When I was a kid, if someone asked me what I want to be when I grow up, I may have said things like a veterinarian, a pilot, or a singer. I don’t think I would have ever thought of an engineer, which is what I ended up studying, nor a writer, which is what I forayed into last year.

The signs were there. I remember the essay writing in school which I loved. But the writing left my life along with school. Other things took precedence. Life happened, adulthood happened.

And then the blogging started. I documented our kids as they grew, still barely paying attention to what I wrote. Then around 2022, the germ of the idea of writing slowly drifted into my conscience, until it grew, fueled by close friends and family. Finally, last year was the year. I ended up publishing three books on Amazon, with many books in the pipeline.

The fact that I write children’s books is even funnier. If you had told me in my teen years that I would write children’s books in my 40s, I would have laughed you out of the room. I barely noticed children at all. When I did, it was with annoyance and impatience.

I stumbled through motherhood making endless mistakes, and getting endlessly frustrated. But in the midst of all this, somewhere I developed an understanding for them. I’m still learning.

2025 started badly for us. Johan was injured, and had to undergo shoulder surgery. We limped through the first couple of months.

Then in April my parents came over to the USA for a five month visit. Then began my most productive and lucky phase, since in the five months that they were here, I published three books, The Flying Boy, Spring Fever, and The Great Summer Escape. It was quite a monumental undertaking, and I have learnt so much from these projects.

The Flying Boy was illustrated by a professional illustrator, while Spring Fever, as well as The Great Summer Escape were illustrated by Tanya. She had a year of self discovery and personal growth as well.

Johan recovered, and we all had a nice time with my parents in town. My dad has many fond memories of hanging out at Panera with Johan and Kylo Ren, our dog.

Tanya started college last year, and Leena is in her last year of middle school.

Once my parents left, it has been more writing and trying to keep up with our regular work. End of the year saw the girls and me in Washington DC, as I mentioned in my last post.

I am excited to see what this year brings. With two middle grade novels and two picture books in the works for the year, it should be an interesting time.

Happy New Year.