I used to wonder how many mothers kept the child in them alive. Now I know it! Having an infant is holding a bundle of joy, but having a toddler is having a fun package at home. That’s exactly how my days are going now. Finally, this year I have found the true reason and meaning for my stay at home.

I am not just happy, but overall satisfied with my current experiences with my daughter. I want to cherish these memories in words as well. Hence this post.

Though my days are filled with Ilakkiya from morning to night, realization has finally hit me that it’s not going to be the same in a few years. My daughter needs my attention now. As a mother, I am happy and excited about it. Though I complaint once in a while of not having my me-time, I must say she is thoroughly keeping me happily engaged. She has not just taught me to let go of many things, she has also taught me not to overreact for everything. ?

Since we spend our time together mostly, we have come up with 7 games. It helps my toddler and me spend our time better when we get utterly bored being together!

7. Sa Re Ga Ma

Now that we have learnt a few Thamizh and English rhymes, we are bored of singing them on a regular basis. I hum the song and she tries to find the song and it gets interesting when songs get mixed up. I realized some rhymes follow the same music and it’s fun to find similar songs. The good thing about this game is when baby girl tries to hum and asks me to find it. Imagine my surprise!

6. Draw The Rhyme

Find the rhyme!

This is similar to storytelling, but we use this technique for rhymes. For example, I draw a mouse, a clock, a cuckoo and a bed for the mouse to fall down on, along with an elephant to help the mouse at the end(updated version, courtesy – Coco melon). So could you figure out the rhyme? Yes, Hickory Dickory Dock. Drawing is not my thing, but I am delighted to learn how to draw a few animals. Earlier, the most difficult part was to make her believe it’s a mouse. Now, she finds it, so I guess I am better or she finally has figured this is the mouse mom can draw. Anyway, the game is interesting.

Find the animal! She said it was a cat, close!

5. Arrange the Veggies

This is what most parents play. I find it interesting that my little one enjoys playing this. The actual fun for her is not in arranging the veggies, it is in opening the refrigerator and keeping things in. If she has to arrange peas, lady’s finger and tomato, only half of it goes in, yes she loves to eat them raw. When I give her beans she breaks the beans and stores it, only because she loves to break them. If it’s broad beans (Avarakkai) then she treats it like another version of peas.

4. The Rain Game

This is something she found herself. She collects things, for example blocks and pours it down my head like the rain. This doesn’t stop with just the blocks, it’s applicable for erasers, pens and all stationary that belongs to me. So after all is done and we are flooded enough, we clean up the contents with the clean up song (Coco melon again).

3. Paint it Pink

We learn our colours everyday and the little one is supposed to dip in the colour I choose. Of course, we take turns. We start with a paint brush and a lovely book, then the book becomes messy, so we use our hand to make a bingo mark(just like another rhyme, where the fur friend paints with her human friend) in the notebook, then we want to know how messy can we get. So, recently she figured how to wash her hands as well as the paint brush on her own. We head to the bathroom to get a wash and a mini-bath after EVERY painting session.

2. Hello Doctor!

Yes, this is a new find. My father underwent laser treatment for Cataract before 10 days. From then, it’s all about what the doctor advised her Grandpa. However, we have given our doctor an extra duty, he handles the phones at our home. ? When the little one asks for the phone, my father says his doctor said he is not supposed to use it for viewing videos until his eyes get better. So when the father takes the phone to attend calls, his granddaughter becomes the strict doctor who denies him access to his phone. Other important element of our doctor game is testing head to toe for pains and troubles and treating them with a hug and a kiss as a medicine.

Another new version of the doctor game is addressing each other as doctors. Tell me doctor what do you think about this! (This can refer to pomegranate too!) And if we are not doctors, we become monkeys. Yes, we address each other as monkeys and continue our conversations. If not monkeys, we address each other as mom and baby. Sometimes I am the mom and sometimes I’m the baby. ?

1. Role Reversal

Though I enjoy all the above games, I enjoy this one a little bit more. She becomes the mother and I become the baby. So I’m supposed to give her all cuddles and requests and she is suppose to hear me and respond. How cool is this game! We have a glitch here. I’ll tell you that too, when I’m not able to handle her tantrums, this game comes handy. I get to repeat all she does and she just looks at me like, damn you are the baby now? The best part in this is she calls me endearingly and cuddles as often as I ask. How cute is that? Also, let me tell you she warns me just the way I warn her. That’s another best point, I’ll tell you that.

