Indoor Fun : Summer ideas to beat the heat.

Summers are around the corner and fun for the kids is about to begin. But the mercury is rising high and we will be bound to stay indoor. So what are we going to do with our kids who every hour squeal with ' I am getting bore' thing. The object is to plan ahead. This time ditch the T.V cartoons and the gaming gadgets and let's get into some mind and body drilling. Its time for bonding and creating memories this summer. So start creating the summer list today. Here are few ideas to keep the kids busy in fun way:
1. Board Games: we all have ample of board games but because of the television , I pads and tablets it got lost in our closet. So dig them out. Chess, monopoly, jenga, business, the whole family can have fun playing together. ( for young kids 4+ Hasbro has come up with monopoly junior party kid, believe me I had a lot fun playing this game with my kid) .Its fun and at the same time it teaches counting and using money.
     
                                             
2. Movie Time : Its time to catch up some good movies. Rent or buy their favorite movie and let the kids enjoy it with their all time snacks. You can also play your wedding DVDs and kids birthday bash CDs. Trust me kids will have gala time recognizing everyone in the family.
                                         
                                       

3. Cook it up : Now is the time for getting them involve into the kitchen. Let them try there hands on arranging table and decorating salads . It would be great watching our young chefs at work , making mocktail to beat the heat. You never know they might create a new recipe for family.
                                         

4.Record Memories : Here is the perfect moment to create some memories also time for some progress in enhancing hand and motor skills of our munchkins. With everything going digital we all have countless pictures saved in our cell phone and hard drive. Let's take the print and create a scrapbook. Kids will have loads of laugh and nostalgia while sticking them.
                                   

           

5. Play Dates : kids would love to meet their peers in vacation. Plan ahead and arrange a picnic at home . put a mat,arrange few games like passing the parcel and yes of course their favorite snacks and juices.
                                   

6. Tapping Feet : Its hard to beat the energy of our little souls. Let's get them into some dancing and grooving. It will not only get them out of bored blues but will also vent out their energy, so get along with them into some boggie woogie.
                               

These activities are surely to bring lots of fun inside home this summer.
What's your favorite idea of summer activities. How did you plan to keep the kids occupied and having fun. Let's share them all and make together fun time.

Diary of an Expecting Mom - Truth vs Myth..

Last week my friend Anamika ( part of my girl's gang ) planned for an adventure trip. Since it was a long weekend they planned for a trip to Rishikesh for rafting. All excited she started the preps in full swing going for shopping, buying paddling suits, paddling pants. But little did she knew that the adventure had already began. Her pregnancy test turned out to be positive. Ye kya, O Lord, she asked for a few days fun and you blessed her with adventure all life. Someone has well said " upar wala jab bhi deta, deta chappar phadke" ( wen god gives, he gives luxuriously).

  Now that my friend was expecting not just her Rishikesh trip got cancelled but her life took a 360 degrees turn. Seriously pregnancy is lot many things. It is so exciting to create a life within you for nine months. It is the most beautiful gift of life but at the same time it is scary too,the nausea, the cramps, the heavy belly, when you are expecting everyone treats you like a delicate doll, everyone is suddenly extra nice to you. For good or bad reasons you get everything you ask for.But along with this plenty of advises start pouring from everywhere literally anyone and everyone your friends, friends of friends , relatives, neighborhood aunty all of them are ready to shower  you with plethora of myths (oops advise !!) . The same happenned with my friend Anamika.

                                   

The first and common of all the recommendations was killer papaya. She was asked to stop eating papaya immediately as it would lead to miscarriage... Dear expecting mother's my humble request is please expand your horizon of knowledge it's only unripe and semi ripe that would be unsafe and that too if you eat in kilo's. So stop hitting the panic button if you just had one.

  The second is eating anything white in the morning and drinking milk with saffron in it will result in fair skinned baby.( how obsessed are we with fair skin) I wonder why didn't any milk or bread didn't turned me white by now. And dear mom's to be the only person who will  benefit from your eating saffron is your  kirane wala ( remember kesar is the most expensive spice in the world ) . Well the truth is the skin color of baby only depends on genetics 

 The third is the sex of the baby , every one is so interested in it. If you are glowing its a girl, if you are looking dull its boy. The size and shape of mom's tummy can also predict the gender even the heart rate of the foetus can foretell the gender of the baby O dear next door aunty u failed science ( ultrasound and amniocentesis we don't need you anymore).

                                               

There are various other myths ( read as advise) like eat for two, don't take the staircase, don't exercise don't eat pineapples don't go out in lunar eclipse don't ,don't just don't advise my mom anymore says the little soul from inside.

