The Noisy Home

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Ya okay...so I absolutely hate noise....I HATE IT...especially the kinds that is made by kids....gosh I hate it so much!

It's also because of the fact that I have 2 kids of my own, that they have their own friends, that our friends have kids, their friends have kids, their kids have friends, relatives have kids, neighbours have kids !!!!! Gosh I don't even know what I am saying anymore...

The point is...there are so many kids out there and they ALL make sooo much noise!

Ufffff.....and then we as parents are supposed to still stay calm and composed and cool....ya whatever!!!

 - Debolina Raja Gupta

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And like I always believe in and say:
'Heal the world we live in
Save it for our children' - MJ
Happy Parenting!!!!

Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

Wish You All A Very Merry Christmas!!!!

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- Debolina Raja Gupta

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And like I always believe in and say:
'Heal the world we live in
Save it for our children' - MJ

Happy Parenting!!!!

Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

Celebrating Christmas: Of Santa and Gifts and Smiles :-)

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Christmas is here, that time of the year that is somehow quite magical and sweet, with twinkling bells and hopes of a new beginning with the New Year just round the corner. Christmas has always been special to me. While I was a little kid of the age my daughter is now, I was studying in a Christian school and obviously the celebrations for Christmas were huge. We would be involved in so many activities around the festival that it was one of the most beautiful times in the entire year for us all, and all us kids would wait eagerly for the next Christmas to arrive. 

At home, the celebrations were not that huge. We never had a Christmas tree, but that’s okay, as unlike these days, not most homes had one in those days, especially if they were not Christians. These days, you can see a Christmas tree almost in every home – and it’s a great way of welcoming more celebrations and rituals and festivities in your life. So for our childhood, though we didn’t have the Christmas tree, we did have the special Christmas cakes. While we were kids, my parents had modest means, and finances were always short, through the year, every year. Not that any of it affected me or my brother. Yes, there were various instances, but I feel, as does my brother, that in a way, it’s good we saw less money and less privileges and things as kids, as it has helped us remain grounded and understand and appreciate things much more than many kids those days did.

Sponsored Video: Domestos & UNICEF Present 'Dance and Be Happy & TELL A FRIEND'

My 6-year-old makes sure that the washroom is absolutely clean before she uses it each time.

Fact: There are 2.5 billion people in the world who live without access to safe toilets.

Any time my daughter has a mild fever I make sure she is comfortable and rested.

Fact: Every day 2,000 children die of diarrhoea, which is a preventable disease with proper sanitation.

4 Week Old Baby - What Your Baby's Doing Now: Diary of A New Mum

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Wow....so baby is almost 4 weeks now and you're readying to celebrate the milestone of reaching the 'month' tag....Congratulations mommy and daddy...you've been doing great!

There's been so many changes in the little one since you first looked into that most beautiful face, and each day is a new revelation, a new change....so much going on with this tiny little person! Whoa!!!

So what all does baby have in store for you to be surprised at as baby enters the 4th week?

What the 4-week old baby will be doing:

Christmas Nail Art: 20 Beautiful Festive Designs Your Nails Will Love To Flaunt!

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It's that time of the year when we are wrapping up the year that went by, awaiting Santa's visit and relishing those bakery smells of Christmas cakes and cookies!

While the whole world joins in on celebrating this cheerful and happy time, here are a few lovely designs (in no particular order) that you can sport on your nails to extend the festive feeling.

20 Christmas Nail Art Designs

1. Santa Nails

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2. Snowflakes

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You can read the entire article and check out the rest of the amazing designs here.

- Debolina Raja Gupta

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And like I always believe in and say:
'Heal the world we live in
Save it for our children' - MJ
Happy Parenting!!!!

Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

Johnson & Johnson Admits: Our Baby Products Contain Cancer-Causing Formaldehyde

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So I've been hearing a lot about the Johnson & Johnson products of late, how they are bad for babies, how their formulation is actually one of the worst out there and something that should DEFINITELY NOT BE USED FOR BABIES.

As a parent, I was so scared after reading a few stories online that I decided to switch over to some other brand, one that is more natural and herbal. In fact, while I extensively used J&J products for my first born (which I'm now regretting after reading what I'm going to share here with you), I've become more sensible and changed the brand.

So today, I came across this article and absolutely had to share it here with all you parents......please read it carefully...I have nothing to write here, I am simply sharing it word for word...

