With Flintobox, summer vacations rock!

When I was a child, summer vacations meant either stay overs at cousins' place, or joining hobby classes. Most of the times, hobby classes were left halfway to make for family holidays. Few days before the holidays would get over, I would start fretting over the pile of holiday homework and get into the fire fighting mode.

Fortunately for today's kids, there are plenty of options to make the summer vacations worthwhile and have some "fun while you learn" moments.

Recently, while exploring such options for my nephew, I came across Flintobox, that curates subscription activity boxes for kids, aged between 2 and 8 years of age. While most of the times, we as moms spend hours deciding which activity suits our kid, Flintobox makes our life easy. One can chose the activity boxes as per the age group. What's more, each box also details the specific skills it aims to develop in the child.

Did you know?

• 90% of the brain development happens by the age of six
• Early development and positive interactions during the age of 2-8 determines the overall development of children for years to come
• Flintobox activity boxes are designed by game designers, montessori and pedagogy experts and child psychologists
• Crafted with kid friendly materials, the box is shipped all across India

This summer, Flintobox has decided to make vacations colourful with their new Colour Carnival Box - an activity kit exclusively for toddlers. Curated for children between the age of two and three, these boxes introduce the concepts of colours and patterns in a unique and interactive manner. The activities are designed to cover 12 developmental areas including coordination, cognitive and gross motor, creativity, exploration, language and social skills. The box with its 6 play activities, including a storybook is the perfect way to keep the child involved and away from excessive TV or screen time.

The best part is, whether you are at home or elsewhere, Flintobox goes with you and makes your vacations perfect!

Flintobox has released two new themes for the month of April for children aged 3 to 4 (Junior Colour Scientist) and 4 to 8 (Wildlife Safari). Limited number of boxes are produced every month, so grab one before stocks finish!

eFyDo.com - Your personal health secretary

Being new to the city, Mr. Hubby and I faced a tough time searching for the perfect paediatrician. Like every new parent, we too were super protective about our child and fretted over the slightest of ailments. We wanted the best paediatrician for our baby. So, wherever I would spot a mom in my situation, I would ask her about the paediatrician she goes to. 

And that was not all...

Maintaining the paperwork was another herculean task. With frequent doctor visits, there was a huge pile of papers and reports I carried for doctor visits and often messed up when asked for a particular document.

Seems team eFyDo.com was listening to my troubles all this while...

Deepak Rathi & Kulvinder Singh, two friends who were struck by the plight of people with chronic ailments who lost a lot of productive time keeping test reports organised.

And so was born eFyDo.com

Whether it is finding a new doctor, or maintain relationship with your current doctor; eFyDo.com is the one stop solution. eFyDo.com account helps the patient to maintain their records online, which means no more carrying half a dozen files to the doctor's office. 

It is also a win win situation for doctors as they don't have to wait for the patient fumbling between pages of reports to find the correct one.

And that's not all...

Apart from scheduling doctor's appointments and maintaining records online, eFyDo.com has also brought yoga to its bouquet. One can now easily look for a yoga trainer online. What's more, customers can experience a virtual yoga studio online while sitting in the comfort of their homes.

So, if you are looking for hassle free healthcare, eFyDo.com is your personal health secretary!

I - A to Z Challenge - It's tough to keep pace

I signed up for A to Z Challenge without racking my brain much. But now, its getting challenging. Balancing office, home, baby leaves little time for blogging, and often it is my sleep time which bears the burden. 

Perhaps it is the first time, that's why so challenging. Creating a repository of posts in advance and pre scheduling is my takeaway for next time.

But, hey! I also love the spontaneity of the whole thing and don't wanna make it predictable. Its fun to see my tired brain gathering some energy to write about something I have felt strongly that day. Apart from maintaining continuity, it brings some novelty and excitement in the daily routine.

I sincerely hope I am able to sail to the Z...

Its tough, but I ain't willing to give up!

I am writing for A to Z Challenge.

Save Nature & Nature Saves You

Mother nature, the one who nurtures us all,

In her lap we have grown big and tall

Threatened, abused, she lays bleeding

Press ctrl + save she is pleading

The path is tough, but lets not lose hope

Young and old let's join hands for there is scope

We can still save her & fight hazards away

For where there is a will, there is a way.

I was fortunate to have spent a childhood very close to mother nature, for my mother was a nature lover herself. Early mornings I would see her spending an hour in the garden, watering the plants, trimming worn out leaves and examining each plant. Being a child, I often got jealous and told her, "You love your plants more than me, seems you talk to them everyday like they are your children." She would laugh and tell me, "These plants are a part of our family. When you climb the Guava tree, don't you feel he is your buddy, playing with you? Just like we care for our family members, these plants too need our love and care."

Most importantly, she used to say something which has stayed with me,

"Save nature and nature saves you"

And so, right from recycling waste to planting tree on every birthday, my parents taught me to care for environment like one would care for their parents. 

Now that I am a mom myself, its time to pass the baton of wisdom to the next generation.

But, things aren't the same as they used to be when I was a child. Rising pollution levels in the metros force small children to wear masks to school. The depleting water resources sit like a time bomb. News reports of rising chemicals in foodstuffs scare me as a parent and I often fear if the food I am giving my child is laced with chemicals.

