The little brother's early birthday!

Today we celebrated Baby G's cousin, Vedanth's birthday - a month earlier since his father was leaving to the US and wasn't available on the actual birthday. It was such a fun evening. Kids, games, and balloons! We had an awesome time with a bunch of fully charged kids and their parents and yummy cake from Choco Chaza. Vedanth's cake had a little teddy with a bunch of turtles around here and there.

The three of us attended and enjoyed to the core. Being there reminded me too much about Baby G's first birthday. Here are a bunch of pictures from our day...

Starting Solids 2.1 - Going Bananas

I'm a huge fan of the Kerala banana. It's not a very squishy squishy banana. It has longer shelf life than other bananas and has loads of nutritional values too. A steamed Kerala banana is a healthy starter for a baby. Here are some things that will attract a new mommy to a Kerala banana ...

* Travelling mommies - this banana has longer shelf life compared to others. The fruit is a solid feed for a baby during travel.
* Feeding your baby one banana keeps them full for over four hours.
* Bananas are a great companion to mommies who are in a hurry. No stoves. No cleaning.
* Your baby's bowel movements are great when they eat bananas.
* Easy to feed - just peel, smash and feed.
* As your baby grows, you can feed them the banana raw without steaming. Fruit for the day - done.


There is another wonderful healthy banana - highly rich in iron. It's the Red Banana. For those babies who need their iron, do have the red banana.


Tip : Bananas : A banana fed baby's stool has black wormish looking things. Nothing to panic. (I did, big time). Don't call your doctor, don't freak out, don't go bananas. It's just the bananas. 

Starting Solids 2.0

As a continuation to the Starting Solids input event from friends.. Here is a new input from an aunt.

My aunt is one of those mothers who will feed you till you are stuffed and ready to burst. She suggested making an oats porridge. This oats porridge attracts toddler to it like they've seen ice cream. It's a simple procedure.. Grind together cashews, pistachios, almonds, raisins and walnuts (3 of each). Now grind half a cup oats along with that. Make a porridge out of this moisture. The child will have no idea where the amazing rich taste is coming from and will not fuss over eating nuts anymore.

I tried this on Baby G today. I made the porridge with cows milk and added sugar when it cooled down. I tasted it before I gave him the first bite and it was delicious. It tasted equal to a North Indian kheer, only better. To be on the safer side, I fed Baby G with ice cream spoons - and he bought it! He downed the entire cup and his evening snack was done.

Mommies, if you child isn't allergic to any nuts, after their ten month - try this amazing rich porridge from my aunt's kitchen. It's yummy.

Tip : Porridges : When you make porridges for your little one, be sure to start with a little water and then gradually add milk. Milk tends to burn on flame and changes the taste of the porridge. Add sugar at the end of cooking the porridge. Sweetening porridges can be done with brown sugar, palm sugar and organic sugar. 

Activity box Ideas

I've had a lot of trouble trying to engage Baby G in some activity or the other to keep him away from the iPad. It's exhausting sometimes. I came up with an idea about a couple of weeks ago. Four different types of activity sensory boxes to keep him busy for a while. I realised I had a big bunch if scrunching that I never really used so much. I threw them all in a basket for one. My clips and hairbands in another. A mix of toys and animal figurines in an another, just to see what he does when he has a mix of toys. The fourth was was the funnest to watch. A bunch of magnets in an iron biscuit tin. Every time he was bored or wanted to do something I would hand him one of these baskets and he would play with these items for over 45 minutes. The magnets were a super hit. He was so curious about the little round colourful things sticking to he tin that needed so much effort to get in his hands.

I intend to experiment a little more with sensory boxes. I have in mind an evening snack bowl that will be finger food items like carrots and biscuits. Baby G has this habit of pouring out contents from one basket to another which is why I haven't experimented with food yet. He so far has fun playing with the scrunchies and magnets. I'm hoping to come up with some more fun stuff for him.

Activities baby G does to improve his motor skills

* Putting coins into a piggy bank.
* Throwing balls into a basket
* Making his animal figurines stand
* Garlanding an empty deodorant bottle with scrunchies

Travel tip

Travel : When travelling with a baby, pack light. However long the trip may be, be sure to pack a limited amount of things. Don't carry too many toys, it's just extra load. Keep baby's favourite things in hand luggage, that way if baby is distracted during the journey, you know what to give to keep them occupied. 

Starting Solids

Starting solids for your baby is a cautious and emotional time for evey new mother. Weaning a baby is also a little like letting go, for the better. Like how after a baby is born, a mother misses the kicks she felt in her. While weaning a baby, all moms make the call of what to give first. Every paediatrician suggests to start slow and gradually increase once the baby's bowel movements become comfortable.

Juices, porridges and purees are the best to start with. I did the talks with a few mothers and here are a few brilliant suggestions on what to give your baby at home. (No canned goods)