Johnson & Johnson Admits: Our Baby Products Contain Cancer-Causing Formaldehyde

Posted on May 19, 2013 by peter

Today, the personal care giant announced that it would voluntarily (after consistent pressure from the public and groups like EWG) remove hidden formaldehyde from their baby products like baby shampoo and baby washes.  Don’t see formaldehyde listed on the back of your bottle of “no more tears” shampoo? Formaldehyde is “hidden” in these products in ingredient names like “DMDM hydantoin“, and “1,4 dioxane” (which is “hidden” in listed ingredients like “fragrance”.  It’s all a big fun game, you see.).

“There’s a very lively public discussion going on about the safety of ingredients in personal care products,” said Susan Nettesheim, VP for product stewardship and toxicology for J & J.

Lively discussion?  If someone was selling you shampoo for your baby that had cancer causing agents hidden in it, I hardly think the discussion with that person would be “lively”.

About the known cancer causing (as listed on the US EPA carcinogen list) chemicals, Ms Nettesheim says, ““…as a scientist I will sit here and tell you these things are perfectly safe.”  (I wonder what shampoo she uses on her kids)

To J & J’s credit, they are also going to phase out other harmful chemicals like pthalates and parabens which have estrogen-like properties and are suspected to be linked to hormone related cancers.  They plan to phase these chemicals out in their adult brands as well.  Johnson & Johnson also operates under squeaky clean names like Neutrogena, Aveno, and Clean & Clear.

Hopefully this will have a domino effect and other big names will follow.  I would score this as a victory for everyone who wants to wash their kid’s hair without risk of exposing them to carcinogens.

I would advise you to wait to use the new J & J products until you see the big bright labels that say “No more carcinogens!”

The Savvy Sister says ” Your skin is a carrier…NOT a barrier!”

YOU CAN READ THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE AND THE COMMENTS HERE

- Debolina Raja Gupta

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And like I always believe in and say:
'Heal the world we live in
Save it for our children' - MJ
Happy Parenting!!!!

Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

Going Beyond the First Right Answer

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 My friend was telling me about his daughter and how she enjoys school. He told me about how her class
teacher teaches maths. Apparently one of her techniques is to help children discover different answers to the same problem.

Example: “In how many ways can you arrive at the number 75?” Children can use addition, subtraction, multiplication or division to arrive at the answer. He then mentioned how his daughter would come back every now and then and show him and his wife a new way in which she arrived at 75.

He then said something which set me thinking: “I never thought that in maths there could be more than one right answer. This has opened my eyes to new possibilities.”

10 Christmas Decoration Ideas To Do With Your Kids

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Do you hear that? Do your the jingling? The merry making? The ho ho ho? I can hear it almost! And both me and my daughter are super excited with all the fun that comes along with Christmas.....

Each year we set up our Christmas tree, and this year is no different...But if you don't have one at home, for whatever reasons, but would still like for your kids to feel this wonderful celebration, you can indulge in some cheerful bright decorations around the house instead!

So even as we are busy setting up some cute decorations around the house, here are some great ideas for you to try out with your children....Christmas tree or no Christmas tree, these decorations will still give your home that decked up, bright and cosy look!

1. Lots of sparkles....

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Sleep Deprivation in Parents of Newborns: Dealing With It

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A few days back, I came across a very disturbing and tragic piece of news. 

It was about this young mother who had 3 very young children at home - a toddler and a newborn twins. As you can imagine, she was severely sleep deprived. With no help available and no one in the house to look after the kids while she could rest for a while, she was a live ticking bomb. On the fateful day, when she could not bear the exhaustion any more, she took a can of beer, and asking her toddler to wake her up if the babies cried, went to doze off for a while.

To Push or Not to Push

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Parenting is all about pushing; it begins with labour, and after that, there’s really no getting away from it. Initially, it’s all about the little things – push in one more spoonful of food, make the child sleep, potty-train, that sort of thing. And of course, you tell yourself that you’re so not going to be a pushy parent; that once the child can understand reason, you will make him/her come around to your way of thinking without resorting to parental pressure and authority. All because you don’t want to be a pushy parent; all because there isn’t a word with more negative connotations than ‘pushy parent’, is there?

Our Experience at Bookaroo 2013 Pune

I first heard of Bookaroo when my lovely friend from Delhi told me how her daughters were enjoying the fest. Being a book worm and a mommy to a little book worm myself, my ears immediately perked up and I wanted to know all about it.

