Category Archives: Our daughter

Chhori turns 2 – Birthday Puja

Posted on April 3, 2017 | 11 comments

One of the main reasons for our visit to Nepal this time was to celebrate Chhori 2nd birthday in Nepal with friends and family.

In Newari culture, for reasons unknown and out of tradition handed down from generation to generation, the first birthday of a child is not celebrated. When a child is born, we have chhaiti, nwaran then pasni. After pasni, the big celebration is second birthday, which is known as Nirbuni.

Time goes by so quickly and our little munchkin turned a BIG 2 on 20 Feb.

As we were in Nepal for the celebration, we followed Newari culture to perform her birthday puja.

In Newari culture, we make Yomari every even birthday 2, 4, 6, 8, and 12. Yomari is a delicacy of the Newars. It consists of an external covering of rice-flour and an inner content of sweet substances such as chaku (Molasses). Click here for the recipe.

We had planned things in advance for this and were happy that things came together as planned on the big day.

On her birthday, in the morning, MIL prepared for birthday puja with sagun (traditional plate typically consisting of a boiled egg, smoked fish, a “bara”, haku chhoila” and “aila” and “dhau”) .

We had other relatives who were invited for the occasion including my parents, uncles and aunts.

The puja started with tika and yomari mala (garland) from my MIL followed by ritual to pour bits of rice, radish, coins, and cucumber in a small container from her head. This is believed to drive any evil spirit.

Then it was followed by Sagun and gifts to her.She was really spoiled with gifts like dresses and jewelleries.

My parents had come with my relatives to celebrate Chhori’s birthday with lots of food which included rotis, fruits, sagun and gifts.

After my MIL my mum and aunt did similar puja. Tika and sagun was followed by gifts to Chhori, me, AS and to my in laws.

Chhori loved the whole process except when the yomari garland was put around her neck as the string annoyed her and she wanted to take it out. She was happy with so many people around us that day for the whole day. We really had a great time with all the relatives.

After all the puja was finished, we had cake smash for her too. What a difference a year can make. When we had done the cake smash on Chhori’s first birthday, she was happy to be messy and smashed the cake well, which gave us some amazing photos but this year she definitely has become a big girl.

At first she just used her finger to taste the cake and then asked for a knife to cut the cake when asked to smash it. Nevertheless we had a great time and she had a lot of fun sharing a piece with everyone.

The day was long but fun and exciting.

We had her birthday party on another day so I will write more about it in my next post.

Till then, take care everyone and happy Monday.

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

11 Comments

Posted in Being Mum, Celebrations, Nepal 2017, Our daughter, Travel

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Travelling with toddler

Posted on March 8, 2017 | 8 comments

First of all sorry for disappearing for so long, I think I have never not blogged for this long since I started blogging.

We went on a holiday to Malaysia and Nepal and somehow I was so busy that even though I drafted a few posts, didn’t have time to publish them. But now that I am back, I will write all about our trip and Chhori’s special birthday celebration in Nepal.

But let me first share my experience in general about our travel with Chhori. As I have mentioned in my posts before, I was bit nervous about such a long flight with Chhori. Even though Chhori has been on a plane before, the longest she has travelled is around 4 hours and she was great on that but it is a different story when it came to travelling to Nepal. First of all, we had to be on two different planes with a total time of 14+ hours and on top of that as she was under 2 years old and we didn’t have a separate seat for her.

We flew from Sydney to Malaysia during the day and that 9 hour flight was the worst of the entire trip. As it was day time, Chhori slept for only an hour and the rest of the time we had to entertain her. We had a tablet full of movies and rhymes for her and also a lot of snacks but it was a very hard job. She was OK for the first few hours and then she started getting bored. She would move from my seat to AS’s and we had to try our best to make sure she was busy so she wouldn’t cry.

At one stage, she wanted the whole seat to herself so she evicted me from my seat and I ended up on the floor in from of the seat.

AS couldn’t stop laughing and luckily as we were allocated seats with good leg room I had room to sit on the floor.

Chhori also played peekaboo with a couple behind our seat. She would stand up and say “boo” and sit down again. I hope they were amused and not annoyed.

In Malaysia, she was great as we went to different tourist spots every day and she enjoyed the new environment. She loved the fact that she didn’t have to sit on a baby seat in the car anymore and she enjoyed the freedom. Above all she enjoyed the fact that mummy and daddy were with her 24/7.

The flight from KL to Kathmandu was better as it was only 4 hours and she was OK most of the way. The worst part was when we landed and we had to wait for immigration and customs and the airport was bit chaotic.

Chhori is only 2 years old but I know for sure that she loved Nepal. In Kathmandu, we spent most of our time in AS’s home and she loved it there as she had her grandparents, uncles and aunt and cousin to play with her.

Every morning when she woke up, she wanted to go to the living area straight away because she knew there will be someone to play with her. She really enjoyed the company of her relatives and was really happy to play with her cousin.

We took Chhori to visit many of our relatives and she did really well. She was social and affectionate and very well behaved most of the time. She really made us very proud.

I am sure she would have been very happy to stay longer in Kathmandu but our holiday ended shortly after we celebrated her birthday and it was time for us to come back.

I was a bit worried about our flight back but luckily for us, it was better than the journey to Nepal.

On our flight from Kathmandu to Malaysia, we had an empty seat next to us so Chhori was happy to have her own seat. It did make our journey less stressful. From Malaysia to Sydney, we got a bassinet for her and she slept most of the flight even though she was a bit big for it. I was happy to have a peacefully sleeping baby which allowed me to rest and eat my meal without worrying too much.