I'm one of those safe mothers who tried both canned foods and DIY foods at home. I always had three different flavours of Cerelac for emergencies. Otherwise I started baby G's weaning process with bananas. He had half a banana for the first five days in the morning. For those five days the banana would be the only new thing I tried. The second week I gave him banana and rice porridge. The third week, I gave him ragi/oats porridge and banana. By the end of that month, his bowels were accustomed to the input of solids and his digestion was fine. I nursed him during the nights. The second month of weaning, I started giving him steamed and mashed Kerala banana. (It's called the Kerala banana because it is very famous in Kerala. The yummy banana chips we eat are made of this banana.) Baby G has been eating this banana every day to this day. It's a wholesome meal and giving this to baby before sleep time ensures four hours of solid sleep on a full tummy. I started adding fruit purses to his meal routine slowly. He was soon having apple, banana, plum and avocado. Avocados are difficult to get here inTirupur, but when I found them once, I stocked them up and used them for two weeks. The ripe fruit needs to be scooped out, mashed and seasoned with salt and fed to baby. After two months of slowly weaning him into porridges and fruits, I started giving him the diet that we follow at home. His breakfasts were idli, dosai and pongal. His lunches were mashed rice with daal and rasam. I kept the Kerala banana for dinner time because it ensured 7 hours of sleep at night and I didn't have to wake up to give him formula. In his eighth month, he was eating the food that all adults ate at home and he already had favourites. During chapathi nights, I would soak three chapathis in milk and sugar and mash it and feed it to him. Those nights, he would sleep uninterrupted and wake only at dawn. By the end of his eleventh month, he had forgotten nursing and he was on a diet of porridges, juices, soups, rice and rotis. I kept the finger foods for times when I had  to be away from him and get some work done. So during laundry time, my reading time, my blog time, he would be chewing on a piece of carrot or a biscuit. He started teething only in his tenth month, so I had to mash all his foods a lot until then. Now (19 months) he has a full set of baby teeth and chews on all his food.

Tip : Weaning : When you are starting something new for your baby, always try it in the mornings. That way, if something goes wrong with the digestion, you have a days time to fix it.

A few wonderful friends/new mothers had a few things to share about their experiences with weaning their children to solid foods.


Aarthi Parthiban, mother of two (a boy and a girl) has done her experiments and here's what she had to say about what worked for her kids.

"To start of with porridges made of ragi, wheat, oats and rice. All it's ground together and made into a porridge with a little salt or palm sugar (Tamil :panangkalkandu). Vegetable soups for lunch with mix of all vegetables and a little dal. Steamed apple, potato, carrots, green peas. Kerala banana can be directly steamed and mashed for the baby or cut pieces of unriped banana can be dried and powdered and this can be added to porridges as well. Cows milk can be added to these porridges after the baby's eighth month. Cheese can be melted and given as a dip for boiled vegetables like cauliflower and broccoli. My son likes all his items sweet and my daughter likes her food salty. They both don't like anything bland.'

New gen mommy.

I did something today that I would never have done normally. I entered my picture in an online contest. Babyoye.com's facebook page opened up this best #snugglyselfie contest. A selfie of baby and mommy. Since I have so many of those, I decided to upload one for the fun of it.

A snuggly selfie is a keeper. Teach your kid to smile when the flash goes on, even better.

Snuggled your baby for a selfie yet?? 

What we've been doing lately.

Baby G has started repeating almost everything we all say. He tries it with the same amount of stress we give on every syllable but it comes out a lot cuter than the word itself. His bedtime cuddles are a rabbit when we visit my parents place and a teddy at our home. He calls them Babbitt bommai (bommai - toy), Teddy bear and he also has a little pug toy that he has named Berry after our neighbours pug Berry.

 

He's also in that phase where he has understood that a little crying works wonders. When the iPad is refused he cries and when we repeat a firm 'no', he lies down on the floor facing down trying to get our sympathy. How do these kids know so much?!


I sing a lot to Baby G. Mostly when I cradle him, he quietness down when I sing to him. And out of practice and by watching my grand mum, he knows to do the thalam and shake his head every time I sing. When he is a little cranky or bored, if get him to lie on my lap and sing rhymes to him. When I'm done with one, he claps and then stares into my face for another one. Sometimes he has requests. his favourite is 'Are you sleeping? Are you sleeping, Baby Gnan Baby Gnan'. When I sing 'Baby Gnan' he touches his chest proudly saying it's him I'm singing about. When he wants me to sing this one, he says 'Aaru cheechin'. So then I start again. He also loves 5 little monkeys jumping on the bed and 5 little monkey swinging on a tree. He claps too much at the end of those.


We've had quite a long summer at my parents house this time. Every evening he picks up his crocs and walks out to the car park and wants to water the plants. He loves to play with the water and I just let him play to beat the heat. We going back to our home soon and we cannot wait to get back to our routine and start our evening walks.

How we got our names.

This blog is a result of bad handwriting and laziness. From when i was pregnant, I wrote a baby journal. I couldn't keep up writing because I was spending too much time online. So I just decided to shift the journal to here, as a blog. I've also been writing on pragatha.blogspot.com since 2007.

Why Mommy G? I have this friend of mine who calls me 'pg', short for 'pragi', short for 'pragathambal'. She now calls me Mommy G and Gnan, Baby G. I decided that should be what this blog is.. Being Mommy G.

Being a mummy is learning not to judge. Other kids and your kid too.

I've been one of those who is very opinionated about how children behave. I whined about how some children kept running around in the hospital when I went to my gynaecologist while pregnant. Only after Baby G came along, I have come to realise that there are some things that your strong willed baby will want to do and one just cannot put a stop to it. One just gives in to what the baby asks for and watches patiently, or maybe not.

Running around, screaming, shouting in public transport etc is just what children do. It's what children are meant to do. They are programmed to not understand common courtesy, they are natural. To me, even now, a child urinating in public, bullying another child, spitting etc in public is a big no no. I would judge the parent a lot and dislike the child immediately. Yeah, I'm like that. A child needs to understand what is ok and what is not.

