Navya Landis Jha

On July 2, 2011, Navya Landis Jha graced us with her presence.  She was born at 8:21 p.m. at the Goshen Birth Center (Goshen, Indiana), in the water, after about 5 1/2 hours of labor and 3 minutes of pushing.  Anuraj is a stellar "coach," leaning tower, refreshment gopher and all around calming presence! And with that kind of labor, I could crank out some more babies (if only my pregnancies were so stellar)!

Here are her stats for those of you who are statisticians: Weight - 2.89 kg / 6 lbs, 9 oz., Length - 19 1/4 in.

Yes, she was born in the water, and for the first 20 minutes after she was born she didn't cry, and I kept her body (not her head, not worries) submerged underwater.  It was the most beautiful, tranquil experience. She just stayed there and looked around and soaked everything in.  (She still loves bath time and is definitely my water baby!)  At the Goshen Birth Center, you leave 4-6 hours after birth, so after having my parents and Anusha visit us, after my post-labor herbal bath and getting everything and everyone situated, we headed home (my parents home) at 2:30 a.m. where we all slept for a solid four or five hours and woke up quite rested!

It is so wonderful to finally see this beautiful little girl!  Anusha is absolutely smitten and loves her baby sister and so do we!

Only in NYC, #3

Ashton Kutcher

Anusha and I were walking down Central Park West End around 68th Street with our friends.  Heading to our bus stop, we were chatting when I glance over and see a man pass us . . . light blue denim long sleeve shirt, jeans, no sunglasses.  My mind calculates the facial image I have just seen.

x98wljclknbwhsl =

Ashton Kutcher.

No.  I tell my friend, "That guy is a Hollywood star!"  I am not going to be a dork. I am not going to say something to him.  I am going to let him enjoy his walk in peace, despite the fact that he's not trying to disguise himself at all.  I watch, and as he glances back, I see it again . . .

Yes, it has to be! I just saw my first super-famous, handsome movie star on the streets of NYC!

I make my friend snap a pic on her iPhone but you can barely make out his flowing denim shirt.  I seriously need to get an iPhone.  Oh well, it is etched in my mind. Cinco de Mayo, the day that Ashton Kutcher brushed by.

Now, to write his wife about her new endeavors in Nepal . . .

Only in NYC, #2

Man Escapes from Hospital?

Yesterday Anusha and I were heading to the bus stop after a lovely indoor picnic lunch with our pastor in the Gramercy Park area.  It was raining, the sidewalks were strewn with puddles, everything was damp.  After crossing a road, I looked up to see a man in scrubs running.  No umbrella, no raincoat.

My first thought was, "Why would a doctor be running down the road?"

Then I noticed his feet.  He was running through the rain with socks on.  Only socks.

My second thought was, "Did this guy just escape from the hospital or mental hospital?"

He whizzed by us, and as I'm considering this oddity, I look to see a man, one or two blocks down,  in a dark blue uniform, on his walkie talkie, running.

My third thought was, "This guy definitely just escaped!"

Another uniformed man rounds the corner.  The first one passes me. Then the second.  I stand to watch.  The man in scrub, young-ish, maybe in his 20s or 30s and slightly heavy-set, is walking.  He turns around only to see the two uniformed men running after him.  He runs again.

A nanny sees me standing and watching and says, "Do you know what's going on?"
"I think that guy just escaped from the hospital or something," I reply.
"I thought it was strange that a doctor would be running down the street."  She said.

We watched.  We chuckled in disbelief.  Then we each went our own way.  I continue heading down the road and watch as, one at a time, three more men in uniforms round the corner.  Just as I see the last one go, I look to the right and notice a big sign, "Beth Israel Medical Center."

Yep, we just witnessed an escape!

Only in NYC, #1

'bama Sitings

Crimson Tide

Anusha and I sadly said goodbye to our friends this morning.  They were here for a 4 day visit and after dropping them off at the bus stop, we headed to Borders book store to read.  On our way to Borders, we walked past Madison Square Gardens and I took a wrong turn.  Upon wandering back, started noticing really tall guys walking by.  One, two, three . . . they were all sporting Alabama paraphernalia.  A steady stream of coaches, helpers and unusually tall men filed past us.

"It's the Alabama basketball team, Anusha!"  I proclaimed.  "Go 'bama!  Say it with me!  Go 'bama!"  She didn't.  So we just stood there, smiled and watched them all go in.

 - Side note: I discovered that they were probably practicing for their semi-final game for the NIT championship.

The Real 'bama

After a leisurely time at Borders, we hopped on the subway and headed back towards home.  Somehow,  I couldn't find our connecting bus, so we started walking.  There were some shops I wanted to stop at anyways.  We were getting close to our next bus, and the shops I had scoped out, and were stopped by a police blockade and a small crowd of people.

