Good-read books for 6 to 9 years old

Wondering which books you should select for your 6 to 9 years old kid? 

This guide describes good-read books for 6 to 9 age group. These are mainly author suggestions. It also include wonderful series written by these authors. 

Children need to read age appropriate books. Use of too difficult words discourage the child to read. Language has to be easy to understand. Fun, imagination,adventure, thrill should be the essential components. Adult and dark content should be avoided. They should enrich the souls of little ones and children should cherish the stories for lifelong. So, here are good-reads for 6 to 9 years old. 

Enid Blyton: 

Blyton is still a wonderful choice even after a passage of a century. There is a magic in her writing. She can engross the child with her magical touch. She has written various series of books. Famous Five, Secret Seven, Family Adventure are some of her famous series. If you have a Kindle at home, you may purchase the series for lower prices. 

Ruskin Bond: 

The author is a master of words. With his simple stories, he takes the reader to the nature and evolves the love for nature in little minds. His stories are cute yet strong with message. He is in his 80s now but still producing gems year on year. Children are his favorites and he has written extensively for them. Ruskin Bond book is definitely a good-read for 6 to 9 years old. 

Diary of a Wimpy Kid:

This series has been written and illustrated by Jeff Kinney. Wimpy Kid is currently very popular across the globe. Kids adore Wimpy Kid. The books are funny, make you laugh and take you to a different plane. Illustrations are very simple yet catchy. They give the text more power. Your kids will definitely cherish Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

Sudha Murty: 

Sudha Murty is a wonderful writer. Her stories for adults are connected to real life incidences. She simply makes the reader more human. Her children stories are also magical. Language is simple. No incomprehensible words. Make sure to include her in your library of Goodreads.

Amar Chitra Katha:

India's history and mystery is unfolded through short stories in Amar Chitra Katha. Ramayana, Mahabharata tales, cultural stories, religious figures form the series of Amar Chitra Katha. 

The Amar Chitra Katha was brainchild of Anant Pai. It came out as an attempt to acquaint children of cultural heritage if India. So, all the stories have Indian context.  A big book set of Amar Chitra Katha is available on Amazon. 

Eric Carle:

The Hungry Caterpillar is one of the most good-reads from Eric Carle. It continues to mesmerize children and adults alike. You may check other books of Eric Carle. He is mainly picture illustrator and tells story through pictures. 

Shakespeare:

Famous stories from Shakespeare are available in children story format. Shakespeare is the greatest storyteller who continues to mesmerize generations. So, this is a good initiative to change his stories in children read format. Do check it out. 

Hope this guide of good read books for 6 to 9 years old help you in choosing books for kids. There are millions of books for children. And there is no specific criteria, which kind of book a child may like. But it is our duty as a parent to expose child to good-read books. Most of the suggestions given in this guide are available on Amazon in book set format. Your 6 to 9 year old kid will definitely cherish these books.

P. S. 

1) Check how to inculcate reading habit here... 

2) Know about early reader book sets here

Homeschooling now? Few thoughts to educate child at home..

After a long vacation, I made up my mind to start homeschooling my child. I just want to put down few thoughts to educate the child at home. This would give me some direction and may benefit other parents as well. We don't have textbooks as of now. So, I am teaching her in general taking one concept at a time. 

Well, homeschooling can be a difficult task if the child is unwilling to learn from the parent. It happened with me on day-one. My seven-year-old daughter was reluctant to take pen and paper in hand. Like any other parent, I had to put forth my conditions. I told her I will not bake her favorite cake again...!

 

After few more arguments, she was ready to sit with me for 15(!) minutes.

 

Your child can be an obedient student at school willing to listen to her teacher, but at home, things can be different. After all, with the persistent efforts, child will cooperate with you for homeschooling. 

I have divided the learning in four parts as of now. Languages, Maths, Science and IT. On languages front, I asked her to write five-ten words as dictation. The words are most likely to be difficult to spell. Then she reads any story in any language and I ask her to tell me the same story. To keep her interest alive, I ask her questions and provide my critical comments on the story. This is in addition to 1-1.5 hours of bedtime reading she does. So, this is sufficient to hone language skills. As of now, I am not bothered about grammar. I guess, she will pick up grammar Basics from Reading. 

          You may check this tip to motivate child to read... 