There is an episode on Friends where Ross doesn't like his son playing with a Barbie. I kind of met someone recently on those lines. Highly opinionated, she mentioned her boy liked superheroes and she bought all his things in those themes. During the conversation, she mentioned that she knew a boy her son' sage who carried around a Hannah Montana bag to school. For a moment there, I blinked. So what? Aren't we the one buying pink and blue and claiming these colours are for these genders? Don't these kids get to carry around or wear what they want? This conversation reminded me of an argument I had with my associate in Google a few years ago. To him, reading Harry Potter was stupid. Playing FarmVille was stupid. Although, reading some sci-fi trilogy was ok and playing GTA was ok. It was a never ending conversation. I ended it saying, reading this book makes me happy just like how you feel happy reading yours. Playing this game is my stress buster, same as you. We were both reading fiction and playing virtual games. Who were we to judge.


It's unfair to stop a child from doing something they want to. We learn from our mistakes. A mommy who joins her child is a mommy who understands and evolves.

When that little heart is bigger than the whole wide world.

There are some moments where children make adults feel less wise. As a family, we faced such a moment during the first week of my niece's play school. She's an energetic and will powered go-getter kid. She made it through first week of play school without a tear and we were all so thrilled. She had this classmate of hers who kept crying all the time. Whenever we went to pick her up and drop her at school he would be crying or wanting to play on the swings and slides. We just took notice of the boy.


After a few days when her mother went to pick her from school, her teacher told my co- sister that my niece sits only next to that crying boy. Everyone at home was curious about why she sat only with him out of concern as to why she had trouble making friends in school. She then answered very casually that the boy's mother tongue was Hindi and had trouble learning the Tamil rhymes so she would sit and teach him to sing it.

*ya, you should have imagined the look on our faces*

Children are a surprise. In a household with 3 children just months apart, baby G has no trouble mingling with peers. He loves his cousins too much. Yes, they fidget and fight over toys - but when calm is restored they are a team that can outplay all 6 adults in the house. Any one can take the lead and the other two will follow - be it climbing the stairs, or walking out of the door to the gates. At home, there is always a designated baby sitter to keep the peace. Chasing is a main requirement in the resume. Baby G mutters their names when he is sleepy or sometimes half asleep. When we are at my parents, he never fails to mention their names to his Daddy G. He makes sure he gets two biscuits, one for him and one for Gokul. They are to me the G boys. (Both of them never finish a biscuit. Something is already catching their attention before they get to the third bite, so they drop the biscuits and run)

So many things to learn from the little naive and pleasant hearts. Nothing as pure and natural as a child's heart.

Guilty.

I read this quote on a friends facebook page 'Kids these days know hot to open close their fav apps by the age of two. When I was two I was eating dirt.' I felt proud at that moment because baby G can do all those things with my iPad and much more. He knows the playlists to the rhymes and bedtime songs. He opens them and claps and nods and baby sings along.

I do have a certain set of rules for iPad time. Most of the time the two of us are left alone and we have no choice but to play with each other. He gets bored of hearing rhymes, reading his baby books and elephant back rides. Sometimes it's exhausting because all I'm doing is trying to entertain him and keep him occupied. There are time when I need to leave the room - go to the bathroom, arrange clothes in the cupboard and petty things that he doesn't need to follow me for. For those times I initially made him sit in his crib and watch rhymes. This went on for a bit and when I saw that he got hooked to it, I started reducing his iPad time and hiding it. He then started to want to go out on drives whenever Padhu left for office. His favourite things to do were watch rhymes or go out. Slowly, I began to give him other activities to do.

His routine is wake up - potty - bath - breakfast - play - sleep - lunch - play - sleep - bath - evening walk - play - dinner - sleep. He loves his evening walks. But when indoors he prefers to play with the various apps on the iPad than with his toys or me. I may have started it but I'm so guilty that I'm slowly trying to stop now. He doesn't like TV. Screen time for a baby this age is so bad for development. I've tried hard to stop this habit of his. I'm getting there slowly.

Although, I'm guilty about this - one part of me thinks that a child today needs the access to technology. The earlier they learn, the easier it is for them to adapt. I see my neighbours complaining about how their kids are loaded with projects that is not meant for their age and I wonder, why not. Let the kid search online, learn about it, understand the topic and produce whatever he wants on paper. We do not live in a town with a library. There is no other kind of access to information for families like ours except the internet. A baby in Gnan's age needn't know to search on Google, but if he knows how to operate an iPad, so what. As long as the time they spend with the gadget is limited, I think the baby is safe.

I've opted for a list of reasons on when he can use his iPad. Travel time when he gets cranky, when I'm in the bath and when he is learning how to pronounce words and sing rhymes.

With so much said and done, the baby toy market is clever, they know just how to make a mother lazy and spoil a baby. Check out what fisher price came up with.

..at 92 years, they go on evening walks together.

It hard to imagine that this wonderful man was also once upon a time, 19 months old like my little one. 

Baby G feeds cake to his great grandpa on his 92nd birthday. A milestone for all of us. He wished thatha 'appy burthdae thatha'. He shares a beautiful relationship with my grandpa. As a baby, his first smiles from face recognition was seeing my grandpa. G knows that the little green box with snuff powder belongs to thatha and if he finds it elsewhere, he picks it up and runs to give it back to him. The walking stick with the blue handle belongs to thatha and exactly at 4pm every evening, he brings it out everyday to go on his evening walk. Baby G dutifully follows him. At 6pm everyday, he hears the kanda shashti kavasam on thatha's tv and runs to listen to it and does the 'thalam' on his thighs.