Last year, the festival was only held in Delhi, and us living in Mumbai weren't able to attend. If you don't know what I'm talking about, you can visit Bookaroo to know more.

So this year, when it was announced that this hugely popular Children's Literature Festival was coming to Pune too, we immediately know where we would be on the weekend of 30th Nov - 01st Dec. Our daughter is 6 and she wanted to attend both the days of the fest. So we booked us all into a hotel near the venue.

Bookaroo 2013

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If you haven't heard about it yet and missed it this season, you should probably book your calendar for next year's November right now!

Bookaroo is a festival that celebrates children's literature. The festival started in the year 2008 and was originally held in New Delhi. This year, it was also held in Shrinagar and Pune, where we attended this weekend.

The festival is packed with events, story telling, activities, songs, dance, creative speaking and so much more. It's a fun place for kids and authors to mingle and share in some bookish fun....

Our 6-year old daughter absolutely enjoyed the entire day of fun-filled events.

Here are some images of the kind of activities that happens at Bookaroo (all images sourced online and are not meant for any commercial usage)

 
- Debolina Raja Gupta
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And like I always believe in and say:
'Heal the world we live in
Save it for our children' - MJ

Happy Parenting!!!!

Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

Relationship With Your Older Child After A New Baby

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Our new daughter is now almost 4 months old....Wow! Time does fly and I didn't even see it going past that soon...still feels like just yesterday when I got my first princess home, and another yesterday when I told my first-born that I'm headed to the hospital to bring her back a little gift.....I still remember how hard we hugged each other and how I wiped away her silent tears as she cried to see her mamma going away, even though for just a few days....I remember feeling a big boulder sitting on my heart too.....

Eureka! The Bookstore For The Young: Online Shopping for Kids' Books

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While browsing online, I came across this interesting online bookstore that's specially for kids! Now that's something....

My 6-year old daughter has finished most books that are in the age group till 10, and it's a constant struggle to find her more interesting books.

Do our Kids have too much Self-Esteem?

image source...used for representation purpose only, not for commercial reasons

I remember being berated by a fellow parent because I had not attended my son’s fifth grade graduation day. The friend had taken the day off from a hectic work week, and had gone to school early with his SLR camera and various lenses, the better to take pictures of his daughter’s big day. And here was me, a bad mother who had forgotten all about the ‘big’ day! I was quite remorseful, although the careful questioning of my son later led me to believe that his self-esteem was none too damaged by my absence. In my defense, I can only say that in my time, we graduated just once, and not several times in our school life - kindergarten to first grade, primary to middle school etc – so these ‘graduation days’ did not register to me as
important.

3 Week Old Baby - What Your Baby's Doing Now: Diary of A New Mum

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Wow..so you've managed to pass through the first 2 weeks! And did anyone tell you, they were actually the most fragile ones? With a tiny one in the hand, it's really tricky to do near about anything!

Now that your baby enters the 3rd week of life, there's going to be a lot of progress, changes and development, and you, mommy and dad, are going to be absolutely amazed at what all this tiny bundle knows!

Why Bring A Child Into This World? A Film by Unilever

- Debolina Raja Gupta

********************************************** And like I always believe in and say: 'Heal the world we live in Save it for our children' - MJ Happy Parenting!!!! Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

Why Do Mothers Feel Guilty?

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(*image for representation purpose only)

Why do mothers feel guilty? I believe that mothers – working or otherwise – are conditioned by their need to be perfect mothers to feel guilty. I have come to the conclusion that guilt is ubiquitous – working moms feel guilty that they are away from home and not spending enough time with their kids, stay-at-home-moms feel guilty as they are not able to contribute to their children’s college fund, mothers with a single child feel guilty that their child may be lonely……the list goes on. Whatever the choice a mother makes, she is bound to feel guilty about it.

Mommy You Look Different!

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Okay, so this is how I look most of the days, 24*7, when I'm not going out or someone's not coming home. With a 3-month old and a 6 year old with me the entire time, plus add to that my work and home chores too....I'm pretty much dead (and pretty isn't the word I should be using for me right now I know)!

2 Week Old Baby - What Your Baby's Doing: Diary Of A New Mum

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Congratulations mommy and daddy! By now you're already home with your new bundle.

Of course it's going to be the same constant routine of feeding, burping, pooping, cleaning, feeding, burping, putting to sleep, feeding, burping.....and continued in the same manner.