I don't doubt old wives tales but few myths have no scientific evidence but truth is also this that our mothers and grandmothers didn't had monthly check ups still they did their job best, they didn't had fancy nursing home, big labor rooms still they raised us in best possible way. So don't blindly believe all of them.

Disconnect to Reconnect....

The other day I was out with my gorgeous girlfriends to enjoy a nice lunch, in no time my friend screamed almost giving a heart failure to me and the other people sitting around. It took me few seconds to realize that it was a notification,  Yes " THE NOTIFICATION" from one of her friend getting hitched. It was hard for me to absorb that she expressed her emotion with the sound of 100 decibel's and that too just for a message from virtual world. Her reaction made me ponder where are we heading to???

  I have rarely seen her face out of her smartphone. The cell phone is right next to her pillow like her other limb. I have seen her hitting the panic button when she doesn't find her prized possession around. She is either into whatsApp or  posting her where about on Facebook (you know that creepy feature of check in ) and if not these two then she is on Instagram posting pictures of what, where and with whom she is eating. ( I am sure everyone of you have this kind of friend ). Once I went to her place and chit chatted with her toddler and I was literally taken aback when the little one said Mumma to bas apne phone ki taraf dekh kar mujhse baat karti hai ( Ahh!! there he was , the little soul had so much in his heart).
  Yes, it is convenient to check mails anytime, to send message to your loved one's and  it's even great to know what your friends are up to but don't you think life was better when apple and blackberry were just fruits.
Aren't we cheating when we are sitting with our family or friends for a dinner and we are texting under the table, frequently checking our cellphone. We sometimes fail to realize what our little one is absorbing when we are talking to them and our eyes are glued to smartphone. Can't a forwarded message wait a little more to get forwarded further ?? Can we have a beep free conversations ??? Reality is we can it's just that we have forgotten how to keep our fingers away from our phones.
   Let's disconnect for a while and live in the moment . let's take our kids to park holding hands and not holding our IPhone .Lets Disconnect to Reconnect....
 Here is your turn to know Are you NOMOPHOBIC....??
    

                               
                 

Bump and the baby : To have or not a second child...

The last weekend was lovely, I was surrounded by my girls gang. Really there is nothing more relaxing than sipping your favorite coffee and spending time with  BFF's , while all of us were sharing our vacation plans , what activities our toddlers are indulging in, about our better halves and all girly stuff, all of  a sudden one of my girl friend Ritu , from the group broke the news of her expecting again. I was like REALLY ??? ( it's not that I was not happy for her... I was seriously) but she was the one who always sermonise about one child  you know like " chota parivar sukhi parivar" but here she was expecting again. She was delighted, over joyed and in high spirits. She was deliriously happy however at the same time she was in a dilemma whether she can take care of second child not just financially but also physically, emotionally and from all the facet's .
   Motherhood is beautiful its blissful. No other experience in life can be compared to the joy of holding your heart outside your body, the charm and beauty of being pregnant is supreme. But how many wants to go for it yet again. Once the first child grow up all the parents go through such confused state to have or not to have because deciding it is just not easy and decision is not only yours, you got to be ready in every way.
         

        

    Nurturing the child is not a cake walk, it require lot of patience and devotion. Once a mother is always a mother. All other relationship becomes secondary. Every day you have to go through sleepless nights, cerelac bites, changing diapers and burping cycle, your social circle and cuddly talks are never the same again. Ensuring that your toddler don't feel left out while you are busy nursing the little one and juggling between home, hubby, friends, relatives and now a new bundle of joy all this together feels like a never ending roller coaster ride.
   Whatever you decide deep down we all know that nothing stays forever neither those sleepless nights nor those cerelac bites. One fine day our little hearts will grow and we will love them more and more. So if you decide to go for it then we all know more the babies more smiles, more giggles and lot more adventure will be on way and if you decide to stick to one then shower all your love and care for your little soul.
  I don't know who said this but there really are places in the heart you don't know existed until you love a child.
   The joy of motherhood comes in moments.
   There will be hard times and frustrating times
                                      But
Amid the challenges there are shining moment of 

                          Joy and satisfaction 

                                                      -ELDER M RUSSEL BALLARD.

  

The buddy talk....

In the age of social networking where making friends and creating friendship is just a click away, i wonder how many of them are really real friends.

Anais nin has beautifully said that " each friend  represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born." i fully agree to it that a new world is born , a world of joy, sadness , anger , love and moments that create life.

