Life Lately July

 Hi, there,

I hope you all are fine. We all are still juggling. 

It is the last week of July 2023 and we are in our baby steps. On 1st July we enter in this new house and mentally prepared for new home and new challenge on a positive note.😃 There is no such thing --- no, but gradually I am learning to take every step slowly with positive mindset. It doesn't mean you have to be happy. I am trying to minimise my irritation and negativity. It is really difficult where you have to unpack your whole house, the elder ones new school, study, exam, twin toddlers and Mr. Hubby. Hussshhh.... !

We decided to go as slowly as possible. It is one of the phases which will fade away not very soon but yes, it will. I love to arrange a home but with twin toddlers it is quite tough. Then I thought these were the precious memories of my twins. They will be growing up here ! That's why I am updating my life Lately on my blog. MemoryFlies 😊

We shifted to a new house, a new city, new surroundings and new people. This is our 4th shift and I think it will be the last and best. Yep, with the best mindset life will be best. What do you think?

The things we learn about people and neighbours. No matter wherever you go, wherever you stay in a high standard locality or middle class or lower middle class, you will get the same ( worse ) kind of people. Only 30% can be kind and helpful.

So the lesson learnt is not to have any expectations with anyone. No need to be kind to unkind people. Just to have causal meetings and try to avoid as much as you can except social gatherings.

Life Lately is having twin toddlers who are in the climbing stage and constantly putting fingers in electric holes. Have to arrange furniture accordingly so that they will be safe. 

Currently my TV wall unit looks like this. Not yet properly arranged but will get soon.

The kitchen is a disaster right now. Arranged basic utility so that I am able to cook three meals.

This is my pantry, I always wanted to have a pantry in my kitchen and so finally got it. I hope I will organise as soon as possible. 

Basically this is a non modular kitchen which is small but I love it because it is more functional and keeps me in my minimalistic nature. 

Yes! I am Grateful:

Grateful to have a roof, food and water.

Grateful to have a pollution free atmosphere.

Grateful to have peaceful surroundings.

Grateful to have accessibility to each tiny thing. 

Currently reading :

To my toddlers only, 😊

These are favourite ones.

Helping my elder one because this time her board has changed and so it is new for her and for me too.

Currently Watching

I love to binge on Netflix but unable to watch as I did not get any ME time. Still I am watching YouTube videos to get more inspiration to carry on homemaking. 

My favourites are : 

Old World Home

I love to watch English one because they do not have any drama on their channels. 

I watched her for the last 8 years and still she is my favourite. Inspired me a lot to be healthy and happy. Which one is your favourite? Comment below.

Currently Favourite Food: 

Nothing right now. But yes I am into feeding my family healthy food as much as possible. So currently my favourite foods are Ragi, Carrot and beet.

I am adding these to every food item. And trying to make new dishes.

Currently mood : 

Tired, and want to go out on a walk for at least 30 minutes. 

But unable.... 

Instead trying to move my body on zumba move😃 once in a week at least for 15 min. 😂

Currently I love to talk with my daughter. We got the time to chat at night only when we are on our bed and constantly talking with each other. She love this time and me too. Sometimes I have to tell her go to sleep because she is not a morning person. And I also allow her to have a complete sleep.

My life Lately is quiet challenging. Because there are still boxes to unpack, the wardrobes are waiting to be wiped down, unpacking of clothes, still the drillings are pending, still kitchen need to streamlined.... And blaa....blaaa....blaaa...

One of most precious thing is my three daughters are happy and able to cope up with this new shift. New change in everyday routine, seasonal change and off course the sleeping room change.

Questions of the day

How do you tackle the shifting? Does it drives you madly or you taking it slowly?

This blog post is part of the blog challenge ‘Blogaberry Dazzle’
hosted by Cindy D’Silva and Noor Anand Chawla.  

©Neeta Kadam. This article and image are the property of Memory Flies. Any unauthorized use or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author is strictly prohibited.

Summer dates with Dad

Hello June 2023,

Daddy love her daughter so much and always excited to take her out. I called it Date with Dad and both love it too 😊The bonding between dad and daughter is always special and I want to save this memory on my blog as these are the special moments for us as a parents. 