I have taught her basic mental Maths. She can do oral calculations of 2 digit numbers fairly well. So, I give her 5-10 problems to solve which she does fairly quick. I taught her division as a New Concept by explaining real life scenarios. But to carry out division on paper took some time.

 

We have practiced tables during summer vacations and will continue to do so as per time availability. Check out here how to teach tables differently.

For seven-year-old minimum skill is to carry out arithmetic operations like addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. I plan to take measurements and fraction activities as well. 

Buying science books and carrying out science experiments together will be in line. This needs some time. One science experiment per week should suffice. Discussions would follow post experiment. 

I want to teach my kid digital painting this year. This would be fun I guess. Typing practice with letter writing, poem writing can be done. Video editing skills can be an icing on top. 

Homeschooling may not take much efforts. But it is certainly not easy. Making sure to sit with the kid putting in front challenges may work. Well, ultimately we all want our children to be self-sufficient grown-ups after few years. To have various skill sets in addition to strong base would help them. 

These are some of my thoughts on homeschooling. As per age group the tricks may vary, but the Baseline would be same. Hope these homeschooling thoughts would help you as well to educate your child at home.if you have some inputs.. Do share through a comment. 

Happy Homeschooling!

Image by free stock photos from www.picjumbo.com from Pixabay 

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#homeschoolingmommy #homeschoolinginindia 

#homeschoolindia #parentingtips #parenting 

#parentingcoach #parentingadvice #parentinghacks 

#parentingwin #educationathome #educationfirst 

#educational

New nursery rhymes for kids - Need of the hour

I started to write new Nursery Rhymes for Kids this year. I feel it is need of the hour. My dear friend Swati pushed me to write English rhymes. She has a 5 year old and she felt there is nothing new in the rhymes. They are repetitive and the same rhymes are being taught or so many years.

I gave her views a serious thought and further I realized few of the rhymes also have negative connotations. For example. London Bridge Is Falling Down, Humpty Dumpty Had a great fall, Jack fell down. You may find various examples like this. After falling one should rise but usually this doesn't happen in the rhyme. 

Children need to be introduced to good values early on in life. On this front existing rhymes,don't do well. 

Keeping these reasons in mind, I started writing. I found my joy in writing as well as animating the rhymes. Why animation? It helps to convey the new rhymes effectively. 

It is a good learning, challenging experience to animate rhymes. I have written 7-8 rhymes and three have been animated so far. 

Attaching is the playlist of three rhymes. 

First one, 'looks see check' is based on love share and care and enjoying life to the fullest. 

Second one, 'Animal Sanctuary song' conveys love for wild animals. 

Third one, 'Song of the sea' expresses love for the sea and enjoying little Treasures of the sea.

This is an attempt. So the animation may not be perfect. 

My dear friend Mayur helps me giving drum beats as background music. I don't have formal introduction to music or singing. But still I am singing and giving Rhythm to rhymes, please bear with me. I had a difficult time singing along with Beats. The first rhyme took 25 to 30 audio rehearsals to come to final version. 

My dear Kiran Kaka(Uncle) suggested me to have kids voice for The Rhyme so I used apps to convert my voice to kids voice. 

All in all, it is of a fun experience to write and create Animated rhymes. Wish to create many more news nursery rhymes for little ones.

Humble request to take these rhymes to its real audience - kids. I hope they will like these new nursery rhymes. 

Your feedback, critical comments are appreciated. This will help me to improve upon myself and would also give impetus to write more...! 

Please like, share and Subscribe to PlayWithKids. This will help me reach many more children... 

Thank you for reading this little journey of creating new nursery rhymes..! 

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxdpC81Th7XpoyFxAR6_LqjuoAH0PfjDV

#EnglishRhymesforKids #AnimalSanctuarySong #NewEnglishNurseryRhymes #PlayWithKids

Early Reader Book sets for Preschoolers - A Guide

Is your child an early reader? 

Feed his hunger with these early reader book-sets meant especially for preschoolers.  Reading fluently may not need much time if lots of small books are made available to little ones. Of course, encouragement to read is always required. 

Early reader book sets solve the purpose of teaching children to read on their own. They also help to inculcate reading habits.  

"Today a reader, tomorrow a leader" 

So, you may consider looking at this list of early reader book sets for preschoolers and buy any one of these sets.