But now, there are a few additions that your new baby will be learning:

The Magic of Reading: Picture Stories

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For me, this picture truly was an image of the magic of reading, its charms and love.....beautiful, don't you think?

- Debolina Raja Gupta

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And like I always believe in and say:
'Heal the world we live in
Save it for our children' - MJ

Happy Parenting!!!!

Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

Reading Your Way To Good Nutrition

 Be sure to read the label before you buy the product.

As a family, we became more aware of packaged food labels some years back- it was my husband who drove that consciousness, especially with my daughter, who was then on the heavier side. In order to help her curb her tendency to indulge in what we loosely call “junk food” he trained her to look for the calorie and fat content. Also, being a compulsive reader, he came by articles on the net which made us understand that what you see/what you read is often now what you get! That means, no added sugar is not always as
healthy as it seems- they may have added corn syrup- which is worse! Also, many times, what you don’t see is what you get. For example, in India, it is not mandated that you explicitly mention if an item has transfat unless you want to make a claim. So, if we read a label and find no mention of transfat, it does not mean anything at all.

Funny Parenting Pictures

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- Debolina Raja Gupta

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And like I always believe in and say:
'Heal the world we live in
Save it for our children' - MJ

Happy Parenting!!!!

Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

Cleaning Your Infant's Ear: Diary of A New Mum

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As most doctors will say, it's not advisable to put anything anywhere in your baby - at all! One of your first concerns regarding this may be cleaning your little one's ears.

An infant's ear is one of the most delicate and trickiest parts to try and clean, one that can be quite dangerous if you're not careful.

REMEMBER:  NEVER PUT ANY CLEANING DEVICE INSIDE YOUR BABY'S EAR This

Mommyhood Picture Stories and Quotes

Image courtesy Pinterest

- Debolina Raja Gupta
 
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And like I always believe in and say:
'Heal the world we live in
Save it for our children' - MJ
Happy Parenting!!!!

Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

Soothing Your New Born: Diary of A New Mum

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As a new parent, it's quite difficult hearing the cries of your new born. And what's even more difficult is getting to figure how to soothe the tiny bundle.

If you're a first time parent, it's only natural that your baby's smallest of cries can get you all worked up. As soon as that tiny mouth puckers up and the first sound of the cry is out, you're frantically wondering what it is that baby is crying for. Especially if you've just fed baby, it's difficult to figure out why the crying.

With most first-time parents (and even some of those who've had more than one kid), what happens is mostly that the baby's cry almost makes the parents cry too! It's sweet, but if you're the one who'se going to be soothing the little one, then this could get a bit difficult.

1 Week Old Baby - What Your Baby's Doing: Diary Of A New Mum

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Woohoo....so you're finally back home, or maybe just about getting ready to be discharged from the hospital, right?

In our case, as my first delivery was a bit premature, we were kept in the hospital till a week after birth and then discharged for home. This time though, we were sent home in 4 days...quite an achievement for me after a C-sec as I was quite fine and able to walk around and do things normally.....compared to last time, this time was a breeze!

Managing Sleep With A New-Born: Diary Of A New Mum

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My new one is exactly a month and a half now, and going by the lack of posts here, you can probably guess how it's going at home, with me off work for the moment, off blogging kind of and rarely getting to do much than being a mommy and mommy only!

Mommyhoood Picture Stories and Quotes

Image courtesy Pinterest

- Debolina Raja Gupta 

********************************************** And like I always believe in and say: 'Heal the world we live in Save it for our children' - MJ Happy Parenting!!!! Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

Change Is Good

We are shifting houses this weekend, and with all the packing, moving, cleaning, et al – my kids are sometimes troubled.

• Will you pack all my toys?
• Will we have TV in the new house?
• Don’t forget Teddy!
• Will we have beds to sleep in?

Mommyhood Pictures Stories and Quotes

Image courtesy Pinterest

- Debolina Raja Gupta
 
**********************************************
And like I always believe in and say:
'Heal the world we live in
Save it for our children' - MJ
Happy Parenting!!!!

Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

Sponsored Video: Help A Child Reach 5

As a mother, how many times have you reacted instantly to your child’s every sneeze and cough? How many times have you lost sleep over that little cold or that one day of fever, or even a day of loosies? I definitely have. Each time my daughter comes up with a cold or fever, I invariably fight with my hubby whether we should take her to the doctor or no.

