First Steps

Cold and Cough... home remedies, prevention/cure.

2012-02-07T13:51:00.031+05:30

Thanks a Ton Rekha for sharing these wonderful tips in time of need!

Water lo tulasi leaves, oka miriyam, lavangam,allam,vesi kashayam laga chesi ivvandi.

Karakkaaya powder lo konchem miriyalu pwd, lavangampwd, sonthi or allam, anni powder chesi baaga mix chesi bellam tho kalipi chinna vundalu chesi, babyki petti taravata konchem warm water ivvandi. Even after the kid is better give it twice a week to the kid to improve resistance.

Also, vallaki cold vunte bearable kante ekkuva water ni boil chesi legs ankles varaku munigetattu pettandi..water warm ayyedaka vunchi...teesi mustard oil lo ajwain vesi vedi cheyyandi..konchem challaraka karpuram vesi kalipi adi baga arikallaki raayndi n gundelaki , back ki rayandi.

Cough ki aithe water lo lemon, lavangam n saindava namak vesi taaginchandi... enni sarlu tagithe antha relief.

milk lo haldi vesi ivvandi.

night padukune mundu...oka small berry size bellam ivvandi..chapparinchi mimgamanandi dont give water....kani mouth wash chesi padukopettandi..meeku cough syrup kuda ivvanatha relief isthundi. may be first day cough vuntundi baga but next day ne meeru change chustharu.

avoid khatta, theeka things

ee chitkalu pillalake kadu evarikyna vadavacchu

Courtesy: Rekha.

Karakkaaya pagala kotti chinna mukka teesukuni andulo madhyalo chinna bellam mukka petti ichhi buggana pettukomanandi. adi nani water vastunte mingitie twaraga taggutundi daggu.

Courtesy: Swapna Rams.

ginger chinna mukka ni danchi, aa juice about half teaspoon, andulo half teaspoon honey, 2-3 drops lime juice, ivi anni oka 2-3 teapoons warm water lo kalipi , daily 2-3 times, konchem relief untundi.

Courtesy: Shireen.

Skin Basics For Newborn

2012-02-01T19:25:00.001+05:30

Check a useful article HERE.

A few more Cold and Cough tips

2012-02-01T19:24:00.000+05:30

Ginger honey juice. 3 times a day.

2drops of "zinda tilismath" in a spoon of milk for about 4 days.

Whooping cough which is very severe during nights and early hours. To control that sprinkle "Apple Cider Vinegar" on tissue and place it near the kid's head or pillow so that they inhale that and get relaxed.

Courtesy: Roopa Reddy

Setting A Sleep Pattern For Kids/Sleeping On Their Own

2012-02-01T19:17:00.001+05:30

It is essential for parents to set sleep patterns for the kids so as not to get sleep deprived and have a cranky kid at hand all the while.. or worse still a kid having cranky parents... a big no!!!

There are quite a few advises coming in but I loved the way this mom has summed it up all... see if helps.

My words could be harshand be lot more Q's than answers but try to take them in a positive way and try to read it twice or thrice before you come to a conclusion(some or most of the stuff I am typing here is an advise from a doc or a friend)

a. Do you feed him BF in a bottle? If not, please do that as you will have an idea on how much milk he is drinking in the first place so you will know if he is really hungry or not
b. What's his daily routine? I would suggest feeding him on schedule..try giving him bath in the evening atleast couple of hours before going to bed and read him books and stuff while he is in the crib. Let him sleep on his own in the crib how ever long it might be but don't pick him up when he is crying for no reason.Read books ,try playing toys whatever he likes to play with. If he is getting enough play and getting tired and taking naps in the afternoon he will also sleep at night.
c. If you are giving him formula or regular milk since he is 14months ,try giving him warm milk as that will give him a peaceful and restful sleep
d. This one is going to be really hard but if you want a solution to your sleep deprevation and put him on schedule try this and it will work as I have seen friends :
Put him in crib, read books,play etc ,dim the lights and let him cry (when you know he is not hungry or doesnt have any other health concerns etc) .If he doesn't have any tears that means he is just crying so you will come and hold him.If he has tears lift him,hug him and console him and make sure everything is OK and put him back in the crib. Never make him sleep next to you .If you think you can't be in the same room when he is crying move out, stay at distance where he doesnt watch you but you can watch him ,after a while he will stop crying thinking you won't come and will try to fall asleep. This is kind of hard being a mother who gave birth to watch them cry for long but if it doesn't happen now..it won't happen in the near future.

It frightens them if they sleep next to you and wake up in the so called crib and that's when they start crying.If they know where they slept if will be easy for them to understand that when they are in crib and it's time to sleep. I have american friends who did this and it works like wonder but mom has to be hard .I haven't tried this personally but if you want to have a best sleep pattern you have to be bold and hard on yourself.
Play some lullabies, sing if you can, make a routinue and slow music that will help too.

Courtesy: JRani

Tips For Increasing Breast Milk Production... (Tinglish)

2012-02-01T19:12:00.000+05:30

1) bajri powder payasam ( mng levagane first first oka 2 glasses water tagandi luke warm water until 3 months tarvata bajri powder oka 1tbs teesukuni oka pan lo koddiga ghee vesi roast cheyandi manchi flavor vachhe varaku tarvata andulo oka 1/2 cup warm milk posi payasam la chesukuni tinandi chala chala chala use aindi idi naku kaani chesukovadame baddakam ayyedi anduke on and off ga chesukuntunnanu okkosari milk supply baaga perigi potundi deeni valla appudu koddiga break ichhi oka 2 or 3 days malli start chesukondi

2) walnuts meeku eppudu hungry anipiste appudu tinandi memory power increase avutundi anta baby ki

3) gondh laddoo idi tini oka glass milk tagandi ante oka 1hr boost baby la vuntaru but tine mundu water tagandi atleast oka 2 glasses

4) mentulu or menthi koora baaga use cheyandi mentulu soak chese time lekapote oka spoon notlo vesukuni water taageyandi

5) Garlic enta use cheyagaligite anta use cheyandi

6) sontipodi first mudda annam lo ghee to kalipi tinandi

7) barley water

8) bread and rusk lu preferably bread with milk aite manchi result vuntundi atleast two slices twice a day with milk teesukondi

9) inka feeding ichhe mundu oka 10 mins mundu water tagandi oka glass time dorakaka pote sipper lo water fill chesukuni feeding istu tagandi helps to produce more milk

10) dondakaya, sorakaya, menthi koora, palakura, bendakaya, beerakaya ee vegetables ekkuvaga use cheyandi

11) talimpu veseppudu ekkuvaga minapappu vesukondi

12 ) oats and badam mixed cerels once in a day tappakunda teesukondi

13) inka oats direct ga milk to teesukunte manchi result vuntundi antaru but nenu enni varieties of oats try chesina tinaleka poyanu

14) baby ni veelinanni sarlu hug chesukunte bonding valla milk supply perugutundi antaru

15) inka naa baby future ila vundali vallani idi cheyali valla health bagundali ani velu anni times anukunte kooda meeku milk production ki help avutundi

16) rice cook cheyagane oka 2 garlic pods ni small pieces ga cut chesi rice meeda spread chesi lid petti oka 10 mins tarvata tinandi

inka babies milk latch cheyatledante ee reasons kooda vuntai

1) Egg smell padadu kontamandi babies ki egg boil chesina , amlet vesina atleast cake chesina ante maa vadu andulo first vuntadu egg boil chesina roju anta fussy ga vuntadu adi observe chesukondi egg tini baby daggaraki rakunda choosukondi

2) perfumes / Deo ki kooda konta mandi babies milk tagaranta

3) onion smell ki kooda

Courtesy: SwapnaRams.

Mom Recommendations!

2012-01-01T10:28:00.000+05:30

Interesting YouTube Links For Toddlers

2011-10-21T21:51:00.000+05:30

I dont really support kids watching TV or a lot of stuff on the net when they should be out playing but there are times when we need them to gulp down something down the throat on absolute no-energy, hyper-fussy, bad-weather in and out days where we need to just give in.. and come to say that anything in moderation does no harm to anyone right!!!

Thanks Archana for the wonderful link-.

Super Simple Songs Channel.

KidsTV123.

Gigglebellies - Wheels on the Bus

Gummybaer

Pingu Penguin

Pre-Baby Ideas For Shopping

2011-10-21T20:15:00.001+05:30

I am really amazed at how the would-be moms prepare for the arrival of new babies.. Swapna Rams shared her wonderful ideas which I paste about here which might help others..

yeah diapers padakapovadam anedi common...okko kid ki pampers kooda padadu so okesari anni teesukokandi....

NB size oka pack lo 84 vuntai kada avi oka 20days vastai hospital lo oka 2 days vuntaru kada malli vachhepudu konni vuntai mana daggara so total ga oka 25 days cool ga vundochhu aa time lo meeku telustundi pampers set aindo ledo..initial ga pampers swadlers vi indicator vuntundi adi teesukondi easy avutundi diaper epudu change cheyali ani telusutundi...

pee chesinapudalla diaper change cheyalsina avasaram ledu....

inka wipes maatram techhi pettukondi but max use cheyakandi initial one month , viva paper towels use cheyandi....

or cotton balls use cheyandi...

clean chesaka total ga dry ayyela choodandi aa tarvate inko diaper change cheyandi...

inka aveeno and burts bee works well with babies ani chepparu but small qty vi techhukondi.. annintiki receipts dachi pettukondi...return cheyochhu incase use cheyakapote...

initial ga new born size andariki set avutundi tarvata baby weight ni patti next size decide chesukovochhu...

inka powder asalu use cheyoddu...

shampoo okkati konandi chaalu...

baby ki oil msg chestaru kada snanam ayyaka kooda baby skin dry avvakunda vunchutundi

almond oil, oilive oil techhukunna nenu aite...

initial ga umbelical cord voodipoyedaka sponge bath or wash cloth to wipe cheyadame tarvate snanam cheyinchandi

inka alcohol vi istaru hopsital lo like wipes avi ekkuvaga techhukondi baby u cord meeda danito addite tondaraga ante oka 5 to 6 days lo voodipotundanta...

destin diaper rash cream techhukondi

Swapna Rams

Baby Product Review By a Mom

bath products ---- ma papa ki Aveeno (soothing creamy baby wash) padaledu...so edaina first trial size konu...if it suits peddadi konachu...i used j&J naturals ( green bottle 98% natural ani untundi) till last month..ippudu i am using burt's bees...check consumer reviews thread for my post on this

diapers--- I used (still using) pampers swaddlers sensitive....hospital lo edi vadithe ade konatam better...swaddlers lo indicator untundi adi initial ga help avutundi. huggies ayithe suggested size kanna okati peddadi kavali...ante if they say 8-14 lbs size 1 then you have to buy size 2...check if you can get samples from their site..cord oodevaraku NB size better..it has a small cut out at the cord area

moisturizer --- nakaithe must anipinchindi...avasaranni batti teesuko...i used cetaphil in the beginning (a month or so) later switched to aquaphor (vaseline like gel...babies ki separate ga emi undadu) winter to twice a day vadanu...summer lo once a day vadanu...now i bought burt's bees calming lotion inka try cheyaledu...chesaka chepthanu

Baby Utility Product Reviews By Moms - Useful for US based Moms

2011-10-21T20:12:00.001+05:30

-->Baby Carriers edi baaguntundi n to what xtend r they useful??

Baby carriers basic nunchi the best varaku chaala vunayi.. it depends on what type of parents you are ..:-)if you plan on wearing the baby around daily get the best one.. ledu elaga stroller vuntudni akda andulone teesukuni veltham anukunte baby carrier avasaram ayinappude teesukondi.. ippudu konatam avasaram ledu anukuntuna.. memu generally stroller ne vadathamu.. nenu indai travel chesinappudu
http://www.amazon.com/Infantino-Flip-Front-Carrier-Black/dp/B003I867WQ
idi teesukunna.. ekkuva use cheyyaledu.. jsut between flights ala use chesanu adn tirupathi lo use chesa.. liked it..
the best for daily use ayithe
http://www.amazon.com/BABYBJ%C3%96RN-Baby-Carrier-Active-Silver/dp/product-description/B000Q97TLI

-->Baby rockers Vs Cradle n Swing?? which one do u suggest...
DH emo baby ki ala vibrations n swing alavatu ithe adi lenappudu baby ni manage cheyada kastam avuthundi antunaru n got to know that its life/time saver from few fren n 4m TIAns mee opnion enti??
Nenu siddu ki 2 in 1 swing and bouncer teesukunna

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2845527&CAWELAID=107499745

idi baga use ayyindi naaku.. siddu ki baby appudu bouncer baaga nachinid.. kani memu alavatu ayipothe kastam ani ekkuva sepu vunchaledu kani it worked for me when we needed him to sooth himself..
swing kuda baane help ayyindi kani after he turned 6 months inka swing istapadaledu.. it depends on the baby what he likes antaru.. so nenu 2 in 1 teesukunna..
cradler naaku idea ledu..

->Baby Bath ki elanti tub tesukovali??ee question monna baby care basics lo adugudam anukoni marchipoyanu so posting it here...

oka friend idi bavundi ani cheppindi
http://www.amazon.com/First-Years-Infant-Toddler-Sling/dp/B000067EH7/ref=pd_cp_ba_1

Vineela

rocker/swing....memu idi teesukunnamu
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Fisher-Price-Smart-Stages-3-in-1-Rocker-Swing-My-Little-Eye-Collection/12960799
Maku baga use avuthundi...chinnappudu swing laga n ippudu chair/rocker laga use chesthunnamu....
Bathtub...nenu shritha ki ide vadanu
http://www.walmart.com/ip/The-First-Years-Newborn-to-Toddler-Tub-with-Sling/5172339
baby carrier....adi me usage ni batti teesukondi...DH ki ento adi vesukoni tiragalani korika tho konnamu kani hardly 2 times kooda use cheyaledu...antha ga aithe use avvaledu maku..

Bhargavi

Some Sleep Suggestions!

2011-09-21T00:06:00.000+05:30

I will give you some suggestions which I have been following through... I have been strictly following Dr. Marc Weissbluth's book for sleep... sometimes I have been successful, sometimes not... but the key is u got to keep trying until the routine falls into place...

this is what he says in book...

the child wakefulness should not exceed more than 2 hours... the time starts when the child gets up in the morning...

suppose ur child wakes up at 7AM in the morning... try to put him/her to sleep by 9AM for the morning nap...

the next nap should occur between 12-2PM

the third might or might not occur... if it occurs it should be between 3-4 PM...

try to put the baby sleep between 6PM-8PM in the night...give him/her warm bath, feed, and then put to sleep...

if the baby wakes up in the middle of the night , do not bring the baby into the light..

ensure the room is very dark,noise free...so that they will not wake up....

look for baby's drowsy signs... they will become less active, whine, become fussy after 2 hrs... u can notice it very slowly... immediately soothe the baby n put him/her to sleep...

Initially u will ve some resistance from the baby as he/she is not used to this schedule.. but slowly it will fall into place and the baby will automatically fall asleep...

I have been trying this for 1 month and can easily identify when kid is drowsy and put him to sleep during the day & night time...

The more ur child sleep or gets rest in the day time the more he/she will sleep in the night...

U can refer to this book .. its really a good book.. ve been very useful to me...

Healthy Sleeping habits:Happy Child.. By Dr.Marc Weissbluth M.D.

- Courtesy - Gayathri

Pillala Aarogyam - Eenadu Links

2011-09-07T22:27:00.002+05:30

check here

Banana and Lentils

2011-08-09T06:35:00.000+05:30

... and the lentils

Weaning Foods

2011-08-09T06:33:00.000+05:30

Another set of info all the way from UK :)!!

The weaning foods table

Another table

Thanks Jr. for sending this across and a special thanks for Suresh garu to get them scanned.

Baby Food - Salt and Sugar

2011-08-09T06:25:00.000+05:30

I love it when people do actually take time to contribute and appreciate the efforts... thanks a ton Sravanthi... here they go!!

Sugar - Salt Table

Sugar intake

Child Sexual Abuse - A good beginner video!

2011-08-04T07:57:00.003+05:30

Check out! Loved the tactful and sensitive manner in which Dr. Bhooshan has handled the kids. He sounded approachable, friendly and cool to the kids without scaring them with the lecture kind of a feel, just cool casual talk making them aware of the most practical thing to protect themselves, amazing, hats off to the creators of the video.

It is a good practice to teach the kids from a very young age, very very young to begin with in my personal opinion, to protect themselves, to let them know it is okay to tell any concerns to the trusted ones, it is okay that they trust the parents with stuff they are subjected to. It is our job to convince them that it is not a crime or something wrong if someone else does something wrong to them, their bodies, their feelings. They need to get out of that guilt and fear and feel free to express and get help and security.

I practice little things like
** Talking to the kid while washing her bum and tell her that only mom, grandma or xyz should be allowed to touch the bottom, no one else.. every day, just like that, not an advise, just some casual talk.
**Same ritual at bath time when cleaning up the private parts, undressing, and simple things like not letting any new person, that mamma does not know or ask to remove her clothing.
**Toilet training, bathing are two periods when I think the topic can be popped without sounding preachy, casual yet convincing time to have a firm talk without actually scaring the kid.

Please pass it on!

More about Dr. Bhoosan here

Strange/New Behaviors

2011-07-30T10:20:00.000+05:30

There are times when kids just want to try something new and end up with something or the other and this I can say with my personal experience. The kid had this habit of pulling out her tongue long right since birth and in fact that is how I saw her the first time, the pink tongue sticking out from a really cute and tiny kid. It was really really cute at that point, something etched in my memory for ever and ever.. but as time went on whenever she did that I used to ask her not to do it.. it was around 3 months of age that she got back to that habit, sticking the tongue out and then putting it back in and then sticking it out. I really got scared and the crazy me even went to the nearest Nagendraswamy temple and left eggs there to satiate him :).. come to think of it now, it is funny but back it was really NOT. I was annoyed, irritated seeing her do it again and again, felt she would get used to it and to a novice first-timer parent it was really really scary, I used to say, please nanna, even tried the mild hitting on the tongue with a finger when it came out. It did work, she did not get it but it was at that age... after a while that habit surfaced again and even that finger strike did not help... this time I got even more panicked but thankfully found the solution pretty soon, IGNORE!!

when the kids do things like
**Sticking the tongue out.
**Pulling their hair.
**making water bubbles through mouth
**putting fingers, at times even whole hand into the mouth.

Gently remind them for a while not to do it, if the frequency increases, just understand they are doing it just to get your attention, so just ignore it and they will get right on their own.

However, with thumb sucking it is a different thing altogether. If it is something which has started suddenly after 3 months or so, then see if the kid is feeling some insecurity or anxiety, too many changes in lifestyle, just missing you more or any other reason you could figure out, spend some more quality time with the kid, assure that you are there for them through soothing words, etc. and most of the times, they do stop.

Do not make a big issue of it, shout, scold, lose patience at any point, especially with regard to new behaviors. Be a bit stern in the voice, ignore it and let them know clearly that they will not be having any attention from you for such a thing which is actually not really acceptable and things will be just fine.

But then again, it is my personal experience and not an expert suggestion, try this and hope for the best :).

Also, for things like pulling out your/some one's else's hair, just let them know it is not acceptable through your acts.. maybe even pull her/his hair a bit stronger and let the kid feel the pain, to a lesser degree though. Tell them that it really hurts you, talk to them and they actually understand that. I find it useful in 2 ways, teaching them concern for another individual and knowing right from wrong.

Try and let me know if it actually worked for you.. Happy Parenting!

Aksharaabhyasam

2011-06-30T17:11:00.003+05:30

The formal induction of a child to formal studies or traditional entry of the kid into the world of knowledge or gynana. is called Aksharaabhyaasam and ideally the age suggested in the scriptures is 5th year but in this present day and age we get it done in 3rd yr or the alternative odd year so as to get the kid to school at the current accepted age of 3 to 3-1/2 yrs.

Majority of the ceremonies if in India are done at the Basara Saraswati Temple or in the ammavaaru temples in Navaratri days of Dussera, Moola Nakshatram, Saraswati Avataaram day.

I had taken the kid to Nuzuvidu, the closest temple to my current location and the ambiance and the temple was awesome. Free of rush and corruption, peace and devotion are the feelings that engulf you the moment you enter the temple.

Age and Time Performed
Odd years of the child 3 and 5.. any day other than a Tuesday based on Tithi, Vaara, Nakshatra, Raasi of the child without Varjyam.

Things needed:
Palaka Balapam Slate and Slate pencil - preferably stone slate not an iron one.
Kotta Battalu - New dress
Tella Tundu - White Towel
Biyyam 1 to 1-1/2 kg - rice
Pasupu - Turmeric
Kumkuma
Vakkalu
Tamalapaakulu - betel leaves
Arati Pallu - ripe bananas
Kobbari Kaayalu - Coconuts
Bellam Mukka - jaggery

Taamboolam - A big steel plate
Glass
Spoon
Water
Vidipoolu for Archana
Poola Danda for ammavaaru
9 Slates, chocolates/sweets/gifts for 9 kids or any number of kids you plan to give.

Saraswati Temples in AP
Basara - They also do postal aksharaabhyasam for a fee of 75/-
Vargal
Nuziveedu - Gyana Saraswati Temple. charge 150/- plus brahmana Dakshina
Vijayawada, near Kaali Maata temple.
Durgamma Temple Vijayawada, Indrakeeladri (they give a kit which is included in the ticket).

PS: And if you are looking for a silver slate that is used in the pic above, it is available in almost all the readymade silver jewelry shops and comes with a silver slate pencil holder as well but again, this is a one time use as you can't really send the kid with it to the school, not necessarily for fear of stealing it but for the kid's safety aspect.

Me, being the sucker for all things to be stacked away for kid's kids or her grownup year memories certainly voted for this!

Been a while..

2011-05-19T08:00:00.001+05:30

It has been a while since I did an out and out First Steps post, have just been doing the info gathering stuff. Parenting is a never ending job I know but there has come a point when there is a certain balance and rhythm in life, where learning things is there but there is kind of a lull for the time being, there certainly will come a time with bustling activity pretty soon, too much to work on what school, what friends, what tiffen box and all that stuff but for now am a teeny tiny bit relaxed... how is everything with you all..

There have been quite a few personal comments and queries in the recent past which I either try to answer if I know or forward it to Renu to answer if that is the topic she has dealt with or plainly say that I am not aware of. It feels good to be able to answer and to come to a point where we have the ability to do it. Once again, please leave in your mail id if you want reply to very personal questions and expect personal replies. I might take a little time but I will certainly get back to you.

Happy parenting buddies... would love more comments if you like the job.. motivation you see.. even otherwise I will do it for my personal satisfaction, just looking for that unexpected bonus :).

Handling a Hyperactive Kid

2011-05-19T07:38:00.002+05:30

Things that help

**Regular physical excercise.
**Interaction with people of all age groups and some exclusive time with their age group.
**Cut down intake of food having sugar, chocolate and junk food, especially more so in the evenings or at bedtime, well balanced nutrition eradicates half the problems.
**Strictly do not allow kids to play violent computer games and watch violent, emotionally charged scenes on TV/cinema.
**Giving the kids small responsibilities.
**Making them responsible for a pet if the health/house/budget permits.

The key is to channelize their energies positively and get the best out their ability. Being Active is a Boon not a Bane..!! Firstly and most importantly, stop considering it a disorder and run around doctors and specialists, try and understand the needs of the children, their insecurities, spend time with them, understand their deepest fears and desires and most importantly be there, not just physically.

If there is indeed a problem, then and only then after multiple opinions from various doctors, do you put the kid under medication for hyperactivity.

--- Sree

***************

Also when we go out side or any place or even everyday, tell your child what we have planned for the days. So then kids don't get anxiety like whats gonna happen etc.
Tell them where we are going adn what we expect from their so they don't have surprises. Sometimes these kids mind races so fast that they can't process their own thought process and people lable them naughty, active kids.

so instead give them rough idea about each forthcoming tihngs and teach them turtle technique.
In which take a deep breathe and calm down and think slowly.
Initially you have to guide child to help him recognise those moments when they can't focus and end up in trouble. So help you child saying come here for a minute calm down take deep breathes, count 1-10. Now look around where are we?
what are we suppose to do?
What were we told to do?
Are we doing that? yes? then what else to do?
if not then ok, what needs to be done etc.
This helps a lot.
Also if you let your child know already whats gonna be (in mall, what you expect etc.) it gives them guidelines to follow.
YOu can ask your child after she calms down so wehre are we? What did we takled about it at home? So now you know what to do? How can "we" do it.
Ok lets do it.
When we say "WE" child feels supported and less stressed and shows more interest in achiving expected behavior or correct her actions.

Courtesy :Sonal. IP

Investment Ideas for Kids - Moms Reviews

2011-05-19T07:25:00.000+05:30

Visitors, Please feel free to add in more...

