babies.

today we celebrated seemantham for durga, one of our cooks.

it's a function for first time mothers in the last trimester of pregnancy, to bless the mother & her child. it's basically an indian baby shower.

my friend amy is researching pregnancy & infant care for her project, so she decided to plan the event. amy is super rad & she did wonderfully.

(the correct way to eat grapes. thanks, bhavana.)

durga looked so beautiful! she got a pretty new sari for the occasion, & her hair was done up all crazy.

we all took a pinch of rice & sprinkled it on durga's head.

we each took turns putting a couple bangles on her wrists.

durga was so smiley all morning.

it was really rad to be a part of it.

and our translators closed the function with an off the chain dance party.

some of the notions regarding pregnancy in india are... different.

kinda humorous from a western perspective.

expecting mothers are warned against eating papaya & pineapple, or spicy foods, because they are believed to cause abortions.

looking at photos of cute babies ensures your own baby will be cute.

& it's recommended that you sweep the house 3 times a day to stay fit while pregnant.

maybe these suggestions have some truth in them. i've certainly never birthed a child so i can't say much.

all i know is, wherever you are in the world, babies are babies & mommies are mommies.

and childbirth is a miracle.

i am so happy for durga.

and so happy for my two sweet, pregnant sisters.

babies are the greatest.