Thatha, on the other hand doesn't start lunch without asking if 'Gnanu thambhi' has eaten. However late it is, thatha peeps out of his room to make sure Gnanu thambhi is asleep. When Gnanu thambhi is unwell, he makes his rare visits to other rooms in the house to check on him. They share such a beautiful bond, its joyous to watch.

A grandfather is  bit of a parent, a bit of a friend, a bit of a disciplinarian and a bit of a doter. A great grandfather is just much more! Happy birthday to Thatha!

what to do when your baby sleeps... sleep.

 or.. click pictures like this that will get husbands take turns with diaper change.

and then.. click pictures like this so when you see them 20 years later, you know this is one post-it note that never went for a waste.

Baby shopping!

Recently I saw a friend of mine along with her sister at a mall. We exchanged pleasantries and then I asked them if they were done shopping. The friend very excitedly said 'we've come baby shopping!' I blinked and replied 'I didn't know you got them here.' Ok sorry. One, I didn't notice her sister was pregnant. Two, no one would notice she was pregnant cause she was extremely lean looking and I just couldn't tell.

We women look for any reason to shop, why not shop for a baby we are going to have in another ten months. Let's not call it baby shopping. It's just creepy. Shopping for the baby. 

I did do a little 'shopping' before I delivered. Clothes, creams, and necessities. I didn't buy any toys because everyone who visits is going to bring something or the other. When I visit newborn, I usually buy clothes. If I visit the newborn in a hospital, I stick to buying the baby a bouncer or a crib mobile. When I visit at home, I stick to clothes cause the baby will definitely use it and it's not going to be sitting in a corner after a few months. So, I bought this crib (with wheels) that came along with a pull along cradle. This beautiful piece of work can be moved from room to room. When I was home alone, I would even pull the crib to the room near the bathroom and take a peaceful bath.

The crib was a great place to get G watch and play apps on my iPad. He learnt to clap and shake his head for the rhymes on his own.. And now he pushes my hand away and operates the entire iPad himself. He opens/closes/adjusts volume/switches between apps/puts on sideshows and videos. When I was his age, I was probably staring at TV.

I have pregnant relatives calling to find out what they need to buy for the baby. For a year almost, the baby isn't demanding. Wears anything you put on and is pretty helpless. After that they ask for those things we wouldn't give them. TV remote, chargers etc..

Investing in baby items as you go is more sensible than investing in everything a baby can use and then ending up with many things to waste. Kids these days love the phones and ipads. Although the safer thing to do is not give it to them, it is very useful to keep a baby occupied for a few minutes.

100 and more,

This is a post from a super excited me on G's 100th day.

It's my little boy's 100th day today and I'm super happy! Days have not gone by in a wink and all..every day has been enjoyed and photographed with joy!

Around the time I was pregnant with Gnan, 3 other very good friends were also expecting. 3/4 are boys and all my friends are enjoying the season just as much as I am. It's a very different journey as a parent. All of a sudden im the voice of someone entirely. The responsibility is fun!

Like one of my friends said "it's like I have a doll of my own that I can dress up, bathe, clean and cuddle!" It was one hilarious thing to say about her own child but the initial days felt like that. Mummy did the tough parts of putting him to sleep, bathing him. All, I had to do was feed him and choose the clothes he had to wear! (what fun)

100 days down! Online hi-fi!! 

Paranoid Pragi.

When baby G was just a few months old, I wrote a post on my other blog. It went like this.

Paranoia was not a part of me before my son arrived. Now, Im totally paranoid about a few things.

1) While he sleeps in his cradle and I on the bed, I follow his every breath. (some infants have noisy breathing till they are 6 months). If he turns in his sleep, I immediately lose sleep. Padhu wakes up with that jerk I give every time I get up to check on him.

2) When I watch a movie on my laptop, I wear one earphone only. Just in case baby G makes a noise, u know.

3) He sleeps for three hours after his bath. I insist on being there in the same room, or someone else if I'm stepping out for a bath.

4) I don't let him cry much. When he cries, I feel like the whole world's weight is on my shoulders. When he stops, I feel like taking rest. phew!

5) On those days that his blue fleece blanket is in the laundry, I think he doesn't sleep well. Even though he looks normal.

6) I keep thinking about schools he will join in a lot. Yes, now itself.


I'm going to need a lot of help. *shakes head in dismissal while staring into the mirror. wait, he just moved in his cradle*

I decide to make a comparison or addition now...

1) I'm usually browsing or blogging but in the same room when he is asleep. 

2) I still do wear only one earphone.

3) He doesn't sleep as much as he used to.. But I'm always there.

4) These days he cries for everything. If his water sipper is far from reach, if he cannot open a box, if his cousin took his toy. His way of getting attention is a loud cry, no tears attached. 

5) His fleece blanket is not big enough for him now. He has his crotchet blanket now. His security toy is a teddy or a rabbit. His mood, his choice.

6) I have decided on a play school. But I might change my mind if another good one comes to my notice.

Motherhood makes anyone paranoid. I think the easier we let them free to do what they want, the more comfortable they will be. Hoping to be a not so strict, not so uptight mommy. 

Turning 1, as parents

This is yet another post from my other blog (pragatha.blogspot.com)

Come August 14, and Baby G will be one year old. A year that has been so eventful, a year that has brought so much joy, a year that has been recorded, photographed, written about, video-taped and memorized in every way possible. There is a part of me that thinks there isn't enough technology in he world to record a little more. Motherhood has been so overwhelming. I know I've screwed up a few times in this year, but the satisfying thing now is he doesn't know it and he has just accepted me the way Iam. Even in the initial few days where I had no idea what to do or how to do it, he felt comfortable in the warmth of my hands and my hold. That acceptance has changed the entire me. 