1) Read it yourself with Ladybird :

These books are easy to read. It is a collection of 50 books with famous tales. Most of the classic stories like Snow White and seven dwarfs, Pinocchio, Little Red Riding hood, Hansel and Gretel, Thumbelina, etc are covered. Books are categorized as per reading levels 1 to 4. You may buy book sets as per reading level or can buy an entire set of 50 books. This early reader book set is the best for preschoolers and he or she can read the stories again and again and again. These are picture books with eye-catching pictures and print quality is also great.

2) Usborne book set:

Usborne is also a good publisher of children's books. The book set is similar to the one described above. Few titles may differ, but the concept is the same  - Phonetically based books suitable for early readers, classic stories covered. Usborne has various kinds of book sets for different age groups. Please make sure to buy the early reader set.

3) Pratham Book Set

Pratham is an NGO that works throughout India in the Education Sector. Pratham Books is a venture which publishes easy to read books for children in English as well as regional languages. The stories of the books have an Indian background. Naturally, Indian children can relate to the stories. 

They have book sets for schools as well. A hanging library can decorate the classroom. Ever wondered to donate the books to your own school or any other school?  You may opt for Pratham books. 

They also have an online platform called 'StoryWeaver' where children can read books for free.

https://store.prathambooks.org/productCategory?STORY_BOOKS

4) Bob Books

If you want to teach children to read phonetically categorized words, Bob books cover most of the phonics list of words. Short Vowels, Long Vowels, Sight words, and other word families are covered in different book sets. These are board books that are useful for children to learn reading.  Bob books are expensive. You may opt to purchase locally available phonics activity books for children to practice reading.

5) Peppa Pig Library:

Peppa Pig is a beloved character among households today. Peppa Pig captures the attention of little ones very well. The storylines of the Peppa series are great.  You may buy books from Peppa Pig Library set. Easy to read, great quality, amazing pictures..your little one would surely love these.

6) I Can Read

I Can Read is also a good collection of stories. The books are categorized as per reading levels. These books are slightly expensive as compared to other book sets. But if your little one has devoured the above book sets, you may consider buying these books.

I hope your preschooler would like these early reader book sets and start reading with pleasure!  

“You may have tangible wealth untold;

Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.

Richer than I you can never be—

I had a Mother who read to me.” –  Strickland Gilliland

Gift your child pleasure of reading by investing in early reader book sets. These are perfect gifts for preschoolers!

                                                                                                    Image by Comfreak from Pixabay 

Forming a special bond with the child

 

Forming a special bond with the child is special. Enlisting some of the things in order to strengthen this bond. I hope you will find these things useful as much as me.

 

1. At least twice a day, hug her. Physical connection leads to the formation of bond. The little one feels secured and loved in the arms. 

 

2. As far as possible, don't neglect what the child wants to say to you. It may mean very little thing for you. But it is of prime importance to your child. If she is complaining about something, don't try to resolve the issues, just listen. In turn, she may start to listen to you.

 

3. Read with the child when she is small. Discuss what she has read when she starts to read on her own. This leads to brain and expression development.

 

4. If you are good at art, do some artistic activity with her. If you are not an artistic person, still do it. Perfection doesn't matter. Having a good time does...! 

 

5. Play physical sports with her outdoors. Teach her how to hold rackets for badminton. Teach her to kick the football nicely. Start running a race or any other kind of race. Teach her winning or losing doesn't matter. Playing with joy does matter!

 

6. Play with her indoor games like chess/carrom/ludo/uno/playing cards. She will cherish these memories for a long time.

 

Follow number 1 and number 2 with consciousness. Rest can be carried out as per your availability of time. But most of the things can surely be done at least once a week.

 

Why forming a bond with a child is important?

 

A happy home is a heaven on earth. Happiness lies in little things. 

 

Chasing after ambitious goals may or may not bring results. Disappointments are parts of life. The child eases the burden of survival in a competitive world.

 

A child is an investment for the future. If she feels an overpowering feeling to keep telling you every little thing, you will never feel just on your own in old age. 

 

After your parents, your child does have a special place in your life. Parents brought you in the world and you brought your child in the world. Make this world a special place for them.