I believe that right from the moment we become aware about our being we are blessed with these beautiful creatures called friends , when we were just too young to stand  on our feet, we were delightful in the company of that little friend of ours, the first time we went to school , the friends we made, made us forgot all our anxiety , shakes and shivers. It is that relationship which stay right beside us in every phase of our life, in every thick and thin.They are the lone witness to all our tear and fight , betrayal and debate, our darkest whims and fantasies after all they are the secret keepers and partners in all our crimes of madness (aren't they always around to cheer up after the daddy's remand, to finish those midnight assignments, to give that " hota hai wala" look after the break up, to give those shopping tips and cooking tricks, they are unquestionably there).

It's  because of those friends that i cherish the memories of the times gone wen we  were so crazy, the times we laughed so hard, our inside jokes that only we could understand, memories of hanging out together or teasing in the class or just dancing in the college fest.

I know life changes and we move on but my connection with them is time above.I know that wherever we are in our life, we will be friends even if we don't meet for ages we would start from where we left off.

     if you laugh really loud,talk spontaneously and don't care what your faces look like, you are probably with your real friends. 

Making Love Better....

With life getting really really busy, we often forget that our love life also needs a boost and attention. I am sure many of you might have taken new year's resolution something along the lines of shedding those extra pounds, quit  smoking, managing investments well and many more. ( OK I know I am little late in talking about resolutions but c'mon it's about love) , but guys any resolution for making relationship better, yes our relationship with our beloved ones. Do u remember the last time you have spend the quality time, forget it, do u even remember what brought you both together.
 By the way Wikipedia defines quality time "as the time that is set aside for paying full and undivided attention to the person or matter at hand". So people the point is undivided attention. These days our cars, bedroom become invaded by cellphones, iPads , laptop. Our relationship has lost the sight. With job, kids plus a topping of social networking circle we are loosing the "us" time. Let's make it clear guys grocery shopping, hanging out with friends on weekend is not quality time spend.
 Love is there and shall always be but it will be more if we remind each other in sweet little way. Believe me a simple hug, a simple touch , a simple compliment or a simple coffee will fill the day with little more love and will make life little more bright. Don't you think a promotion enhance our work quality and an appreciation makes our day,  why it has to be an occasion like birthday or marriage anniversary to make them feel special.

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There is very popular belief about marriage that when doldrums hit and you find yourself more numb than really alive, you should look for the ways to get back what you once had. Remember the first time you met, the first kiss , the first dinner, the first anniversary, the very first reason of both of you being together, wasn't that feeling euphoric.....

So whatever we name it a spark, a zest or love we can always rekindle it in our own sweet little way

The chase for  Happiness....

Happiness I believe is the ultimate goal,the reason, the season. It's a choice and also by chance.

Last weekend while me and my husband were planning for summer break trip, hearing our conversation my four year old son all tumbling and giggling said ` Mumma I would be more happy  if you will buy play station for me, I would be much more happy with that rather than going to a trip abroad.

That very same afternoon I met a friend of mine who these days is busy with meeting prospective brides and also tired of meeting practically every so called eligible girl whose name came wandering by his parents ears, while moving to our so called serious talks he said he wants to marry someone who he would be HAPPY with.

I was mystified, floored up with their idea or state of being happy.life moves fast. There is so much going on each day one after the other that at times i feel we are merely breathing. My very loving husband truly feels that " happiness is a state of mind " what I have seen so far is happiness little depends on circumstances and more on choices.

I have met some happiest people in the poorest of places and also have met many wealthy people who are incredibly happy and few who are just not. We struggle , we burn ,we learn to get it , that little thing called happiness. 

Happiness is of course in all those things like buying a new car or a house or may be a promotion but it's much more in those little things.I guess instead of fighting, struggling over the things that don't go our way we should accept that worrying won't change things so why waste time spinning that wheel. Staying happy would be better anyway.

Happiness is when you and your bestie  get drenched in the rain and enjoy the comfort silence bring. Happiness is a call from a lost old friend. Happiness is certainly not in the office meeting but in the short coffee breaks. Happiness is buying new heels ( isn't girl's) happiness is a beautiful smile from your secret crush . happiness is a bike ride with your friend and loving and feeling the breeze.

Happiness is nothing but a state of mind.

        We wait 
                all week for fridays,
               all year for summers,
               Exams to get over,
              To get that damn promotion,
              To meet our date ,
             To buy that new car, that new house....
            All our life for somthings thats within us...
                                                                                               

                                                                                                                                  HAPPINESS..