Key: Putting the eggs in different baskets

Minor PPF account.
gold- exchange traded fund via SIP (form of mutual fund)
More Gold ETF info here
Fixed Deposits
Mutual Funds - Mostly Diversified Equity(Which gives me liquidity, good distribution of investment avenue of my money in the equity market, no lockin period), ELSS ones (5 star rated ones alone and which are run by the best fund house/fund manager / and have proven track record , which give me tax savings plus good returns - 3 yr locking period)

- Split MF investments in 6 -7 best ones. Keep monitoring fund performance too and make wise switches among funds.

Madhu, you can think urself what you are looking for when it comes to MF - Do you have an orientation for largecap/midcap / bluechip kind of funds ? What is your risk appetite ? Do you need tax saving ? What is ur investment horizon ? Does liquidity matter to you ? You have already mentioned you'd invest quarterly . So, mode is ok. How better and how often you get time to monitor your fund performance and portfolio (top stock holdings of the fund) ?

As you have mentioned abt current investments - both are reputed good fund houses.

HDFC Prudence is a balanced fund :) A good (optimal) performer for those with moderate risk appetite. Reliance Vision - A good diversified equity fund.

To understand where your money goes , where it gets invested, how much % , what kind of sector - is it - its a well established mostly bluechip rated segment (large cap) or a fastgrowing segment with some risk potential (midcap) or totally new shores (small cap - highest risk) and how it reaps returns for you - its past performance (We know its no guarentee for same future returns.but atleast you know the track record) , How the fund has performed compared to its peers . What is the value research star rating , how experienced is your fund manager - how are perf. of funds that he manages, what is fund house strategy

These questions would matter while you make your selection.

I have just given a sample link

You can learn more going through each of these. I have been investing in MFs more than 7 years now and I am glad - its a good choice. - the funds where i've put my money.

Insurance (Protection, Savings and tax saving).
Real estate - Includes regular income generating commercial complexes as well as empty plots with money multiplying potential as well as real estate venues as residential homes which gives one excellent tax saving as Home loan as well as is an asset.
Gold
Post Office Savings.

Courtesy: Anusha, IP

Simple Kid Activities At Home

2011-05-19T07:10:00.000+05:30

Some tried and tested ideas by moms.. these are for kids above 3 yrs because it needs a little coordination, balance and general big baby skills and not for toddlers and infants

Building Stories

We can build a story together. I started a story and asked my daughter to continue the next scene and then it was my turn and then hers till the story ends at an appropriate juncture. It was really interesting doing with her...

A couple of samples I tried....

1) My daughter loves the story of "Goldilocks and the three bears". So I told her that Goldilocks has now been good and its the little bear who has been naughty and did not listen to his mother and ventured into the city. Now what do u think will happen? She thought for a while and said, "The little bear will look at the crowd and so many vehicles and he was knocked down by a car". Then I continued saying, "Then the scared bear looked for a house and entered one. It was the house of the Goldilocks". Then we continued till the little bear ran back to the forest....

2) Another was - "I said Letter A is very proud of himself. He says the names of many animals, fruits, veggies etc. begin with him and he is the greatest". The letter 'B' on hearing that said, "No, no...thats not true! Even many animals, birds, fruits etc. have their names beginning with me". Then both of us listed various things that begin with the two letters.... Then I asked my daugghter, "What do u think happened next?". She immediately said, "Letter 'C' came and said, "Dont fight". ....

While building the story, I finished my cooking too :-)

And she also connected the word 'build'. She said, "We only build blocks, is it not? How come u are saying 'build' stories?" And then I explained to her....

The downside is through out the day she wanted to build stories....:-)

Sorting!
Sorting vegetables/fruits that we buy from the market and putting them into smaller baskets or covers. Removing curry and coriander leaves from their stalks and putting them into covers...are some tasks that we can get children to help us on.

As children sort, they build essential visual skills and logical thinking. And while they sort, we can do our work while simultaneously reeling off the benefits of each of the vegetables and how it helps them build a strong mind and body.

Float or Sink!
We can bring a small tub of water and place it in an area in which the child can do some experimentation safely. We can ask the child to collect a variety of objects from in and around the house like a feather, leaf, crayon, pencil, coin etc. and drop each one in the tub and see whether each of it 'floats' or 'sinks'.....

While children learn new vocabulary thru this experiment, they also learn an important science concept. As children begin to understand the concept clearly, we can extend by analysing why objects 'float' or 'sink', what do fishes do, what happens to an object that sinks....and so on.

Also we can get them make paper boats and float them in water.

Balance walk...
Find a long rope and lay it on the floor. Take turns with the child to walk on the rope without falling off or losing balance. Children get better and better with this with practise and also develop balance, coordination and concentration :-)

- Courtesy: Bala

SORTING LIKES AND DIFFERENCES
It helps develop thinking skills.

1. Find 3 objects that are alike in some way, such as, the same color, the same size, the same shape, and the same type of object. Then, find one that is different.
Set out the four objects and have your child find the one that is different.

Sometimes your child will pick one that is not the one you had intended as the different. However, upon questioning her, she has a valid reason why this one is different and the others are the same. If they can explain their reasoning, accept their answer. This is a great game to teach children how to look at all characteristics of an object, and how to see that objects can fall into different categories.

2. Sort by fruits and vegetables
3. Sort leaves, toys by color
4. Sort spoons, pebbles by size

Courtesy: Renu

Color Mixing - Messy but good exercise before bath

I took red, yellow and blue paints . Then applied red on his left palm and yellow on his right palm and asked him to rub together.and pressed his palms on a white paper . I asked "what color is it? " he said Orange.. Like wise do mix and match and involve the kid, they will enjoy it.

Rolling Crayon/pencil
Put a box on the chair of dining table and ask the kid to sit on the opposite side of the table, giving some crayons, pencil, some rolling object and ask them to roll out so that they fall into the box, they can keep the count of misses and hits and can get involved in the play for a while, initially the hits will be low but eventually the kids with their persistence will learn it :).

Courtesy: Geeta

Genetical Disorders-Thalassemia

2011-04-27T14:01:00.000+05:30

One important thing that couples should be aware before planning the kids is to go for Genetics counselling.

At the far glance, it looks not necessary and the numbers look really less, so we imagine we would never be trapped in those numbes. but, what if??? We cannot rule out the possiblity though it is less likely to happen. That is why, it is always recommended that we are aware of all the things to be better prepared to handle things.

Genetics couselling does help the couple to understand what to expect & what not in addition to the solutions offerable in any unlikely possible event.

May be i should put it in my own experience, so the parents out there can better relate it to themselves.

I happenned to take my elder daughter to her pediatrician for the MMR vaccination and upon general examination she asked me get HPLC & Iron serum binding tests done as her HB levels seems to be low. This test is not needed for every one with low Hb levels, but she suggested it because the kid was found to be on low levels in the previous examination aswell. She suggested that we get this test done to rule out any other reasons that are influencing hb levels.

So we got the test done & showed the reports to her only to hear that the kid is having the possiblity of Thalassemia intermediate and hell broke lose for us. The word seems to be too big and we never heard of it before. She tried her best to enlighten us on the issue and here are the details

Thalassemia beta is a genetic disorder that gets passed on to the generations only through genes & effects the formation of red blood cells. As the kid carries two sets of genes each from the parent, the severity of Thalassemia can vary based on the no. of genes mutated i.e Thalassemia Minor/Trait where one gene is mutated or Thalassemia Major if two genes are mutated.

Thalassemia minor is not so severe as healthy gene dominates the mutated gene and people effected with minor can lead absolutely normal life except that they need to get their blood levels checked from time to time & need special medical support during pregnancy & delivery. These cases normally go undiagnosied becaused of no visible symptoms and be mistaken as iron deficiency cases. One more important thing though to remember is to get married to a person who is NOT a carrier, to ensure that the next generations are not effected with serious form of Thalassemia i.e Major.
Thalassemia Major is a severe form of disease and is passed on to the kids if both parents happenned to be carriers. To break it down by logic, if both parents are carriers, they both carry one mutated gene and one healthy gene. Which means, there is 25% chance of being normal (Taking the healthy gene from each parent leaving aside the mutated), 50% chance of Minor (Taking healthy gene from one parent and the mutated gene from other) and 25% chance of Major (Taking mutated genes from both parents) which means 1 out of 4 can become Thal major effected.

There comes the importance of awareness. In our society, marraiges do happen by matching the social status, financial status & more over driven by physical appearance but no one really bothers about these things. So far, never seen an occassion where either side of parents are interested to get bride/groom's basic healthchecks done. The moment you ask for the healthcheck to be done, you can forget the proceedings on the alliance. In case of Thal, its really really important that two carriers are not getting married and thats the only way to curb it in the generations to come.

After explaining this, she asked us to get our tests done to see if either of us are carriers or both. If we both happens to be carriers, further prescribed to go for DNA analysis. This DNA analysis is done only out of genetics institutes one such is in Ameerpet, Hyd. So as a first thing to do, we both gave our samples and were asked to wait for 3 days for the results. I agree, i'm an educated person, but i'm a mother. I lost all my senses and just couldn't get myself alright for those three full days only to see that we both are carriers. What the hell??? If we both are carriers, its very well possible that Sanju can become intermediate/major and to even think about it is sending shivers down the spine. I searched for it over the net, and the health issues associated with Thal major seemed to be even more scaring. Enlargement of Organs, Regular blood transfusions, bone enlargements, chelations to extract iron deposits..what not??? And all these issues are we as parents passing on to the kid due to the lack of awareness? What about the younger one then? When its such serious, why i was not tested during pregnancy??? Why the society is unaware of this? Why we were not paying attention towards getting basic health checks done before finalizing on a match? I was extremely negative and started to blame every one & every thing in the reach within myself. But going by the same internet study, intermediate/major effected people do show up some signs but we dont see them in Sanju. So in one corner some thing was telling me that everything is fine, but reports have something else to say. how is it possible?

These reports have come while i was in office and as i heard the results through my husband, i couldn't hold myself. And, i didn't want to make it a big scene and draw sympathy (Ugh...hate it) or whatever, so i instantly sent an email to my director saying that i'm leaving due to ill health. As i was crossing the exit door, my boss was walking in and asked me if i can spare some time for a quick meeting. With a lot of difficulty, i gathered my words and told him that i was leaving for the day. He is smart. He quickly got hold of my mental status and insisted that we talk. We got into the conference room and i had to vent out whatever i had within. The instant advice from him is to go for second opinion. He knows a director from someother lab and spoke to him to arrange a personal counseling by the supervisor doctor. He assured me that everything will go fine after speaking her.

Next day, myself and my husband both went and met the doctor. She looked at the reports and told us that going by numbers Sanju is only a carrier but not an intermediate/major. Myself is a sure carrier, but my husband's readings are showing border-like numbers which in reality they consider as normal. She told us that we are very lucky to have a minor effected child despite me being carrier & the husband being in border line. However, she expressed a concern about the younger one and suggested that we get this test done to her immediately. She did explain the reports and completly ruled out the very thought of Sanju being intermediate/major. She said its ruthless to be written like this by lab people without proper knowledge and told us that report interpretation is more critical than the examination itself. So for now, we are at peace, We just have to see that Sanju is on good diet, get her tests done from time to time & get her married to a person who is not a thal minor which is after 20yrs. But the concerns about the younger one started mounting up and we thought we will get the test done as soon as possible.

As we were returning, my husband expressed that we better go to Institute of Genetics aswell for the reports interpretation just to be double confident. I agreed with him and we went there. The first doctor who saw the reports went by lab comments and said that Sanju could be an intermediate and we better get the DNA analysis be done to understand the status. Our spirits were down again. Only some time back the other doctor assured us that nothing to worry and now this??? We were referred to a scientist there. She saw the reports and the immediate reply from her is - "These reports are dirty, I dont see a relation in numbers". She then explained us that Hba2 numbers are critical to identify Thal conditions, but we must also see other proportions like fetal hb. Hba2 for all of us is more than 3.5 which is an indication for Thal possiblity, but fetal hb is absent for all of us which is in her terms "Stupid". Fetal gb should contribute for more than 9% while hb fragmant should be less than 85% which is not true in our reports. She told us that we should repeat these tests to clearly understand the situation. We have Sanju's exams going on during that time, so we thought we better get these tests done after the exams and got them done for all 4 of us during last week. And can you guess what reports have to say....All of us are completely normal, not even minors. Our HBa2 is less than 3, which means there is not even a remote possiblity of Thal be it Minor or Major. And the Hb fragmant contributions are all normal. First is Sigh...what a relief. Next is Grr...We must sue that lab for this mental torture that we faced for last 4 weeks. Whatever, we got the results from an authenticated institute and we must agree that they are right. And the lesson learnt- "Always go for Second opinion".

Having said this, don't you people think that genetics counselling is important before marraige, or if that seems to be next to impossible atleast before planning for kids? Yes, it is important. During our visits to Genetics institute, we were surprised to hear that all disorders that we see in kids are majorly passed on from parents with the combination of minor defects in one or both parents. And all this is due to inadequate awareness among the society. Thats a suprise. When a bundle of joy lays next to us in complete healthy state, we can't realize the pain that parents experience when the same bundle of joy is effected with birth disorders. And many of them need lifetime assistance or medical support and they can't enjoy the normal life. Doctors were clearly stating that they still see a lot of cases coming to their screening could have been dealt better if the parents approached them before planning kids. There are many techniques available for them to do prenatal screening & ensure that the fetus is normal and incase of any abnormalities, they explain the options to both parents and leave the decission to them to take & accept the risk. So its important that we make it a practice to get the basic health checks done (not just for mother) for both the parents, and approach the genetic couselling specialists as necessary.

Improving Child Immunity

2011-04-16T07:01:00.000+05:30

What can you do to protect your child from the endless array of germs and viruses he's exposed to every day?
Unfortunately, in some ways, getting sick when you're a kid is simply part of the job description. "We all enter this world with an inexperienced immune system.. Slowly, children prime their immunity by battling an ongoing series of germs, viruses, and other organisms -- which is why most pediatricians consider six to eight colds, bouts of flu, or ear infections per year normal.
But there are healthy habits you can adopt that will give your child's immune system a boost.

1. SERVE MORE FRUITS AND VEGETABLES
Carrots, green beans, oranges, strawberries: They all contain such immunity-boosting phytonutrients as vitamin C and carotenoids. Phytonutrients may increase the body's production of infection-fighting white blood cells and interferon, an antibody that coats cell surfaces, blocking out viruses. Try to get your child to eat five servings of fruits and veggies a day.

2. BOOST SLEEP TIME
Studies of adults show that sleep deprivation can make you more susceptible to illness by reducing natural killer cells, immune-system weapons that attack microbes and cancer cells. The same holds true for children. Children in day care are particularly at risk for sleep deprivation because all the activity can make it difficult for them to nap. How much sleep do kids need? A newborn may need up to 18 hours in a day, toddlers require 12 to 13 hours, and preschoolers need about 10 hours. "If your child can't or won't take naps during the day, try to put her to bed earlier.

3. BREST FEED YOUR BABY
Breast milk contains turbo-charged immunity-enhancing antibodies and white blood cells. Nursing guards against ear infections, allergies, diarrhea, pneumonia, meningitis, urinary-tract infections.The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that moms breast-feed for a year at least.

4. EXERCISE AS A FAMILY
Research shows that exercise increases the number of natural killer cells in adults -- and regular activity can benefit kids in the same way. To get your children into a lifelong fitness habit, be a good role model. "Exercise with them rather than just urge them to go outside and play.

5. GUARD THEM AGAINS GERMS SPREAD
Fighting germs doesn't technically boost immunity, but it's a great way to reduce stress on your child's immune system. Make sure your kids wash their hands often -- and with soap. You should pay particular attention to their hygiene before and after each meal and after playing outside, handling pets, blowing their nose, using the bathroom, and arriving home from day care. When you're out, carry disposable wipes with you for quick cleanups. To help kids get into the hand-washing habit at home, let them pick out their own brightly colored hand towels and soap in fun shapes, colors, and scents.
Another key germ-busting strategy: "If your child does get sick, throw out her toothbrush right away. A child can't catch the same cold or flu virus twice, but the virus can hop from toothbrush to toothbrush, infecting other family members. If it's a bacterial infection, such as strep throat, however, your child can reinfect herself with the same germs that got her sick in the first place. In that case, tossing the toothbrush protects both your child and the rest of your family.

6. BANISH SECONDHAND SMOKE
If you or your spouse smokes, quit. Cigarette smoke contains more than 4,000 toxins, most of which can irritate or kill cells in the body. Kids are more susceptible than adults to the harmful effects of secondhand smoke because they breathe at a faster rate; a child's natural detoxification system is also less developed. If someone absolutely can't quit smoking, you can reduce your child's health risks considerably by smoking only outside the house.

7. DONT PRESSURE YOUR PEDIATRICIAN
Urging your pediatrician to write a prescription for an antibiotic whenever your child has a cold, flu, or sore throat is a bad idea. Antibiotics treat only illnesses caused by bacteria, "but the majority of childhood illnesses are caused by viruses.

Lastly, just ask your mom how much you troubled her, when you were so young ? Isnt it ? Dont get tired so easily. Remember you have to work hard to save your baby from all this atleast till he reaches five years, then gradually things will be better.
Once your child reached 5 years happily, atleast half work is done.
Hope these simple tips will help you.

Swimmer's Ear - Ear care

2011-04-02T04:41:00.003+05:30

Essentials for Swimming

swimming ki swim diapers , baby floats , flotation swimsuits and sun protection products must.

Sun Hats, Sun Suits, and Rash Guards are a great way to boost your sun protection efforts.

u can also use goggles if ur kid allows.

u get swimming pool toys like foam numbers, plastic moulded toys, squirty fish ,swim rings and jumbo ball..

arm bands must that they can float properly.

swim caps to protect their hair from the water if the kid allows.

Swimmer's ear, also known as otitis externa, is a bacterial infection most often caused by excess moisture in the ear. The best way to avoid swimmer's ear is to keep yours clean and dry.
This may help you in avoiding it:
1. Keep the water out while you're showering: use earplugs or a shower cap.
2. Protect your ear canals when swimming. Wear earplugs, and resist the urge to take a dip in any polluted waters like ponds.
3. Take special care when cleaning ears. Wipe outer ear clean with a soft cloth wrapped around your finger. You don't want to disrupt the natural wax coating in your ear that protects against harmful bacteria.

Delayed Teething

2011-03-22T14:58:00.000+05:30

What You Need To Know

Do not worry if the kid has not yet cut yet a tooth by her/his first birthday.. it is perfectly normal...

Some Teething Facts..• teething is relatively painless for many children..
• the first tooth can come in anytime between 3 to 15 months, with an average age of 4 to 7 months for most infants.
• if teething does cause symptoms, it is usually about 4 days before and until 3 days after the tooth comes in..
• don't blame serious symptoms, especially a high fever or irritability, on teething
• don't overuse teething gels and teething tablets, since they shouldn't be needed for the average teething child

Some interesting articles.

2011-02-21T17:03:00.001+05:30

Today's parenting Quirky or Conscious?
HERE

Came across this beautiful link in Indian Parenting
HERE

Hollywood Celeb Moms on how motherhood made an impact on them
HERE

Kids and Sleeping Habits
HERE

Kids and Importance of Playtime
HERE and HERE

Controversial Chinese Parenting Articles
HERE Amy Chua
HERE Tiger Mothers CNN article

Extreme Parenting
HERE

US Education System
HERE

On Adolescent Stages
HERE and HERE.

Slow Parenting
HERE

SOURCE: Indian Parenting.

Kids and Candy

2011-02-09T18:58:00.001+05:30

Introducing chocolate, candy to kids is quite a tricky question. Do we or don't we, how much should we, when should we, so many questions.

With a strong diabetic history from the kid's paternal side, I was strongly against any excess sugar usage in the kid's diet but the kid invariably ended up to be a sweet lover and has a tad bit more interest on sweet stuff. When I was sick, the kid got the first taste of her candy, thanks to my mom, the doting grandmother, the Hershey, Ghirardelli and Lindt chocolates her father got for her. The gummy bears did not do well with her taste, so it was Kisses and Snickers festival for a while and it was only much later that it came to my notice and by then the damage was done. The kid become a total Choco-a-holic to my horror sustaining just on chocolate with the normal food forced down her throat.. sigh.

Anything in a limit is fine, but the kid started living on chocolate alone to my horror of horrors.

Some UNACCEPTABLE reasons to feed candy
**Hmm.. the kid is not eating anything else, so why not try it?
**She has skipped one meal, ayyo that tiny belly has nothing it, if she wants a chocolate let it be...(my experience says that she will skip the other meal and also the mid-meal snack because of eating candy to her content :(!!)
**She is so happy, there is a glow in her eyes at the mention and the site of candy, I do not want to take it away from her.
** the funniest of all, by my mom of course, if chocolates are bad why are so many chocolate ads targeted on kids and why are they not banned by the government.. since it is not banned, it is okay to consume.. are they all mad to let such dangerous stuff available to kids..(which made me search for walls to strike my head hard.. in a typical Brahmi style ;).

Results
Loss of appetite.
Itching around the anal area (supposedly pin worms).
Cavities/Caries...

To top it all, there were suggestions on this too like everything else from every corner from the so-called raised-so-many-kids experts that all is well and she can eat lollipops too (They had me pulling out the remaining hair on the scalp..)

Popular Misconceptions
**No problem she does not have teeth, so no problem at all, we can get her to stop before she gets the teeth.
**Oh it is okay, even if the teeth come no problem.. they are milk teeth and are going to go away anyway.
**Eating lots of candy leads to juvenile diabetes.
**Eating candy is good for health.

FACTS:
Even if the milk teeth fall out, the kid is at risk in future due to improper dental hygiene. We are even advised to stop night milk feeds by bottle and also bottle feed to avoid bottle-tooth decay in kids, so why risk cavities.. We need to wash the mouth, rinse and spit after every sweet consumption which is not possible with the kids, so why risk the caries when there are so many healthy alternatives. CHOCOLATES ARE NOT POISON... THEY ARE IN FACT VERY GOOD IF GIVEN IN MODERATION.. BUT do Toddlers have an idea of moderation, it is we, the parents who need proper discretion as to how much and when we need to give.

Why should we limit chocolates or candies to our children?? - Dr. Sanjay.

Never is there an easier time to teach self-control than when a person is a child. This is an excellent time to teach responsibility and discipline. What a child learns when they are young affects them when they grow up.

Here comes the concept of building eating healthy food since childhood. Children learn to binge on candy, chocolate and sweets at a very young age. See all these things contain lot of calories, if child develops eating these high calory food all the time, it becomes a habit, which can lead to problem like obesity and muliple problems related to obesity in future life.

So, its important to limit eating such high calory food. How you limit is upto you, may be once a week, may be on some particular days, may be as an incetive.
Eating chocolates everybody likes, dont you ?? but take it in limits. Try to develop good habits of eating more healthy food like fruits. I will prefer my child to have an apple rather then a five star as a routine habits. But if he follows my advises, i will surely bring one chocolate for him at the end of the week.

Try to make habit of brushing teeth every time before he sleeps, there is tendency to eat chocolates and sleep, which increases rick of caries/cavities.

Cleaning Toys

2011-02-07T12:31:00.002+05:30

Kids, especially are no doubt power balls of energy and to keep them engrossed, we keep them busy with toys. Some fun toys, some learning ones, some random ones we pick.

Out of the many, the kid might favor one specific toy, a blanket, a bottle or something which can undoubtedly be called her best companion, it goes everywhere with the kid, it does everything he/she does... I called it a comfort toy.

For Sreya, it had been a toy corn(maize) from her fruit/veggie toy collection, then a comforter for sleep, a favorite blanket which had to be there all the time. It had to be there everywhere she went, all the time she was awake, and even the time of sleep. There was a stage where all that she liked or set her eyes on were invariably found in her mouth, licking, sucking, plucking, pulling stage... no doubt laden with a battery of germs from here, there and everywhere.

Tips for Favorite Toys
Once, the kid lost her corn toy when she went out to play and she missed it a lot, then I realized the need for keeping two of her favorite toys.. the identical one handy. It really helps.. also we need to use them both so that the wear and tear is equal.

If we see a kid leaning towards a favorite toy, make sure you keep a replacement of it.. like two of them. Sreya has a favorite blanket which she never lets go out of her sight, so I had to get her another identical one and use it alternatively so that one goes for a wash, she still has another one.. but this was when she was very young to understand anything, still an infant.

Later, we can involve them in the cleaning process.. like if it is a favorite toy.. we need to bathe it just like she does.. She takes a bath every day and the toy whatever it is, if it has a name, it has to take bathe every "xx" number of days, involving her in the process thereby giving them lessons in hygiene and cleanliness.

It still is her comfort blanket, her "beeba" but she knows it has to be cleaned too..

Cleaning up toys once in a while is very crucial, I clean the regular toys with the feeding bottle/toy liquid cleaner, Stony Angel brand which I got from Brooks, other brands were Pigeon and Noni..