I am glad I wrote this post. I’d been delaying this for a while now. Today while we were playing the role reversal something happened. I asked her to come and hug me, but she had to go and meet her grandfather and greet him good night. I insisted she stay with me and hug me. She just turned to me and told me to wait, because she had to go and say good night. I was happy. As a mother, she clearly laid her priorities in front of her child. I’m a happy mom. I see myself in a better phase now. As a mother and as an individual. Thanks to my daughter. God bless.

What games do you love to play with your little one? I’d love to know so I could add them to my list.

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Much Love Monday is a series I am hosting in my blog about how each of us look at Mondays. This will be hosted on the 3rd and 4th Monday in this blog. You can share your experience about your Monday or an experience worth sharing on Monday in your blog. You can add this badge to your post and comment here so we can follow each other’s posts.

The post Much Love Monday: 7 Games my Toddler and I Love to Play appeared first on JAYANTHY'S FREE SPACE.

After Ilakkiya, my shopping experiences have changed a lot. I usually buy only most familiar products for me. I use the same when it comes to skin care products because of my sensitive skin. While for Ilakkiya I was open to thousands of choices online, though I was initially confused on what to buy for her. I am glad I purchased all these things online because I am not interested in buying the costliest products as the best products pushed by the sales people in baby shops. After all, I know they are doing their job, still I am the one spending money and I don’t like being pushed too much.

So, let’s come to the products I purchased this year for the baby girl. My little one was 8 months and 5 days old in January 2018 and by the end of December 2018 she will be 19 months and a week old. I am listing the top 10 purchases I made between this period and those that helped me run my daily life this whole year.

1. Potty Seat Stool with Safety Belt

One of the toughest training for any child is potty training. That’s what I have heard from many other friends and in most articles I read online. Luckily, I was advised by my mother to start it as early as possible. So, this was one of Ilakkiya’s birthday gifts from me. I struggled for two weeks, because she did not like something about it. I have no idea what it is, but gradually she got comfortable using it. She was this sweet little darling when it came to potty training. Simple reason, we hardly used diapers on her. I realized she never liked wet pants. She always signals me to change her pants immediately. So, this made it easy for me to train her. I can happily say that I trained her only by showing her where to sit and what to do. She did the rest. Kids know things, they just need that guidance. Undoubtedly,this is my first product because it was the only one I wanted to buy before she turned 1.

2. Cloth Diapers

The Mother of All Cloth Diapers!

I have so much to share about my Cloth Diapering experience that I will dedicate many posts in the coming year for this. I initially bought a local brand from a baby shop and liked it. Then my go to product was Superbottoms All in One. Their soakers are the best I have bought till date. Their organic cotton soakers have absorbed better without much leakage. I love their trim cut. It looks adorable on the little one. I really love Mother Earth and I loved the design of these lovely diapers. Try these for your little ones, I am sure you will be glad you tried. They are the best below Rs. 1000.

3. Some More Cloth Diapering

LUZKER

There were so many other brands I tried. Yes, Super bottoms is costlier in comparison to these, but it was worth it. There are many other brands which come in the economical category due to microfiber inserts. I tried LUZKER and Babyhug(available on first cry). I am planning to stock a couple more diapers and I think I will choose Bumberry for it. If you are looking for diapers just for a walking session or short outings, I would suggest these brands. Fig-o-honey is also an excellent option. Motherly has wonderful prints that you will fall in love with.

4. Charcoal, Bamboo and Hemp Inserts

Charcoal that lasts long!

I felt microfiber wasn’t absorbing a lot as I expected, still it held up to an hour or two sometimes. I also found the material was getting rough after a period of usage. Microfibers mustn’t really touch the baby’s skin. It would create rashes due to its rough nature and it is best when used only in the pocket available in the cloth diapers. When I looked for other options, I found so many. Bamboo, hemp, charcoal to name a few. I loved the options offered. I also liked the fact that they get softer after usage and can be placed on the baby’s skin directly. Their absorbency was great and they don’t stink like microfiber. 