We are in half of the year 2023. Is it going so fast for me or  you guys feel the same speed?  school will start and so our mom duties (dauda dauda bhaga bhaga sa) 😭😡😊

How was your summer holiday?Our was filled with fun and a little bit of stress. But I will share some happiness. 

A summer date with dad - As the title of my blog post. Why I called  a date because daddy is her favourite than a mom and she loves to travel with him. Dad get very less time but we are happy to have as much as dad can. This summer holiday we want to make it special for her because the last two year was stressful for us. Arrival of twins siblings made her happy but more responsible too (Mommy guilt is here) but I guess this is the time where she is learning what is family love.  

Daddy loves to go with the family. I am afraid to travel with a twin baby due to numerous reasons. On the last day of her school her dad asked her to make a bucket list of the places where she wants to go. It should be a one day outing only. And so she made it. Dad has only weekends and so it was packed with daddy -daughter date.😃😊 

I am so happy to see her happy. She convinced me to be with her but I denied. Cruel mum 😭 . I wanted to go out with her. But I don't want to mess her day out with dad. At least she can fully enjoy. 

So what was her bucket list? 

Sharing some major glimpses of summer date with dad. We stayed in Mumbai and she is 9 years old now. We didn't take her out because she was so small to explore Mumbai train travel. She had been to many places like Andman, Kashmir and Kerla too. When we decided to take her to the Mumbai darshan lock down started. 😑 Now we are ready (we thought ) she is ready to travel.

Summer holiday starts from the second week of April. She had to rest, sleep, screen and play for hours with friends in the first two weeks. Then our bucket list was ready and most importantly dad also got free for her daughter.

The first weekend was Gate way of India. 

Dad prepared her like, how to reach over there? 

How to take a ticket from the railway station? 

How many stations have to cross ? 

And mentally prepared her for the RUSH of the local train.

She read it in her GK book and then watched it on YouTube too. When she actually travelled with her dad, she realised how far it is and how crowded it. She loved it though it was crowded and dirty. (True!)  Not able to had a fairy round due to the crowd but she enjoyed her first date with her dad. Had ice cream only as she was too tired to eat anything. Reached home and slept.

Another weekend of the summer holiday was Nehru planetarium. Both were very excited. The first time she traveled with the A.C. local train and got frozen. 

She insisted on having a denim jacket but I was denied due to the heat. Poor my daughter,😑 but she managed. I think these are things where our children should learn how to cope up with unfavorable situations on their own, right? What do you think?

Outside look of the place

On planet

I still have not checked this place. But both of them enjoyed it.

Some To Dos if you haven't checked out: 

# You have to pre Book tickets.

# Shows are in 3 languages, Marathi, English and Hindi. You can choose as per your comfort.

# There is cafeteria so you can have snacks.  

# There are many things which we learnt about our planet in a very short time. 

Next weekend date : Pool Party. 

She had a school picnic where she was unable to enjoy because  it was in winter, and there was no pick and drop facility available. Yes, she missed many things due to our twins schedule (feel sorry for her) but we promised her to have lots of celebrations during her summer holidays. And here we are keeping our promise! 

The pool party was at the farmhouse. I don't like crowded pools and I prefer to have two families only. We had the clean and non messy pool party. Music was in moderation and with twins we  enjoyed.  

Food was awesome like home cooked. It was baby friendly too. The lawn was clean, the trees shades and whole farm was beautiful.  This date was with family and we enjoyed it fully.

And rest of summer holiday at nannis house with her cousins.  Meanwhile we enjoyed movie dates at home with bucket of homemade.popcorn and mangoes.

This post was created for the Blogaberry Creative (Monthly) Challenge.

How was your Summer holiday? 

©Neeta Kadam. This article and image are the property of Memory Flies. Any unauthorized use or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author is strictly prohibited.

Tips For Road Trip With a Small Kids

 

PS: befamilytravel.com

Summer vacation are going to end very soon. But somehow our family travel still going on. Some had exotic vacation like Maldives 😉 and some had upto moms places. We moms are eagerly waiting for vacation to meet our mom and dad! People travel by road, rail, air and sea. 

I am going to talk about Road Travel. People who travel by car with toddler or even with the small kids. Most of moms are still messy when it comes to travel. I saw people used to fill train or car  with their litters. Have you experienced this ?

I love to travel by train. But travelling by car with our little one is little bit hectic. Yes, we plan adventurous road family trip with kids but it should be fun and filled with joy. Is that possible?

Yes! Definitely.

Sharing some tips which I mostly follow on road trip. If you have toddlers or small kids then not to worry. 

Let's start. 

Even if your journey is small or long kids get tired easily. To keep them engaged is a daunting task for every parents. Continues pee break irritate some parents and we ended up in giving screen in their hands. 

Do you feel it in same way? 

 Here are some practical tips which I followed to have smooth road trips. 

👕Wear comfortable clothes 

Child's comfort is most important in any trips. Always choose the clothes in which your child is comfotable. A simple t-shirt and pant is go to. Because they are traveling so give this choice to them but at the same time put only that clothes in front of them which you think comfortable for them.,😉 (Cheating)

Keep extra blanket, caps, pillow for comfort. 

Fill your car with extra blankets, pillow and warm caps. If you are traveling in winter or at night. It will give them a nice sleep in the car. 

Keep napkins and wet tissue papers. :

Specially when you are travelling with kids such wet napkins are handy. Extra Napkins, handkerchief should be in your bag pack. Keep one pair of clothes in your bag pack. You never know potty and pee and sometime vomiting 😐are part of travelling. 

If you are traveling with babies then you should keep one trash bag to dispose the diapers. If you are traveling with small kids then you have to keep extra pair of clothes including undergarments. 

👟Wear shoes or sneekers to your kids. 

Do not ask your kids to wear fancy shoes . It is always advisable to have shoes with socks. Ask them to remove the shoe inside the car.

🍏Carry homemade foods 

Carry lots of fruits like grapes, orange, strawberry which are easy to peel and finished quickly. Fruits always keep them hydrate and filled. 

Try to take homemade paratha, chikki, til or rajgira laddo which are easy to eat. Instead of taking packaged food which might cause stomach upset. Allow to have one or two chips or tangy food instead of chocolates but in a limited quantity.

🥤Carry water

 Yes this is the most important tips. Instead of purchasing water from outside it is more beneficial to carry your own water bottles. Pack a whole bag of this bottle and use thought the trip.

🐶Carry Toys 

Have kids favourite one soft toy always. Do not get irritated when your kid want to take toys with them. They love to be with their toy and we should respect their feeling. Allow one or two toys only. This will make them happy and ultimately you are happy too.

🚽Take Toilet Breaks:

Take this small breaks and allow your kids to use public washroom for freshen up. Always take such bathroom break near the park or hotels which have the park. Let them enjoy so that they can stretch out the legs.

Sing a song and have funny Q and A

😛Keep talking with them so that they will enjoy. If kids ask, have we reach?tell them we will reach on time. You are not allowed to ask the same question again and again. You can ask any other question. Then see the curiosity and start the conversation. This will increase imagination and curiosity of your child.

Sing a song together. Play antakshari they will enjoy and you too.

Play games : 

Like count trees, name the cloud shape, read board on highway (our favourite one), name cars and vehicles, observe the mirror.  Try to give out answer of every curious questions.without using Google.😉

Technology

Try to use less as much as possible in terms of giving screen to your kids. Instead of that you can listen audio books for kids. It is the big hit for me. We love to listen story on audio books at my home too. 

No Activity:

A big NO for this. I will not encourage to do any activity in moving vehicle specially drawing, colouring or reading. That is not at all good for eyes. So avoid that. Let them be free. Do not dump any activity book with your travelling luggage. 

First aid kit

Always have a small first aid kit with you. It should have all basics things. Keep medicine too in case required.

PS: VectorStock

These are my points according to my experience which I found most useful. Not being an Instagram mommies to fill every place with activities. I believe to give space for children to choose the way they want to be. Kids should learn themselves how to cope up with the surrounding. Every time our surroundings changed and we have to change with that. If we keep them pampered how will they going to learn to live there life? Agree?

Meanwhile if you love to travel then don't forget to check out my travel post. 

Link in bio : 

Pawna Lake Camping

Beauty of Kashmir  

Tour of ND studio 

Visit at Karla lane 

Which things you follow while traveling with your kids? 

©Neeta Kadam. This article and image are the property of Memory Flies. Any unauthorized use or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author is strictly prohibited.

Things I am Loving #Gratitude List 3 April Edition

I am pretty late in publishing my gratitude list. It's been the end of May and I am publishing my April Gratitude List. 

Earlier I used to think like this and was never able to publish even well written blog posts. I write what I feel and think other moms will get inspired. In the reels world I still love to write. And I really love to look at my whole previous month to check on how I progress in terms of self development. Did I learnt something ? Or am I just blaming the situation, people and time?

For the last 4 years my journal writing is limited to my diary. Then I started to write on my blog at my personal space. And you know, actually I am enjoying this journey. 

5 things I am Loving it #Gratitude List April 2023 

1. Study and peace

I am able to put my daughter in self study mode. With mom Peace 😉 Yes. It took time but finally we completed this years final exam without yelling. 

We enjoyed the last week of school. And happy to get the report card too. 

Grateful to the universe for the change. This is only the first step. I am very impatient in terms of my kids study in. So learning to go step by step. And I know I can do it. 

2. Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Jayanti Celebration: 

This year was special for celebration of this Jayanti. As a child I still remember we used to go to have that procession.

And I wanted to show my daughter what is it? How big is our festival? How it is celebrated all over the world? Every year we saw this on TV. But now she is big enough and so I wanted to show her, to make feel her. 

And We went at my mummy's house. There was the grand celebration. We witnessed that with our kiddo. Yes it is quiet hectic for myself with babies. But we did it. Something different and I enjoyed it. 

Grateful that my wish completed. And able to be a part of this giant celebration after so many years .

3. Grateful to have my father:

He is on the verge of old age. Grateful that he does not have any kind of disease. When I get "pappa calling ' on my phone screen,  eyes teared. (Specially on my birthday, I know this is last call. ,😑

I saw how tough is to be at the end of the life. He didn't want to live a life but we convince him that there is still life for him.

Still he is in bed but glad, he can sit, and talk. Watch his favourite IPL match (not all but some). Not eating much, very little like a baby meal. Trying to be with us. I prey to God give him strength to live though this tough phase.

4.Summer Holiday

I still remember last summer. It was so hectic and stressful. But time flew - very slow and crucial for me.  I am happy to look back. How I nurture my twins. How I handle it all alone. How much strength I had. Grateful to the Universe for making me so strong. I did it because I am a mother. 

Finally summer is here and tried to be mindfully present in every moments. Daughter had her first bucket list and we are trying to fulfill it. 

This summer holiday is the special because she had a Date With her Pappa. Both had a Mumbai Darshan (small) one. The first date at Gate Way Of India. Enjoying this Summer break with family.

5. The bonding among my kids.

Officially now we are a big family. Family of 5. I have 3 siblings and always wanted to give that joy to my daughter. Earlier I was happy with a single kid. But then constantly this thought reminds me how we siblings are happy. That small fights, joy, eating together and playing together give immense happiness. So I wanted to give that feeling to my only child. 

Happy to see how she has nurtured her bonding with twins. She played with them, taught them, and ran with them . Taking care when mumma makes meals or does any household chores.

Truly grateful for that.

and if I yelled or said anything rubbish she would get angry with me. And make me understand by saying, "mummy they are just babies. They don't understand. "

How lucky I am to have such a mature kid. Grateful to the universe for giving me 3 girls . 

I learnt and still learning. As a mom you get evolved through many phases. It is only the way you looked at. If you start to enjoy the phase mindfully you will surprised to see how life is. It depends on you how you take it, beautiful or stressful 😊

Question of the Day 

Have you related to any of the above points? Which things you are grateful for ?

©Neeta Kadam. This article and image are the property of Memory Flies. Any unauthorized use or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author is strictly prohibited.

Meri Pari - Poem for my twins in hindi

This poem is for my twin baby. Actually for my elder twin. I love her so much. Her every tiny act make me surprised and bring tears to my eyes. I know time flew very fast. 