Non-electronic Toys
Soak the non electronic toys toys in warm water.
a few drops of the liquid cleaner
Clean them in the liquid/mild soap water.
Rinse them in clean water.
Place them on clean cotton cloth
Wipe them clean..
Dry them in mild sun for a few minutes
Store them back..

This was the routine as a kid, week after week and at times every couple of days when the "lick, suck" stage was going on..

Electronic Toys
Wipe them clean with disinfectant wipes once in a while.
Also, I use wet wipes when disinfectant wipes are not available and a soft cotton cloth dipped in lukewarm Dettol water.

For Soft Toys,
If machine wash, gentle wash with liquid soap, softener and easy wash.
If Hand wash, soak in mild soap/detergent water, wash and hang them dry.

Soft toys can be put in a pillow cover tied in it and then put in washer too if washing along with other clothes in the load.

Some also put just a few drops of Dettol in the final rinse.

These are all cleaning measures but the best way is to ensure and let them know time and again not to put ANYTHING other than food items in the mouth.

Pattu Langas/Dress/Top Design Ideas For Baby Girls.. India

2011-01-08T12:18:00.003+05:30

Click on the links given..

There is an amazing collection of ideas and designs for the kids, especially baby girls back in India, have a look at them.

MIMI's Collections.

Padmaja Designers

Suvastra

Neeru's Kids Collections

MIMI's Punjabi Dress Collection

Sree Sai Creations Tops and Dress Models

Lavanya's Collection

Traditional Pattu Langa Collection By Lavanya

For kids, Pre-stitched saree/blouse with stitched pleats - in malls/pattu stores..
Roopam's Vijayawada
Kalaniketan Vijayawada
and all brothers stores :) :).

Please feel free to add more.

Normal Baby Growth??? Growth Charts!!!

2011-01-01T09:06:00.000+05:30

One primary concern of every single concerned parent would be is my growing well, is the development wholesome?.. so much so that we often stress ourselves with numbers and percentiles.. and comparison is the worst possible monster.. I just love one fact my pediatrician re-emphasizes time and again..

Healthy kids come in all shapes and sizes, dont bother about numbers, just focus on how happy and healthy/non-fussy the kid is.. give them wholesome nutrition and just forget it unless the doctor rings an alarm bell.. you have a happy active kid reaching milestones more or less around the normal period, just forget the rest... trust the doctor, forget the advisers (ooh, dont you feed the kid types you often get to hear in India).. just follow the routine..

I read a very nice article on all this HERE.

I am taking the general points of use from there for my personal reference.

Inputs from (Parenting.com)

Kids usually do not grow at a steady rate.. each kid may vary from the other kids and most often even different from his own siblings/parents of the same age... so dont let the alarm bells ring so soon.

A baby's size when he's born is based partly on genetics. Boys are larger than girls and in case of twins, both boys and girls, are smaller than average. There can be several factors.. one most commonly observed fact is that moms who are diabetics often have large babies.

During the first two years:A baby's growth is based on a combination of her birth size and the size he/she's genetically programmed to be.

For example, a small newborn going to be a big child will grow faster than the large kids who are going to be small over the coming time or vise versa.

During childhood/infancy:
The growth spurts usually come in small/long bursts in kids in the sense in some kids it might seem like a rapid growth in some and a rather slow burst in some.. so there will usually be time periods when the kid might look extremely chubby or very lean alternating, so this again should not be a cause of concern. How long the growth spurt continues or how often is something which again varies from kid to kid or even in the same kid. Also, milestones like rolling over, crawling, sitting up, standing, taking steps, teething anything and everything has its own time frame in one particular kid, so comparison among siblings or the neighbor's/friend's kid is, in my opinion, the worst possible thing we can do. Learn to trust the doctor than letting the distractions worry you over some things.. if there is something of concern, the doc will ring the alarm bells, if the doc says it is fine, then it is fine most of the times.. but not a blind trust on even the ped, it is a matter of faith and balance.. the key is a fair balance.Both weight gain and increases in height come in short bursts of what can seem like rapid growth -- which is why kids can sometimes look almost chubby one month but lean the next. The duration of a growth spurt, as well as how much a child grows during one, differs from child to child (and from spurt to spurt in the same child). But it's not uncommon to see a visible difference in a very short time...

No one knows what causes a kid to shoot up one month and not another, so worrying over such things is not really worth it.

Let the doctor decide and you as a parent, and not the WELL-WISHERS as to how the child is doing in terms of overall progress.

Thumb of rule..
Birth to 12 months
Infants add 10 inches in length and triple their birth weight.. a kilo/pound plus or minus.
12 to 24 months
Toddlers add 5 inches and 6 pounds and then on the kids usually will have a settled/established growth pattern..

This again is a rough measure and like I say, dont go by the chart.. if the kid is happy, active, alert and doctor feels nothing is out of place.. just dont stress yourself out as to not having a chubby/tall/fair kid like an ad doll.. because majority of the kids are not.. trust me!!! Dont loose sleep over it..

Scalp boils/blisters

2011-01-01T08:36:00.001+05:30

Scalp boils are mainly boils type furuncles that occur due the occurrence of infection in the hair follicles. Boils on scalp are exceptionally painful when you comb your hair. Sometimes the furuncles form pus which further worsen the condition of the infection. Due to exposure to dirt and dust often the hair follicles get jammed or clogged with foreign particles. In the presence of moisture and incidence of germs the bacteria causing boils attack the hair follicle and cause the development of boils on scalp.

A furuncle on scalp at first develops as a reddened surface across a single hair follicle. With time as the infection spreads the redness spreads to the neighboring hair follicles. The furuncle then gradually grows in size and develops a substance called pus at its center. Sometimes with maturity of the boil the pus flows out as it comes in contact with the other hair follicles and causes formation of more number of boils.

Causes of Scalp Boils
You may take a note of the following causes behind the development of follicles on the hair scalp.
• Due to excessive perspiration. If you sweat and perspire to a great degree, the hair follicles get packed with the residue (salt and other minerals) that is left after the drying up of the sweat ultimately causing boils.
• Sometimes the damage of the skin texture may also be the cause behind the development of boils. The skin gets prone to the occurrence of boils if it is repeatedly attacked by acne and other skin diseases.
• Intense and vigorous combing of hair can often develop minute creases on the scalp which acts as a passage for the bacteria responsible for causing boils.

In most cases boils heal in a natural way. You are advised to maintain a hygienic lifestyle.
Simple advise i would like to give is probably its collection of sweat there, which leads to such infections.
So try to wash hairs more often.
If there is dandruff, treat that first, use shampoo more frequently then soap.

Toddler Learning/Teaching -- Books, CDs

2010-12-27T11:17:00.001+05:30

Sree (India):

Usually kids learn and grasp faster, so pointing and identifying objects colors and stuff together will help in learning quicker even if it is everyday objects.. like green tree, blue cup, red shirt, white teeth.. whatever.. identifying color, object texture all going together.. this along with lot of one-on-one time books and visuals aid in making learning fun.. rather than rote.

Board Books For Learning
Colorful, sturdy, tear resistant, able to wipe clean books which are good to read and to play for the kids.

Vicky's
Sterling
Visual Dynamics
Vicky's books have painted pictures where as the others have photos which are bright and color and easy to identify with and remember later on.. (personal opinion). but kid identifies all of them be it art or photo, so go for your pick.

These books are available with wide range.. alphabets, animals, veggies, fruits, shapes, colors, vehicles, flowers.. you name it they have it, just look around when you go out.

Touch and Feel Books by Bright Baby, McMillan...

Baby Eistein DVDs.. A set of 4 for colors, vehicles, wild life, and farm animals for the ages 6 months and above.. amazing clarity and the puppets and babies.. kid is hooked to them, unsure of availability here got them from US.

Sesame Street Learning DVDs, charts are good too.. I like the charts because they are laminated, wipeable and reusable sheets.

Little Genius Wooden Learning Games..
I like the puzzles, blocks, abacus, stackers, bead shuttlers and spirals to keep the kid engrossed and also help in aiding coordination and manipulation, color identification, etc. 100% satisfied.. I get them in Om Arts and Prints Vja.

Magic Slate.. the magnetic doodle board, similar to doodle pro but costs less

Animal Toys.. the rubber toys available in packs like farm animals, wild animals, aquatic animals etc.. which come in small, medium large sizes, I personally preferred medium size which cost somewhere between 35 to 100 rs/- available in almost all the kid stores.. once the kid has learned not to lick or swallow we can introduce them.

Play-Doh , non toxic play doh to make shapes and teach colors, etc.

Washable, nontoxic Crayons

Telugu Rhymes DVDs
Chinnari Chitti Geetalu
Chinnaari baala siksha, etc.
Tenali Rama, paramaanandayya sishyula kadha.. Chota Bheem, Birbal, Vikram Betal and a few moral stories.

Lakshmi Kalyani (United States):
"I can Read" series to read.
Big Board First 100 Words (Bright Baby)"

Vidya Eda (United States):
My Review::::::::::

Books:-
.............
books lo chaala varieties ye unnayi

...My first words ani pillaliki basic words tho start cheyadaniki baa upoyoga padathayi
ilantivi bathtime chadivevi kuda untayi vallaki interest kalagadaniki

...alagey animal sounds vi books like animals pictures untayi nd if u press them u can hear what sound they make nd also what animal it is

...baby faces book...this book helps your child learn to recognize emotions by naming what each child is feeling in the pictures

...baby signs book okati

...rhymes books

...potty training books

...colours, numbers, alphabets, shapes books

...small one sentence story books

...body parts book to help them in recognising head,shoulder,knees nd toes

...tranportation book

...the toddlers busy book which consists of creative games and activities

...Fisher Price Let's Go to the Zoo Lift the Flap book which helps in knowing the animals as well as counting them nd the sounds they make nd also what the babies of each animal called as

...farm animals book

...things that go books

...i spy books

...big nd little books

...feelings book

...abt manners/behaviour

...teeth nd its care abt brushing,visiting dentist,saying no to candies

...abt sharing

...colouring books

...stickers book to entertain them in reading nd appreciating

...Know Ur Series Books from India containing opposites/flowers/flags/alphabets/number

s/rhymes/colours/wild animals/domestic animals/insects or amphibians/tables/human body/safety/shapes/manners

ivi 15 books untayi nd very helpful nd hard cover books...nenu india nunchi vachetappudu techa nd khyati used to love them reading

...clean up time books

...brenestian bear books....ivi khyati deggara most of the collection 35 books unnayi nd she likes each nd every book..very informative in teaching them with the help of stories

...teaching abt weeks and months book..ivi manaki school charts available aye shops lo untayi with charts so kids ki interest vasthundhi as we daily change the day and also it mentions to change the weather also

...puzzles/mazes/dot-dot connection books which help them in concentrating nd gives sharpness to the brain

Pushpa (United States)

First each letter ki sounds nerpinchanu..this they learn in no time...actually nenu shradhdha ki oka dvd techchanu and she learnt in just 2 days! idi vachchina taravata, u can get leappad or any similar system...adi first read chestadi and adi choosi pillalu follow ayipotaru....nuvvu oka system konte chalu, library lo daaniki kavalsina cartridges chala untayi...okati bore ayiopote inkoti techchukovachchu...and ila reading konchem vachchina taravata u can start getting level 1 books from the library...anni collections bagovu...konni untayi, very small books with only few number of words in the book and more picutures...naaku aa series peru gurtu ledu, but shradhdha aa books valla chala baaga pick chesindi..aa taravata valla speed ni patti u can switch to higher level! Samples here.

Archana (United States):
Happiest Toddler on the Block Videos.

Kumari (United States)
baby einstein first baby book of number
baby einstein alpha books board book set.
very hungry caterpillar board book (bedtime stroy), good
First 100words bright baby board book
First 100 words animal board book
colors,shapes,

dvds
best -leapfrog(teaching words,letter factory best with in one week kids learn them)
baby einstein -world of colors
Aquadoodle for painting, a good nonfussy kit to learn.

Moisturizing Dry Skin/Winter Care For Kids - Mom Reviews

2010-12-25T10:18:00.000+05:30

Sree (India) :

No vigorous massaging, nalugu during winter. also keep combing the hair of the kid every day after bath with a soft comb so that it does not crust over and also not get tangled.

If in the habit of applying oil to the skin, apply a good half-hour to hour before the bath, let it sink in and then give bath with mild soap.. and do not use very hot water in spite of being winter, keep the water temperature lukewarm and do not take a lot of time for bath..

After the bath, do not rub or dry vigorously, just pat dry and when the body is still moist with water (tadi-podigaa), just patting away the water droplets, apply a dab of moisturizer liberally over the skin.

Kids suffering from allergies/skin conditions like eczema have skin which cannot retain moisture for long in spite of supplementing, so clean up with wet (nonfragrant tissues) or warm water and apply the cream evenly over the skin multiple times and ensure that the skin does not get dry.. it can vary from 5 to 6 times or above in case of extreme dry conditions.

Take the advise of a physician before trying or applying topical steroidal creams to the skin..

The types of skin of the kids might vary and some may respond to some and some dont but by and large appropriate and multiple applications at the time of flare of any cream should do good.

Cetaphil.

This one is for fragrance free and good for dry skin conditions, which I use when there is a flareup of rash on the body. I also find that cream version of it is a bit more greasier and useful than the lotion when there is an outbreak of rash.

This is the lotion form of the same..

We also get lightweight moisture treatment for regular use, so when there is no flare I go with that for regular use irrespective of the season.

There are cleansers and soap bars also from the same brand which can be used in combination if it works good for the kid's skin.

I did not get this particular item in AP anywhere, since it worked good I get it from US when someone can manage to bring it.

J and J (Indian manufacture)

This maybe good if all is well with the skin but in extreme dry conditions, I found it of little use.

Vaseline Intensive Care

In case we do not have access to Cetaphil such as in AP, India, I found this as an okay alternative than the others available in the market like J and J, Himalaya. In desperation, when she had flare I even tried applying Nivea cream which did keep the dryness away but then Revathi sent me another pack and back to Cetaphil.

Meera (United States)

Dry skin/flaking in babies is a very common problem. Use Cetaphil lotion right after bath. Bath alternate days or once in 3 days must be enough in this cold climate, nothing much is needed. You can give him sponge bath if u want, in between. You get bodywash also in Aveeno which is moisturizing wash. Try that one. It won't dry his skin. And do not apply Vaseline.. what the doctor says is right if you apply Vaseline at such an early age, the skin pores will get blocked and will produce even more oil.. you keep the kid moist not greasy.

Rashes/eruption in the scalp/head and hair is cradle cap ..it is kind of baby dandruff but does not look like it completely... But it is red bumpy, and flaky. It will increase if you apply oil to it...

Cetaphil will work good for overall moisturization

1. Finally..apply cetaphil right after bath.
2. Give him bath alternate days.
3. Keep the humidifier running at all times.
4. No sunnipindi at all.
5. Do not apply oil to the hair... take a soft combing brush and comb of the crust very slightly.. if it is too hard, the crusting then better leave it alone...

Majority of it will go away between 3 to 6 months, so do not worry.

Soumya, Kumari, Shruthi, (United States):
Aveeno.
Baby Aquaphor.
Cetaphil.

Pinxav.. for diaper rash.. available over the counter good for diaper rash (Pushpa, US).

Febrile Seizures/Convulsions

2010-12-19T15:20:00.000+05:30

Febrile seizure is associated with fever in children. A myth about FS is it usually occurs when the temperature spike from normal to really abnormal range like 103 or 104. Even though it is true in some case, not necessarily for all children, it can occur anytime a child is under infection.
The research shows that there is nothing we can do to prevent a FS, but that doesn’t mean you as a parent have to sit there and wait for it to happen.
Try to avoid exposure to infections.
If you child has fever:
Dress him in light cloths; don’t use heavy blankets and other stuff.
Give him paracetamol and ibuprofen every three hours alternating between the two
Make him sleep, don’t deprive him of sleep. Sleep slows down the brain activity.
don't do anything else please.

Most children outgrow the FS by age 5 so don’t worry too much.

There are different types of FS.

Here is a link to the different types of FS.

http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/about/types/types/index.cfm

Neurologist

Need to see a neurologist who specializes in epilepsy.
You also have to do an EEG test on the kid's brain in sleep deprived, sleeping, photo sensitivity, normal conditions.
With the EEG you can make sure there is no underlying abnormal wave pattern in the brain that may lead to epilepsy or other conditions in the future.

When a FS occurs

You need to stay calm
Remove dress
Put the kid in side position
Don’t put anything in the mouth, because the mucous or saliva should flow freely out of the mouth. Other wise the baby will choke in his own saliva.

Notice the FS pattern and you need to inform this correctly to you neurologist.

If it doesn’t stop in 5 mins.. Take the kid to Emergency..

Snoring Queries

2010-12-19T15:12:00.000+05:30

1) Does this have a relation with wheezing?
-There is no relation of snoring with wheezing.
2) Does this snoring need medical attention?
-Snoring can be because of various causes. In children, adenoids is one cause and it needs medical attention. Sleep apnoea is another cause in children. Obesity could also be a reason for snoring.
3) Will this breathing problem subside with these medicines?
-Breathing problem in an asthmatic child can be controlled by medications.
4) Does ear wax formation cause the nasal block as well?
-There is no reelation between ear-wax and naal blockage.

Snoring can be cured by:
-Treating the underlying cause.
-sometimes by changing the posture of sleeping
-reducing obesity
-singing. Its has been observed that practicing singing for about 25 min daily tones the soft palete and reduces snoring.

Play-Doh Tips

2010-12-14T17:23:00.000+05:30

If the play-doh becomes hard and begins to break.. add very little water to it and press the dough for a little while until it retains its normal soft feel.

Keep it in closed container once the kid is through with playing.. once in a while if you feel it is getting harder, just a little water does the magic.

Good Parenting Guidelines

2010-12-14T17:12:00.000+05:30

If A Child Lives With. . .
by Dorothy Law Nolte

If a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn.
If a child lives with hostility, he learns to fight.
If a child lives with fear, he learns to be apprehensive.
If children live with pity, they learn to feel sorry for themselves.
If children live with ridicule, they learn to feel shy.
If children live with jealousy, they learn to feel envy.
If children live with shame, they learn to feel guilty.
If children live with encouragement, they learn confidence.
If children live with tolerance, they learn patience.
If children live with praise, they learn appreciation.
If children live with acceptance, they learn to love.
If children live with approval, they learn to like themselves.
If children live with recognition, they learn it is good to have a goal.
If children live with sharing, they learn generosity.
If children live with honesty, they learn truthfulness.
If children live with fairness, they learn justice.
If children live with kindness and consideration, they learn respect.
If children live with security, they learn to have faith in themselves and in those about them.
If children live with friendliness, they learn the world is a nice place in which to live.

Vomiting vs GER -- Dr. Sanjay Replies

2010-12-14T15:53:00.000+05:30

Excessive vomiting in spite of burping.

It seems to be a case of gasto-esophageal reflux (GER) to me, which can even be confirmed by a nuclear GER scan. It is not uncommon in small children, esp. Infants.

When to intervene, even if it’s positive ?
If Child is not gaining weight or symptoms are that much, to cause even respiratory symptoms.
At that stage may be some medication (antireflux/antacids) may help in decreasing that.
Even if you don’t give any medicine, it’s going to improve with time, may be by one year.

Do not worry much. Just follow simple instructions, which you are already doing, like
- Burping longer for 30 mintues after each feed.
- Use a pillow (to elevate his head), whenever he is lying on bed.
But if symptoms persists, and worsening, may be its time to go for GER scan and medication.

Abacus Versus Vedic Math - A mom review

2010-12-10T10:14:00.000+05:30

Abacus Versus Vedic MAth

Abacus - A system of amthematics that allows us to do additions and subtractions easily with some core formulae.

target audience - any child who knows how to add and subtract.. best standard UCMAS.

Disadvantage - if a child has to attend regular school math (non abacus) after knowing abacus they will use that trick and write the answer.

the normal process and steps will be missed (tis human nature fo find answers the easy way) .... if your child is patient and will do both where applicable please feel free to join.

PErsonally - i have not joined hitu because he is always in a hurry to finish - so his math wil go for a toss.......

VEDI MATH - a system of mathematics that a child can understand only after grade 5 (sq roots, cube rooots etc are also covered).

Extremely useful since the child will know - whwere to use it and where not to..

typically many students derive the answers using this process and then compare their final answer to this - so their scores in math are always good.

EXTREMELY imp for comeptetive exams like eamcet where its multiple choice and timing is an issue.........

MAny centres but its not for kindergarden and primary schoolers.......

HOPE this helps.......

Courtesy: Uma Duddu

Diaper Bag Suggestions - Mom Reviews

2010-12-04T09:41:00.000+05:30

Praneetha (United States)

Skip Hop Duo Deluxe Diaper Bag - Blossom

Below are the points i find the bag very useful:
1. It looks trendy, stylish and very chic.
2. It has ample space for all the needs for a baby.
3. It has two insulated pockets for the bottles , in each pocket it holds 2 bottles ( i use brown's and playtex ventaire wide bottles - so this shd accommodate any 2 bottles) and 2 side pockets where u can keep the flask/sippy cup.
4. It has 2 zippers on the top where u can keep ur personal belongings or something tht u need to grab right away... they are pretty spacious too.
5. Inside the bag I usually keep 4-5 diapers, wipes, his food, his snacks, one extra dress for him, a recieving blanket, washcloths, sometimes even a spare dress or a top for me depending on where we are going - STILL THE BAG DOESN'T LOOK STUFFED .
6. U have a compartment on the backside of the bag for the diaper changing pad and its good there...
7. Best part about this is, it has one knee length shoulder(just in case ur husband wants to access the bag) handle and 2 normal size handles for ur convenience..
If you don't want the single strap, u can take it off and they have provided with 2 extra buckles inside the bag.. these buckles u can strap onto any stroller,shopping cart, any trolley easily - this benefits u bcoz u need not carry the bag all the time or keep the bag under the stroller n dig for stuff when u need... this way the bag is hanging right in front of u and u can access easily.

Sree (India):

Baby Master (spacious and roomy)

1. I personally use Baby Master bag which is a medium size bag, not the extra large stuffed looking one.. pale English colors with predominant yellow pattern, which is the kid's favorite color.

2. I liked its pricing, very less and looks very trendy, costs just around 300 rs/-, got it from Big Bazar, Vijayawada.

3. It has 6 compartments in all, 2 at the side to hold the wide-size 9-oz Ventaire bottles also, so can easily hold normal ones. Can hold a wide sipper in the front pocket.

4. Can hold the hospital record and bills etc in one exclusive velcro compartment.

5. Can easily accommodate a couple of dresses to change, a baby blanket, first aid kid, towel, diapers and even a couple of comfort toys without actually looking stuffed up and also an additional compartment to store up the soiled clothes.

6. Basically, above all I love its compact size and easy compartments to organize and look for. It can be carried in two ways one long removable strap which can be modeled to backpack or just hang along and one usual small straps easy for the helping aide to carry around. On top of it, it handles rough usage, kid keeps dragging it around, stores her stuff in them, learning zipping and unzipping on it and still it is holding up, so for me it is a paisa vasool item.

PS: It was not an intentional purchase but something fancy that caught my eye for a steal and hence it is.. otherwise, the good old bags in India do just fine.

Keerthi (India):

General Utility Bag

I have no specific diaper bag designated for that specific purpose, in fact that concept is something which is alien to a lot of people out here in India. I use a bag that I got from a jewellery shop which is in blue n pink colors and looks very cute, so it is set for the purpose of baby bag. It can hold up to 3-4 diapers, dress, his sipper (insulated), water bottle, towel, napkins, food/snacks, my purse. In other words, just a normal handbag which serves the purpose of a diaper bag :).

Usha Jasti (United States):

From Pottery Barn Kids, similar to the skip hop ones.

The bag is stylish..:) does not give a feeling of carrying a diaper bag and was comfy too. It has a long handle so it could be worn cross the shoulder and it is very helpful when carrying the baby as the bag falls sideways and there is an extra handle which allows it to be worn as a school bag on the back.. Personal engraving is a plus for these bags.

Meera Girija (United States):

Compact Hobo Diaper bag

I am using this bag for almost six months now. I am a first time mom and use it on a regular basis for all sorts of trips. It is a messenger bag model diaper bag.
Pros:
It is trendy and won't look like a diaper bag at all. Even men won't feel bad wearing it. It has adjustable strap, so can be worn sidewise, diagonally and can also be hung to the stroller. The color is vibrant and modern. Will pass for a school bag. Has 2 insulated compartments that can fit 2 wide or regular bottles. Has microban protected lining. It has 4 interior pockets, that can fit upto 4 diapers each. Has a good changing pad that has 2 pockets for taking diaper and wipe along with u to rest room , instead of carrying the entire bag.
Cons:
I read other people's reviews that it ripped off soon and had bad construction. I have been using it pretty roughly and so far no issues. Since it is a compact bag, it becomes a little small after the diapers start getting bigger in size and when u have to carry additional clothes or other stuff.