5. Mama earth Berry Blast Toothpaste

When baby girl turned 15 months old, we started a brushing routine. It is almost three months now. Initially, I was apprehensive about using a toothpaste for her. I never felt the need for it, but I see that she has a sweet tooth just like her father. I am left with no choice, but to follow a stringent brushing routine and that’s when I found Mama earth’s Berry Blast toothpaste. She swallows it and that’s the whole point of using a toothpaste for someone so small. Safe to swallow. Kindly squeeze out tiny amounts only. Since there are no fluorides, I feel it is not harsh on her and she likes to eat it! I am not a fan actually of swallowing the toothpaste, but a fan of building a routine.

6. Mama earth Moisturizing Lotion

Since I was almost fixed with Mama earth, I must agree I am a fan of their range. I love the Daily Moisturizing lotion because I am glad that both of us could use the same. I purchase it with Amazon Subscribe and Save and it helps! I like the mild fragrance and it gets quickly absorbed into the baby’s skin. It is a travel-friendly bottle too.

7. Mama earth Mosquito Repellent

I use it. I use it for my little one. The citronella keeps away the mosquitoes. It is quickly absorbed and prevents any harm especially if your little one keeps her fingers in her mouth even while they sleep. It must be applied often during the day and a couple of times during the night in case you live in an hyper-active mosquito zone. I usually apply it only after my little one sleeps.

8. Classic Mosquito Net

One among the best buys this year is the Classic Mosquito Net. The best part of this net is I don’t have to go searching for four corners of my room to hang the mosquito net. This is the new age mosquito net ideal for anybody who uses a bed. I love it and baby girl and I enjoy the tent like creation. It is cozy and cute and protects us from mosquitoes. Aren’t our age old methods always the best? I fold it every morning and place it safely inside the cover provided.

9. Mamy Poko Pants

Truth be told, we all know, diapers cannot be avoided. Instead it can be used minimally. Undoubtedly, it is the best for heavy nights, sick days and long travel. So these are the times I use Mamy Poko Pants. One good thing is it holds up for 6 to 8 hours only. That is the best part about it. I don’t want to keep my girl in diapers for more than 4 to 8 hours too. So, subscribe and save in Amazon for best offers. My girl is on Medium size now and 74 pieces last for a full 3 months, at times it goes to 4 months too.

10. Johnson’s New Range of Products

After I attended the Johnson’s cafe meet, somehow I wanted to try their products. Leaving my fears behind, I am using some of their new ranges on me first. I love their Milk+Rice lotion. I am yet to use Top to toe baby wash on Ilakkiya. However, we like the Baby lotion already. Let’s see how well this works in the long run. If you are a fan of Johnson’s, then enjoy the new range. If you are one among the apprehensive lot, give it a try I say! I have heard raving reviews of their night range of  products. Chamomile based body wash and lotion, worth the try, no?

Which products did you buy for your little one this year? Share here with me!

This is not a sponsored post. I have shared my honest opinions about the product. However, this post may contain affiliate links which means I make a small commission if you make a purchase at no additional cost to you. See the disclosure policy for more information.

The post Top 10 Essentials I Bought for my Baby Girl from Amazon in 2018 appeared first on JAYANTHY'S FREE SPACE.

Women Power @ Writer’s Cafe, Gopalapuram

Prerna Wahi, Our delightful host

Me, entering with doubts filled.

Baby Tasneem, launching the products

Interestingly, I reached the venue by 10:30am, the allotted time. Yes, Ilakkiya was in safe hands and I was surprised that I had taken this chance without worrying about her. Since this is my first blogger meet/ Cafe meet / meet in general I was beyond excited about it. By 11 half of the crowd was already there. We started introducing ourselves to one another and conversations started building up slowly. We followed each other in Instagram and our social media notifications was flooding. Prerna and Richa officially started the meeting and it began with a bang.

Tasneem and Jameela

The highlight of this meet were the NEW Johnson’s products, but to me, it was the 9 month old Baby Tasneem. Her mother Jameela tried the products on her skin and her baby’s skin without any fear. She was glad to try it and the products definitely attracted the little one.

Deep discussions.

NEW Johnson’s

After introducing Organic variety this has become very common norms in everyday products. Johnsons has joined the race to make things better for it’s customers. With 8000+ clinically proven tests and 12 months of guidance on what Ingredients must be added to each of the products, Johnson’s is very clear this time. These products can be used for every newborn right from day one. Since my daughter is now 16 months old, I am thinking about shifting my perspective towards Johnson, I am willing to give it a try. I personally love their milk and rice cream which improved the texture of my skin in a few hours. More on the products when I personally use it.

My best moments at the meet!