And I guess I’m not an exception.

Kajol, the internationally famous actor and mother of 2, confesses that she is one such mother too.

In a recently launched campaign, Kajol has joined hands with Lifebuoy to urge people to come together to support the cause of hand-washing, with Lifebuoy’s ‘Help A Child Reach 5’ campaign. 

Must-Haves For Your Newborn When You Bring Them Home From The Hospital: Diary of A New Mum

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So there was a lot of planning done before we left for the hospital about what all we would need at the hospital and once we were back home....But as always, there were a few things that we overlooked or didn't take into account. After careful understanding and first-hand experience all over again, we managed to create a complete list of the absolute must-haves for baby right from birth till few weeks when you bring baby home.

Chalk And Cheese

I was told this many times over by older, wiser and ‘been-there-done-that’ parents – that my children will have very little in common when it comes to preferences, habits, personalities and attitudes. Despite being mentally prepared, I am quite taken aback as my children grow, and the differences show up. After all, sharing the same roof, environment, and adults for bulk of their days (and not to forget at least 50% of their genes), should my daughter and son not resemble each other more? But no, on some counts, they are so markedly different, that they are at opposite ends of the spectrum – sample this :

Getting The Hospital Bag Ready - Preparing To Go To The Hospital: Diary of A New Mum

 Image courtesy HERE

Since our doctor had told us that we would have a C-sec baby and there was no way of having a regular delivery, we were kind of in the know of the date when we would have the baby. There was a time frame of about a week that the doctor had told us would be ideal for the baby, but you can never really predict things a 100% accurately with a delivery involved.

Mommyhood Picture Stories and Quotes

 Image courtesy Pinterest

- Debolina Raja Gupta
********************************************** And like I always believe in and say: 'Heal the world we live in Save it for our children' - MJ Happy Parenting!!!! Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

Mommyhood Picture Stories and Quotes

 

Image courtesy Pinterest

- Debolina Raja Gupta 
**********************************************
And like I always believe in and say:
'Heal the world we live in
Save it for our children' - MJ
Happy Parenting!!!!

Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

It's A Girl !!!!!! Diary of A New Mum

Image source HERE

Yessssssss........................

Finally, just what I wanted....another baby girl to make our family complete! And as my daughter always wanted - a sweet little 'real' doll for her to play with!

Gift Her A Life Lesson On Her Birthday

Some time ago, I had written an article on ‘Planning Birthday Parties’, and I tried to list a number of different ideas for unusual kinds of parties. Here’s one more I came across recently that sounds very interesting, beneficial and unique.

Smita Karbanda runs EcoKids, an organisation that is dedicated to spreading environmental awareness amongst young children and teaching them to go and grow green. I knew that she runs gardening classes for children (we took her inputs for our article on Children and Gardening), but recently, when browsing the EcoKids FB page, I discovered that she has also begun organising ‘green’ birthday parties for kids.

Perks Of The Job: JD Of A MOM

Perks of the job:

Mommyhood Picture Stories and Quotes

 Image courtesy Pinterest

- Debolina Raja Gupta

**********************************************
And like I always believe in and say:
'Heal the world we live in
Save it for our children' - MJ
Happy Parenting!!!!

Be good to your little one, and to the millions of little ones out there who truly need every bit of love and compassion they can get.....Be a grown up...save the little ones.... Debolina Raja Gupta

Mommies, here are the extra set of skillsets you need...acquire fast if not acquired already:

Mommy Responsibilities And Some More: JD Of A MOM

In addition to all that you're already doing mommies, this is a basic list of what you also need to do:

Keeping Your Kids Safe Online

Recently, my son’s school had to deal with an episode of cyber-bullying. A list of photos was being circulated via Instagram, asking readers to vote for the ‘school’s ugliest among the list.’ Luckily, it reached the school authorities, who took swift action, not only contacting the police and Instagram to get details about the perpetrators, but also launching into a series of school-wide initiatives to talking to students about the consequences of cyber-bullying, and setting up ways in which a student could report any such activity. The school also had a meeting with parents, where we learnt how to recognize the signs of a child being bullied, and how to encourage our children to report to authorities if either they or their friends were being bullied.

Baby Nursery Decor Ideas

Hi mums n dads,

While you may be planning to deck up baby's nursery, here are a few gorgeous, practical, simple and lovely baby nursery decor ideas that can help you plan better: