notjustmommying

My baby's birth has brought the biggest change in my life. When i got married i thought it to be the biggest event/ turning point in my life,  but alas it wasn't. Getting married is a cosmetic change, a change of place and people you live with; but becoming a parent, esp. mother stirs your  soul, changes your mental abilities and pushes you beyond your physical capabilities, it is life changing in every way. Since the day i bacame a mother, things started happening that had never happened before.. sleep became a luxury that we couldn't afford for 3 long months> more than 90 days we were sleep deprived. I wouldn't call it the best time, but we did sail through, everybody does. Being a mother made me highly efficient,   I have never felt so efficient before in my life. I can multi-task, take shower in 2 minutes( even maggi takes longer to cook),dress up carrying him in my arms,  cook multiple things or do multiple chores while carrying this little boy...

Image source: skola.toys Flowers and the bee - A toy for toddlers to enhance multiple skills  Children are intrinsically curious and creative, growing up in this made up world adulterates these traits.  I still remember my childhood days, how we loved  playing outdoors and made into toys things that would otherwise be trashed. Not that there was any dearth of toys, but making those things gave us a sense of accomplishment and also taught many other lessons.  So, if you ask me, the best way to keep their imagination alive will be to keep them close to nature and to offer them opportunities for lots of open ended play.  Skola is one of my favourite toy brands; they have  wonderful range of educational toys made from the high quality material which is mostly wood.  I am going to share my views and our experience of this particular Skola toy - "Flower and the bee" Packaging- The toy came in an attractive doodled carton...

Image source Wikipedia  As parents we want our kids to inherit the best of our qualities and we often pray that they don't acquire the flaws and traits we detest in ourselves.   I have never been inclined to numbers, never had aptitude for things that I could not see, touch,  feel; so, while I enjoyed social sciences and biology; physics, chemistry and maths never made much sense to me.   Howard Gardner, the famous psychologist from Harvard proposed the popular theory of multiple intelligences in 1983, which emphasised on 8 main types of intelligences/abilities that every human posseses, with few being dominant and others being dormant or less active. These intelligences are- 1. LINGUISTIC 2. LOGICAL-MATHEMATICAL 3. VISUAL-SPATIAL 4. BODY-KINESTHETIC 5. MUSICAL -RYTHMICAL 6. INTERPERSONAL 7. INTRAPERSONAL  8. EXISTENTIAL  This clearly means that every human has these abilities with varying ...

Those of you who have been reading my posts or following me for a while now, would know that I am attempting to endure a natural living, use of eco-friendly stuff and  minimising wastage.  I have just begun, which means I am at almost "zero" currently. It is a change in lifestyle of not one person, but whole family and hence may take over months and years and along with time it requires lots of patience and perseverance. Being Diwali around, I am dedicating this post to a few tried and tested eco-friendly cleaning hacks for two most important areas of your house. What you will require- Some spray bottles Rags/flannel cloths/sponges Lots of white Vinegar Lots of baking soda Lime Salt Kitchen Cleaning For cleaning drains - Put one cup of baking soda in the drain and gradually pour one cup of white vinegar over it, it will clean the drain. If the drain is clogged use your regular plunger first and then follow the above steps. To clean the sink- sprinkle...

It is diwali time and when I was a kid Diwali was a synonym for lots of gifts, sweets, crackers and new clothes! I am sure you have made your list of family and friends and what to gift to whom.  Choosing a gift is always a task, especially when it comes to buying for these tiny most giftworthy members. Know what, I have a nephew who expects a toy each time we come home from outside, no clothes, no chocolates, no books; only and only toys. I am sure he is not the only one like that. So, why not make the most of their preference for toys, instead of choosing a regular toy, we can buy fun educational toys that can enhance multitude of skills for them. The brain gets it's stimulation from everything that surrounds us, so why not introduce  toys that will help develop cognitive skills, motor skills and creative or out of the box thinking for your kids? I find educational toys the best things to gift, and even better if I get these in wood. Choosing the right toy i...

Flintobox is a popular activity subscription box for kids between 2-12 Each box is loaded with play-based activities for kids that promote early child development in a fun way. With a new theme every month, this research-based box is crafted by montessori experts and child psychologists, and caters to the 12 developmental areas of a child. I have been hearing and reading good reviews of flintobox since the time it was launched. I received the Flintobox as a token for hosting "gadgetfree bachpan" contest for which flintobox was a sponsor.   Although A is little young to play meaningfully with the activity sets given, I let him engage with it the way he wants and he thouroughly seemed to enjoy exploring the activities. Product description: Each box comes with 3- 5 activity bags based on one particular theme. Colour Carnival was the theme for our box. Bag 1. Had a colorful shape sorting and number matching puzzle and a book. Bag 2. Came...

If you have followed my blog-series on music, you would already know what I am talking about. Musical bonding holds a very special place for us and we have found our emotional connect to it; so, my series wouldn't be complete without a dedicated post on it. To get a better understanding of this parent -child programme for all my readers, I spoke to Aditi Shah, founder of Musical Bonding and here is what she has to say about one of her babies- "MB"!!      How did you come up with a programme that is so unique to Indian market? Musical Bonding did not happen as a planned programme for the Indian market. The music provided by The Music Class allowed us (my husband and me) to have lots of fun with our two kids, singing, dancing and learning. Musical Bonding started as a simple attempt to make some friends in a new country and for the benefit of my own kids.   Why Music, what does music mean to you? I have background in Indian classical music and k...