The post My Johnson’s Story #ChooseGentle appeared first on JAYANTHY'S FREE SPACE.

I started my search when Ilakkiya was 3 months old. By then she already had a severe rash due to over-wiping with wet wipes, she used to cry when we used a mild soap(Pigeon) as it hurt her eye, she also got a diaper rash. Well, I was totally crushed to know that I was nowhere close to handling a baby in a soft and gentle manner. I have never held any other baby in my arms, no, not even my sister. Somehow I found them to be cute and adorable and too fragile for me. So, personally and officially, Ilakkiya was the first baby I had to experiment as well as experience everything with. Well, there she was lying on the bed, drooling happily and laughingly trusting her mother completely. Blind Love that was!

As a responsible mother, I really had this job to find something safe, free from most harmful chemicals and definitely not tested on animals. No synthetic fragrances, obviously free from parabens and definitely no added preservatives. This list eliminated many products that was gifted for the little one. I had to even keep away those given by close family. They felt bad, but I knew they would understand. I was looking for simple products that understood babies and their world that resolved parents concerns.

I really didn’t know where to look. I googled a lot and tried to find about the ingredients. I was tired by the end of it all. I was relatively new on Instagram then. I scrolled through posts by friends and friends of friends. The continuous scrolling lead me to mama earth from one random Instagram post. Many participated in some giveaway and I was luckily tagged since I was a new mother then. Anyway, I took that opportunity to run a quick check about them.

Image Courtesy: Google

I browsed Amazon for the list of mama earth products available with them. I found 200 ml of every product and honestly, I wasn’t ready to buy such big bottles of baby things. I scrolled to find this amazing mama earth Travel Essentials Kit for Babies with exactly what I needed at that moment. I was overjoyed. It was like a hit with me to find the right package.

The kit contained the following 40 ml vol.(each) products:

• Moisturizing Daily Lotion for Babies
• Deeply Nourishing Body Wash for Babies
• Gentle Cleansing Shampoo for Babies
• Soothing massage oil for Babies

On it’s very first use, the Body Wash didn’t irritate her eyes and that relieved me. It was a squeaky clean product which wasn’t really needed for a 5 month old. However, very small quantities were enough for her. The 40 ml lasted for for a month and a half(we bathed her thrice a week).

She loved the massages we gave her with the Massage Oil. The aroma was fantastic, it filled me with joy and it instantly relaxed me. I bet it was the right concoction for relaxing a tired mother.

The Cleansing Shampoo didn’t irritate her eyes, but she didn’t need much of it, so I used the remaining tube for my hair. It came by for two washes, but I felt it left my hair too dry.

The Moisturizing lotion helped her a lot during the rainy season. I went ahead and bought the bigger version of the same. More on that in another post soon.

Overall, I was impressed with the kit for the products it offered my little girl and me. The best part about these range of products was how it offered to help the baby as well as the mother. It can be used by both of us! That made me feel more safe and friendly towards their products.

In the coming posts, I will explain in detail what are the mama earth products I regularly buy for my little one and how it makes things easier for both of us.

This is not a sponsored post. I have shared my honest opinions about the product. However, this post may contain affiliate links which means I make a small commission if you make a purchase at no additional cost to you. See the disclosure policy for more information.

The post Here’s Why I Chose Mamaearth for My 5 Month Old appeared first on JAYANTHY'S FREE SPACE.

As a mother, I am not questioned just by family and friends about your growth, but by most unknowns because I have a tiny child. Trust me, it is tough being a mother. I also had to go through some critical comments from so many people I personally thought were friends. I am glad I learnt about many through our tough time. People really thought I hardly fed you. I was almost put under the radar by some. After facing the drum, I made up my mind not to give heed to any comments and also not to ask anyone for suggestions anymore. I sat and researched on healthy foods for kids. I asked my mother and grandmother to help me with recipes. I pretended I knew what I was doing, even though it was a trial and error method for me. I brought ingredients and my mother in law offered to help. Finally, your porridge got ready and I made a few changes to your routine. Slowly, you started gaining weight. Throughout the struggle, your Appa was very understanding and patient with others for throwing their mind our way.