Altogether it is a smart bag for everyday use. If you need a big roomie bag, this not the one for you.

Divya (United States):

Lots of storage space to carry everything baby needs, like diapers, toys, feeding bottles, bowl,spoon, burp cloths,receiving blanket,extra dress...
i even take 12 oz formula box/tin in it sometimes... 2 small bottles of nursey water,2 gerber food(fruit/veggie), n 4-5 ready to use formula bottles.....
It comes with a matching little brag book to show off baby's special moments.

# Bag opens wide for easy access.
# Inside organizer pockets.
# Zipper closure at the top.
# Two external bottle holder pockets.
# Two sturdy flexible handles with metallic hardware.
# Includes matching changing pad.
# Mini brag book holds 24 photos. Acid-free pages.
# Easily wipes clean.

but
as it looks like a regular handbag u'r husband can't hold it when needed..
..i stuff too many things in it...so difficult to carry for long time....

finally its gud and suggest others to buy it...if u alone can carry for long time without u'r husband's help

Visa (USA):

I had planned Pooh theme for the kid's nursery....so I bought a character themed diaper bag @ babiesrus. I tried searching for the model and they no longer carry it. I could carry a lot!!! really a lot in the bag!
The bag had a compartment for wet and soiled clothes, diaper station and three other compartments. I could fit in a set of clothes, formula, snacks, bottles, spare nipples and liners, Tylenol (is a must...) pretty easily.

Cons... the only thing that bothered me was that I had to compromise the stylish look for a character themed one...otherwise no problems with anything.

I used it for 2 to 2.5 yrs and it had lived itz life....I had to discard it recently.

Now am carrying a backpack with the kid's name engraved on it. Though he'z out of diapers, I still carry his water, snacks and a set of clothes and pull ups :)

Diarrhea in Toddlers

2010-12-04T09:33:00.000+05:30

Toddler’s diarrhea is common between 1-3 years, which we often linked with teething. Actual cause for it is not clear, probably your daughter is having same thing. It usually doesn’t need any treatment, it goes by itself gradually.

When to intervene?
If your child develops any blood or mucus in stool.
If she has fever.
If she develops any dehydration.

If the kid has received full course (5 day) antibiotics already, it’s unlikely to be infective diarrhea.
Well you can still wait if it is decreasing gradually, otherwise get one stool examined (both routine and culture), anytime you feel its worsening.

Honey -- Some Facts and Concerns

2010-10-26T19:33:00.000+05:30

Truth is everything depends on what type oh honey are you giving to your kid. Don't look for big brands, look for quality. Most of the famous or infamous brands, whichever have honey, most of that honey comes from apiculture (bee keeping). Apiculture is an agro-based enterprise, which farmers keep bees in their farms to take up for additional income generation. You can also call them pet bees. This honey has very very high amount of insecticides and pesticides in it as the bees prefer to suck nectar from the crops grown in the farms and this honey is not good for anyone.

Also during rainy seasons, winter or during the times when there are no flowers, farmers or bee owners start feeding them with sugar. Honey produced during those days is almost near to sugar serum. This type of honey is then mixed with honey produced by bees when there was availability of flowers, is also not good for health. We think we are giving our kids honey but the truth is we are giving them sugar serum.

Apiculture bees are said to forage 12 km radius to collect nectar but studies have shown that average apicultures bees in India forage only about 4 km radius to collect nectar. This honey does not have good mix and quality of local area vegetation nectar. Also these bees live in almost same area for their entire life so their honey does not have that good quality.

People say honey acts as excellent antibiotic. It is wrong to say this. Honey manufacturing companies in India took advantage of it. They started adding antibiotics to sugar serum or to honey produced by apiculture. This honey acts as antibiotic not because it possess those properties but because it has antibiotics added to it. But is is good for our health? well, you know the answer. This honey weakens our natural strength of fighting against disease.

It is natural RAW HONEY which is true honey. Raw honey is antiseptic, antibiotic, antifungal, antibacterial and anticancer -- it never spoils

Raw honey is antiseptic, antibiotic, antifungal, antibacterial and anticancer -- it never spoils

Wild bees those make raw honey forage 100s km to collect best quality nector to make honey. These bees prefer to suck on wild flowers and vegetation. They are not like apiculture bees which will be like, ok, this is our area and this is what we have available, lets make honey out of this. Funny hmm. Or its not like the honey sold by many companies with antibiotics added to sugar serum.

If you are in western countries then its worth visiting to the natural health food stores. You will find raw honey there. This is the honey you should be giving to your kids.

If you are in India then you can get this raw honey in villages. If you have family, friends or relatives living in a village then give them call to help you get raw honey. Though this kind of honey is expensive these days but considering its health benefits and other uses its worth spending your bucks there. You will get this honey with much ease in villages.

Raw honey, due to its anti-biotic and anti-allergen nature is given itself or along with garlic/ginger/onion/citrus fruit nectar for cough, pollen allergies, rashes, burns, abrasions, ulcers and certain fevers. Garlic/ginger/onion/citrus fruit contain NATURAL ANTI-HISTAMINES. Antihistamines are anti-allergens. These natural anti-histamines are more nutritious, healthy and have no pesky side-effect.

If you are a victim of pollens then make a routine of taking about 1-2 teaspoons of raw honey everyday from about a month or so before the spring season. Raw honey contains a certain level of pollen in itself and will thus adapt your system to the allergen early on so that when time comes your immune system is super ready to deal with the drasted pollen.

Raw honey is the ultimate moisturizer. Smooth a small amount of Really Raw Honey lightly over the skin; easily remove later with splashes of cold water or comfortable warm water. It will leave your skin baby soft.

Raw Honey acts as bath and antibacterial soap. Facial blemishes and acne caused by cosmetics or allergies will clear up quickly using a nightly treatment of raw honey.

Raw honey is used for hair and scalp treatment.

It is also used for dental care and mouth sores. It cleans teeth, mouth and dentures and stops bleeding gums. Canker sores, blisters and mouth ulcers respond to application of well to its application.

Application of honey keeps foods fresh and moist longer and retards spoilage.

Few drops of raw honey mixed in a glass of warm milk taken everday prevents osteoporosis and arthritis.

Unprocessed honey found in ancient tombs was determined to be edible and was even used to preserve bodies.

Testing for purity

one way to test honey is to dip an unused matchstick into the comb honey. Then strike the match, if it lights up continuously then it is "pure honey" .If adulterated, the presence of water will not allow the honey to burn, If it does, it will produce a cracking sound. honey adulterated with water will moisten the tip of the matchstick thus getting it wet making it unable to light and burn.

***dip a cotton bud in honey and it should burn smoothly
***it takes some time to dissolve in water
***Pour a teaspoon of your honey onto a blotting paper. Unlike the impure honey, pure honey will not be absorbed by the blotting paper.
***pour the teaspoon of honey onto a piece of cloth and then wash the cloth. Pure honey will not leave a stain on the cloth.
***Pour a few drops of honey into a clear glass of water and we could see the drops settle at the bottom of the glass, . If the honey completely dissolved in water, it is impure, if it stays as a mass, it is pure honey.

*dip a spoon in the honey and raise it about 8 inches (or more). If it comes down in a steady, thin stream, it is likely pure.
*taste it to see if there is an unpleasant aftertaste. if Sugar or corn syrup is added to honey it will leave a fermented-like taste in mouth.

It is also said that if honey is pure a dog will not lick it; ants, flies will not sit on it (bees add some enzyme to the honey that keeps them awy)

Organic Health Food

Natural health food stores like "Nutritional World", Nutritional Foods", "Grains and Greens", "Natural health" and many more. Organic food stores are different and vegetarian food stores are different and so are the natural health food stores. Those are different too.

Even at health food stores you will find two types of honey.
1. Bottled honey with company name.
2. Raw honey in open containers.

There is a big difference in organic and raw honey. Every natural thing is not organic, and every organic thing is not natural. Its not Google where every natural search engine position is labeled organic and organic links are called natural positions.

Every state in US or every country in this world has its own definition of organic. Like in my state is food is labeled as organic if the land where it is grown is not sprayed with any insecticides, pesticides, urea or any other chemical or such thing for 10 years. Plus the seeds those were sowed in the ground to produce the crop were organic and fed with only organic compost/manure. Few states have it to 8 years instead of 10 years.

Source: Indian Parenting.. (Stay Cool).

GIVING HONEY TO KIDS AND FROM WHAT AGE IS A BIG QUESTION.. DEFINITELY NOT IN FIRST YEAR OF LIFE WITH SO MUCH OF CONTRADICTION FOR IT.. THIS POST IS JUST ABOUT HONEY, USES AND TESTING PURITY.. USAGE MUST BE ACCORDING TO PEDIATRICIAN'S ADVISE.

Flat Head

2010-10-26T19:23:00.000+05:30

Plagiocephaly in medical terminology and flat head for a layman is a cause of concern in infants... from too much of lying down in the same position to the same side, they may develop a soft spot and the shape of the head may become a little flattened. A little of this is not a concern but obvious mis-shapening should be avoided... There is a lot more attached to it than a cosmetic problem. Nothing about to raise your panic antennae up though.

Tummy time and keeping interesting things on 4 sides of the room to look at, consciously making it a point to divert the kid's attention to turn around and look in all directions, top, left and right... these are the simplest measures from day of birth.. :) Repositioning to ensure equal time spent on both sides is vital.. also while being cautious that the kid does not suffocate self, adequate tummy time is the key.

The babies are not born with a perfect round shape head, it gradually takes one shape as the skull hardens.. so, all we need to make sure is that the growth is uniform in all direction rather than one flat spot at one side which was not there earlier during birth. simple!! Most of this occurs during the early stages of life say first 3 to 5 months where the skull is very soft. So changing the baby sleep position and side every 2 hours or so or after every feed between 3 to 4 hours if the kid tends to sleep just on one side should solve the problem.

A baby pillow serves two purposes in the infant.. one keeping the head a tad bit elevated and also holding the head in a proper position.

A traditional baby pillow made of mustard seeds

Dried yellow mustard seeds, a method traditionally used in India for hundreds of years to help preserve the round shape of the new-baby head. The mustard seeds mould to the natural shape of the new-born baby head and prevent the head from becoming flat at the back. Yellow mustard seeds are preffered to black ones as they have a smoother surface and therefore slide more easily against each other, enabling the pillow to form more snuggly to the shape of the baby's head and therapeutically too mustard seeds are believed to reduce back pains, migraines and joint pains, so no harm making one for the kid.

Do not panic if there are signs of early flattening just focus on keeping baby's head position uniform in all directions and gradually it will go away.

PS: The rai seeds/aavalu/mustard seeds should be packed loosely so they have moving space in the pillow rather than packing it tightly.. something akin to a micro bead pillow. The size of the pillow actually is very small, a big notebook size, not very stiff, not very high... in short maybe about one and a half or double the size of the baby's head (length/breadth everything put together), not very big or fluffy just the correct size.

I used something like the one in the picture above, which we get in all the baby stores in India. A very tiny pillow. Preferably, stitch a cover for it so that you can wash it regularly and keep it clean for the kid.

Omega-3 supplements for Vegetarians

2010-10-07T06:27:00.001+05:30

Are plant sources of omega-3 sufficient for human needs?

Vegetarians and vegans have no direct sources of EPA and DHA (long chain omega-3 fatty acids) in the diet; hence they must convert alpha-linolenic acid to EPA and DHA in the body.

Scientific studies suggest that although the conversion is slow and incomplete, and although vegetarians tend to have lower blood levels of long chain omega-3 fatty acids, it is sufficient to meet the needs of most people

In addition, infants convert alpha-linolenic acid to DHA and EPA more slowly than adults. Studies have provided evidence that preterm infants do not have the capacity to form sufficient DHA, resulting in reduced visual acuity and brain function. Thus DHA must be considered an essential nutrient for these babies. Currently, infant formulas in the U.S. are not fortified with DHA, although several companies have patented DHA blends for this purpose and DHA-fortified formulas are expected to hit the U.S. market sometime this year. Several European countries, including the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Finland and Spain, presently produce DHA-fortified formulas

Breastfed infants generally receive ample DHA from their mother's milk, although amounts vary. Vegetarian and vegan mothers have lower concentrations of DHA in their milk, although infant levels of DHA appear to be only slightly less than that of infants of omnivorous mothers. A DHA supplement based on cultured microalgae (under the trademark Neuromins) is now available from natural food stores nationwide.

So, one thing is clear, if someone takes fish, no issues.

If someone is purely vegetarian, may be for preterm child, we need some supplements. For a full term child, who is otherwise well, I will not suggest any supplementation unless more guidelines are available.

Food Allergies

2010-10-07T06:25:00.001+05:30

Food allergies affect about 3.5% of US population.
Around 6% of children experience food allergic reactions in first 3 years of life
Out of them 2.5% comprise of cow’s milk allergy, 1.5% egg allergy and 0.6% peanut allergy.
Other allergies are – fish, soy, wheat allergies.
Symptoms may be in skin, Gastrointestinal, respiratory or cardiovascular.
Diagnosis is done by skin testing (IgE mediated) and other by proper history, elimination trials etc, which may vary from 2-8 wks in different conditions.

Good thing about these allergies is that, almost half of these children with milk or egg allergies outgrow by 2-3 years of age, as their immunity improves.
But around 80-90% of children with peanut, sea food allergy retain their allergy for life.

So, in nutshell, be hopeful, things are bound to improve with time. Your concern about soya milk is not valid. We have used it in many children from years. It’s safe.

Fortunately, these food allergies in India are not that common as it’s there in developed world for many unclear reasons.

Joining Job After Maternity Leave ..

2010-09-17T17:42:00.000+05:30

Clinginess is normal for this age, and thats the typical time, will last may be up to 2 years at least. Regarding your concern about joining job after maternity leave, its difficult to answer, but I know that working mothers face many challanges, but with carefull planning you can make a smooth transition, here are some tips :

Before you return to work

While you're still on maternity leave, set yourself up for a successful return to work:

Let go of the guilt. Returning to work after maternity leave can pose emotional conflicts for new mothers. Working outside the home doesn't make you a bad mother — and it's OK to look forward to the challenges and interactions of your job. Remind yourself that you're doing what's best for you and your family. Don’t worry, children learn to adjust.

Find dependable child care. Look for a safe, stimulating environment and qualified caregivers.
Talk to your boss. Clarify your job duties and schedule so you'll know what's expected of you after your maternity leave. You might ask about flexible hours, telecommuting or working part time.
If you're breast-feeding and plan to continue doing so after returning to work, ask your employer about a clean, private room for breast feeding, if possible.
Get organized. Make a daily to-do list. You might divide the list into tasks for work and tasks for home, or tasks for you and tasks for your partner. Identify what you need to do, what can wait — and what you can skip entirely. (Try to maintain a daily work diary with you)
Stay connected. Plan at least one daily phone call to your baby's caregiver to find out how your baby's doing. Place a favourite photo of your baby on your desk or in your work area. Set aside time after work to reconnect with your baby.
Make backup plans. Know what you'll do if your baby is sick or your baby's caregiver is unavailable on a workday — whether it's taking the day off yourself or calling a friend or loved one to care for your baby.
Seek support. Don't try to do everything yourself. Accept help from your partner, loved ones and friends. Speak up if you're feeling guilty, sad or overwhelmed.
Nurture your own well-being. Relax in the tub after you put the baby to bed, or unwind with a favourite book or soft music. Cut down on unnecessary commitments. Pick a reasonable bedtime, and stick with it. On weekends, sleep when your baby sleeps.

Above all, maintain a positive attitude. Tell your baby how excited you are to see him or her at the end of the day. Your baby may not understand your words, but he or she will pick up on your emotions.

Hope this will help you in preparing and taking your guilt out.

Booster Seat

2010-08-21T08:58:00.000+05:30

Running around the kids with a bowl/plate of food in hand is a common sight for Indian mothers or most of the mothers of toddlers and even kids of 4 to 5 years of age back in India.

Sorry if I offend anyone but I seriously dont like running around the kid :((... they have to learn it and learn it right is my purely personal opinion. They eat well when we feed/force feed them but I do not want to encourage it..

I was in a dilemma whether or not to go for a high chair in granite/marble floor setting with a hyperactive kid trying to do everything possible to escape the food.. one tilt of balance and am scared about the fall from height in spite of the shopkeeper assuring me that they are well equipped and all such stuff..

Finally, after much thinking and checking out a whole lot of high chairs available in the market, I narrowed down on this booster seat which I felt is safe and is easy to be carried. I find this foldable one handy and comfortable, easy to clean, the cloth is easy to wash and it holds the kid well and since we have the chair grip, we need not be scared as well. We both sit in opposite chairs and she is belted to the seat until she finishes it. There is resistance initially but now it is a routine that this seat is for her meals..

Any reviews for high chair on a stone flooring?????

In celebration of milestones...

2010-08-21T08:34:00.001+05:30

Back down in Andhra Pradesh, we celebrate each and every milestone of the kid preparing something or the other..

Celebrating the firsts...

Oolu kodite kudumulu/undraallu (cooing)
Navvithe - nuvvula unda (first social smile)
Borlaa padite bobbatlu/boorelu (turtling/flipping on tummy)
Paakite paakam undalu (crawling)
Gadapalu daatite gavvalu/gaarelu (crossing doorsteps)
Aduguleste ariselu... (taking first steps)
Chilaka palukulu - panchadara chilakalu (sugar tho chilakala shape lo chestharu choodandi avvi)

Oolu kottinappudu - Cooing - By the around the third month, the tiny tot usually opens its palms and tries to grasp at objects. This small gesture is marked by motivating the child to play at grasping.
The mother places the child in her lap, with a plate of undrallu pindi and encourages the child to grasp the mixture and fashion balls, making muddakudumulu or undrallu (cooked rice ravva made into balls, also made during Ganesh Chavithi. Undrallu are distributed to the family and neighbours.

As the baby turns over and lands on the stomach called borla padadam in Telugu, bobbatlu or polelu are made.

The day the child starts crawling, pakadam, is marked by preparing pakam chalividi a sweet made of rice flour with sugar/jaggery syrup.

And while crawling if the toddler were to cross the threshold, gadapa daatadam, garelu, or vada are made.

Finally, the first walking steps (adugulu) are welcomed by distributing ariselu.

Each milestone is a celebration with sweets which signify happiness in our tradition varying with the place they are from.

Inputs from Jyothi.

Sleep Time in Kids

2010-08-14T09:40:00.001+05:30

Regarding normal sleeping time, what the books says is this:
Age Night time sleep Daytime sleep Average total sleep
2 years 10.5 to 12.5 hours 1 to 3 hours (1 nap) 11.5 to 15.5 hours
3 years 10.5 to 12.5 hours 1 to 3 hours (1 nap) 11 to 14 hours
4 years 10 to 12 hours 0 to 2.5 hours (1 or no nap) 10 to 13 hours
5 years 10 to 12 hours 0 to 2.5 hours (1 or no nap) 10 to 12.5 hours
6 years 10 to 11.5 hours none 10 to 11.5 hours
7 years 9.5 to 11.5 hours none 9.5 to 11.5 hours
8 years 9.5 to 11.5 hours none 9.5 to 11.5 hours

But remember two things:
1. Though this chart shows the average time, but individual variations do exist. Individual variations are to an extent that even 8 hours sleep for a toddler can be normal.
2. Sleep is not a continuous process; it has different phases of light sleep and deep sleep, and each phase last for about 60-90 minutes. So, it’s possible to wake up in between these phases many times.
So, I just advise you to make the sleep time more comfortable like:

Let the baby prepare for sleep around 10-15 minutes before you go to sleep, like keeping his toys with him, using his favourite pajama, cloths, pillow etc. Some soothing songs or lori can help. Keep trying this.

Grandmother's Tips

2010-08-14T09:21:00.000+05:30

The baby has a fever, the next dose of fever drops is not until 2/3 hours away and I feel helpless seeing the baby burning hot...

Cut an onion in two halves, placing each half into one of the baby's socks with the cut side of the onion against the baby's soles in the socks. Keep the socks for a few hours or until the fever breaks.

Fluid in the ear and pain

Heat one cup of rock salt in microwave for 2 minutes, then pour it into a thick athletic sock and tie it at its end. Test to make sure it is not hot enough to make the skin burn. Allow the child to lay her head with the painful ear down on the warm sock.

Irritable and itchy baby with dry and scaly skin (eczema)

Applying Shea butter, cocoa butter, jojoba oil, flaxseed oil... even though the baby gets slippery and surroundings get messy this seems to work for good.

Tugging on the ears has ear infection.
Put a drop of warm garlic oil in the sore ear.

Baby's Teeth are coming and pain keeps him awake.

Rub a small amount of clove olive on the gum where the tooth is erupting.

Courtesy: Durga, an excerpt from a magazine.

Travel Tips..

2010-08-12T06:11:00.000+05:30

For frequent travelers who make 2 to 3 day trips with the kid...

Compact First Aid Kit
================
1) Band-aid , small cotton ball , earbuds.
2) Small Savlon/Dettol bottle.
3) Over the counter medicines for fever, cold, cough, vomiting, diarrhea, electrolyte drinks, ORS sachets just in case of an upset tummy.
4) Small Vaseline/skin ointment bottle/tube.. something soothing in case of emergencies.

OR
Routine Medical Kit we have ready at home for the kid.

Compact Cosmetic box
==================
1) Soap, preferably liquid soap.
2) Shampoo.
3) Hair oil.
4) Talcum powder, moisturizer/skin lotion.
5) Clean combs.
4) Tooth paste/brush kit.

DIAPER BAG.

Food containers and dispensers along with tinned/canned food we need to give the baby, add a couple more to each as an emergency measure.
If all the three are in place, you can just throw them all together and get ready for the go..

Swine Flu Vaccination

2010-08-07T10:46:00.000+05:30

Swine flu is a type of flu virus, a new virus which presented with a pandemic recently.

It a mutant type of flu virus. Usually in west people take vaccine every year against flu before season starts. No such practice was there in India.

Now separate vaccine has been introduced only against swine flu, approved by US FDA, so that people can take it to prevent if any such pandemic emerge again. But nobody can promise that the new virus which comes next year will be the same or different, as this virus is known to cause mutations.

In short, nobody is sure, whether this vaccine will protect against flu attacks in coming year or not (if this virus changes, will need new vaccine).

So, no harm in taking this vaccine, if you wanna take it, as no serious side effects have been reported except mild fever or pain. But not must to be taken by everyone.

But it’s advisable to be taken by health professional’s atleast, as they are always at high risk.

Instant Food Recipes For Kids

2010-07-21T16:30:00.000+05:30

1. Oats...

Just boil in water and finally add a little salt and butter and feed. (Not started giving milk to him. Others can add milk. Also sugar can be added instead of salt. My son doesnt like sugar) ---- Can be given from the age of 10 months

2. Banana boiled and mashed....

Cook banana in the idly vessel (like water in the vessel and in the top plate keep the banana and cover with the lid), with little scrapped jaggery for 5-10 mins. Then just mash and give this. This will help to add weight also. You can also crush and mix paapad if your baby likes that. ---- Can be given from the age of 8 or 9 months. But in my place some people used to give even from 5th month

3. Rice flour / Ragi flour / Wheat flour mix.....

Mix either one of the above said flour with water and boil for 5 mins (or until u feel it is cooked fully). Add salt or sugar as per your baby's taste along with butter / ghee / milk ------ Can be given from any time after 3 months. I started from 4th month. But mother's who have less breast milk level can start giving early.

4. Egg

In a pan, put little oil and add little onion and little frozen peas (it will get cooked in 1 min) and then add a egg, and little salt and pepper. Make a scramble.....done....tasty and healthy ------ Safe after 1 year

5. 1 cup whole wheet flour
2 tbs desi ghee
dryfruits mix(nuts)

dry roast dryfruits a little then grind them and do not roast kishmish(optional) if u want to mix.keep it aside.Then roast flour in dry kadhai on slow or medium flame for some time till it slightly changes colour and u get a nice aroma.Then add ghee to it(if home made well n gud).And keep frying.Add the dryfruit mix to it and fry till it starts giving nice smell and changes colour.Butit shd not burn.then take it off the fire and let cool down.then pack in containers.Whenever have to give add sugar little lukewarm milk and sattu and it's ready.

But if u r in india then u can add raggi, bajra,jau,roasted chana,roasted rice(no rice puffs or flakes)all roasted with a little mungphalli roasted and ground.And most importantly dryfruits whichu add should be in small quantity or else it causes loose motion.

Lunch Box Recipes By Shraddha

2010-07-21T16:23:00.000+05:30

EYEBALLS ON CRACKERS

INGREDIENTS

Eggs; hard boiled
Black olives
Salty crackers like Monaco
Red food coloring

METHOD

1. Cut hard boiled eggs in half lengthwise. Remove yolks and make filling for deviled eggs.
2. Cut out small hole from bottom center of each egg (about 5/8" diameter.) Poke a black olive partway through each hole and hold in place by filling eggs with yolk filling.
3. Place each egg, olive side up, on a cracker.
4. Paint red lines, resembling blood veins, with a toothpick on the eye.