 

Forming a bond with the child doesn't need a penny. It needs conscious efforts, little time, and innermost expression of LOVE! 

                                                     Image by PublicDomainPictures from Pixabay 

Teaching tables differently

I tried to teach tables differently to my daughter. 

When you do something differently, be prepared to get suggestions and questions.. 

"You should teach her tables in Marathi.."

My husband aggressively suggested to me while I was teaching my daughter 3's table.
I replied with another aggression, "Remembering tables in Marathi is difficult for her as she doesn't remember numbers in Marathi. And anyway, two things will remain two even if we call it दोन, दो, Twe or Two. "

I always say reading and writing Marathi/Hindi is very simple if we compare it to English. The only thing is the number of alphabets to remember is more in Marathi/Hindi. But once you remember all the alphabets it is very easy to read. And one writes the same thing as he speaks.

But when it comes to numbers I would prefer English. If you know the numbers from one to twenty and then, thirty, forty, fifty etc.. further number counting is very easy with twenty-one, twenty-two or thirty-one, thirty-two, etc. Same is not the case with Marathi/Hindi where each number pronunciation is different. 

So, I stressed upon teaching 'two one za two'. By the way, I googled what is this 'za' thing all about as I learned all the tables in Marathi. Basically, it is 'Two Ones are Two',  Two Twos are Four' ;-)

"You are teaching her table very absurdly."

Another remark bumped my ears. I neglected it by saying I know what I am doing.
Basically, I was teaching her beauty in 3's table. I told her to remember three numbers 3,6 and 9. To get the next three numbers, we need to subtract 1 from each number and make an equivalent number in 10's column. So, we have 12,15 and 18. The next three numbers will arrive at by subtracting 1 again and joining with equivalent numbers in 20's column.(21,24,27). 

So, I asked her to say the numbers this way. (3,6,9)- (12,15,18)-(21,24,27)-30. The result was that she remembered all the numbers. Then we joined with Three One za Three and Three Two Za Six, Three three za nine. She knew answers of all multiplications, so she could recite till Three Ten za Thirty without any further help. Within 5 minutes, she started chanting three's table very well.

She was so excited about the whole process, that she asked me if she can learn 4's table too! I asked her abruptly Three Eight Za?? 

Obviously she had to recite the entire table to tell the answer. I told her the day you will tell me the answers to such questions about 3's table instantly,  you will be ready for the next table ;-)

In order to teach a table this way, she has to develop number sense. I never taught her counting. Thanks to her wonderful teachers from preschool, she gained number sense. 
While teaching two's table, I asked her to say all the even numbers 2,4,6,8,10,12,14, etc. Because of number sense, she could say 12,14,16... after 10 and 22,24,26... after 20, etc. So, we just joined two one za two, two two za four. The result was that she started saying 2*11=22, 2*12= 24... which will help her to wonder at arithmetic beauty while learning further tables.

Most children learn skip counting with 5  i.e. 5,10,15,20 which is easy by all means. So 5's table was very easy to teach. Number 10 cannot stand apart from 5 in this case.

So, this was my table story as of now.

Anyway, I am wondering how should I teach her the table of 7?

If you know other ways to teach tables differently, please let me know! 

How to raise a self learner kid...

How to raise a self-learner kid? 

This question should be the center of the educational process. A self-learning child is a bundle of curiosity. And his curiosity can be dealt with by providing lots of opportunities for self-learning. In this article, we will discuss how to raise a self-learner kid.

Why raising a self-learner kid important?

It is a well-established fact that a kid who learns on her own retains the learning. If a child is pushed against his or her will to learn facts and figures, he will be reluctantly learning. This impacts his memory to retain what he has learned. Rot memorization is a further bad thing that demotivates the child to learn.

When a child is in a self-learning mode, he learns out of curiosity - curiosity to know different things, curiosity to know how things work, curiosity to understand the world we live in. When he learns various things while thinking through various aspects he retains the knowledge which he has gathered.