It is high time, we all take accountability of saving mother nature. By teaching our children these simple ways of protecting nature, we can surely make them better citizens of tomorrow.

Waste less and reuse more

Using products that can be recycled (glass instead of plastic bottles, cloth bags instead of plastic bags,  rechargeable batteries), we can minimise non biodegradable waste, saving our land from abuse. Simple habits like switching off the fans, lights and appliances when not in use can help minimise Carbon footprint. But, as adults we need to lead by example.

A plant a birthday

I loved this custom mom followed. In today's era of reducing spaces, this may be tough, but the world is our home and the parks always welcome more trees with open arms. The next time you take your kid for walk, the breeze in the garden and the fresh air will be nature's return gifts.

Reduce paper wastage

I still remember a classmate of mine, who used to fill her notebooks to the fullest. Often when others joked why she was being such a miser, she told them she was saving trees. By teaching our children to use papers left in old notebooks, print on both sides of paper and use recycled paper, we can partner in saving trees.

Value of fresh water

By making small changes in our daily routine, we can teach kids to conserve fresh water resources, which are depleting at an alarming pace. Recycling water in garden, using bucket instead of showers and keeping tap closed while brushing teeth are small drops in the ocean.

Inspiration & visits

Visits to places like Rock Garden and nature parks can be great source of inspiration for children, becoming the perfect "fun and learn" moments. Children are great observers and pick up good habits easily for life.

All this would make no sense until we don't practice what we preach, for a wise man once said, "Children learn from who you are, than what you teach."

I’m blogging about how I’ll remind kids to press Ctrl+S for nature for the Shortcut Safaari weekend activity at BlogAdda

H: Happy Birthday : A to Z Challenge

I was in deep sleep when the ring of my cellphone woke me up with a start. It was midnight and for a second I was shocked to see my niece calling me at that hour. "Happy Birthday to you" she sang, reminding me that my special day had arrived. 

As a kid, I was so obsessed with being wished that the moment the clock struck 12, I would start singing "Happy Birthday" for myself. On my birthday mornings, I would wait like a puppy till each family member wished me Happy Birthday atlas 2-3 times! Back then I loved the excitement and the special treatment for a day.

But with years, the excitement to hear the golden words, "Happy Birthday" vanished in time!

Happy Birthday calls at 12 now surprise me and somewhat irritate too if they don't finish within 1-2 minutes. 

Did I ever imagine that adulthood would change my preferences to a "quite little birthday!"

Childhood - you are history.

This post is written for A to Z Challenge

G : Games : A to Z Challenge

I loved playing games as a kid, hide n seek being my favourite. The moment clock struck 4, my friends used to get together to play. Mom would often be engrossed in her afternoon siesta by then and never needed an alarm to wake up. For the shrill voices of my friends calling me to play were good enough to wake her up. 

Summer vacations were bonus time as we got time to play a variety of games, often indoors due to the sultry heat. Come vacations and our scrabble and monopoly boxes would see the light. 

I was addicted to Badminton and often even missed my meals for a good match. I remember several times during vacations, mom used to call me home and finally come sometimes at 11 in the night to scold me and take me back home! 

Games taught us early a lot about team spirit and sportsmanship. Each one of us wanted to lead the group, so there were frequent fights, red faces, boycotts and then after few days, things would be back to normal.

Much better than the games elders play...

Which were your favourite games as a child?

This post is written for A to Z Challenge

F : Fears : A to Z Challenge

We all hide them, deny them and secretly make every effort to wipe them out of their lives. But they do exist. Within each one of us.

Fears...

It is often said that fears are best dealt by facing them eye to eye. But it is easier said than done.

As a child I used to love dogs. Until one unfortunate day, I became the victim of a dog bite while returning from school. Call it the over excitement of a seven year old, or simple bad luck. I spotted three lovely white puppies in a drain near my house and immediately dashed to hold them. As I approached them for some playtime, something black pounced on me. Within a fraction of a second, I turned and ran for my life, freeing my leg of something which held it for a moment. I was safe, I thought when the watchman asked me if it was paining a lot. "Why would it pain?" I was wondering when I saw blood oozing out of my leg. The protective mom of the pups had successfully taken her revenge by digging her paw and 2 teeth in my calf muscles!

It was then that I felt the power of fear...

My ears suddenly felt hot; the vision was blurred by tears and all I wanted was the security of my mom's hug. But fears are communicable. Mom's condition was wore than me upon seeing me in that condition. As a mother now I can understand her fears and trauma.

Of course, time and anti rabies shots healed the wounds. But one thing they couldn't heal was my fear of stray dogs. I felt scared to go anywhere alone fearing a dog would come from somewhere and attack me. I wanted to be accompanied everywhere.

It took a lot of time and hard work for my family to get me over this fear. The arrival of my pet dog eventually helped me overcome my fear. But, till now whenever I see a stray dog chasing me, for a moment I go into flashback.

Its human to have fears. Accept them and face them eye to eye.

This post is written as a part of A to Z Challenge.