Apple Smiles

INGREDIENTS

1 Red medium apple; cored & sliced about 1/3" wide, not skinned!
Peanut butter (creamy works best)
Tiny marshmallows.

METHOD

1. Spread one side of each apple slice with peanut butter.
2. Place three or four tiny marshmallows on top of the peanut butter on one apple slice.
3. Top with another apple slice, peanut butter side down.
4. Squeeze gently. ..makes 8-10

Clown Faces

INGREDIENTS

Large Pancake / Dosa
3 Orange Slices
2 Poached or fried Eggs
1/2 Cherry Tomato

METHOD

1. Make the pancakes / Dosa in advance and set them in oven to keep them warm.
2. Poach or fry the eggs.
3. To assemble the faces, place the pancakes / Dosa on a plate, with eggs for eyes, orange slices for ears and mouth, and a tomato half for the nose.

NOTE:
For a lighter meal, omit the eggs and use apricot or peach halves for eyes and half a fresh cherry for a nose.
Or, omit pancakes, assemble eggs directly on plate, and add a smile made from
chopped, sauted potatoes.

CHEESE PAPAD FINGERS

INGREDIENTS

Papad 8 nos.
Grated cheese 1 cup
Oil for frying

METHOD

1.Hold the papads one by one over boiling water for a few seconds to make them
soft.
2.Then cut each papad into three strips.
3.Spread some cheese on each strip, roll and fix with a toothpick.
4.Deepfry these cheese papad fingers and then drain on paper.
5.Serve with mint chutney.

Idli Upma

INGREDIENTS

Idlis
Onions
Red chillies
Urad dhal,
Mustard seeds,
Curry leaves,
Green chillies,
Salt
Oil

METHOD

1. Saute mustard seeds, urad dhal, red chillies, green chillies and curry leaves in oil.
2. Meanwhile, break the idlis into coarse powder.
3. Mix it to the above mixture, add salt.

MULTI GRAIN ROTI

INGREDIENTS

1 cup wheat Flour
1 cup Rice flour
1 cup maize flour
1 cup Ragi flour
1 cup Jowar flour
1 cup gram flour
1 cup bajra flour
Salt,
Chilli powder,
Garam masala powder

METHOD
1. Mix all the flour add salt, chilli powder, garam masala powder, turmeric and knead it. 2. Now make chappatis with this, smear it with little ghee
Eat this healthy chappati with dal or any sabji. You can apply Jam or Cheese Spread and make a roll to give in Tiffin.

Oats Chapathi

INGREDIENTS

Wheat flour - 1 cup
Oats powder - 4 tbsp (grind quaker oats into a fine powder)
salt to taste
Water to knead
Sesame oil - 1 tsp

METHOD

1. Mix wheat and oats flour.
2. Add salt and knead the flour into a nice dough.
3. Spread the sesame oil and leave the dough for atleast half an hour.
4. Take required amount of dough to make one roti and spread it into a circle shaped roti of 7" diameter.
5. Cook it on both sides.

Oats Dosa

INGREDIENTS

Oats - 1 cup
Buttermilk - 2 cups
Besan Flour - 1/4 cup
Sooji -1/4 cup
Salt to taste
Green chillies - 2 (acc to taste)
Onion - 1 finely chopped
Curry leaves and coriander leaves - few
Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
Cashews - few
Asafoetida powder - a pinch
Oil - 2 tsp

METHOD

1. First grind the oats into very fine powder. Keep it aside.
2. Now take the buttermilk add oats powder, besan flour, sooji and salt and mix it well. Keep it aside for half an hour.
3. In the mean time, preheat a drop of oil, splutter mustard seeds, when its done add cashews, onion, asafoetida powder and green chillies and fry it till it becomes golden brown.
4. Now add curry leaves and coriander leaves to it and saute' for a moment and pour it on top of the batter.
5. Mix it well.
6. Pre heat a dosa skillet, pour a laddle full of batter and spread it into a circle, pour a teaspoon of oil and let it cook under low flame (because it becomes very dark).
7. When it is done flip it over and pour the remaining oil and cook it.
8. Serve it with some chutney or sambar.

CARROT RICE MOULD

Do children love fancy shapes? Try out moulds ranging from simple jelly moulds to fancy ones like hearts and guitars. And watch this rice preparation leap to life !

INGREDIENTS

1 teacup rice
1/4 teacup moong dal
2 cloves
2 sticks cinnamon
1 bay leaf
1 onion, chopped
1/2 tablespoon chilli powder
2 large carrots, chopped
1 tablespoon oil
salt to taste

METHOD

1. Wash the rice and dal and keep aside.
2. Heat the oil and add the cloves, cinnamon, bay leaf and fry for 1/2 minute.
3. Add the onion, chilli powder and fry again for 1 minute.
4. Add the carrots, rice, dal, 2 1/2 teacups of water and salt.
5. Cook in a pressure cooker.
6. Press into greased moulds of the desired shape and unmould on a serving plate. Serve with youhurt.

Tips

Goodness Guide :
To combination of grains and pulses delivers essential amino acids required for growth as well as carbohydrates for energy.
The carrots deliver Vitamin A.

Nutritive values Per Serving :
Protein 6.5 g
Cho 48 g
Fat 4.2 g

CORN AND POTATO ROSTI

Rosti is a favourite Swiss delicacy. The crisp potatoes go well with corn.

INGREDIENTS

4 medium par-boiled potatoes
3/4 teacup cooked corn
1 onion, chopped
1 green chilli, finely chopped
1 tablespoon grated cheese
2 tablespoons butter
salt and pepper to taste

METHOD

1. Peel the potatoes. Grate coarsely or slice. Sprinkle salt and pepper.
2. Heat the butter in a large frying pan (preferably non-stick). Add onion and cook for 1 minute.
3. Add the potatoes and corn and mix well. Spread the mixture in the pan.
4. Sprinkle the green chilli and cheese on top and cook on a slow flame for 10 minutes.
5. Turn the cake upside down in one piece.
6. Cook until crisp and brown on the underside.
7. Cut into piece and serve hot.

Tips

Goodness Guide :
Both corn and potatoes are excellent sources of energy.
Besides, they are laden with complex carbohydrates, fibre and a variety of minerals.

Nutritive values Per Serving :
Protein 3.5 g
Cho 27.9g
Fat 3.6g

JAFFLE TREATS

What do you get when you cross a toasted sandwhich with a waffle? A Jaffle!

INGREDIENTS

4 bread slices, lightly buttered (1 1/2 teaspoons butter approx.)

For the stuffing (no.1)

3 tablespoons crumbled cottage cheese (paneer)
6 tablespoons grated apple
2 tablespoons finely chopped celery (optional)
1/2 teaspoon chopped green chillies
salt to taste

For the stuffing (no.2)

3 tablespoons grated carrots
3 tablespoons crumbled cottage cheese (paneer)
2 tablespoons chopped dates
1/2 teaspoon finely chopped green chillies
salt to taste

METHOD

1. For the stuffing (no. 1), mix all the ingredients very well.
2. For the stuffing (no. 2), mix all the ingredients very well.
3. To proceed, place 2 slices of bread, buttered side down into a sandwhich maker waffle iron.
4. Spread the desired stuffing mixture and cover with the remaining two slices, buttered side up.
5. Toast for a few minutes or until golden in colour. Cut into two.

Tips

Goodness Guide :
An appetizing, low fat, easy to prepare treat.
Comes in handy when kids rush home hungry from school.

nutritious cheela

ingredients:
rice
Mung pulse
Moth pulse

method: take these three things in a bowl in ration:2:2:1
and soak for overnight ! grind them in morning add tomato ,onion ,coorainder leave , salt according to taste and Caron seeds,for digestion purpose.
spread it on hot Tawa to make cheela of the same.
this will be a very nutritous cheela for ur kid! i've tried the same and my daughter loved it so much .

Daliya n Oats fritters.

Recently tried this one for my daughter, this is my genuine recipe. Hope you all like it.

Soak daliya in hot water for 1 hour, dry roast quaker oats.
Strain daliya n mix oats to it.
Now add poha ( beaten rice ) , chopped onions, coriander leaves, garam masala , ginger garlic and green chilly paste and lemon juice and salt . If its too dry then add few drops of water. Shape as rolls or tikkis and roll in gram flour .
Deep fry in oil till brown and crispy.

Courtesy: Shraddha from Babies, Food and Much More...

obesity In Children

2010-07-21T16:07:00.000+05:30

Obesity in children is an upcoming hormonal problem, parents are facing now a days and most of the time it is due to inappropriate lifestyle of parents and hence children.
Parents usually encourage the child to eat as much as he/she can and that the junk food most of the time.

So we can say continous junk food and sedentary lifestyle (like instead of doing physical activities children are watching TV or playing video games) are the main causes of the obesity or weight gain which in turn leads to other multiple problems like young onset of Type 2 Diabetes, High Cholesterols, Heart problems, puberty problems, growth disorders, Gall bladder stones and many other innumerable medical problems.

Diabetes In Children

2010-07-21T16:06:00.000+05:30

Symptoms to watch out for diabetes in children.

1.Polyurea (throughout day and night ) - Child is going for urination again and again.
2. Increase thirst of child.
3. Weight loss (This is the most important symptom. Sometimes only complaint of parent is that child is not gaining weight inspite of ruling out all other common conditions.
4. Frequent infections.
5.Pain Abdomen This is more specific as there are two types of dibetes Type 1 and Type II .Type II belongs to adult diabetes and Type 1 Belongs to children onset diabetes Ketone are usually formed as there is deficiency of insulin in Type 1.Ketone formation leads to acidosis (ph of blood become more acidic) Child usually complaint of pain abdomen due to ketones.Sometimes pain in abdomen is so severe that child has to be admitted for the same. So history of recurrent pain abdomen with one or two admission in hospital is the indicator childhood diabetes.
5. Growth pattern of diabetes affected.

Diaper Rash treatments

2010-07-20T02:18:00.001+05:30

Recently my little one had a bad diaper rash after i took her to pool for swimming.. she enjoyed being in water. I had not got her swim diapers and the regular diaper really affected her a lot.
She suffered a lot from it. there are some tips that i got it from my friends , elders and nurse.

1. Apply olive oil or castor oil on the affected area.
2.Pure corn startch is really good. Every diaper change put the pure corn starch and it will soak the moisture.
3. 1 OZ of vinegar in a tub of water and making kid sit in that for 3-5 min.
4.Tripe paste-ointment for diaper rash is really best one. works fine and we can see changes in one diaper change( suggested by Nurse)
5. Do not apply powder when there is rash. My doc said NO to the powder.

Shraavzz Toy Review... Sounds, Light, and Music.. Learning Toys

2010-07-16T08:04:00.000+05:30

Vtech Spin & Learn Top

This is the toy my daughter plays having fun and learning in the process. When we went to walmart one day, i was just searching for some new toys. While i was searching and showing my little one few of them, she immediately got excited seeing this particular toy. Dint give a second thought before buying this toy.
This toy has four modes of Play
If we press the top button down, it spins making some funny noises .
if we press the animals, each animal gives its intro, for instance saying..''iam the monkey'' ''iam the lion''
there are 2 more animals Elephant and the Bear.
and they makes different animal sounds and asks to find out which animal makes such sound. So kids can learn in the process..
I try to teach my daughter showing ,this is the monkey or this is the elephant.I will spin th toy and ask her show me the monkey..where is the bear or the lion or the elephant. Its fun to play.
We can give this toy when they learn how to sit and play by them selves.

the only con for this toy is the music is not loud enough..well this is my personal opinion.

FISHER-PRICE GO BABY GO! CRAWL ALONG MUSICAL BALL

This is a Fun Toy, I bought this toy for my little one when she was 5 months old and was crawling on her tummy..Usually Babies will have lots of fun watching this monkey making all the funny sounds .My daughter too loved this toy and was always paying attention when we switch on this toy. The money makes all sorts of funny noises and grabs all the attention of the babies and in the learning process,gives them a reason to learn crawling across the floor chasing this monkey on the ball..Over all its a mere fun toy and the sounds are great and funnily effective.

Fisher Price Laugh & Learn Storybook Rhymes

My Daughter loved the Rhymes and all the Songs since she was days old. I use to sing her all the rhymes and she used to stop crying and all she did at that times was giving mommy all the cuty smiles listening to the songs. So thats the reason i bought this Toy for her and she instantly loved it. This toy looks like a Caterpillar holding the book.There are four pages in this book ,quite colorful and and she can turn the pages easily by her self and every time you turn the page , there comes 2 Rhyme songs with the lights and pictures in every page. The sound effects are great.

Fisher Price Musical Learning Duck

OMG, what to write about this cute little thing.This is my daughter's favourite toy of all .Her face just lits up when ever she sees this duck. She especially likes the way it Quacks and sings the songs . and I usually move the duck as if it is dancing while singing the song and my daughter laughs and screams will all the excitement and i my face also lits up seeing her happy and all excited. There were quite a few days when my little one hugged this ducky to bed and slept the whole afternoon.She Just loves and loves and loves this toy.

Fisher price laugh and learn bunny

Well this bunny looks funny.It has 2 bumby feet where we can change the mode of the songs to just music or numbers or fun songs . When we switch on this toy it laughs and says''heheh..iam up and ready to play'' when ever my daughter hears to this bunny..she even wakes up from her sleep to play with this toy :) and this toy gives the description of it self with saying..I have bumby feet and two long ears and a fuzzy tail and a short nose and makes funny sounds along the way.

CAUTION : WHILE BUYING THIS TOY GO FOR THE SECOND EDITION. THE FIRST EDITION HAS BEEN RECALLED.

ONLY BUNNIES WITH 3 DIMENSIONAL NOSES ARE RECALLED AND NOT THE BUNNIES WITH FLAT NOSES EMBROIDERED AND STITCHED ARE NOT RECALLED

Vtech - Move and Crawl Electronic Activity Ball

This is a very nice nice activity ball to play with.Babies usually love this so much but unfortunately my daughter does'nt show much interest on this toy to play with. Its spins by it self singing the songs and there are 3 animal buttons, Monkey,cat and the puppy and number 1,2,3 buttons on this toy .If we press the buttons the animals makes thier noises , like the cat makes meow meow and the number says 1 ,2, 3. there is a little lady bug on the top of this ball to spin around.

LeapFrog Learn & Groove Musical Table, Pink

My daughter loves this toy.This is like her first Musical table . She gets excited and engaged with this toy . What can i say, this toy is full of entertainment for her with music ,songs and colorful sparkling lights .

There are two modes of languages, English and Spanish . There is a piano on one side with 4 different color keys and it sings colors while playing with the piano. One the 2nd side, there is a spin rattel with colorfull tiny balls inside and it sings ABCD song. On the 3rd side there is this musical instrument which looks like a trumphet , and there is a key where the baby can slide from both sides and it sings the Numbers 1 to 10. On the 4th side there is a Case where the baby can learn to open and close it and says the same, when the baby opens the case it says "open'' and when closing it says ''close''. Usualy i ask my little one to open and she does .

and in one corner beside the Trumpet, there are 3 key buttons in the different shapes, Square, Circle and Triangle in 3 different colors Red,Yellow and Green . So when the baby is playing with those buttons, it says its shape and color and in this process the babies can learn different shapes and colors too. Daily i sit and teach my daughter those shapes and some times if i ask her to show me the Circle, she does . There is a Violin in the another corner where she can slide the button on it. and it sings Up .High..Low..Down . In the final corner in between the piano and spin rattle , there is a tortoise with a guitar where the baby can spin it and the colorful lights sparkle around the music table saying, lights on...lights off .

last but not least and most importantly there is a book in the middle of the table where the babies can change the page mode to just music or songs.

The babies can either play with toy standing having fun or sit and play removing all the 4 legs of the toy .

Introducing Foods In First Year -- The Indian/AP Baby Way

2010-07-15T09:39:00.001+05:30

I was advised to introduce solids after completion of 4 months but it was reiterated to me that milk should be the primary meal to the kid and solids is just to get the kid used to various textures gradually. Excessive drooling and those very observant glances whenever anyone ate (the Brahmi way ;)), I was told was the indication that the baby was ready for solids. However, the signs and readiness may vary from baby to baby. The pediatrician would let us know in one of the monthly or regular checkup visits.

Beginning With
Very ripe mashed banana without the seeds.
Cooked and mashed carrot.
Cooked apple without the skin.
Cooked peas, beans, beetroot.

The quantity however is really less, a spoonful or so to begin with. If the baby wants more, no problem.. but ensure that the milk intake at that point is not compromised and that milk is still to be consumed at a regular rate.

Cereals like Farex, Cerelac, Easum, First Foods or store-bought varieties based on the age-appropriate guidelines mentioned overleaf or as per the doctor.

Fruit juices
Home made juices of pomegranate, carrot, beetroot.. do not overdo on citrus juices like orange unless we get a nod from the ped.

Soups:
Homemade vegetable soups.

Rice:
Completion of 5 months, 6th month.. rice and dal fried and ground to a soft texture and cooked along with finely cut veggies.

The consistence of this rice and dal mix should be varied as per the kid's tolerance and taste preference. I used to give it in ghee (home-made). I find Durga Ghee to be tasty personally and so does the kid.

From 7th month onwards, the ped gradually asked me to try all the vegetables and I had tried a majority of them but avoided brinjal, bitter gourd.

By the end of first year, the kid should be able to eat more or less everything we as elders do, pretty much everything healthy and edible. Also, the powder texture should be made coarser gradually and by 11th month or so very softly cooked complete rice grains should be fine.

Sweet potato could be cooked and mashed but this is a little heavy on the tummy.

About giving Ragi, there are varied views but I was told to keep it until a later date so towards 8th month started on Ragi java or porridge based on kid's preference.

No added salt and sugar initially and gradually go for very very little salt. We might not like the taste without salt but for kids who are not introduced to that flavor it doesnt matter, so limit the sodium intake in first year of life.

Dairy
Rice with buttermilk was also introduced around the same age. There are again varied views as to when to go about introducing dairy products for a kid. here I was given a go ahead in the 7th month and started giving rice with curd/buttermilk.

However, introducing to whole milk or cow/buffalo milk was put off until the kid turned one year old at the best.

I started introducing porridge made of milk little by little as the kid showed no signs of allergy.

Water at this stage should be introduced with a glass or a spoon and the bottle dependence should gradually be weaned.

Egg

Again, there are varied views as to how and when to go about.. Some wait until the 10th month, but I was told to introduce it in 7th month, starting with egg yellow and not the white. White was told to be avoided up until the kid turns a year old. So, hard boiling the egg and giving the kid yellow if he/she likes it. As the time passed, introduced various forms of it like omlette in ghee, scrambled egg, bread omlette sweet/hot.

Non-Veg
After completing 9 months, I was told to try very softly cooked chicken and mutton kheema and fish gradually checking for allergies based on baby's preference. I started with fish, very little but not on a regular basis.. the number of times were few and far between. It again is a debatable issue and doc has mentioned that this or for that matter any new food should not be forced on kid and if and if they do want a little they will have it. Soups can also be given. Mooliga or the gravy in the bone is supposed to be a real healthy food and given to the food.

Whole Milk:
I was told to introduce it gradually substituting one routine feed with the whole milk, diluting at first and then switch completely from around 11 months of age or close to one year.

Sweets, ice-creams, chocolates should be avoided as much as possible but are definitely not a sin is what I was told from the age 10 months onwards... I personally feel that kid is fine enough getting the natural sugar from fruits rather than sweetening agents.

Date syrup is a good alternative for sugar in infants as it is told to avoid honey in the first year of life.

Walker Experiences

2010-07-14T21:05:00.000+05:30

When the kid could stand on her own without any support and was attempting to walk, that is around her birthday, I gave her a walker which kind of looked like this, had 6 wheels, had a foot rest, sun shade, handling stand. It is a bit expensive, we can invest on it if we start the kid early on on the walker, like when she/he is just sitting without support.

Like in various other posts, I was a no walker until the baby stands up mom... The doctor has specifically mentioned not using the walkers until the baby does it on her own or stands up on her own at least. To my horror, a few of my cousins put the kid in the walker as and when she/he could sit up or make an attempt to sit as early as 6th or 7th month onwards. Those kids walked real fast and met that milestone pretty fast, but still what doctor said lingered on in my mind. I used to wonder when those moms compared milestones with my kid if I was depriving my kid of something by not providing an aid to walk... well, it is a personal choice to go for one or not.

My reviews on what I had used are as below...

Sreya walked on her own only in her 13th month after her birthday. She was able to stand and walk around the bed a little with the help of a the bed edge but nothing much.. As soon as I put her in a walker, within a week she was walking really well, halting a little but walking steadily.

I had gotten her a rocker/walker/swing combo by Amardeep when she was 9 months old but since it had just 4 wheels and the kid tended to walk side ways rather than to the front, she had a couple of real bad falls even when we were close behind watching her, so my personal experience, for kids who have learnt walking and who are yet to learn, it is a bad choice of a walker.. DO NOT USE THIS AS A WALKER. Rocker/stroller if you have a handling rod attached to it is fine.. but as a walker, strict NO.

The one in the topmost picture is the one like I said that could be bought if we start early... costs around 1600 to 2000/- which I felt is waste of money as the kid hardly used it for a couple of weeks. Again, it was because I started when she was totally ready to walk on her own, she had the stamina but did not know how to go about at that time, it was just a little push towards the final step... but like I already mentioned, early starters will have a little longer use of this...

If it is late starters like me, then this one which costs around 450/- to 500/- at the max should solve the purpose because once the kid starts walking on his/her own, she will no longer need this...

This one is a traditional yet good model which I got so that she can walk around on her own and since she was an on-the-go baby with most people carrying her all the while in the village, I had to have 2 spares, one to take wherever she goes and one to keep at home, this one was for us to carry around where she goes like a temple, any neighbors place, etc.

Above everything I would say round walker helped me a lot, relatively less expensive considering the very short span of time it had been used by me..

But as usual you need to keep a close watch when the kid uses it and ensure that the ground is even, without any ridges between stones/granite, uneven mud, etc. With an active kid like mine, there were falls even in this when she started running around enthusiastically in this one when she realized that she could mobilize from one place to another and pull and pluck things :((.. so caution must be exercised at all costs...

The one in the picture is a sit to stand walker.. once the kid is walking on her own without falling, this would be of good use because with my kid, she used to bend forward a lot to play with the games rather than use it as an aid to walk... the toys in front provided distraction from walking, so I got the one in the toy section pictures with less games... It is according to me, not a very good buy for Indian kids or rather kids in India since it is very light, the kid would fall unless he/she understands grip.

I loved my traditional 3-wheeled walker, wooden one the best of all because that provided a good grip to stand on with the heavy wooden bottom.. will put up the pic when I get it from the neighbor I handed it over to..

Whatever be the walker, the ground rule is stay close, really really close and keep a watchful eye when you let others handle this for you.

Points on Child Abuse...

2010-07-11T09:45:00.000+05:30

One thing that scares the hell out of me each time I think about... a fine line between being cautious and paranoid...

check it out here...

Childhood Depression??????.....

2010-07-11T09:43:00.001+05:30

Isnt it really scary getting to know a lot of things right when you have a little kid to raise... pheww!! nothing to get scare (I tell this myself every day) just another insight, another view point...

Check out...

Toy Review - 1

2010-07-07T15:32:00.000+05:30

This is one post that I have been wanting to do for a while.. when I look at any sites for toy reviews, I get the review as a product but not a mother's review on it.. as to how useful it would be and stuff like that.y

When I knew I was pregnant, I must confess that one of the primary reasons to be happy other than the emotional part of it was that I could now buy and play with all the toys without getting those looks ;).. but only when it came to reality did I know choosing toys is the toughest job I had to date.. utilities are something which are a must and even when there is choice you know it fully well as to what suits the needs, but what suits the baby needs.. no idea!!

The first toy I got to her was a mobile for her cradle/swing, the traditional model with just toys, something like this, they say the first few months or at least a month the kid cannot focus on anything but still for my satisfaction... and with a month or so when the kid would play with her hands and feet they would touch the mobile toys and that would be a game for her.. later on as months passed by 3rd month beginning she was holding the toy and pulling it and trying to hold another one, so it was a good time-pass item is what I feel.. Along with these, we get those good old jhoomars plastic ones which make sounds with manual key, they like the sound and bright colors of them too... Alternatively, I tied a small brass temple bell to the swing which would make that sweet jingle noise when we swing the cradle and was pleasant to my ears, so you can try it as well.

Rattles:
Then came rattles, the typical hello baby plastic ones we get in Indian Market along with Etikoppaka wooden rattles that I got from Kalanjali and a few craft melas.. basically reading a lot about lead poisoning and effects of bad plastic usage I was kind of scared to use any toy as the kid tended to put everything in her mouth. So, my obvious choice was washable ones with good plastic.