Ways to Raise a Self-learner

There are no definite do's and don'ts to raise a self-learner. One way which works for a child may not work for another. It is a continuously evolving process. Guidelines are there and we need to come up with our own guidelines as well. If you find out other ways, do mention them in the comment section below.

a) Discuss various subjects

You may raise the curiosity level of a kid by discussing various subjects. For example, if you want to make a child interested in Mathematics, you can talk about Mathematics from day to day life.  If you want her to learn Botany, you may talk about plants around you. You may also talk about everyday science with her. Encouraging her to ask lots of questions also helps. 

b) Availability of Books

The availability of different kinds of books also helps. If discussion happens on Space and Stars, then encouraging the child to learn more by reading books on subject pacifies curiosity of the child. Textbooks are just supplementary. Research suggests that reading the same topic from different books helps in clarifying the topic and subject matter gets retained in the memory for a long time. Also encourage him to read more. Here is a guide to motivate a child to read.

c) Learning by Doing

A child should be encouraged to carry out different experiments that lead to a path of self-discovery. A subject like History could be taught by visiting places of historical importance, museums, etc. Small projects could be assigned to the kid where he can apply his mind.

d) Restrain from doing homework for the child

From early on make your child independent to do his homework. It is certainly not your task to do his homework. If he has difficulty in grasping a certain concept, help him with that by providing lots of examples. But homework he must do on his own. If he has conceptual clarity, he will quickly finish off his homework. You may coax him by telling him he gets to play for a longer amount of time if he finishes his homework fast.

e) Discuss the syllabus verbally

As much as possible, discuss various concepts in the syllabus verbally. More he talks on the concepts, more will be his conceptual clarity. You may encourage to do mathematical problems verbally. This develops Mathematical abilities by applying the mind to solve a problem. Other subjects in the syllabus could also be discussed orally. This helps in developing problem-solving, communication and reasoning skills.

I hope this small guide on how to raise a self-learner kid will help you to develop the personality of your kid. 

At last, don't burden the child to learn anything against his wish. Create an atmosphere for learning where he blooms on his own.

Self Learning is a process that helps one to learn lifelong and lead a mentally active life.

Image by Mojca JJ from Pixabay 

Just ONE way to motivate your child to read

Just one way to motivate your child to read...!

I have discussed with many why their children are better readers. And I found one strategy which definitely motivates children to read. I am happy to share this strategy with you. Before that let's see why reading is important.

The best gift you can give your children is to make them good readers. 

Why? 

• It makes them better human beings. 
• They perform well academically. 
• They have a better understanding of the world and various things. 

Children (and most of the adults) are reluctant to read. The reasons can be many. First and foremost is the distraction of digital media like TV, Laptops, Mobiles, etc. They are necessary to keep in touch with the outside world. But your inner world gets nourished in a better way through books. So, make your child a better reader!

But, children are reluctant to read. And they should be.!!!  If not, they are super kids! Follow this tried and tested one piece of advice. Just one way to motivate your child to read...!

SPARE 15 MINUTES EVERYDAY AT BEDTIME TO READ WITH YOUR CHILD...

Image by 2081671 from Pixabay 

Yes... This is not a new way to inculcate reading habits. But you do it with conviction and persuasion, your child will be life long reader.

In early childhood when a child's attention span is less, you can just read one small story for 5-10 minutes. Gradually increase the time. You can go through storytelling classes on a professional level if you wish. Read to your child in an entertaining manner. 

When a child is ready to read, make ample amounts of books available. If he is reluctant to read, follow an earlier note to read to him.

Gift him book sets rather than separate books. This motivates them to read. We gifted our daughter a set of 50 books (Read with Ladybird series). She devoured them within 15 days! She still reads them once in a while.

So, follow just one way to motivate your child to read!

Read with your child every day at bedtime for 15 minutes till he becomes a super reader!

Tiger Parenting : Is it good or Bad?

Tiger Parenting: Is it good or Bad?

‘Tiger Parenting’ term was coined by Chinese professor Amy Chua in 2011 in her book ‘Battle Hymns of the Tiger Mother’. Tiger parenting includes being harsh on children as well as providing warmth to them. The question remains whether tiger parenting is good or bad...

While describing tiger parenting, Amy described how she demanded perfection from her daughters in everything they do. She even asked her four-year daughter to remake her birthday greeting card because it didn’t meet her standards! Everyone felt it was a bit too much...

In the name of making children excel at everything, we put children under a lot of pressure. We demand too many things from them.

Do your homework.

Eat your food.

Brush your teeth.

Go for a bath.

Don’t play in the sun.

Don’t watch too much TV.

