Departure countdown is on!

I have mixed feelings about leaving India now that the departure is
imminent. In 9 days, we leave. We have applied for a family visit visa
to the UK and have been told it will be issued this upcoming week.
Accordingly we have booked flights to London on the 16th. We will stay
there 12 days and then board a flight with my parents in tow to arrive
in San Francisco.

A few days after we arrive in the US, Sofi turns 2 on June 1, 2011.
We are planning her birthday party for June 4. This will be a nice
time for Sofi to meet some of her new friends in the bay area.

Ironically - or perhaps not - now that the departure is imminent, we
have been making lots of friends or getting into a better groove with
the people we had already met before. It is probably a combination of
the length of time we have been here, but also that the paperwork
aspect is much less, and we are more often in Delhi rather than on the
go for court cases or family visits.

We are starting to pack up our Delhi home and put things in order.
Deciding what we can squeeze into a mere 2 suitcases is riddled with
decisions of what do we really have to take. At many levels, I am not
bothered about what we pack or take, as the joy is that Sofi and are
together and embarking on the next part of our journey together. I am
looking forward to being able to get in MY car and go where I want,
where I want, and actually know where I want to go. Sofi is blissfully
unaware of all the imminent huge changes. My Punjabi speaking baby
will be going full on to English very soon.