Sounds and Sights:
When the kid could recognize sounds and lights my hunt was for toys that would give out sound and also bright and safe for her and since I stayed in a remote area, the choice was less but the key with colors and sounds was something that I liked and the mobile phone which would recite ABCs and 123s with music and lights was the second one.

The cloth book which worked as a teether as well as a book and for sounds is a good pick too as the kid liked the bright colors, the plastic figurines worked as teethers and it was washable.

Then came the board books which had bright colors and pictures and more than as educational medium I used them for sights and even if she licked them or put them in water, I could just wipe them clean.. as for the books I prefer anything other than Vicky Series as the other models have bright photos closer to real ones rather than the painted ones in Vicky Series.. check out the pictures before you get them, they should appeal to the eyes.

When the kid could sit and play, I went to the stacking toys, both traditional Indian doll in doll ones and the FunSkool ones, the kid could not actually understand the doll-in-doll set but liked to play with bright rings and gradually learnt to stack them and now over time identifies colors as we talk casually, so it was a good investment too..

Finally, when she could sit and scribble on the floor and tear paper into pieces I went for this magic slate on which she could scribble and pass her time, however, this should be under strict supervision as the pen has a pointed edge and she can put it in eyes or hurt herself. and this is a toy only after a year or so..

One more toy set that caught my attention and was really helpful in keeping her occupied was the vegetable and fruit set, plastic ones which were available in the market.. the colors were bright, they looked good and the kid had a nice time playing with them... we should, however, be there all the time to see that the kid does not put them in mouth and check the set and see if there are any toys with sharp edges. I must say these are the ones which provided her a lot of playtime when she was just about rolling over and sitting up with support, the bright colors caught her fancy and she used to play with them happily... As a toddler, she happily carries them around in a basket and gives them one by one when we ask their names, so it is fun and educative at the same time.

Puppets:

These hand puppets and finger puppets are good interactive toys as we can make sounds and play act a lot of things and the kid loves it when we speak in funny tones... since I was a non TV person, she had to make do with these active play sessions.. Thanks Caps for the idea, your rabbit gift gave me ideas to get more..

Swing:

The swing which kind of looks like this is a good source on enjoyment and once the kid was sitting upright on her own, I got her this one.. in fact a few of them and set up at various locations so that she can swing and watch out things on road, she loves it and so do I as it keeps her busy.. but the down side is she is so used to it that she wont sleep without a swing ;).

Bath Toys:

The plastic ducks, kitty toys, Mickey set and the other toys which would make that squeaky noise are good for bath time when the kid starts throwing tantrums to lie down still or sit up still.. these are of good use to me now after one year.

When she came to the age where she could sit with confidence and needed no support then I went for a baby pool as it was summer.. this was an inflatable pool and provided ample of cushoning for the kid to sit it, splash in some water and have fun.. I used to throw the plastic veggies, bath toys and a ball and the kid would just squeal and play with delight, so according to me a good buy... the balls that you get in the market, those very soft exercise balls would be a good idea rather than the plastic ones.. remember the smiley ones, yellow ones... also, the ball in the picture is an inflatable one with colorful designs, light weight and a good source of entertainment.

Since I was a strict no-walker until she stands on her own parent, I had gotten her a sit to stand walker, which had some play stuff in front and 4 wheels to walk which we made her do under supervision. The kid initially was scared to walk on it alone but now when she loves walking all over she likes using it like a stroller and have loads and loads of fun pushing it around.. I have the traditional wooden 3-wheel walker which was of great help too as it was heavy, it provided her the much needed balance. This plastic one however, is very light weight and when the kid is learning to walk, it is not a good idea as the grip to stand is not provided. So, for starters go for the sturdy old wooden one and go for this later on if you have space to put it at home :). There are ones in the market with more toys and frills in the front but the kid's focus would be more on front than on walking, so went for a simple one, this one cost me 450/-

Pillow Toys:
One gift that my mom got and I and the kid love to bits are these convertible pillow toys.. which she can play with during the day and sleep on them at nights, so they are her full-day companions and the bright colors make them appealing to the eye. They are easy to wash and light weight. The velcro underneath it makes them toys and undo the velcro and it is a pillow, priced at 100/- each, they are a good buy.

The latest to the collection is her tricycle.. she is mostly an outdoor person and I cannot carry her around, so I find it really useful... it is different than the conventional ones in that it has a handle which can be used to push along without bending, has a sun guard, foot rest and a whole lot of attachments which can later on be taken out as the kid's requirements keep changing.. This particular one has a supporting rod and hand rest like a stroller which would keep the kid inside without falling forward, the tyres are strong and I feel that 1900/- bucks that I spent for is worth it as I can use it for the next couple of years conveniently.

More later... waiting for a lot more reviews from this site users... moms, please help!!!

Brushing Teeth

2010-07-05T08:43:00.001+05:30

Babies can begin teething at 3 months old; however it is more common for babies to begin teething around 6 to 7 months old. The first teeth that will appear are usually the lower incisors or front teeth. By the age of 3, children should have their complete set of 20 "pearly whites." It is never too early to begin a regular brushing routine with your child.

As the teeth grow, use a toothbrush that is designed for your child's age, as indicated on the package. Avoid using toothpaste that contains fluoride until your child is old enough to understand that swallowing the toothpaste should be avoided.

Use the correct brushing and flossing method, when caring for your child's teeth. Most children like to show their independence by doing tasks, such as brushing their teeth, on their own. Allow your kids brush their teeth themselves, either before or after you have completely removed all of the plaque. You should, however, brush your child's teeth twice a day until he is able to brush his own teeth correctly, around the age of six. When you are confident your child is capable of brushing alone, buy an egg timer or use a stop watch and time your child's brushing for the recommended two minutes. When complete, always do a final inspection. Remember to applaud your child on a job well done, and if you do notice any teeth that have been missed, visually show your child the area and demonstrate how he should remove the plaque or food.

I personally find the complete set very useful... it is a product of Summer Infant and it is one of those paisa vasool items I bought for Sreya.. the finger brush and its buds are useful pre-toothing stage.. 3 months age and upwards with very soft bristles and help in bite gum stimulation... the top most one in the picture is the gum stimulator which the kid uses to bite on to satisfy that teething urge and can used up to about a year or so until the pearly whites pop up... Sreya cut her first tooth when she was close to a year and now has 4, so I used the second one up to a year and even now.. in fact, I let her pick up whatever brush she wants to and go about brushing or do brushing acting.. the finger brush, however, is dangerous to mom's fingers after the teeth eruption ;)...

Right now, we have graduated to the third brush, where I just give it to her after washing and she munches on it happily, I just clean her tongue also with the brush as the bristles are really soft...

Coming to the toothpaste.. Orajel is one brand which caters to non-fluoride age group.. am doing a little bit research on it, so more on it once I gather it... Since I can manage to get Orajel through friends and relatives, it is manageable as of now but I want to search on what is available in Indian market for that tricky age group..

Need For Brushing:
1. Wide spread misconceptions are that you need to clean the teeth only after they pop out, nope gum and mouth cleaning and gum stimulation is very much vital to how the teeth will erupt in the long run, so care starts right as a newborn, so keep working at it...
2. Milk teeth do not have to taken care of well, they are eventually going to fall out anyways... nope, they are the foundation for the actual teeth, so the care is as much vital as the others...

Care
****
**As a newborn, after 3 months, clean the gums with a very soft cloth and warm water both clean and sterile.
**As an infant, the finger brush.
**In infant to toddler transition, either a brush or a stimulator.
**Toddler, tooth brush along with paste (non-fluoride).

Selecting a Tooth Paste
********************
- Fluoride :
. Below 4 years of age – do not use fluoridated toothpaste as till this age, the child ingests part of the toothpaste.
. Between 4 to 14 years of age – fluoride is required in toothpaste as at this age the teeth enamel is permeable and therefore benefits from the fluoride.
. Above 14 years of age – fluoridated toothpaste is not required as the teeth enamel is no longer permeable and therefore the fluoride is not used. Excess fluoride may lead to fluorosis.
- Attractive color (if possible).
- Should produce foam.
- Change the toothpaste every time you buy a new pack as frequent use of the same formulation makes the bacteria present in the teeth resistant to that toothpaste. (This applies to you too).
- Do not use only gel based toothpaste for your child as gels serve more as mouthwash rather than for cleaning teeth. Keep changing the type of toothpaste the child uses.

So, you can ask for toothpaste for child, many are available, including Oral-B, Podflor, Kidzee etc.
But always remember ... It is the brushing action which is more important than the toothpaste used. For the child to have healthy teeth it is important to make him aware of the importance of good dental hygiene right from early age – Brushing twice a day, regular visits to the dentist, sensible eating and no neglect of caries even of milk teeth.
Do not feed the kid anything other than water before the bedtime... even if you have to feed them milk in sleep make sure they drink a little bit of water to wash down the liquid thoroughly from the mouth as the bacteria will work full force during nighttime.

Brushing and oral hygiene is very much vital in childcare.. we take utmost care as to what goes into her tummy, food wise, so it has be an extra-cautious attempt to see to it that entry to the stomach is clean as well ;).

Bronchitis and Kids

2010-05-08T20:08:00.000+05:30

1) Bronchitis is inflammation of the bronchi (the airways that carry air to lungs). Bronchitis is of two types: acute and chronic. Acute bronchitis presents with cough, with or without the production of sputum, mucus. It usually occurs during the course of an acute viral illness such as common cold. Viruses cause about 90% of cases.

Chronic bronchitis is something in which cough persists for years, this is not seen in children, and it’s more common in chronic smokers. So what we see in children is just extension of cold to airways, it’s usually a mild infection, doesn’t need any specific treatment in most of the cases. Just need treatment as of cold only. Need antibiotics, if it’s because of bacteria only in 10% cases. So, you need to worry for that, just see if your child doesn’t get better in normal course of time, take him to doctor, to see any need for antibiotics or not.

2. Asthma is something where there are inherited allergic tendencies in lungs to get spasm. It may be lifelong sometimes. So, bronchitis is different from asthma.

3. If cough cold and fever doesn’t settle in 3-5 days, and cough increases, its time for you to talk to your doctor for any need of antibiotics.

4. No specific precautions, just same what to take to prevent common cold, hygiene etc. You can’t restrict always him always form playing in water or taking ice creams. Just be sensitive if needed in taking early medical advice. It’s because of infection, which is there in air.

5. Child can’t spit sputum, its difficult.

Kids and Beauty..

2010-05-05T16:11:00.000+05:30

I am not too keen on outer beauty as much as the inner but I am sure a little bit of external charm would do no harm.

As long as you ensure that the kid is not obsessed with self and gets looks conscious, it is perfectly alright.

Kanti has shared an amazing collection in her blog, which I am posting here for reference.
Please check the compilation over HERE.

Functional Constipation

2010-04-30T19:55:00.000+05:30

functional constipation; you need to work hard a bit to train regarding her potty habits, so that she passes it well at least once a day.
Avoid fruit juices, in place try to give meshed fruits as such, cos they contain good amount of fibres like cheeku, papaya and mango. No dal ka pani, give dal as such. Curd is really good for tummy, add it wherever possible.
You can also try giving some honey may be one tsf in night time milk. That may help; take some branded one only like dabur. Still if it gets something serious and persistent you need to talk with your doc for some short term laxatives, which may help.
Most of this functional constipation is transient which improves with age, so don’t worry.

Stool Concerns in Kids

2010-04-30T19:53:00.000+05:30

Bile is secreted by liver, which is green in color, when it passes down, gradually from small intestine to large intestine, color changes from green to yellow due to other intestinal secretions. But if transit time (time it takes to cross both intestines) is less, it doesn’t get time to change to yellow, and stool passed as green in color. So green stools just means that intestinal motility is increased.

It may or may not be infection.
If it is associated with high grade fever, vomiting or associated with blood or mucus in stool, then
it’s probably due to infection, which needs stool examination, otherwise you can wait it to settle down by itself.

Usually such stools if it was because of infection may follow to persist for some weeks, esp in top feed children, because of secondary lactose intolerance (acidic stools) afterwards. Such problems are not common if child is exclusively breast feed in first six months. For this, you just need to wait for some time to settle down gradually. But if this extent for long period, you need to discuss with your doctor too, which may need repeated stool tests. In most cases, it settles of its own.

Deworming..

2010-04-30T19:51:00.000+05:30

Regarding parasitic infestation in children, cos they are not common here.
Common infestations in these small kids are pin worm and round worm infestations. Usually comes when something coated with dust particles goes in. I understand it’s difficult to prevent such infestations, few precaution are like this :

1. It’s advisable to wash hands of children esp between 1-3 years at least 5 times a day. (Children of this age will keep on putting hands and everything in mouth, which you can’t prevent every time).

2. Be persistent in washing kid’s hands before eating food and also after passing stool. (I know you do that every time for yourself, but make it also for the kid, so he develops this habit from early age)

3. Always eat fruits and vegetable after proper washing them (Never Never without washing, as it’s the most common source of these worms).

4. Avoid things available in market which are open esp. in India like golgappe, open fruit chat etc.

These are few small things which you must be following; just need is to sustain these habits.

Common symptoms of worms in children are abdominal pain, itching in perianal region.
Regarding regular deworming, as such there are no guidelines; still it’s advisable to get your children dewormed every 6 monthly in age group 1-5 years.

Deworming before the kid turns a year old is strongly not advised, also talk to your doctor before doing it.

Less Sleep In Kids

2010-04-30T19:49:00.001+05:30

Regarding less sleep, you must understand one thing that sleep patterns are different for different children, some sleep more and some sleep less. I have seen many gifted children, who don’t need more sleep. It’s their nature, their sleep demand is less. But what is important to us is whether your child has any sleep disorder or not. So to differentiate it, we need to see her growth and development. Cos, sleep disorders will cause serious impact on the growth of your child.

Ok, if she is growing otherwise well, and doesn’t seem irritable all the time in the day, probably she is getting enough sleep. I feel it will take some more time for her to get adjusted to sleep pattern, what you expect from her. Till than you need to struggle bit more.....hey, why don’t you try some newer techniques, as you seems to have good interest in child psychology. May be something like making some fancy tent over her bad, or sleeping early, so some soft music while sleeping, it may work. What I feel you should not run for how long she sleep, try to make her relax as much as possible, it will automatically solve the problem.

Breast Pump Review - Medela Swing type

2010-04-30T14:43:00.000+05:30

It was in my 3rd trimister that I came to know about a breast pump. I came across a discussion in a forum about expressing the BM using a pump, storing it and using it later. Thought "Ok, this is for working moms, since I am gonna stay at home I don't really need it" and then totally forgot abt it. I initially thought once I deliver the baby, I'll automatically produce milk and the baby will latch on easily. But, I was totally wrong.

Breastfeeding was not that simple n easy as I'd thought. I had cracked nipples, wasn't producing enough milk for the first few days and when the milk production was good enough baby wasn't latching properly. So I ended up having lumps in my breasts which were even more painful. My gyny suggested me to use a breast pump. I could get only a manual pump in our town which looked like an auto horn just as Sree mentioned in her review. It took 1.5hrs for me to pump just 4oz of milk :(( and after each pumping session I almost collapsed. So finally decided to go for an electric pump. Called up Sree and she suggested me to go for Core. Finding an electric breast pump in our town was out of question (none of my family members've heard abt a breast pump till then) and so I asked my aunt in hyd to get one for me. She couldn't find this Core breast pump and hence my next option was Medela. Though it was a bit expensive (around 10K) for my requirement, since I wasn't sure about other brands I had to go for this Medela Swing type Electric breast pump. This brand was suggested earlier in the forum by many of our friends.

This breast pump was absolutely one of the best purchases I've ever made. It made my job easier. I expressed almost 8oz in less than 20min. It can be used both electrically and battery-operated. I mostly used with the battery operated mode. It has a 2-phase pumping programme, phase 1 is the stimulation phase where the nipple is stimulated just like when the baby is sucking rapidly. Once the milk let down starts phase 2 - Expression phase begins in which the pump speed slows down. It is portable, easy to clean n sterilize. For the first one month I used this pump almost everyday. Finally my baby got adjusted to latching and I slowly reduced expressing milk. I prefered to feed him directly than using a bottle. The only draw back I found with this was, it makes some noise in the stimulation phase.

I haven't made use of this pump to its full extent, because I'm a stay-at-home mom. Once the latching issues were resolved, I used to express only when I had to go out for shopping or when I needed some rest. I used this for 4 months and passed it on to one of my friends who is a working mom. She has been using this for the past couple of months and had no issues till now. And yeah, this comes with a one-year warranty. I got this from Mothercare, Hyderabad. I would recommed this to working moms who express milk at a regular basis.

Thanks to all my TIA friends and especially Sree for their suggestions.

Tearing/Crusting Eyes -- Infants

2010-04-29T15:54:00.000+05:30

Kanti Pusulu -- Yellowish wet/dry crusting around the eyes of the babies is one of the common things that might be encountered in India. Some doctors actually give some antibiotic drops to the newborns in anticipation of any infection from the mother but in India, only when there is a problem do they give the drops.

There can be several reasons for tearing/crusting in an infant.

Make sure that the kid is not near any irritant or allergic object which is causing the tearing and crusting. If the tearing is accompanied by red shot eyes, runny nose or cough it might likely be an allergic reaction but this is indeed very rare in infants...

When there is such an occurrence, make sure the eyes are cleansed every once in a while before the discharge is crusted in the corners of the eye.
**Wipe the eyes clean with warm water cotton balls and clean them delicately.
**Do not let the kid rub the eyes excessively.
**Contact doctor immediately if there is any redness or swelling in the eye.

The reasons can be
* a blocked tear duct.
* a bacterial infection.
* a viral infection.

While the other two require medical intervention and confirmation that it indeed is an infection.. we can at home try some remedies to open up the blocked tear ducts as per my doctor.

A simple tip to stop tearing and crusting is
***When LO had crusting of the eyes, doc suggested me to press slightly on the nasal ridge and the place where the eye sockets meet the nose. Gently massaging the area between the eyebrows and eyes, around the eye sockets. It did help instantly. I was told to repeat the same gentle tapping massaging around the eyes and nose for about 20 times in the day, say 6 to 8 times rounds each time, 3 times a day.. ideally feeding times as the baby wont usually mind us doing that :).

If anyone at home has conjunctivitis be it bacterial or viral just keep everything separately including towels and bedsheets and if possible do not let them come near the infant. If it is you (the mom) who is infected take enough care not to stare into the eyes and take care of hygiene as much as possible.

If it is in the newborn stage, before 3 months of age, then it is most likely something to do with blocked tear ducts or nasal bone development or something like that, just the crusting and tearing, so do not worry...

watch out for external objects, redness, foul smelling crusts and keep the surroundings absolutely clean.

Thanks Renu for reminding me this one... LO had this as a newborn, so kind of missed my notice to update here.

Breast Pump Review (Indian Market) -- Core

2010-04-29T15:22:00.000+05:30

Renu did a great job in summarizing her experience in buying and using the pump, I will do mine.

Pumps in India that are available to common man are like auto horns and are as crude in extraction milk.. it is not wrong if I say the pain getting milk out with that is a 100 times more than the delivery pains itself. No matter what people say there is not much awareness still about breastfeeding and the importance of it in India. We hear more instances of no milk or very less milk in India, especially in the middle class or rich social strata.. the poor have no choice but try their best and I sometimes envy the kids for their luck to be able to feed on the purest form of feeding, fresh milk from mom.

I feel that a breastfed kid is truly the luckiest kid but no issues, the formulas available are just about equal if not more good for the kid. The cleaning, sterilizing, the pain, the agony, nothing is a match to the BM feeding.

There are still a lot of misconceptions about pumping, no one really asks us to go for them, unless we are aware ourselves I hardly know any hospital which suggests the use. The nipple shield, the auto horn pump, manual extraction but not the pump.. strange.. but thanks to the world being a global village, a lot of us know what our counterparts in the west use and by our own choice we go for it..

The ones available in the market are from Germany, Singapore/Malaysia, and US.. Pigeon also has one but I havent really checked on it. I chose Core, the German made product, dual mode operation, with 2 contains costing somewhere around 3K, cost effective and good to use. The cleaning equipment and suction material are good. The sucking feel that comes with the pump is said to enhance the supply by giving the baby suckling feeling. The suction works good. However, it works good with real full potential only in an electric socket or a brand new battery setting. So, even when there is battery support feature, I had to rely completely on the AC option.

My mom and uncle had gotten it for me when I was is the hospital and there were not much choices in the store, but I am told time and again by moms in US that Medela is the best option.

Per my experience, Core is good, affordable, compact but then again I havent used Medela to compare to it.. Let us wait for Keerthi's review on it.

I also saw Pigeon and Tolly Joy pumps but did not either like the features, pump, or the accessories that come with it. Tolly Joy and Pigeon give you around 6 months to 1 year warranty but Core comes with no warranty whatsoever. I used it and passed it on to my friend, she is using it currently and will hopefully pass it on to another mother just changing the containers.. no issues so far (tw).

Breast Pump options - (Indian Market) Apple, Pigeon, JustBorn

2010-04-28T14:04:00.000+05:30

Buying and using breast pumps abroad is easy and a normal everyday task because there is a lot of awareness and help. Medela is one good brand everyone suggests but buying it in India falls into an expensive item list.

Challenge I - People who sell pumps, they themselves do not know the total functionality. in one shop, they didn't tell me how to clean the pump. In other shop, they showed the cleaning process, but didn't show me how to release the vaccuum. Manual available is most of the times not suited for the needs.

II - Our parents do not know about it to be able to advice. The count of experienced mothers is also very less. So, you get near to zero knowledge transferred from tried & tested people (again...its for me. But thanks to sree, she helped me out)

III - No privacy place in office for pumping, so you can't pump at work place, no pumping zone in short.

IV - Not all offices have fridges, or we feel a little shy to keep the milk in cafeteria fridge. I did work in big branded companies, but no office maintained fridge for employees. All the refrigerators are maintained by cafeteria people for their purposes.

V - Even if offices do have fridges, commute is another headache. My ped suggested not to keep the extracted milk outside for more than 1hr & refrigerated milk for more than 15-20mins. So, in Hyd, i do not think any one can reach home from office in less than 20mins :)

VI - They are costly as per our thinking. I did debate over whether to buy one or not, because after spending much money, i didn't want it to go waste bcoz i cant pump at work.

having all these challenges considered, i at one point, thought let the life go on its own way. No pumps, nothing. Let me go work and let the kid be managed how yesteryear's kids got managed when their moms worked. But, now i say a big NO. Please, Please do buy breast pump and make use of it as it is the best thing anyone has ever invented for working moms and babies and moms with babies having latching concerns.

I work between 9-3pm and the commute is of 1hr each side. So, all in all, its more than 8hrs. At present, i'm pumping everyday after i return from work. As soon as i return, i take a quick bath and get back to the pumping routine. I'm able to get about 6oz during the session. My kid drinks close to 5oz per feed when she is absolutely hungry.

before work, i make sure that i nurse the kid. If the kid is in deep sleep and not interested to take milk, i pump.

Because i nurse the kid before leaving, its mostly one feed before i return that is between 12:30 to 1PM. I return home between 4 to 4:30, pump the milk first and go ahead with nursing again. What an easy way to get away with lumps.

With the help of breast pump, kid is rarely on formula. For the people who are away from kid for more than 9-10hrs, 1 formula feed might be needed. But thats is till the baby completes 4mths, after that anyway in India, we introduce them to cerelac (I do)

So, finally i suggest do not have a second thought on buying breast pump even though you are not pumping at work. Just go ahead and you will easily be able to draw the routine based on your baby needs and your body style.

Which breast pump to choose:

If pumping is a daily routine, do not choose manual one. Go for electric. Manual is very stressful. To tell you people. i bought one manual and two electric pumps (with this money, i could have got medala). Using manual pump for 3 days, my hand muscles pained like hell.
Go for the one which has speed rotator, so you can adjust it and get near to child sucking pattern.
Test it on your palm. Test the pressure the machine is releasing. Keep the shield on palm & ON the machine. If the shield is stuck to your palm, then its enough.
Check the containers as well. Few will come up with their own range of containers. so, if need to buy the containers only which suit the pump, check for their availability and quality before you buy it. If they dont set properly in the slot given, the equipment doesnt work well, so go for the ones which can be set with any other feeding bottle that is available in the market. Also, since it is an expensive item you can pass it on to your friends or relatives and they can just throw away the old containers and by the new ones.
Go for electronic or dual mode both battery and current operated ones, usage however is good and has good results when done in an electric socket.

My Experience on pump:
I bought one manual pump which is Apple (600rs). Sorry Apple, couldn't use it with the stress you are causing. I'm basically a person who can take strain pushing the comfort to back chair. Still, i couldn't do away with it. Its so much stressful.