Do this and Don’t do that!!!

Some demands are justified. Some are not? Where do you cross the line?

Sometimes we should let them be!

Tiger parenting means drawing a fine balance between being authoritative and being supportive. Authoritative parenting has negative connotations where parents are very strict with their children. In the name of discipline, they yell at children, even beat them. There is a fine line between yelling andasking children to do something in an authoritative voice...Beating them is out of the question.

Never ever raise a hand on a child... 

Accidentally I did that once when I was very disturbed. My daughter wrote in her homework she felt very bad when I beat her. She remembered the only incident….

Children don’t understand the importance of many things as much as we do. They need to be told again and again. It needs a lot of patience to make children follow us. They say children follow you. If you sit with them to study, they will study as well (mostly). It is not possible to do every little thing that a child does. We need our own time. While spending quality time with children, we can definitely do any one task daily with children.

Tiger parenting involves standing up for children when they need it. Giving them warmth and showering affection is a must. Otherwise, your authoritarian voice fails. Children start rebelling for everything as they grow up.

  
In Chinese and Asian societies, tiger parenting is widely followed. They expect academic success from children to an extreme extent. They want to develop children in all spheres. They have a narrow definition of success which means academic excellence. However, pushing children too much against their will does greater harm than good. Stress for constant study gives rise to suicidal tendencies which are bad.

Tiger parenting is good when you discipline your child to do everyday tasks and inculcate good values in them by being strict. 

Tiger parenting is bad when you demand perfection in everything, demand academic excellence and demand them to follow your orders.

In the end, there is no unique formula for effective parenting. We give birth to a child to see our own self grow, to shower our selfless love.  

Providing our own child love and warmth is our responsibility!

Tiger parenting can be good or bad. And tiger parenting or any other parenting style is there just for study. 

Your own relationship with your child matters a lot!

Image by Pexels from Pixabay 

Child Sickness - Few tips to tackle

Does your child get sick quite often?..

Here are few tips to tackle child sickness..

Once upon a time I was sailing in the same boat.!

When my daughter turned two, I enrolled her into preschool. (So early because I wanted ‘me’ time after deciding to be stay at home mother leaving a full time job.)

But we never realized this two hour time would turn so bitter for us. My daughter started getting sick after every week or fifteen days with cough,cold or fever. Well, the doctor was prescribing very strong antibiotic which in turn was hampering her immunity.

We consulted another doctor! He asked us to do all kinds of tests..blood test and urine test... The result just said little low hemoglobin level. But the doctor told us that she may be allergic to things and she can face such recurrent coughs throughout her life… :-(

I called my helpline numbers - my uncle and my cousin who are doctors. Both told me same thing. Not to give her antibiotics at all. Keep cold water strips on forehead for fever. If required, give low dosage paracetamol. For cough and cold, apply home remedies or give ayurvedic medicines like sitopaladi churna in low dose.

I sincerely followed their advice. I read on the internet on the guideline to deal with child fever. So it just came out that it is body’s mechanism to increase temperature while fighting the germs attack. Nothing to worry if it is just 100 degree. So I kept close watch on fevers with thermometer. If in case it crosses 100, then only we decided to take action.

Another front we had to fight was cough and cold. So, I made ‘Aai ka Nuskha’ which I am still using. Whenever my daughter has slight inclination of cold, I make lots of Turmeric-Jaggery laddus( Very small size) . Right from childhood, she likes to eat those laddus. So this is her three times dosage for a day (with warm water). Earlier I used to give her little bit sitopaladi churn as well (mixed with honey for dealing with cough). We also took homeopathic medicines early on which also helped a lot.
Another advice which my uncle had given was that not to eat or drink anything from the fridge directly. But this one we were already following.

My husband and I drink water from simple steel jar.( now tap water in Europe). Only in three months of summer we use Matka water. This has immense benefit on resistivity. Other thing is that I cook fresh food twice a day and don’t eat anything stale from the fridge. So my daughter was getting fresh food from early on.

We realized, if we have to boost her immunity we have to take more efforts so that she eats well. (Basically she is very picky eater. Without doing any faces, she doesn’t start eating.) So I started feeding her wholesome meal, (dal, chawal, roti sabji) . So my routine was to tell stories, sing songs with nearby children or simply playing with her and somehow make her eat. So one meal time was approximately one hour for us. (No mobile or tv intervention while eating). My husband used to help feeding her in the evening.