After a very safe 3 months with my parent's help and love, Gnan and I moved in again to my in laws house. We spent the first night in the same room, just the 3 of us on Gnan's 29th day and the togetherness had begun wonderfully ever since. The 3am poop and the 6am cry have been so memorable... the goof ups of putting the diaper wrong with those sleepy eyes, getting powder on our faces too, rolling over his tiny hands in our sleep are just unforgettable. Now we share a room with our little boy who sleeps before us, wakes before us and rolls between the two of us leaving us laughing at odd hours. 

The firsts of everything have been carefully photographed and youtubed. First time he rolled over, first tooth, first rain, first wedding, first shoes, first smile, firsts vacation... all the first are just amazing. Not just because the baby book's need the date and time and picture... but because the wonder of birth was gradually looking smaller than the wonder of watching him grow.

As parents Padhu and I have so far spoiled G so much. Im not sure if we will be strict parents or confused parents... but from the looks of it, we are going to be accepted parents. Gnan has changed our lives every way. As a parent, everyone says, responsibility tags along.. I think we see their point. Or wait, do we? 

Right from the day I got pregnant, I started writing a baby journal for Gnan. To give to him the day he begins to understand as a child and read as an adult. His 16th birthday. Wishing he loves it as much as I do.

He right now hugs his dad's hands and sleeps at night, calls his 'baaba', calls me 'immmma', stares into my eyes when he wants to poop, says 'mmaaaaa' when he sees our cow, fearlessly pats my dogs chitti and remo, calls my brother 'mama', does the thalam when I sing to him, shakes him head like he's enjoying it when my grann sings to him, says 'ommmmmmm' when he goes into the puja room, crawls with one leg folded, walks with some support around the bed, table, shakes his bum to fast beats, listens to the same songs he heard as a foetus when he sleeps, licks our cheeks when we ask him for a kiss, bends down to suck him toe, bites anyone who touch his lips or tries to check his teeth, poses beautifully for cameras, watches rhymes with his toy in hand, shakes his head when he listens to Johny say 'No papa' in the rhyme, claps his hand when his cousin says he rhymes, eats 5 meals a day, goes for a walk every evening with his imma. 

A very fun loving and cheerful baby so far, I hope Gnan remains happy and healthy and loved by everyone around him. As a parent, I hope to give him a lot of courage and be courageous myself to see him grow and turns years older! 

July 23, 2013.

Cake ordered, balloons bought, guest list ready, just hope Baby G doesn't fall asleep when he has to cut cake. 

The hahahas of my long pregnancy

This is a post from my other blog (pragatha.blogspot.com). I just had to post it here since it was related.

Everytime I see a pregnant woman i know now, I politely smile. That's it. Earlier, I used to be nice and ask when she was due or what baby she wanted. Now, nothing but a smile. Or an added 'how are you' to sound interested. Been through the pregnancy thing now. It's a wonderful ten months with so many different emotions. Everyone accounts for their milestones, first heartbeat, first ultrasound, first kicks, first cries. I did it too with a lot of excitement! Those little tiny toes and fingers make everyone go awww... But during the pregnant days, many things drive one crazy. One such thing is the free advice one gets from visitors, relatives, passers by etc.

I wanted to account all those advices in one place. The strongest advice I gave myself was 'Listen to your doctor, and your gut. And of course your bump!' I did listen to everything people said, hilarious as few were. Advices poured n from visitors, relatives, neighbours etc... Mine went on to auto drivers, waiters, waitresses, cashiers and the little boy who irons clothes at the end do the road. Yeah.

Here's  a tiny little list of a few hilarious things people had to say...

'Don't have your coffee hot, your going to burn the baby's eye lashes.' - em, ok.

'When you wake up, do not look into the mirror. The first thing you see is the first thing baby sees.' - that being true, what's wrong if the baby saw me?

'Whenever you eat make sure the baby is not kicking. The food may get deposited in difficult places near the baby.' - gulp, what is a difficult place?

'If someone offers you anything to eat, say no. If you take it immediately, your baby will be a glutton.' - excuse me! I'm pregnant. All I want to do is eat and sleep.

'Make sure you sleep with kumkum every night. It's good for the baby.' - how?

'If baby kicks too much one day. Don't eat what you've eaten that day again. It means the baby doesn't like what you've eaten.' - huh. I thought that was morning sickness.

'If you go walking too fast in your final months, your baby will get delivered on the road.' - oh dear. Someone shut her up.

'You have gestational diabetes? The doctor prescribed insulin? Don't take it.' - wat are you suggesting?

'Don't stop with one kid. Have another one. Only two kids make a family complete.' - let me get done with one. I'm not a gum ball machine!

Pregnancy stories that took the cake....

'Once a girl went into labor and couldn't reach the hospital in time and delivered her baby at a railway checkpost. The baby had bandages on hands and legs. Make sure you reach hospital on time.' - thank you, you made me feel so much better.

'Ive heard of a girl who didn't deliver after ten months. So don't worry if you don't go into labor. It's not going to stay there forever.' - yeah, I know. After ten months I'm going to start charging the baby ten bucks for every day more.

'Pragi, walk, do yoga, eat well. I didn't do anything of those and I had to get a c section. My husband was out of town so my dad signed the papers.' - why on earth was ur husband out of town close to your due date?