I bought one electric pump - Pigeon (2,200rs). I'm almost mad with it. It is basically a battery operated one, which is compatible with power adopter as well. It didnt come with one though. I bought one for it. It worked Okay for first 1wk-10days. and then, it started slowing down. Air pressure is very very less. And there is no speed rotator as well. I had hard time pumping the milk. So, warranty undi kada ani shop ki teesukuni velthe, he said as long as it is working it does not come under warranty limits anta. Its working, but not meeting my needs. Its almost waste. He also said that it is my fault that i didn't take enough precautions in cleaning the pump and water might have gone inside. What the hell?? Machine loki water velthe, poorthiga pani cheyyakoodadu kanee, performance enduku tagguthundi...dont know.

I landed up with JustBorn pump(2000rs) which is my darling now :) Its meeting all my requirements. It has speed rotator, massaging nipple shield, power adopter, compatible with any branded bottle feeder (johnsons, hello baby, wipro...) It is compact in size aswell. I'm 200% satisfied with it.

Pneumococcal Vaccine

2010-04-19T15:26:00.000+05:30

Pneumococcal vaccine is basically for prevention of pneumonia in children below 5 years primarily.
Pneumonia in children is caused by many infections including viral and bacterial. One third of pneumonia is caused by pneumococcus in children. Out of many strains of pneumococcus, this vaccine prevents half of those caused by pneumococcus.
So, in simple words, this vaccine will be able to prevent one sixth (1/6th) cause for pneumonia, even after vaccination, 5/6th causes still remains uncovered for which no vaccine is available.
So, In India, here comes cost factor, single dose will cost around 3000/- Rs, you need 4 doses for primary vaccination, so, we have to see, is that much cost is worth spending.
Because of less cost effectiveness, we don’t usually advise it for everyone here in India, but if someone can afford that, no harm.
Since you are living in a developed country, so cost will not be a problem for you. So, u can take that for your children, as advised by your doctor.

Frequent Cold and Cough

2010-04-19T15:25:00.001+05:30

Cough and cold are not uncommon in such small children, esp. when they go out to crowded places.
To prevent such infections, we can just suggest good balanced diet (including fruits), good general hygiene (washing hands at least 3-4 times a day & try to avoid outings unnecessarily, if possible. I understand many things you can’t avoid, still, if cold and cough starts, avoid things like cold drinks, ice creams and ice, as it may worsen the situation. If things don’t improve in initial 2-3 days, you must discuss with your doctor, nothing less than this. I don’t think there are any medicines, which can prevent the onset of such infection in children. Its only with age, when they grow up, their immunity improves and things get better.

Chewing Food

2010-04-19T15:23:00.002+05:30

Sometimes it’s really difficult make children understand the importance of chewing foods rightly, that to such a small child.

Still try some simple tips, may be that may help:
1. Explain to your child the importance of chewing their food. Let them understand, if they will not chew food enough, they are likely to produce more sounds from rear, may be an embarrassment will make him chew more.
2. Make a game of it for younger children. Have the kids chew their food 15-20 times before swallowing and taking another bite. If he follows that for a meal, his incentives are valid. May be incentives help him to learn the habit.
3. Make sure you all eat one meal together. While eating, bring up the subject of chewing and let your kids see you slowly eating the food before swallowing.
I am sure; gradually they will start eating food better. Here incentives work a lot. If they follow give incentives, if they dont, may be don’t talk him for some time, any sort of mild reproach nothing harsh, so they do understand mom is not happy with what I do.

Capillary Hemangioma

2010-04-19T15:22:00.000+05:30

WHAT IS INFANTILE HEMANGIOMA?
- Infantile haemangioma is a benign condition affecting skin blood vessels.
- They usually develop shortly after birth.
- Over 80% of infantile haemangioma occur on head and neck area.
- They grow to 80% of maximum size in the first three months and most stop growing at 5 months, but some may keep growing for up to 18 months, after that they starts regressing, which may take as long as 3-10 years.
- Most of them have a natural course and don’t need any treatment.
- Only if they are very large in size may leave a thin scar in some cases.
- These are more commonly seen in preterm and low-birth weight babies, but can occur in normal babies too.
- Actual cause for it is still not clear.
WHEN IS THE TREATMENT NEEDED?
- If they are very large in size.
- If they are ulcerating.
- If affecting vision, hearing, breathing or feeding (internal haemangioma)
- If they doesn’t start resolving by school age.
So, I feel you should not worry for them, as they naturally regresses.

Diaper Rash

2010-04-19T15:21:00.000+05:30

Nappy rash is common in some children ESP when the skin remains wet for longer time. So, in India, we advise to avoid branded nappies as much as possible (use them only when going out, at home you can use something homemade like we use in India, made of cotton, more ventilation, try it doesn’t remain wet for longer time). These home made one are really good esp. till the time she recovers from these rashes. Use whatever cream advised by your doctor. Understand the basic principle, the skin need more ventilation, it should be more airy not wet.

Preparing Ragi Powder at Home

2010-03-22T22:55:00.000+05:30

We get readymade powders available in the market but for the ones like me who want to get it done by hand or have ample of time to do it.. the procedure is

**Take Ragi/Millets.
**Soak them in water in the morning.
**By night drain all the water and put them in a cotton cloth and tie a knot.
**Early next morning when they have sprouted, dry them.. not under direct sun though.
Do not let it excess sprout, around 9 a.m. in the night to next morning around 8 should be fine.
**Since it is not sun dried, the drying procedure takes around 3 to 4 days.
**When the sprouted ragi is totally dry without any moisture.
**Make it into a powder and sieve it and store it in an airtight container.
**Do not use wet spoons to remove the contents.

Ting Tong.. Home-made Raagi powder ready

Tonsils in Kids -- Dr. Sanjay

2010-03-21T12:52:00.000+05:30

WHAT ARE TONISILS?
• Tonsils are part of immune system of body. There are three sets of tonsils in the back of mouth; adenoids are also one of them.
• The main functions of these tonsils are like an army soldier, whenever anything unhygienic comes into the mouth, they fight with that first. While doing this, i.e. trying to prevent infection, they them self get injured i.e. they get infected and enlarged. So, by suffering them self, they prevent the infection to spread to rest of body.
• These tonsils grow until puberty (10-12 years), than begins to shrink in the following years. These tonsils are very important as a protective mechanism for children, because they are more likely to eat things which are unhygienic. After 12 years, they regress because our other immune mechanisms become more active to prevent infections.

WHEN TONSILLECTOMY IS JUSTIFIED?
You will be surprised to know, if they are so protective, why we need to remove them. Yes, sometimes we need to remove them, mainly because of mechanical problems which occur because of their enlargement. So there are 2 clear cut indications for its removal before 12 years:
I) When tonsils are enlarged so much that they obstruct breathing and swallowing both.
II) When throat infections are sooo much that these enlarged tonsils them self are posing risk for more infections (in such cases removal of these tonsils may be help full).
So, tonsillectomy will be advisable in a child who:
-- have developed at least 7 “significant” episodes of throat infection in 1 year.
-- Or atleast 5 “significant” infections every year from last 2 years.
-- Or atleast 3 “significant” infections every year from last 3 years.
Significant infection means : associated with high grade fever every time, with enlarged lymph nodes in throat, tonsils coved with pus like coating called exudates every time.

Every child who meets these criteria also need not go for surgery. Many children will improve spontaneously without surgery sooner or later. So, the decision about surgery should be individualized.
Recent evidence also suggests, that those children who are not frequently having significant tonsillitis if undergoes surgery, it won’t help in reducing chances of throat infection. So, surgery should be done only in those cases, where things are really worse.
So, prevention of throat infection in this age is more important.

MYTHS AND PREVENTION OF TONSILLITIS ?
3 POINTS TO REMEMBER IN PREVENTING TONSILLITIS:
• AVOID CROWDED PLACES.
(Infection may be contacted from persons, who are infected. If you find someone infected, keep distance from him/her and take precautions to avoid infection. Pollution and crowded places again increases risk of infection)
• GOOD BALANCED DIET.
(Includes two major diets, 2 times milk, one fruit a day)
• DURING INFECTIONS AVOID COLD DRINKS, ICECREAMS, COLD WATER
(Cos these organism multiply very fast when cold temp, so it will worsen the situation)

MYTHS NEED CLARIFICAITON:
1. No scientific evidence to suggest that curd or fruits like mausambi increase risk of tonsillitis (Infect fruits contain good amount of Vit C, which is needed for good immunity)
2. Fruits as such are better than juices, cos they contain lot of fibres, which are good.
3. Chocolates, nuts, cream biscuits can’t cause infection, why we avoid them, cos, when children eat them often they get contaminated, and by contamination risk of infection increases.
Hope many things are clarified.

Preventing Cough and Cold it Toddlers and pre-school kids

2010-03-21T12:48:00.000+05:30

Let me try to share my thoughts/ observations/ experience with you which I have faced with my son (who is now 3 1/2 years old) since last 1 1/ 2 years that he started going to Pre-school.

First thing - you may want to check the hygiene factors at the school.

How far they are following it in terms of checking the kids - and if any infections they have before entering to the school / class.

If there is not much cold/ cough/ running nose for the other kids, their parents might not be having any other option expect sending them to the school; in these cases, the school must allow them and to play separately. This rarely happens anywhere.

And, the other points like, how the teachers/ care takers are taking care of the (Sick) kids when they have cold or cough. They are suppose to either wear gloves when they touch them / or wash their hands immediately. So, the spread of the cold and cough would be less.

At the same time, even the kids can be given mask to wear as to prevent the spread of the cold among other kids. (here, if the kids are very small, it's going to be tough time for the kids /for the care takers too to keep the mask on always :-P)

In addition, you may want to check with the school as what kind of drinking water is given and about the food given to your kid. (If he is taking school food). Some foods/ or cold / chilled drinks might cause cold or cough to the kids if taken on regular basis.

Please don't forget to even check the washrooms and the cleanliness maintained there. It does matter a lot.

Is the school/ class is closed and with full Aircon. If so, is it split A/c or central A/c. How much is the room temperature is maintained. Please check.

Yes - I was told by my Paed that pre-school and child care going kids do get these kind of episodes (cold / cough/ running nose / fever / soar throat/phlegm) 12-15 times in a year. Most of the times, it would be because of some viral infection; which would go between 5-7 days.

Assuming that your kid's weight and height and other growth factors are normal as per the age, then try to re-visit his diet which you give him at home.

You can include the following.
Citrus fruits
Vitamin C Syrup
Seeds (Pumpkin etc., )
Egg

Avoid giving him chilled drinks / foods WHEN he is having any signs of cold/ soar throat or cough.

If you cannot wait for some more time, probably, you may want to check with your Pead if he suggest for any allergic tests to be done for your kid. I am not sure, it would be done for such a small kid.

Probably, you can keep a note of the food given at home and collect the menu from the school. And check, when these symptoms are persisting .. I mean after which food, he is getting these attacks.

Some Alternative medicines can be used.
Chavanprash
Cardlivor capsules
Septlin Tonic (Himalaya Product)
It would be good to check with your Pead before using these medicines.

You may want to reduce the rice content and include whole grains in his food. Like Cereal/ lentils / vegetables/ whole fruits/ whole grain bread / dry fruits / Dhalia (Broken wheat)/ Oats / Raagi etc.,

I was told by my Ayurved Doctor to give less quantity of rice to my son as it may be one of root cause for persistent cough and cold and soar throat.

Nothing should be given in excess. Plan his diet ahead and can follow the same in the week ahead.

It would be trail and error always with the kids. We would really not knowing unless it is given to the kid and proved safe and they like it :-P

I am sure you must have already trained your kid about Hand wash. This is another important factor to prevent these kind of episodes.

As suggested by our co-mums, please cover him properly while he is going to school and while at home when he is having cough and cold and really the weather is cold out side.

Massage him with eucalyptus oil.

Steam would be good to loosen the phlegm if he has any - (it would be good to apply Ghee/ Vaseline on his nostrils before giving the steam) but, please take care about the hot vapor. Please keep it far and face it before the kid)

You can use, Tulasi (holi basil) ginger, honey mix (little) to the kid 2-3 time as per the severity.

All these are to reduce the symptoms of the cold/cough etc.,

Pinch of turmeric with little ghee and sugar in the warm milk before the bed is good for cough and cold. If the cough is wet cough, make sure to dilute the milk.

Hope it would be of some help to you..

Yes - it is a passing phase. It is just 2 months that he started going to the school. He needs ( in the sense any kid) time to get adjust with the school and environment.

Over period of time, after several episodes, he would build self immunity to withstand
these symptoms.

Courtesy: Ratna @ Indian Parenting.

One Side Preference In Breast Feeding

2010-03-15T23:41:00.001+05:30

Infants, especially newborns, may have periods of preferring one breast to the other. You may notice your baby fussing, pulling away, or simply refusing to suck from one breast.

A newborn may struggle to latch on to one breast over the other because of breast engorgement, a difference in the nipple, or poor latch-on technique. An older baby may reject one breast because it has a low milk supply or flow compared to the other breast. You can end up with a low milk supply in one breast if your baby only nurses from one side each feeding and you sometimes forget to switch to the other breast for the next feeding or you frequently begin nursing on the same breast. This is why it's important to remember to alternate breasts at each feeding.

What you can do:

Try to gently and persistently encourage him to nurse at the less-preferred breast by always offering the shunned breast first, when he's hungriest.

Always feed from one side at a time for 20-30 minutes and next time from other breast (the milk which comes late after 10-15 minutes ie. Hind milk is full of fat, for that you need to feed longer).

May be you can take help of some lactation consultant or even your pediatrician.
These rashes doesn’t seem to have any association with milk.

Fear in Children

2010-03-15T23:38:00.000+05:30

All children have fears at some point in their life and it is usually considered to be a normal part of development. These fears are only abnormal if they are persistent or keep the child overly preoccupied with the subject that is feared, so that it interferes with normal activities, if the child cannot be reassured or distracted away from the fear (becoming a phobia), or if it is an irrational fear.
Toddlers normally have simple fears of separation, noises, falling, animals and insects, using the potty, bathing and bedtime. In children of all ages, fears may also increase during times of stress or after some triggering event.
Some children are more fearful of things, even common things, than others and this is usually a function of his type of temperament. Also, children who have parents that are very anxious or fearful, or who tend to overreact to things, often have children who have the same reactions in similar situations.
Some tips on dealing with your child's fears include:
• Respect your child's feelings and fears. It is not helpful to try and ignore the things that he is afraid of.
• Ask him why he is afraid and then talk about it. This can be especially helpful if there was a triggering event.
• Don't be overprotective and let him avoid all of the things that he is afraid of, but you also don't want to try and force your child into doing something he is afraid to do.
• Don't overreact, so that your extra attention reinforces your child's reactions.
• Give your child support as he learns to master his fears. Try to explain reality with your examples.
• Remind him of other things or times in the past that he was afraid of, and for which he is no longer has fears.
• Again, reassure and comfort your child as you help him to face his fears.
In your case, to be that looks normal to me. Just follow these instructions, probably she will be better. Anytime if you feel, things are getting over, no harm in involving a good child psychologist. That will surely help.

Dr. Sanjay Verma @ Indian Parenting

Curious Kids.. Sexual Awareness..

2010-03-15T23:31:00.000+05:30

It’s important for us parents to know first what is normal, and then only we can understand what is abnormal for a particular child. You see, when child grows, we asses two things one is growth and second is development. Growth is measured by weight, height etc, and development is assessed in 4 quadrants ie. motor, fine motor, language and social.

What you are talking now is related to social part of it. Normally a child of 3 years knows about his/her gender, whether male or female, and during that only he develops this curiosity to know his/her body parts, for which he/she was unaware till now.

Commonly the common questions raised by these small children are like:
i. Curious about where babies come from?
ii. May explore other children’s and adult’s bodies out of curiosity.
iii. By age four, children may show significant attachment to the opposite-sex parents.
iv. Children begin to have a sense of modesty and of the differences between private and public behaviours.
v. For some children, genital touching increases, especially when they are tired or upset.

So, one thing is sure that these are normal behaviour for his age. And these erections are off course normal for his age. Ok, now how to handle this as a mother. You have to prepare your own answers to his questions, but the bottom line is don’t give much attention to that, so he doesn’t feel that something interesting is there in this, so all are concerned(which will further increase his curiosity). Just behave normally with your casual answers, and I am sure gradually he will understand this, that this is just like any other body part of mine. Sexual development in a child depends on two things : one is the biological factors and second is the social and cultural factors, second factor is more important for children more than 6 years, then of course we need to see, what all our children are watching on tv, net and in surroundings, cos everything will affect their future behavior.

Courtesy: Dr. Sanjay Verma @ Indian Parenting.

Teething..

2010-03-15T23:26:00.000+05:30

Children often feel tingling sensations in teeth during teething, so they feel like putting everything in mouth. That causes irritability and restlessness sometimes. Because of that they are likely to put unhygienic things in mouth, which can lead to GI infections and loosemotions. So, what you can do, WASH HER HANDS ATLEAST 4-5 TIMES PER DAYS, cos you cant stop her from putting things in mouth, its difficult.

Dr. Sanjay Verma @ Indian Parenting.

Nipple Confusion, Feeding Difficulties, Gaining Weight

2010-03-15T23:16:00.000+05:30

Gaining Weight
Actually a newborn baby gains more as you said, only in the initial few weeks then speed of weight gain gradually decrease. What we say, if the birth weight doubles by 5 months and triples by one year, it’s absolutely normal. With that the weight seems to be normal. One more thing you said, she passes urine 4-5 times a day, that’s another clue to tell her feeding is adequate, and so you need not worry for that.

Irritable Behavior
You see sometimes these small children have what we call “nipple confusion” when thy are getting both breast feeds and bottle feeds. You yourself see, how difficult is to extract milk from breast, you really have to suck with enough force and from bottle its simple, just press, and milk comes out. So, these small children may get confused, how much force to apply when sucking nipple or breast. So, it may happen initially, but gradually they learn to identify them.

Establishing Breast Feed
I understand sometimes it’s really painful and difficult to breastfeed esp. after difficult labour or LSCS.. But you must understand one more thing, that’s its only the initial part of child’s life, when he/she learns this art of feeding, the most crucial phase. In most cases these children get proper attachment to breast and start taking feeds, once established its great. Only in some cases problem comes, where the role of doctors or supports comes, and i agree family has a very important role to play in supporting your views regarding willingness to feed.

No nerve can cause hindrance to breast feeding, as it depends mainly on sucking though nipple, which is the main stimulus to produce oxytocin and breast milk productions to feed.
.
You will be surprised to know that even eating behavior of mother doesn’t have anything to do with milk production.

Even if mother not eating enough, if child is sucking, milk will come (that’s another thing that mother will deplete her stores, if she don’t eat enough). All those galactogauges have nothing to do in breast milk production.

Some of these things will be surprising for you to know, but its true, women can feed even 3 children together, if they suck breast well. But proper counseling and continuous support have major role to play. I have seen many ladies who couldn’t feed their first child, but when proper counseling and support was given, they could produce so much breast milk, which was more then enough for their second child. But our caregivers, mostly doesn’t give that importance to all that. I have seen succeeding re trails for breast feeding if done withing 8 weeks, usually doesn’t help after 2-3 months, after that time, difficult to re-establish feeding.
So, at this stage, what you are doing is fine, keep trying giving breast milk as much as you can, if you can get help of some counselor's help there it will be great. Rest you give formula milk as you are giving, no harm in that.

Keep a record of his growth parameters, if they are doing good, don’t worry. Things will improve with time.

Dr. Sanjay Verma @ Indian Parenting.

Lack of Breast Milk, Formula Feed

2010-03-15T23:12:00.000+05:30

Breast milk production has nothing to do with your dietary habits. It just depends manily on one factor that how much your feed. (just like as much you exercise, your muscles will built accordingly). Its very imp to establish proper attachment and breast feeding esp in the initial part of it, when baby is just 1-2 days old. But in most of centers we never give importence to that, cos it needs continous support from hospital staff and home too. Believe me in all our books, nowhere it is written that there is some defect in breast milk production, its always our fault for not able to establish it. IF GOD HAS GIVEN YOU BABY, HE IS KIND ENOUGH TO GIVE MILK TOO, but we are not able to establish it. Because of that only you are landing to a situation where you have to breast pump and then feed, which is never considered a good habits, and obviously, one day breast milk was going to stop, because of insufficient suckling at breast.
I still feel, you must discuss with your doctor there, may be they can help in re-establishing breast feed again, though its diffiucult for a 3-4 month old child.

what you do if you dont have an option of breast feeding UNFORTUNATELY :

It has been seen that some children tolerate animal milk well, and some children dont tolerate that well, for no clear known reasons.
But its safer to give formula milk (power milk), because of simple reason that' its more like human milk compared to animal milk, (cows or buffalo's), doesn matter much.
so being on safer side, give formula milk (eg. NAN 1), atleast for first one year.
But if your child tolerate animal milk or any milk, just give it undiluted, if tolerate, its fine. Goat's milk is never advisable it is deficient in folic acid.

Dal ka pani and other weaning food's advisable only after 6 months.

You know that no replacement of BREAST MILK.
give it as much you can, still try, and rest options i have mentioned.

---

How we prepare powder milk ?
Its is basically an animal milk only, which is dried and changed into powder form after adding or romoving some elements from it with an aim to bring it to a composition nearing human breast milk.

so, what to choose ?
studies has shown that a full term baby can digest any type of milk, whether it is cows or buffalo's, so no harm in giving that (but this is not coparable to breast milk, which is having exactly the same composition which your baby requires).

so this discussion brings two imp points :
1. you baby can digest any type of milk, so no need to dilute it if its a full term baby.
2. If growth parameters are fine, continue same milk which you are giving, and concentrate on improving his diet with other weaning food, esp after 6 months of age.

so, constipation need not be because of this milk, this may be because of some other reason, so dont dilute it, give it if his weight gain is adequate.

Dr. Sanjay Verma @ Indian Parenting.

From Sree's Kitchen -- midmeal snacks

2010-03-15T22:48:00.000+05:30

Apple

Cooked/steamed apple is easy on baby's tummy but once the baby is nearing 12 months we can go easy on cooking it and give it directly.. any fruit ingested directly is the best form is what i personally feel.

I keep giving it in various forms so that she doesnt get bored.. after months of eating it regularly she kind of got bored and when I tried this she is happy and me too 'cos An apple a day keeps the doctor away.

***Peel the apple, shred in very finely and give it with a spoon.
alternatively we can add a drop of honey or a teaspoonful of date syrup to give it a different taste.

***Peel the apple, shred it.. cook it in half cup of milk, add a little sugar or sugar chips and a little cardamom for that flavor.

***Cut the apple into thin slices and hand it to the baby, if the baby is young and there is a choking hazard, nibbler is the best option.

Soups -- Store Bought.

Maggi and Knorr now offer no added MSG soups which are tasty...
I prepare soups at home but the instant soups are good once in a while too.

I use one packet for 4 times...
a scoop of powder, a cup of water and half cup of milk... cook it to your desired consistency and can add corriander if you like.. yummy for tummy and easy to make.

Cereals -- Store Bought

***Fruit loops can be given directly or soaked in milk..
***Corn flakes soaked in milk/formula topped with date syrup or just like that.
***Oat cereals soaked in milk.

The cereals are the ones we use for our breakfast, apart from the Indian breakfast, it is good.

Curd Raita
A little curd without the top layer, a pinch of salt, grated keera, grated and cooked carrot/beetroot.

Curd and Banana
Mash the banana with a little curd, add a little sugar.

Cheese Sticks
A friend of mine got them from US and they are a great snack too, yet to find them in India though, do let me know if you happen to find.

French Fries
Fresh not frozen potato fries fried and oil taken out with tissue, good finger foods.

Bread Toast
Toast the bread with a little ghee, cut them into tiny squares, diamonds, hearts and give them to the kid. After introducing egg we can dip the bread pieces in the beaten egg mix and give them like French toast by adding a little sugar and milk or bread omlette by adding a pinch of salt and corriander.

The shredding/grating can be done with any fruit after the kid can tolerate the mashed fruit texture well without problems.. see how kid likes it and go about experimenting and do let me know a few of them too :).

From Shruthi's Kitchen -- Home made baby food

2010-03-15T22:11:00.000+05:30

1. This is for babies who are just starting solids:-

I wash dal and rice (3/4 - 1 cup proportion)and dry them on cloth overnight - separately
When thoroughly dry, I roast them on medium -separately
Cool them.
Grind each separately. Make it granular like Sooji.
Mix both and store in container.

When u need to cook them. Take a spoonful add water. I add little Hing (asafoedita) as it helps digestion. Pressure cook. When cooked I serve it with homemade ghee.
I put vegetables any one - spinach, carrots, beans chopped as fine as possible.

My baby has this everyday for lunch. She loves it.