Behind me, I heard a woman say to a friend, "Yes, we're going to the reception for President Obama tonight."

Huh??  We approach the blockade and I ask someone what's going on.  "President Obama is in the Natural History Museum and he's due to come out any minute."

The conspiracy theorist of the group said he heard that it was a plant, that it was not really President Obama.

After 30 minutes of waiting, one, two, three motorcycles took off.  Then a herd of about 20 motorcycles started up their engines and drove off in sets of two.  Police cars were next.  Finally some black cars pulled out of the museum and I thought for a moment I caught a glimpse of Obama with his window cranked open.  Three black cars with flags went by, followed by some black vans and an armored vehicle.  Anusha and I cheered, we waved, we basked in the fact that, behind one of those darkened windows sat the President of the United States, and we had just seen him.  The procession finished, they finally let us through, and we left, happy with our two surprise 'bama sitings.

The Big Apple

So if you are not on Facebook or for some reason aren't on my email list (let me know and I'll put you on!) we've moved. No longer are we the multi-cultural family in Nepal, now we will be the multi-cultural family in New York City.  Anuraj got a job and we packed our 6 suitcases and headed over the ocean September 7.  After teary and heartfelt goodbyes to family, friends and co-workers in Nepal, we have quickly reaquinted ourselves with Americana.  Anuraj has been settling into his job and renting a room in an apartment a block from Central Park while Anusha and I have been traveling.  First to Goshen to see Anusha's grandparents (i.e. my parents) and one of my sisters (along with wonderful family and friends), then to Colorado to see my sister, brother-in-law and niece.  

Some of the common questions we've been asked:

Q:  What will you (Jill) do? 

A:  Settle in and look for a job.  If I find one, great, if not, hopefully there will be so much to do that I'll be mentally stimulated to the max!
Q: New York? How do you feel about that?

A:  Weirdly enough, Kathmandu to New York does seem like a good transition!  Kathmandu taught me (Jill) how to navigate a city and while some things will be the same (relying on public transportation) other things will be different (snow!).  Plus, who can complain about museums, activity and the energy of NYC! 

Q:  Do you have a place to live?

A:  Apartment hunting in New York City is beyond overwhelming and we're hoping to settle that by November 1!

Q:  How's Anusha handling it?

A:  Well, for a 3 year old, I'd say quite well.  She was very sad to see our house being dismantled.  Our little apartment in Kathmandu was all she knew . . . and she still refers to "home" as the place where Menaka (our nanny/househelp) comes.  She's having a wonderful time seeing her family and also missing her papa while he's back in NY and globetrotting.  But she's sleeping well, eating better and enjoying it all . . . along with almost daily doses of ice cream!

Stay tuned for our adventures in the Big Apple!

*As usual, I have to apologize about pics.  This times it's because all of our "goodbye Nepal, hello NYC" pics are on a hard drive that happen to be with Anuraj.  I only have a few NYC pics, and this was the best of the lot for now!





Anusha in the subway our first week in New York.
Her new thing is to make a funny face for the camera.



June

So it looks like I'm proving monthly updates . . . this one will cover last month.  It's actually been a good, yet crazy one because it was the beginning of interviews and job offers for Anuraj. We're still making decisions, hopefully we'll know in the next week or so.  Other than that, this is the latest into the summer that we've ever spent here. 

Beginning of June:  Jill finished her practicum with Chemonics, International.  A USAID contractor that's overseeing the USAID's Nepal Transition Initiative.  The bulk of my work involved writing case studies of a few of their programs and tagging along on a field visit.

Middle of June:  Anuraj traveled to New York City for work where he met up with my mom who took the train out to meet him for a few days.  No pics of that. We realized after he was at the airport that he forgot the camera!  Oops!

End of June:  Anusha's Dada and Dadi (paternal grandparents) visited Kathmandu. 

Here are some pics from the month of June!

One of Anusha's funny faces . . .

Pics with mom!

Doing what she does best . . . painting and making a mess!

Congratulations to me, on the last day of my practicum!

Anusha with Maneka:

babysitter, cook, housecleaner and daily company, extraordinare!

Anusha with her new favorite backpack (from her Nani). She is very proud to show everyone her new backpack!  And, much to my dismay, she packs lots of random things in there.  Like my cell phone.

Anusha riding an elephant at her cousins house.  Just last year, I had to help her get up on it!

Now she's a solo artist and her toes nearly touch the ground!

Sorry, I was going to post more, but I'll have to continue another day.  For now, enjoy some of the random happenings of June in Kathmandu, Nepal.