Image Courtesy: Google

Earlier I used to be bothered about your weight, I even used to yell at you to eat. You wouldn’t. You would just move around. It took me some time to understand that a child’s cognitive development is the most important factor over weight. Appa and I used to sit down and talk about this. He wasn’t a tad worried about your weight. He always asks me to let you be and ignore everyone’s comments. I felt even my mother was very critical about you and I gave her a piece of my mind. After which, she realized how it has to be said and that you were alright. Just like us you prefer to eat fruits over juice. That was the first sign of a healthy baby to him. We never gave much fruit juices to you. People would try and pull you to follow the norm, but sometimes you need to go with your own flow to accomplish what you set out for.

Babies gain weight. Sometimes it is a slow process. That is acceptable. I have stopped yelling at you. I am not making a fuss over your food anymore. I give you everything that is prepared at home for us. I am not trying hard to push it on to you. If you wave your hand to a No or shake your head sideways, I am okay to accept it as enough and not stuff more on to you. I have realized where to stop. This has helped you enjoy most foods now. Biriyani is your current favorite. You try to eat what you can. I am okay with breaking the meal time and meals. This helps me keep my calm and let you eat what you want. A hearty meal could be a spoonful or a plate full. I am okay with both now. You are still way off the chart, but I am okay with it. You are gaining and the doctors don’t see any problems with the slow weight gain either. They always ignored my weight queries. They just ask me if you are alert, active and happy. I say, “Yes Doc, she turns the house upside down!”

Love,
Amma

                                ===============================================

To all new moms,

Don’t worry about infants being way off the chart. None of our parents or grandparents weighed us everyday and worried. Neither did they bother about every doctor visit like today. They provided good food and a happy environment. The rest followed. They were okay with the children being the children. That’s all we must bother about. Junk will help gain easy weight, but that isn’t going to help us in anyway. A little of everything is all they need. So let’s keep them happy and healthy!

People could make you feel terrible by sharing their children’s weight or grandchildren’s weight. That is okay. Just tell them every child is different and their growth spurts matter. If people don’t bother to listen and focus on the weight, well, that’s all they know folks! Leave it at that. Don’t waste a calorie more to explain. You need it to run behind your child! Let’s just be thankful that we have abundance to give our child. Let us remember the nations were parents are starving and their children are dying. This is enough to forget our doubts and be thankful.

Love,

A Mom!

I am excited to participate in #MyFriendAlexa Campaign by Blogchatter. I am taking my blogging to the next level! This is my Post 5 for the campaign!

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2. Power Brings Responsibility

A powerful career might look very appeasing on the outside. As much as power brings responsibility it also brings accountability in our lives. It is not about reporting to someone, it is about focussing on a larger good in our job. It is about the betterment of many lives. It is about making things better one place at a time. It is about seeing the change happen right in front of our eyes. It is seeing our country grow today setting a strong base towards good choices to many youngsters. It is about believing that doing good things is always worth it.

3. A Calm Mind and A Fit Body

A challenging career will make a person get into the depths of every subject before spilling out words. Isn’t reading the first success to become a great leader? When we understand, every little detail counts and every little thing makes a difference, we learn to appreciate them. This also brings more gratitude towards our life and our career. We would not fall prey to little annoyances and also learn to see people for who they are and what they really want. Working for the people of our country always yields greater satisfaction than anything. Health is the first goal and it is easier when set with a greater goal. Fitness falls into the list and becomes a daily habit and a way of life.

4. Learning from Failures

Not every decision we make is going to bring good, not every turn we take is going to be our destination. So, it is important to fail. It is more important to get back up and learn from our mistakes. Our mistakes teach us more than our successes. All our mistakes have always taught us one good lesson about ourselves and our lives. A challenging career would bring her lots of failures. Not everyone is going to shake their heads and accept to everything she says. So, she will learn much from her failures. She will learn to analyse about her strengths and weaknesses from her failures and change it. It is about becoming her own teacher. Correcting herself and moving on.

5. Humble and Kind

Mistakes make us humble. Helping others makes us kind. These are the ideal characteristics of a great leader. Though failures break us, it also opens us to many good things around us. A fuelled mind will always focus on learning from what is available. It is the first step to becoming a happy person and a successful person. Creating happiness is more important than depending on it. It is also about paving a better road for the generations to come.

I am glad to see parenting on a lighter note now. Earlier I used to stress about many things. Now, this has given me a clear vision on parenting and makes it an interesting path to tread on. Apart from the children, it also gives a grand vision and mission to parents. Let our children become great leaders who bring change in our country and make it our APJ’s pride as he always envisioned.

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