2. Pancakes

1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt (optional as per the stir ins)
1-1/4 cups fat-free milk
1 egg, lightly beaten (optional)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Stir-ins (optional)
· 1 medium-size ripe banana, mashed, and pinch of ground nutmeg
· 1 cup of pureed strawberries
· 3/4 cup finely chopped apple, 1/4 cup chopped nuts and 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
· 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
· Or to make it uthapam style you can also add finely chopped onions tomatoes and grated carrot
· Or make it your style uthapam

Method
In large bowl, combine flour, oats, baking powder and salt; mix well. In medium bowl, combine milk, egg and oil; blend well. Add to dry ingredients all at once; stir just until dry ingredients are moistened. (Do not overmix) Add one of the stir-in options, if desired; mix gently.
Heat a tava over medium-high heat. Lightly grease the tava. For each pancake, pour 1/4 cup batter into hot tava. Turn when tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked. Turn only once.

3. Oats Soup

oil or butter 1 tsp
oats 1 cup
finely chopped onion 1/2 cup
green chillies slit 1 (or you can avoid if your kid does not have chilli)
cilantro leaves finelychopped 1/2 tsp
veggies as per choice grated 1cup
milk 1 cup
water 1 cup
salt to taste
pepper powder to taste
corn flour 1 spoon

Method:
In a pan add oil and fry the onions and green chilies then add in the veggies cook for a min.
Then add in the oats and fry for 1-2 mins and water and cook for 3 mins. Mix the corn flour with ½ a cup of milk and add to the pan and cook till it thickens and then add the remaining milk.
Garnish with coriander leaves and salt and pepper to taste and serve.

4. Finger food for 1 year old - Cheeselings

Ingredients:
250gms maida (plain flour),
4 cheese cubes or 100gms grated cheese,
Salt and pepper to taste,
Vanaspati or oil for frying.

Method:
Melt cheese with the double boiler method (given below).
Then combine with flour, salt and pepper and knead a tight dough. Then divide it into small portions.. Roll each portion to form a thin flat round (like chapati) and cut small cubes. Heat vanaspati or oil in a kadhai (wok) and fry these cheeselings on a low flame till they turn light brown.

Double Boiler Method:
Heat water in a flat utensil. Place cheese in another small utensil which can be inserted in the utensil filled with water. When the water boils, place the container with cheese into it and then let it be till the cheese melts.

TIP:
To make this snack healthy try these:
1. Replace maida with whole wheat flour.
2. Try baking the cheeselings instead of frying them.

Recipes tried and also gathered from friends..

Shruthi Sunil.

Sleeping Through The Night

2010-03-15T11:09:00.000+05:30

http://babyparenting.about.com/cs/sleeping/a/newbornsleep.htm

Extract:
Sleeping "Through the Night"
You have probably heard that babies should start "sleeping through the night" at about 2 to 4 months of age. What you must understand is that, for a new baby, a five-hour stretch is a full night. Many (but nowhere near all) babies at this age can sleep uninterrupted from midnight to 5 a.m. (Not that they always do.) A far cry from what you may have thought "sleeping through the night" meant!
What's more, while the scientific definition of "sleeping through the night" is five hours, most of us wouldn't consider that anywhere near a full night's sleep for ourselves. Also, some of these sleep-through-the-nighters will suddenly begin waking more frequently, and it's often a full year or even two until your little one will settle into a mature, all-night, every night sleep pattern.

Some More Links
***************
HERE

HERE

Letting the Baby Cry It Out.

1) For sopping night time nurisng, I would say 6 months is a good time to stop night time. By then their tummy size increases and they can drink lot more and retain. Also since we introduce solids, their tummy will be heavy and will not need any more milk in the night. The method I followed was let dad do the bad deed. So I would let my hubby sleep between the kid and me. Since there is no milk smell near the dad, the baby just cries a while and then goes back to sleep. The first few days will be bad but you just have to be strong willed and then they will come down to almost zero. If you just cant see the baby cry, sleeping in the adjacent room with someone sleeping close by and letting him cry out would help.

Sleeptime Routine:
This also totally depends on the mom. Follow a daily routine like talking to the baby about sleep time, putting some lullaby songs, singing them yourself, putting the mobile on etc. Prepare your baby to bed( apply lotion, change the diaper, put in sleeping bag, etc.) put them in the crib. Then turn of the light and make sure you tell them that you are still around. If you have a rocking chair, move it next to the crib and sit there peacefully.

If the baby cries, just tell her "Amma is right here, please go to bed". I've seen even 3 months baby sleeping on their own. It might take sometime because small babies memory span wont be long, so they may forget that it is routine but as they grow big, they remember and know that is a routine.

Believe me it feels like heaven. You will enjoy a lot.

Courtesy: Lavanya.

Usage of Walkers -- Myths and Facts

2010-03-14T23:01:00.000+05:30

Baby Walkers for babies, in one form or another, have been around for over 2 centuries. Their popularity stems from the fact that they are very convenient for the parent as they allow the child to be mobile without the parent having to carry them around. Parents have also viewed these devices as an excellent way to keep their kids occupied, busy, and out of their hair.

But the question is whether they are good or bad for our kids?

Whether to use them or not? Are they safe?

You must be aware that these baby walkers were banned in Canada in 2004, later also by US, though rules were relaxed later. Reason being risk of accidents due to fall esp. from stairs.
Later the baby walker industry has come up with more safe walkers with those having broad base, to decrease risk of fall.

Still most pediatricians feel, they are actually not helpful in child development as such. Although; using walker cannot cause bowing or any developmental delay. But when used carelessly, they can cause serious injuries, so why to use them?

Nowadays, parents are continuing their transition from baby walkers to more stationary activities that allows child to practice and improve their motor skills without the hazards inherent in baby walkers.

So, choice is yours, if you can watch him all the time, so that he doesn’t fall, then you use the one with broad base, use it carefully, otherwise forget.

Dr. Sanjay -- Indian Parenting.

Hiring A Nanny

2010-03-14T22:25:00.000+05:30

1. Ask them about their past experience and ask for a reference, so that you can call them and find out aboutt the Nanny.
2. I would suggest to hire a Nanny, who is referenced by a friend/relative etc
3. Try to find out if she knows about any play groups, so that she can take ur kid for an hr or so during the day time. Of course taking the baby out depends on the age of your baby and weather etc.
4. Try to hire someone who is a registered Nanny with the state. I heard we can even do a background check on the Nanny. Every State has some service which provides info regarding this. Try to Google about this.
5. After you hire a Nanny, try to work from home for couple of days and see how she is handling the baby.
6. If you ask me, Nannies who are over 30/40 years are more patient than the younger ones, as most of them have kids of their own and they know how to handle the kids. This is what I observed at my daughter's daycare.
7. www.babycenter.com has many forums on this topic. Try to go over them, u will get a much better idea.

Happy Hunting. I know how imp it is to decide and finalize on a child care.

Courtesy: Pushpa Ram.

don't want to be a bearer of negative energy regarding Nannies, But I would personally believe in sending the baby to a day care than have Nanny at home.

Two reasons:
1) Your baby is under the care of one person and is under the mercy of her mood. If you have more than one, if the baby cries, the care givers can switch and not get frustrated. There are times when we being moms can get frustrated with babies and they are after all care givers.

2) You are leaving behind your baby and your home. So anything can happen at any time with both your baby and home. You don't want to open doors for someone who is you or your family.

Nanny works best when you can work from home and she takes care of the baby. Most of the nannies also cook for you. So you could use them for your advantage.

Courtesy: Lavanya.

Ragi Recipe For Infants

2010-03-14T22:21:00.000+05:30

Boil milk on low flame. Since the quantity is small, we can go for cow's/buffaloes milk.
Mix ragi with little milk without lumps.
After the milk comes to boil, mix the raagi mixed milk in the milk and bring it to the consistency required.
Add sugar/jaggery/sugar chips (your choice).
Put some ghee.
Turn off the stove.

Feed it warm.

Courtesy: Praneetha.

It can be started early for the infants as early as 6 months after introducing solids, don't start with this only introduce it when the kid is used to eating semisolid foods.

Ragi and Whole milk is a bit too heavy on the baby's tummy so use it on your discretion and let the baby guide you.

Cradle Ceremony

2010-03-14T22:03:00.000+05:30

awesome cradle deco, the swans are holding the cradle.

One of the very first ceremonies for the baby is cradle ceremony or "uyyala" in Telugu. As per our tradition we do it on 11th or 21st day checking out for auspicious time and date without Rahu Kalam or Durmuhurtam.

These days kids are put in a cradle the moment they are born in the hospitals but officially we have a little ceremony in which the elders in the family put the kid in the cradle and swing it three times.

Procedure 1
First clean the cradle, apply turmeric and vermilion (pasupu kumkum) and decorate it with flowers or whatever and place taamboolam in the four corners of the swing, (beetle leaves, nut, 2 bananas, 1 rs/- coin with a flower), place the baby in the cradle with or without the priest chanting mantras the kid is put in and the eldest member in the family swings the cradle 3 times followed by akshintalu and blessing the kid and the rest of the family follows.. as simple as that.

It can be done at home or in a temple. People at my place do it mostly near a Nagendra Swamy Temple. I personally got it done on 21st day and preferred the temple, there was a cradle there already, got the pooja done and came home.

Purudu
Some people combine this with purudu on 11th day.. Purudu is bathing the mother, giving her headbath and stuff like that. In most families, the mother and the kid are just given sponge bath until then and the actual bath happens on that particular day. However, with hygiene being the primary concern, we are allowed to bathe on day 2 itself even with the stitches on, so it just remains a ceremony these days.

Procedure 2
Some people do it along with naming ceremony on 21st day.
First they do the naming ceremony with parents whispering the kid's name in her ears and then going for the cradle ceremony.
Place Taamboolam in four corners of the cradle, place the baby in the cradle and swing it thrice, done by all elders in the family.

After the ceremony the mother is taken to a well and do pooja to the well and the mother of the baby is made to draw 3 buckets of water the well into 3 small pots and any girl who is married and planning to have kids is asked to dip hands in water and put water hand prints.

Courtesy: Lakshmi Kalyani.

Waiting for more!!

Pic Courtesy: Shruthi Sunil.

Store-Bought Baby Food Review -- India

2010-03-09T21:27:00.000+05:30

It is always a great idea to prepare fresh food to feed the little ones; however, we need to depend on store-brought food in the initial days.

Formula
Go with your doctor's advise and make sure you shift from stage 1 to stage 2 after the first 6 months. Try to stick to the same formula if the kid is drinking it well. Unless there is any allergy or severe adverse affect, do not ever change the formula without consulting the doctor. Formula has a base, either lactose or soy/lecithin. If the baby is allergic to lactose, the doctor would suggest soy/lecithin based formula. Alternately, the doctor may suggest lactose-free in case of extreme diarrhea to go easy on the tummy.

A few available in the market are Farex, Lactogen, Lactodex, Nan, etc. Price between 180 to 250 rs/-.

The imported formulas like Similac, Enfamil etc. too are available but by and large there is no much difference in their constitution other than maybe the new added DHA which again is available in the Indian brands. There is a huge price variance though, so think about it and go for them. I personally have not noticed much difference going through the ingredient list, would like to know a few more reviews on this though 'cos I haven't tried to switch between Local and imported stuff.

Cereals
We have a wide variety of baby cereals in the market and Cerelac dominates everything else. It has a wide variety, it comes in with milk powder, so we need not add milk to it. Farex is good too but has limited variety is not as easily available in the stores as the others. Nestle, Easum, First Foods, etc. are a few brands that I could locate in the store but mostly use Farex and Cerelac for varieties not available in Farex.

It is okay to use both brands at the same time.. just make sure you dont mix them both at the same time. Like say Farex for morning and Cerelac for evening should be fine as opposed to 1 scoop of Farex and 1 scoop of Cerelac in the morning :). Cost being anywhere from 110 to 125 rs/-.

The imported brands like Gerber are also available costing around 475 rs/- and above. Same as above.

Canned Solid Foods
Gerber/Heinz are the bottled foods available in various flavors in a few select stores, but the price is too much 110 rs/- or more for each bottle. I would say, go for the fresh food when you can. If you are based in India, then there is no point trying it out. However, for those who are used to the canned foods staying abroad and on a visit here, they can still get them here but at the price mentioned above, you need to figure out if it is worth carrying it all the way or just buy a few down here 'cos there is absolutely nothing that you get there and not here.. phew, the baby food market is huge as is the other baby product range.

Soups
It is of mention that MSG is not advised in kid's below a year and pregnant woman, so be cautious when you buy soups. Knorr and Maggi now offer no added MSG soups in wide varieties, so maybe they can be used if you are pressed for time and the kid needs a change.

Introducing Solids -- My Way 2

2010-03-09T20:54:00.002+05:30

The main concern at the time of starting solid, semi-solid food is..

What should I feed my kid?
Check out the first post HERE.

how much should i feed my kid?
Well, to begin with just a little scoop of whatever it is.. say mashed banana, cereal, rice, etc. and go gradually go about increasing it.

Some kids might take an instant liking to what is being fed and some might be very resistant varies from kid to kid. Some might take to it with joy, bored of drinking the same milk/formula day in and day out and that is indeed a blessing. The doctor asks to start very little but if the kid is taking it well and demands for more, do not ration it out. Like start with one scoop is fine but you dont have to give just 1 scoop on day 2 and 3 also because you were told to give just a scoop, let the kid guide you with cues.. do not overfeed but do give them enough.

Some kids have a little resistance to shift from breast/bottle to spoon/finger.. gulping down liquids is easier than solids, so the change in consistency is also a major factor.

What should be the consistency of the cereal/first food??
to begin with very liquidy, semi solid consistency and then go about with the recommended quantity on the cereal pack.

How often do I introduce new foods?
Give a gap of about 3 to 4 days between introducing each new item and monitor for any signs of allergy and go about. Check out the brands available and the doctor's recommendations and go about.

Do I give the kid water?
Yes, with the solids you need to give some water; however, not very much.. just a spoonful or so.

How do I feed the kid?
Upright or semi reclined would be an apt position. However, if starting in 4th month or so, then if the kid is not able to lift up his neck then on the legs but head as much elevated as possible with support.

What if the kid is rejecting the food outright?
Try gradually do not rush, do not force feed. If the cereal you are giving right now is not appealing to their taste buds, go for different flavors available in the market. Always begin with stage-1 no matter when you are introducing them.

Stuffing Food: The biggest problem when I introduced food was how do I feed the kid, when do i give water, between the food or after the food. How should I give the food, as the kid gulps it down immediately rather than chewing how fast should I be feeding. When the kid was very small she used to eat happily because it was a change from routine milk but as time passed, feeding was a big issue. She would open her mouth only for a few times and my task was to push in as much as possible in those few open times.. phew, so I felt like I stuffed up the kid in that little time she gives me. Then came a time when I had to forcefully open her mouth and stuff the food and make her sit up right and give her some time to gulp it down and repeat the action :((... sigh!!! and then when she got sick she completely stopped food for a while which gave me panic attacks, but that is a phase, as long as the kid is in her normal behavior pattern with just the same energy levels it is not an area of concern, make sure the kid is well hydrated and fed at least small amounts every once in a while and wait for the kid to get back to normal :(.

Tips: Variety of colorful bowls, spoons, sippers, stories, funny faces, songs, etc. would be of some use during the food sessions.

But I would say, let the feeding sessions be the happy times for self and the kiddo, give the kid what she likes, how much she likes, give them variety, eat along with them, make meal sessions pleasant ones. When the kid is force fed, stuffed beyond what she would happily eat, they would gradually get averse to feeding sessions. See to it that the kid is fed enough but dont try for more. It is but natural that we want our kids to stuff in a lot of nutritious food but they just cant take beyond what they can, realize that and just take it a little light :).

Water: Do not give a sip of water after each morsel of food, a few morsels a spoon of water and after finishing the entire bowl of food or complete meal session a little bit of water.. just a little, too much of water immediately after meal makes them throw up a little at times, so a little water and then maybe after a few minutes or so, how much ever the kid wants to drink.

Activity: Another important thing is do not let the kid sleep on tummy or carry the kid so that the tummy is exerted immediately after meal. If possible let the kid play for a while or if sleeping let them sleep on their back first and then sleep as they want to.

TV/Computer: I would personally say avoid showing TV/computer while eating the food. It makes our task easier in the beginning but as they say, we need to focus on food when we eat. It is one habit I personally would like to inculcate in the kid, no TV/computer when eating period. Meal time should be happy time, family time, together time and a sacred time :) 'cos we are what we eat.

Routine: Also, it is better to have a routine from the outset and not allow the kids to have a bite from each and every one's plate at home. like a morsel from dad's plate, a morsel from mom's, brother's etc. Mealtimes are strictly mealtimes, no mid-meal meals from others. Eating from other's plates will cause eating irregularities at the time of their personal mealtimes, personal experience, so just avoid that. Eat together and feed from your plate, but do not feed your meals after she is done with her meals..

Digestion
Will my baby be able to digest the food, wont it be strong on her belly..
Do not stuff her up and go a little easy and everything should just be fine. You can give gripe water to aid in digestion. You can give Ajwain (vaamu) in her food. Like boil a few flakes of Ajwain in water and give them to drink or put some Ajwain in the rice/dal mix at the time of cooking or if the baby is a little older, fry vaamu in ghee and grind it with a pinch of salt and give it in the first two morsels to the kid.. supposedly too good for digestion.

Teaching feeding or weaning your child depends on the principle that you are trying to make her understand the taste of different things, which she was not aware of earlier. So, that can’t be done at one time, you need to give things repeatedly. Once she eats that, with time, she will understand the taste. Force-feeding is not the right thing to do. Though I understand, for some children, accepting new taste is not easy, so what I advise, while playing with her or while diverting attention and feeding, you introduce these new things. Involve more people in this. You and she both must enjoy this feeding time. Its upto you how you make this more relaxing and enjoyable. Feeding your child can’t be taken lightly; of course it’s an important part of your daily schedule. Try your own ways to do it.

Feeding Starter Kit -- Spoons

2010-03-02T17:16:00.000+05:30

When we start feeding the obvious questions would be on what type of food, how much, etc. but also the vital questions would include bowls, spoons, forks, bibs, highchairs and all the feeding starter kit in my terminology.

Like I said earlier, I personally prefer using silver stuff for the kid, but as the kid grows up and starts throwing tantrums or get into a playful mode or when you are into self-eat teaching mode you cannot trust the silver spoon, 'cos the kid might injure self in the process. As long as the kid is calm and quiet, silver/gold spoon is good but once there is resistance, you will always have that nagging fear whatif that tight mouth grip on the spoon injures the baby flesh in the mouth.. :((...

The solution is the soft-tip spoons, ensure the it is made of nontoxic plastic and color dyes and you are good to go, there are some models which turn white when in contact with hot food, good you not even touch to see if the food is hot and the quantity that it holds is also tiny and you will surely not overstuff the kid with each morsel. I personally picked up 2 models to try out. The traditional spoon and the flat round spoon, the first one for starters and the second one for self-feed trials.

I still go for silver spoon when the kid is non-fussy eating mood and this one when I know there is going to be a fight :(. So, when the kid eats these days it is mom feeding with one and the kid trying out with her own.. phew, the feeding woes.. why do I have a feeling that it is just the beginning and in front there is crocodile festival???? Thank God for the bibs otherwise I would be hunting down for a new dress after every feed or just feed the kid naked.. phew!!!!

Yummy For Baby Tummy by Mummy...

2010-03-01T21:24:00.001+05:30

Hehe.. nice title naa :).. anyways jokes apart..

One simple starter soup recipe which the kid liked in spite of her fever, maybe due to a different taste or maybe it was appealing to look at :).. whatever it is, it went in and that is what makes it the best dish..

Ingredients:
Carrot - 1 large
Tomato - 1 medium size
Coriander and curry leaves - very finely chopped
Pepper Powder
A pinch of salt
A cup of milk
An uncut green chilli
1 garlic pod

Method:
Cook the carrots and tomatoes separately in the pressure cooker, without water.
Peel the tomato.
mash them well or grind them.
Take some ghee or butter, fry the garlic pod, curry leaves and add the paste.
pour some water (the water drained from the veggies) and cook it well.
Put in an uncut chilli so that the flavor goes in without the mirchi.
Add some salt and freshly ground pepper powder very little.
add about a half cup of milk
cook for a while
check out the consistency
remove the green chilli from the mix.
add some corriander

Cool it down and serve it lukewarm...

I tried it on the kiddo following Aswini's recipe giving it my touch and it did turn out well and the kid liked it a lot.. must say 'cos the one refusing to eat anything ate about 4 to 5 spoonfuls.. so try it out for the little tummies... too good and nutritious.

Fever in Infants

2010-03-01T14:51:00.000+05:30

One thing that is a nightmare to me is fever. The first time, the kid's body was a little warm, I was like RUN to the doctor.. then I was told that the kid's bodies are tiny and their metabolic rates, core body temperature, heartbeat and respirations are a little higher than adults and that is no cause of a concern and I am also assured that it is considered fever if and if the kid is running a temperature of above 100 degrees FH. Well, something new to me. I was considering since the kids are tiny everything should be in smaller proportions but this is a total reversal, but must agree as it comes from the doctor.

So, the first thing you do is take the temperature reliably, that is through the armpit reading which is more accurate than the forehead or ear thermometer readings.. Rectal one is the accurate but handling it is a little tricky and the already fussy kid might not allow that, so the best option is under the armpit. Clean the thermometer with an alcohol wipe or a disinfectant wipe and take the temperature from there. In some kids like mine, the head and the neck areas might be really really hot whereas the extremities, that is hands and feet are extremely cold (another reason I had a panic attack earlier on). It is perfectly normal.

Things to Do
************
Do not cry, do not panic, do not rush the kid.
Take control of emotions, take the temperature through a reliable instrument.
Keep cleaning the kid's body with cold water wipes. The kid wont allow it, might cry out a lot but do not give up, the only thing to bring down the temperature instantly is wiping it cold, the first external thing we need to do is cold cloth wipe.
Give acetaminophen drops (Calpol/Tylenol/Motrin) whatever the brand name is up to 4 to 6 (max) times in 24 hours in the dosage prescribed as per the baby's weight by the pediatrician. DO NOT OVERDOSE THE KID.
Do not bundle up the kid, put them in loose cotton clothes that do not stuff them up.
Allow a lot of air.

It is very vital to get the temperature down. If the temperature is around 102 or close to it, the primary task is to get it down ASAP. Never mind if you have to take the kid out in cool breeze in the middle of the night, cold cloth wipes, even cold cloth wrapping around head, anything to get it down, but again we should not overdo anything.. learn and do it per discretion.

Some people tend to rub oil on the baby's body and head at the time of fever.. DO NOT APPLY OIL ON BODY OR HEAD when the kid has fever.

DO NOT PUT ON WARM CLOTHES, LOOSE CLOTHING IS VITAL.

Keep hydrating the kid, push in even a little sip of water/Pedialyte say a spoonful at a time.

Diet wise they might not be wanting to put anything in the mouth, do not force them.. try and make something that is palatable and appealing to their taste buds like a soup or something different than the routine. Avoid giving cold beverages. If it is accompanied by cold, give them a little warm water so that is soothing to the throat.

Give the medication on time. If in spite of everything the fever continues after 24 hours that is around 100 you need to visit a doc. However, if it is a little higher and above 101 or near 102 or so for more than an hour, better go to the hospital. If the kid also vomits and is keeping nothing down, then Pedialyte is the immediate rescue and take the kid to the hospital or ER.

Usually, fever when controlled or worked on instantly without delay is not a big concern. However, the key is not to let it go overboard. High fever for too long might lead to febrile seizures. No reason to panic but not something to relax about as well.

Home remedies:
Apply sandal paste on the forehead, it acts as a coolant. Better if you can get the natural one from sandal stick.. (saana meeda arageesina gandham).

However, if the kid is getting frequent fevers, we need to determine whether it is bacterial or viral in nature and go about it.

Dr. Sanjay's Inputs

Children below 5 years usually have weak immunity comparable to us, adults, so they commonly have these features of upper resp tract infections, which are mostly viral. Most of these infections are seasonal esp. when whether is changing. Most of these infections are not serious type like pneumonia, purulent ear discharge, meningitis, skin infections, diarrhea, cos if somebody has such serious infections recurrently then we are concerned about some congenital form of immunodeficiency. So, I feel, you shouldn’t worry, these things are bound to improve with age. Just avoid visits to crowed places, continue maintaining good hygiene. Try to keep fruits in his diet almost daily along with other essential part of diet.

One thing you must remember, fever off and on in changing weather is not uncommon. These are usually different illnesses, usually viral infections. Unless there are serious bacterial infections, in form of pneumonia, meningitis, skin infection, we usually don’t suspect any congenital immunodeficiencies. But if any fever which persists longer it’s a matter of concern. If that happens, you must do a regular 6 hour temp charting, and then discuss with your doctor. Don’t worry, as age improves, no. of seasonal infections too decreases.

ESSENTIAL
Since the kid tends to dehydrate faster with such high temperatures, the focus should be on pushing in more liquids.