our vows to each other,, followed by a beautiful reception that whizzed by so fast…

It wasn’t long before the tearful goodbyes… I may have been gaining a new family, but I had to say farewell to my own…

He’s not one for sharing photos of himself, so I will post one from our first dance, one that I love.

A truly wonderful day that I will cherish forever ❤

Happy Anniversary to my soulmate ❤

Those Pre-Wedding Traditions

17 Nov 2018 26 Comments

by Ritu in Family, Thoughts Opinions & Memories Tags: Blog, Blog Post, Blogger, Blogging, Chura, Indian wedding, Maiyaan, Sikh Wedding, Wedding, Wedding Traditions

I’ve been busy today, mopping up sick, and dealing with a pain-ridden teen, experiencing his first day with braces… Put paid to our plans for the weekend.

You see tomorrow is our anniversary.

However, it’s given me time to reminisce.

If you aren’t aware, Indian weddings are big affairs lasting a good week or so.

My Sikh wedding was no different, and in addition to the length of the build-up, there were at least forty guests who had come from overseas for the occasion too!

I thought it would be an idea to share the build-up with you too, so you can learn a bit about our wedding traditions, (in addition to a silly one my family have too!)

On the Friday before I got married, I had my henna applied by my best friend’s sister.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ritu Bhathal ✍🏽📚💜 (@ritubhathalwrites)

Then this is the madcap part. We had a fancy dress night!

Usually, I am in the thick of it, but as I had hands adorned with wet, sticky henna I watched from the sidelines as Batman, the cast of Cinderella, masaai warriors, giant babies, amongst others, joined the fun!

And my Pops, not wanting to be left behind, joined my Red Indian Brother as a Punjabi Pirate!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ritu Bhathal ✍🏽📚💜 (@ritubhathalwrites)

It was a really fun night, full of food, dance and music!

The next day, Saturday, was a day where there were more traditional events.

The Maiyaan was in the morning. This is the haldi, or turmeric ceremony, where the bride (and groom at his place) are blessed and wiped with this sticky goo made from turmeric, supposedly to brighten skin and make you look stunning on your special day!

Oh, and you get fed some sweet rice, which you then go on to feed to at least five other single girls/boys wishing them a speedy marital union too!

The evening was the Chura ceremony, where the bridal bangles are placed on the bride’s arms by the maternal uncles. These are usually worn for an amount of time specified by your in laws, to signify you are a new bride in the family. Some wear them for five weeks, some as long as a whole year!

The next step was the Jago, which was traditionally a ceremony to get everyone in the mood for the wedding. Jago means wake up!

After “waking everyone up” we had a lot of dancing, more food and even some Bollywood karaoke! My family do love a sing-a-long!

Then it was time for bed.

An extremely early start for me was looming… 5am… and an extremely special day ❤

#SoCS November 17/18 – Roll/Role

17 Nov 2018 22 Comments

by Ritu in #SoCS, Poems, Thoughts Opinions & Memories Tags: #StreamofConsciousnessSaturday, Blog, Blog Post, Blogger, Blogging, Roll/Role, Socs

Linda’s prompt for SoCS this week…

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “roll/role.” Use one, use both, it’s entirely up to you. Enjoy!

I love a bread roll.

A beautiful crusty fresh baked roll is the best, slathered with butter and jam… mmmmm!

Gong back to general bread rolls though…

You might not call it a roll. Here in the UK there are so many different names:

Barm
Bap
Roll
Cob

Those are the ones I know, anyway, but check this infographic out…

From Google

Fascinating, isn’t it? And rather crazy!

Shows the important role bread plays in our life here!

Catch ya later Peeps! Happy Saturday!

https://lindaghill.com/2018/11/16/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-nov-17-18/

November 15 – Flash Fiction – Scraps

16 Nov 2018 29 Comments

by Ritu in #CarrotRanch, Fiction, Thoughts Opinions & Memories Tags: #CarrotRanch, Blog, Blog Post, Blogger, Blogging, Charli Mills, Flash Fiction, Life Scraps, Scraps

Charli’s prompt this week:

November 15, 2018, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less) write a story that uses scraps. It can be scraps of dried flowers, paper, metal, fabric, food — any kind of scraps you can think of. Then write a story about those scraps and why they matter or what they make. Go where the prompt leads you.

Life Scraps

Brenda hobbled backwards and admired her handiwork.
It had taken a long time. A lifetime.
Gazing at the large quilt, pieced together lovingly, she wiped a tear that had settled on her cheek.
Each and every scrap of material used showed another step taken in their life.
She gently fingered the white satin patch at the top, sewn next to a rough, black patch.
Their wedding outfits.
Scraps from old curtains, sheets, special clothes, even a tartan square from Reg the dog’s old blanket.
Wrapping it around her, she knew he was still close by, always in her heart.