We used to have huge relief when my mother in law or my mother would visit us!
So we kept on feeding her….trying and failing completely in making her eat on her own. When she turned four, her school principal asked me when I am going to let her eat on her own. I declared to my daughter that she has to eat on her henceforth…
The same declaration continued...till she turned ‘six’!

And my husband still teases me on my declarations …

And I miss the fantastic time with bachcha party while feeding her…

So, this whole exercise turned out to be well. While eating right, we made sure that she is actually turning away from most of junk food. So we took steps..buying potato chips once or twice a year, not buying fruit juices at all, buying chocolates rarely, buying packaged stuffs once in a while etc. Instead, I started making fresh fruit juices, soups, Laddoos, Puris, chutneys at home. I buy fryums and fry it in fresh oil for her. Ice cream is allowed in summer months only.( I strongly believe, it is total myth that Ice Cream can be consumed in winter as well.) These little steps were big booster in her immunity level.

All these efforts started giving fruits...Cough and cold attacks got minimized to once or twice a year.
(no allergy sort of thing). In last four years, we went to see a doctor only once when her stomach was really upset! Other times, her tummy was all fine and we never had to clear her vomiting or deal with loose motions.. (Fingers crossed…xxx)

I understand every child is different. But if you are sailing in the boat of child sickness, do check your lifestyle, eating habits and medications being prescribed!!

Another last sort of ‘advice’ - Use floor cleaner sparingly (Once or twice a month).Instead mop with plain water. Little dirt is actually good for health!

Image by PublicDomainPictures from Pixabay 

Beauty of innocence !

Innocence has its own magic.. and innocence is most of the time visible in kid's expressions. Here is a little note on child's innocence which I experienced on children's day!
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I was paying by card at the supermarket. My daughter suddenly said loudly..

You entered XXXX.!!!

Do we have to enter XXXX..?

The lady at the counter and the lady behind me smiled at us..

I explained her .."beta..it is called PIN which should not be told to anybody.."

And then series of questions started with why..

I just understood one thing..

You definitely feel short of words to explain banking system to a child..

Happy Children's day!!!

Rasgulla Making Disaster - Remembering little things

Remembering little things make life worthwhile. Here is short story of a disaster in Rasgulla making :-) Hope you enjoy reading this...

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My daughter remembers all my recipes even if was made once upon a time..

"I don't want Onion Bhaji..I want Corn Bhaji... "

"You don't make curd rice anymore" (Prepared last week only!)

" You don't make Idlis often" (Unavailability of ready made Idli Batter is the only reason!)

In India I was ever reluctant to venture into making sweets at home which are easily available in market especially Bengali Sweets...Accidentally I made Rasgullas once, while setting curd. I poured little extra curd into boiling milk and realizing the mistake I made Rasgullas googling the recipe. They turned out well...

Now, my daughter was persistently asking me several times.
Why don't we make Rasgullas at home now? You just made it once..

I quickly remembered it takes just 15 minutes of my time to make Rasgullas. All I need to do is curdle the milk, extract the water and make balls of the extract..and boil in sugar syrup! My criteria for making or attempting recipe is just one.It should take maximum 15 minutes to prepare... Bang!
So, I boiled the milk to make my little kiddo happy... Lemon was unavailable so I added one large spoon of yogurt. I kept on boiling for 5 minutes..and it was not making any move to curdle.I kept on adding yogurt one after the other...15-20 mins passed...

I lost the patience..but still added one more spoon..!

By the time, my husband came beside me for rescue..
We were engaged in discussion to curdle the milk quickly..suddenly there was big bomb blast! One fourth milk came out of vessel, the flame extinguished and the vessel tilted...!

Thank God we were away from the vessel!

The milk did not spill over entirely even after the tilt!

Remembering Hirakani who climbed down Raigad fort to give milk to her baby, I got all courage to provide Rasgullas to my baby even after the disaster :-)

Quietly I added one more spoon of yogurt, and kept on stirring... after 5 minutes eventually the milk curdled!

Like in most of the cinemas, the end is sweetest...so were my Rasgullas!

In spite of little disaster, Rasgulla making was fun!