'One girl actually hid under the labor room sink while n labor to avoid pain.' - how does it help? Sink sinks pain?


When some stories were just for laughs, others were of great help. Some personal encounters were just sharing, some bragging. Now all I do is smile when I meet pregnant women.

Sunny side up

The summer is here in India and it's HOT. Our routine for the day since G was a three month old baby was a must evening walk for some fresh air. We've stuck to our routine so far... And Baby G has made so many friends over the one year. With kids on bikes and tricycles, baby. G loves to watch and play with them.

Yesterday's walk was beautiful. The sun was down and the skies were cloudy enough for a little breeze. We walked around playing with the kids and then I noticed my neighbour's tree. It was fully abloom and looked gorgeous. Maybe what I do is grumble about the summer and not see the beautiful things it's brings us. i pointed out to the tree and said 'look Gnanu'.. and he said 'yeloooowww'! Yellow and blue are the only colours he can pronounce, but i didn't know he knew what yellow was! How overjoyed I was!

 The tree contrary to its beauty is named Cassia Fistula. What a name for such a creation!

From baby talk to baby talking!

Gnanu has been trying several words and expressions over the past few months. Sometimes he goes on talking and then shaking his head and finally clapping. I just clap after him though most of the time I'm just admiring his moving lips, smile and blabber.

He got a few words right over last week... He says 'tee bee' for TV, 'cookery' for cooker and 'bijil' for whistle. He says some other words which I still haven't figured what the meaning for. It's just fun to watch him open one of his books and say 'maa' when he sees a cow and 'baa' when he sees a goat. The funniest thing happened yesterday. I downloaded an app that showed pictures of things with every alphabet. When D for Dinosaur came up... He called me and said 'kaanom'.. Which means 'missing'. In his baby head it means he hasn't seen it yet... But I was so happy when he called me to say he hadn't seen it yet. It was the cutest accusation 'Amma, why haven't you shown me this animal' accusation.

He once walked over to my mother in the kitchen and said something which none of us could figure. It sounded something like 'paaapom'. He was pointing to my pet Remo, a Dalmatian. When we understood, we were all stumped. My Labrador had eaten his meal and after that pushed Remo away and finished his meal too. What Baby G was trying to say was 'paavam' which means 'how sad'. It took us all a solid ten minutes to understand. He then walked over to my lab Chitti and hit him on his back saying 'no no no.' How much My boy learns!


Today being Tamil New Year's Day... I tried to teach him to say 'happy new year'. After minutes, we ened up with an 'appy nuir'. Any which way 'Happy New Year' from baby G and Mommy G.

Baby G first birthday

I'm a huge Pinterest fan. I believe I can garden, I can cook, I can craft and sometimes even design my own stuff when I log in to Pinterest. Well, for Gs birthday, I took in a lot of inspiration from there and put together a very tiny party for family and friends. We had it in our garage and the biggest bummer of all was that we couldn't get a magician. We had a bunch of games for the kids and a loser of a comperor who we hired last minute. It was just a day with loads of wishes and blessings and I was glad.

Baby G was all traditional for his temple visit in the morning and was in a three piece suit for the evening. The evening went well, baby wasn't cranky. And I was happy. That night I made a mandatory comparison of how much we had grown as parents and he as a child..

Hottest trip ever.

The hottest trip ever.

We had to go to Rameshwaram to do the final rites for Padhu's grandpa who left us during Diwali. My father in law conjured the entire family and made it a trip of 36 people in 2 mini vans and 2 cars. The babies had to be in the cars cause handling them would be easy.

Baby G, Padhu and I ended up in the Audi. The car is swell. We glided along those long roads and batted the heat quite well on our way towards Rameshwaram. We reached an hour ahead of the rest of them after 2 baby poop stops and 2 milk refill stops. Babies! We knew we were way ahead of the rest, so we did what Daddy G thought was the unthinkable. We broke the law. We stopped on the Pamban paalam which is the bridge that connects the island of Rameshwaram to the peninsula. We took a bunch of pictures and quickly got back to rush towards the beach.

The heat was too much. Baby G refused to eat anything during the entire trip. He forced himself with so much water. With him just learning to say words, he muttered words like 'thanni', 'boat', and 'pish' (ship).

It was a horribly hot drive back home and it took the entire day with so many stops. We finally reached home to air conditioning and just slept. Hottest trip ever.

Crazy Momma Me

I'm Pragi. 28, married housewife and mother of 1.6 year old Gnan, mostly mentioned on this blog as Baby G. I've lived all my life in protective boarding schools, hostels and then moved to work for a memorable 3 years at Google Inc. I married my high school best friend Padhu mostly mentioned as Daddy G. He's a highly will powered tall man with no tummy. I live in a joint family. 6 adults, 3 kids.

I visit temples along with both sides of my family but being with my loved ones makes me more happy. The label I take is aethist, but I sometimes do prefer the quiet from a temple. I've grown learning Carnatic music and it soothes me.

Having made a huge change in life from an independent girl to a daughter in law of a joint family, I haven't found my place in this phase of my life yet. I haven't made any attempt to make a life for myself here and it bugs me. I hope to do something about it soon. Either when I get the space to do so, or when and if Padhu and I move out.

I usually come home to my mum when I need the break. Quality time with my parents and brother makes me happier. My brother has just taken the bait recently. After years of boarding schools and hostels and a year in South Wales university, he just got home to take over the family business. Our hometown has a KFC, Domino's and a Cafe Day. Questionable brownies, pizzas and chicken strips make me happy. My husbands family is pure vegetarian. I don't get to eat eggs and meat while I'm there. So when I crave for something, I call my brother. He's my go to therapist, partner in crime and soon to be fitness guru.
Ive been writing on pragatha.blogspot.com since 2007. I'm highly opinionated about current issues. Indian politics is something I don't understand. A feminist by nature. I don't like how women are fighting for a place in this country, we are already on top - we just haven't found a way to realise it. I sometimes tell myself this on low days when I think I'm doing nothing in life.

I have a bunch of friends who live both abroad and in India. The best ones get in touch with me twice a year but it's like we've not missed a day.


This is me, Mommy G.

When everything else seems so teeny tiny weeny whiny

There are some beautiful moments like watching men handle babies. I for one enjoyed all those moments. I had no idea what had happened outside the labor room. My dad, my most loveable dad made sure I didn't miss anything. He videoed everything from the doctor peeping out the door and saying 'baby boy' to the nurse handing the baby to Daddy G and my family all ecstatic in their own way.

Watching Padhu and G bond is so beautiful. The initial days, he refrained from picking up the baby because he was too scared. He then slowly obliged and got more easy with him. Sometimes I wake up at night and see both of them sleeping in a similar position. Either both would have their hands above their heads or both would be face down on their pillows. I have photographed every one of them just to see how many I will have.

I admit in this forum that I played Gangnam style to my one month old son. Only because Daddy bear was dancing to make baby bear smile and he succeeded. Here's a picture of the two of them grinning after a Gangnam session. Life is beautiful!

Camera crazy.

Love spoils me. From everywhere around. Right from the time I was born I've been showered with loads of love. I'd always prefer a hug from my late grand mum to new clothing. Little things make me happy. There was a time when my parents had to be in the US for 2 months continuously and all I could do was count days until their return. They sent some luggage early and it had all our gifts. Poor things didn't realise customs had flicked literally everything. My brother got just one pair of shoes instead of three and no watches of all five. I opened all empty boxes with no watches and a clothes hanger with no clothing. We didn't bother. When my parents arrived the next week we cuddled for so long. I'm loved. I like to give back and when I give, I give my all.

My last birthday as a single girl, I opened a box and found a dslr. It's probably the most expensive present I have ever received but I loved it much more because it was something I wanted. Daddy G had sent it to me and I was overjoyed. We were then Engaged to be married and I promised him I would make so many beautiful memories with this one.

The camera is 4 years old now and has seen some beautiful moments. The funnest moments it has seen are my son's photo shoots. The iPad would play fast beats and I would dance to make him smile or at least look at the camera and click.. It was exhausting mostly.. But so much fun. P.S - never schedule a photoshoot with a hungry baby. They are cranky, moody and most of all - hungry.

Boys will be boys.

Everyday has been a surprise. Babies do such funny things. G has this habit of trying to remove his diaper when he's not in the mood to wear one. I've tried to chase him to get him to wear a cloth diaper and he just won't oblige. Boys!

Baby G ain't a big lover of drives. But when he's in the mood, he's always on his dad's lap on the wheel. It must be some inbuilt programme in boys.

It's so much fun to dress babies up. I've had loads of fun trying new stuff on G and his cousins. But boys have so little options, it's very boring. Checks, stripes, solids and BOOM. That's it. Boys have no other options. Here's what G made me do to him one fine day. I love you Gnan baby. But when I run out of clothes to put on you, my mind wanders.

Baby in a car. 7 hours with baby in a car. Check. Check.

When Baby G was ten months we had to attend an AGM at Chickmangalur which is about 6 hours from where we live according to Google maps. Sometimes I wanna hit Google maps for not accounting traffic and the road conditions. This was one of those times. It was easy planning and packing.

Baby G was crawling now so he would be an additional wiggly in the car. We had tried the baby seat so many times but he wouldn't sit. We just took it along I case he would.

I realised one thing. Many parents have this beautiful thought of dressing up their babies in their finest when they r going somewhere. Good thought when you are travelling close but when travel is more than 1 hour, dont use jeans, lace and tutus. Babies are mostly uncomfortable because fabric cause heat and is a little pokey pokey. Its best to just stick to a tee, diaper and loose shorts. Also, mummies who choose to wear tight clothing, opt for track pants. They are a blessing which we dont appreciate much. Forget duppattas, forget your loose hair, forget uncomfortable lingerie. Just stick to track pants and a tee.

We started from home around 6am hoping to reach by 1pm. We ended up reaching at 3pm. Late, only because I got motion sick and had to change clothes in the car. My bad to have opted to wear a denim. We stopped for breakfast and once for baby G to have his lunch.

We started from Tirupur and till we reached Hasan, the drive was boring. Only after Hasan did the scenery get beautiful with farms all along the way. We checked in and had lunch. It was drizzling the whole time we were there and it was too cold to use the pool. We sat by the pool and had some 'our' 
time (which also included me pushing Padhu inside the freezing pool). 


We were indoors most of the time. Baby G enjoyed his long baths in the hot tub. He would float all his bath toys and play till he got sleepy.

Padhu took over G for a couple if hours, while I got a massage. They apparently floated all the bath toys in the pool and watched them.

The resort was beautiful. Coffee and pepper plants everywhere. Their buffet spread had porridges and boiled vegetables one day and boiled oats the next. I had no problem finsing food for baby G. It wasnt the apt time to go with a baby with all the rains the place was seeing but we had fun nevertheless.  

Our drive back was tiring. The traffic was thicker and we stopped at Mysore for a whole hour that added to the delay. He didnt use his car seat throughout. We figured the one thing we invested in in a big waste.

Travel with baby in a car for seven hours - check.

Travel with baby who refuses to sit in a baby car seat for seven hours - check.

Nailed it!

Of first vacations..

Everyone says it is difficult to travel with a baby. Well, they are right.

For the determined, a trip with a baby is a fun thing. Otherwise all it needs is organization and sensible packing. A two hour drive will not require a lot of work cause the baby is probably going to fall asleep. However organized and well planned one can be, your baby always ends up surprising you anyway. Here goes my travel diary with my one year old.

Gnan, my son is a sleeper. He is cranky when he gets hungry and just dozes off when he is sleepy. As wonderful as that sounds, it comes with some twists. Baby G hates being indoors. Id blame myself for that causr I made sure he got his morning and evening walks everyday and the only known time he was indoors, he was asleep. So sitting in a car while awake was a task! He loves music - thanks to my mum who saved the Preethi Sagar rhymes cassette that I listened to when I was one. Anytime he would get cranky in the car, I would just start singing rhymes and enacting them and he would be alright.

Travelling with him while breastfeeding was easy. When he was 6 months, we took a trip to Ooty. Blessed as I am, he slept through the 3 hours uphill and downhill. The only solids he had started eating by then was bananas, so I made sure I had a few for the weekend. Our trip fell on the Easter weekend so there were songs on speaker throughout and Gnan enjoyed them. We discovered his love for music then. He liked any music not just rhymes!! I carried a bunch Of his toys and two huge rubber sheets that I had stitched in case we went on a picnic. The temperature made his sleep cosy and he had his playtime outside as well.


There were swans, puppies  horses and cows so baby G didnt miss his outdoorsy times. He watched the cows like he did at home and he was comfortable throughout.

We took a horse ride and at the end of the ride he was asleep with the continuous rocking on the horse's back. We were lucky again, and we just put him to bed. He didnt move for over 4 hours. When he did wake we went for a walk in the woods and spread out the sheets for a little picnic.  We played with him and took pictures.  It was a lot of fun to spend quality time with the boys. It was just 'our' time! We got back with no complaints except that we couldnt find button roses for our garden at home. Ootacamund for 3 days at 6 months - Nailed it!!There were swans, puppies  horses and cows so baby G didnt miss his outdoorsy times. He watched the cows like he did at home and he was comfortable throughout.

We took a horse ride and at the end of the ride he was asleep with the continuous rocking on the 
horse's back. We were lucky again, and we just put him to bed. He didnt move for over 4 hours. When he did wake we went for a walk in the woods and spread out the sheets for a little picnic.  We played with him and took pictures.  It was a lot of fun to spend quality time with the boys. It was just 'our' time! We got back with no complaints except that we couldnt find button roses for our garden at home. Ootacamund for 3 days at 6 months - Nailed it!!

8th time's a charm.

I'm that someone who is always arguing about how every is friendship day, Mother's Day, Father's Day etc. I have this amazing friend of mine who once surprised me with a bouquet that said 'Happy Everyday' exactly the same time I surprised her with a card that said the very same thing. I love her. I truly believe in everyday being a wonderful day. One day needn't be celebrated, unless one wants to do all the mushy random stuff everyone does. To me, these days are for retailers who wants to sell off those old products and to those innovators who come up with products just to make money.

After Baby G arrived, I quickly fell into the trap of doing these things. I was bent on making his hand and footprints, having a photo shoot of him (by me), dressing him like Krishna on Krishna jayanthi. I wasn't thinking and I don't think I still am. If I see a funky toy he would enjoy, I just buy it. It's like a reflex. Sneeze - excuse me. Cute toy - buy for Baby G. See, reflex.

One of the funniest days was when my cousins visited from the US. I had asked her to get me the kit to making a baby's footprints. When she got them I was so overjoyed. We all as a team immediately got to work and tried hard to get it done. The putty smelled so wonderful and we rolled it and placed it on Gs foot so happily... Waited the two minutes and the damn thing wouldn't come off. We were so shocked that the print didn't come and we tried so much again and again. Finally, 8th time and am honest - it worked.

It was so much fun to sit around and play with the putty. What a wonderful memory it is!

Ten fingers, ten toes, one tiny little button nose

No amount of time can prepare a naive mother for all that emotional chaos. It's beautiful. Baby G arrived on an early August morning after a long 36 hour labor and to me a ten month and 36 hour wait. Every single day I made that pointless activity of counting the number of days left. Pointless because I already knew it.

No one tells you the beautiful things one misses after the birth of a baby. I for one missed the kicks. So very much. Every kick was a reminder saying that I wasn't alone. I ain't alone now, I know. But the kicks sure are a lot missed.

Baby G is 18 months now. Or, I'd like to call it the time when new mummies get a little time cause babies have learnt to sleep through the night. When pregnant, I wrote a baby journal for G. Little things I wanted to tell him and share with him during my pregnancy. I had given him a neutral name Tejas, cause I didn't know what baby I was going to have.

Roller coaster of a one and half year it has been. The adrenaline hasn't yet worn off. Loving the kick. The first one year passed with trying to capture every single moment of Baby Gs life and not missing his milestones. Every little word videotaped uploaded and shared on YouTube. Every single smile captured and shared on whatsapp. Every milestone saved and journaled. All this from the girl who never completed her record books, class notes or exams. Kudos me!

Being Mommy G is my new thing in life and I cannot wait to share the experiences of the new parent in me. Welcome to reading my world - Being Mommy G.