Hain to nanhinisi,

Pyaarri badi lgati hain,

Uchal uchal ke kudke,

Pet pe meri hasati hain,

Teri smile pe fida huin mein,

Akhir tu mera hi to ansh hain,

Gale lagalu jee bhar ke,

Waqt ko roku wahi pe,

Pata hain muje to jaldi badi hogi,

Fir na samayegi is godi mein,

Aaa chum lo tuje mein aur ek baar

Rakhu samate ke ye pal hamesha ke liye.

----By Neeta Kadam

©Neeta Kadam. This article and image are the property of Memory Flies. Any unauthorized use or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author is strictly prohibited.

Memory Lane with Ananta Flower

 

Rujuta stands near the tree which only has few branches, no leaves and no flowers. She observing trees so minutely. Her friend got confused and watched her. 

Then Rujuta just walks nearby and observes a broken structure. There are only stones and sand. She lost in her thoughts. Meera her friend didn't understand.

After some time,

Meera : Do you know this place?

Rujuta : I  Spend my whole childhood here.

Meera surprised. Because the place does not show any signs of the neighbourhood. 

Rujuta : Hey, Meera, our childhood memories are always with us. No matter how big we grow but those memories you have in your dream or in your mind. Right?

Meera  nodded head and said yeah!

Rujuta started, this is Ananta Tree. Do you know Ananta Flower? It is one of my favourite flowers. I have liked it since my childhood.

Meera : No dear, I don't know about this flower.

Rutuja : This tree grew up with me. When I was 8 years old the tree was exactly my height. My Aai water the tree. She and I both were always with the tree. Talking, watering, feeding this tree. It was like our family members. 

You know this tree has Ananta flower which is white colour and smell amazing. The whole 12 months tree had flowers and I love that. Our backyard looked so beautiful and this whole tree was covered with white Ananta flowers.

I still remember the early morning when I was 9 years old. My Aai loves Ananta Flower. She used to put in her bun daily. In the morning after her bath and dressing she used to take out at least two to three flowers from this tree. 

That morning I got up and rubbed my eyes. I came to the backyard and sat on the steps. Then I started to tease my Aai 😃 by showing her flowers. She was busy and listened patiently. I told her there were flowers on the next branch. She didn't find it. Again I told her, on the above your head, there is a branch and near that there are flowers. She tried and tried but didn't find any flowers. 

And I said, "April Fool !

We both laughed so much. 

It was the 1st of April. And I always make her April Fool first. She enjoyed it too. I love her so much. 

And tears came out from her eyes. 

You would like to read

My gratitude Journaling here and here. 

My year end review with questions here.

My twin baby updates here 

QUESTION FOR YOU :

WHICH FLOWERS DO YOU LIKE MOST?

DO YOU HAVE ANY UNFORGETTABLE MEMORY WITH  FLOWERS?

This post was created for the Blogaberry Creative (Monthly) Challenge.

This blog post is part of the blog challenge ‘Blogaberry Dazzle’ hosted by Cindy D’Silva and Noor Anand Chawla in collaboration with Zariya Healings.

 

©Neeta Kadam. This article and image are the property of Memory Flies. Any unauthorized use or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author is strictly prohibited.

7 Question You Should Ask Before Hiring A Babysitter

Hello,

How are you? Happy May!😊. Keeping my toddler busy and content is the toughest job ever currently. With the help of our didi, we do enjoyed a lot. It is delightful to see how these tiny people growing and bring lot of joy in our life. Due to nuclear family in the early days we had to have a babysitter because it was very difficult for me to handle everything. My health was hampering and so there was an urgent need to have loving and helpful babysitter or nanny. By God sake I had a nanny who was really loving and caring.

Today's topic is all about hiring a babysitter. I wish I could have this knowledge before I hired a babysitter. But with flow of life I learned these things. 

Keeping a babysitter is requirements. Due to nuclear family when there is no one to help you then you must hire a babysitter. It will give you rest and keep you calm.

But in India Babysitters, maid or cook in short these helping staff have the more attitude. We ladies have to be very soft conversation with them but they will not have any soft voice. 😁 Because it is very difficult to get the nice babysitter / maid and most important she should be good in work and stay atleast 6 months. I had an experience while interviewing them, their voice is so loud than us. Most of the time it look they will going to pay us. 😐  

How to handle these things?

Babysitter work on hourly basis. Be smart before appointing them. Following is the list of questions you should ask before hiring a babysitter. 

Time : 

You should be very clear about timing. Ask them that they have to come on time everyday. And she should inform in case of late.

Means if you are scheduling for 2 to 6 then she should come sharp 2. If she came @2:15 then she should left 6 :15 pm. You have to be very clear about this. Because babysitter charge on hourly basis. 

Hygine : 

This is the most important topic HYGINE. Babysitter have to follow your prescribed house rules. If babysitter is clean then only you can handover baby to her. 

Check out the following points :

👵She should have bath and came in clean cotton soft clothes. 

👵No fancy clothes allowed because that will hurt baby's delicate skin.

👵No strong perfume allowed. Mild perfume should be there.

👵Hair should be tie in a bun always.

👵No sticky bindi because if it falls down baby can put in mouth.

👵Once she enter she should wash feet and hands with water.

👵Keep baby clean throughout her working hours.

👵Use soft clothes and warm water to wipe out baby face, bump, tummy or anything.

No force feeding / sleeping

🍼Babysitters work is to handle baby not to put them on crib and make them sleep.  You have to clear about this.

🍼Baby have strict schedule of eating and sleeping. Babysitter should follow that. If baby is not eating then there should be no force feeding to babies.

🍼Feed baby as the way baby mom feed. Do not use your own tactics. Make baby sit and then feed slowly. 

🍼Do not set any new schedule. Stick to babies old sleep schedule.

No screen for baby

🤳🏼Some babysitter give screen to babies to get themselves free.

🤳Clear this point, no screen should be there for baby or to babysitter too. 

 🤳🏼Yes, if baby sleep, she can use her phone. 

No harsh voice

😫Babysitter should not raise her volume while handling babies. 

😌She always need to talk softly with babies.

😓Even if baby is giving hard time, she have to be patience and talk softly with baby.

Comfortable : 

This is the last point but very important. Babysitter should be comfortable to you and to your babies. If her vibes give you any wrong implications you have to stop immediately and let her go.

Attentive n loving

💝Babysitter should be attentive. She should be quick and attentive to baby's need. 

💝Babysitter should love  babies. She should handle baby very carefully with love.

These are the basic things which you should have to check while hiring a babysitter. Ask this question and if she comfortable to it then only go ahed.

While there are Some FAQ : 

Q.Which kind of babysitter you should hire ?

Ans : Babysitter should be woman. Yes, do not hire girl because they are less experience and have more arrogance issue. 

Q. What should be the age ?

Ans : Babysitter age should be 30 +  who have kids, grandkids. Do not hire very old babysitter too because she will get tired fast. So activeness is the most important factor. How quickly she can get up is the important thing.

Q. Experience is needed? 

Ans: Yes. Experience should be mandatory. No matter work experience but at least she should have her own baby / grand baby experience.

Q.What quality you should look ?

Ans : Cleanliness is most important point. Attentive, no arrogance and no harsh voice these qualities you should look.

Q. How do you choose ?

Ans :While interviewing you should ask simple question. Whatever you want to ask as per your requirements. Question should be timing, money, leaves, holiday, etc. 

Apart from this clear above mentioned things first. And if she agree then only go ahed.

If you still have a doubt then keep her for trial period say for one week. Then observe whether she is able to do it or not ? Always go with your gut feeling. 

Q. How do you find more trustworthy?

Ans : It will come automatically. When we used to be with her. Even if in your absence baby is happy and content that means your babysitter is trustworthy. 

But for that you too have to change your behavior. You have to treat her as a family person with boundaries. If you give the same respect and love your half of the problem get resolved. 

Yes! We are paying money but they should also feel safe at our place. Keep your house atmosphere friendly to them. 

I am greatful to had a nanny to my baby. She love my 3 children and Love me too. 😊We always treat her like a elderly family member.

I hope this post is helpful to you mummy. Share it with the needy one.

Do You have a babysitter in your lifetime? What do you look before hiring a babysitter?

This blog post is part of the blog challenge ‘Blogaberry Dazzle’
hosted by Cindy D’Silva and Noor Anand Chawla in collaboration with Monidipa Dutta.  

©Neeta Kadam. This article and image are the property of Memory Flies. Any unauthorized use or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author is strictly prohibited.