I was so happy when we landed in Sydney because even though I loved our trip, the flight there and back was bit tough. I think if a child is over a year old and it is a long flight, it is a good idea to buy an extra seat for the child as it will be really helpful and gives you a bit more flexibility.

Take care everyone.

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

8 Comments

Posted in Being Mum, Holidays, Nepal, Nepal 2017, Our daughter, Travel

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Chhori’s first trip to Nepal

Posted on January 30, 2017 | 14 comments

Chhori is going to Nepal for the very first time this weekend. We have planned this trip to celebrate her 2nd birthday in Nepal so we will be traveling to Nepal with my parents. We will be stopping over in Malaysia for a few days and then a big Nepal trip.

Nepali flag

Nepali flag

I am so excited and scared at the same time. Excited because Chhori will get to meet many of her relatives for the first time including her great grandmas, cousins that she sees often in Skype and many other uncles and aunties. I am sure she won’t remember much from this trip when she gets older but I will make sure that she has lots of photos to look back on.

chhori-2

Also on 20 February, we will be celebrating her 2nd birthday. We plan to do a traditional ceremony with yomari and sagun as well as a small family celebration with party. I am hoping that it will be a great way for Chhori to start understanding our culture and tradition.

I also have plans to take her to the zoo in Nepal and also do other kids’ activities. I am sure we will also be busy with meeting many relatives and friends.

zoo

But this mum is very worried at the same time. In the past, traveling to Nepal was not such a big deal but this time going with a toddler could be difficult. We have done our best preparations. Both AS and I have got vaccinated according to the recommendation of our GP. Also Chhori got one injection as well. She was as calm as a millpond and didn’t cry this time either.

I have bought enough food/snacks for our plane journey as well have as some cartoon and peepa pig series for entertainment. I am not worried about our plane journey much but a bit more worried about our stay.

Malaysia should be fine as we are there for few days only but I am worried about Nepal. I am worried if she will get sick or hurt or anything like that. AS’s home in Kathmandu where we will be spending most of our time is not baby proofed like our home here so it gives me nightmares thinking what may go wrong. We have talked about how someone will always be watching Chhori to avoid any disaster but as you know with kids they are so unpredictable.

chhori

I and AS have had numerous talks about it and he always tells me to stop thinking too much and let’s take each day as it comes but being a thinker I am not as clam as he is. I know he is right as we don’t know what can happen there but I can’t stop worrying.

Please share tips and tricks to avoid any unwanted events happening when you are traveling with a toddler. Chhori is so active these days hence the worried mum.

Take care everyone.

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S.Please vote for  Nepaliaustralian Blog Award

https://nepaliaustralian.com/2017/01/10/nepaliaustralians-blog-award-2016-nominations-announced/

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Posted in Being Mum, Our daughter

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And then she (Chhori) cried…

Posted on January 23, 2017 | 15 comments

I wrote recently how Chhori has started childcare and how she was been great. It is sad to see that, she no longer runs to the toys or forgets about us as soon as we go inside the childcare.

I think slowly she has started to realise that, she needs to go to the childcare regularly and her reaction started changing.

chhori-2

Normally AS goes to drop her off so I can start work early and I pick her up a bit early.

In the last few weeks, Chhori’s reaction to childcare has slowly changed from no tears to lots of tears.

The first few days, she refused to let go of AS when they got inside the childcare. Then she started to cry once inside the childcare and now she refuses to eat her breakfast and starts crying as soon as she is in front of childcare.

I was really happy when we had no tears initially but that period is over now. It really breaks my heart that she has to go through this.

chhori-1

I know it is a natural stage of development and every parent has to go through this journey but this makes me feel so guilty and question our decision to do it in the first place. She is not even 2 years old and doesn’t communicate that well which makes it even harder.

I am glad I am not the one who has to drop her off regularly because I would have cried with her every time there is a drop off. Just checking with AS every day and knowing that she cried makes feel me so sad.

I feel so helpless; don’t know what to do to make it easier for Chhori. All the parents out there who have been through this please give me some advice/suggestions.

Take care everyone.

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S.Please vote for  Nepaliaustralian Blog Award

https://nepaliaustralian.com/2017/01/10/nepaliaustralians-blog-award-2016-nominations-announced/

15 Comments

Posted in Being Mum, Our daughter

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Chhori started childcare

Posted on January 11, 2017 | 13 comments

I am sure you all remember when I announced the arrival of Chhori into our lives. I am sorry to tell you all that 22 months has already passed since then and you have all grown older. Yap Chhori is 22 months old now and has stared childcare from last Friday. And it was a big milestone for us as well.

We had planned the day in advance and both AS and I had taken the day off. As I mentioned in my previous post, when we went for a visit to the childcare, she refused to come home but we were not sure how she would handle being there for a whole day.

chhori-childcare-9

I have to admit, I was more nervous than anything. I was worried if the teachers will understand her needs and how they will feed her. I think being a mother; it was harder to leave her with complete strangers for a whole day. I know every parent has to go through this and we were lucky to have my parents to help out until now.

chhori-childcare-8 chhori-childcare-7

The big day finally arrived. That morning, I just told her she is going to go to school today. I don’t know how much she understood but she seemed excited (it could just have been because we were going out).

chhori-childcare-1

She ate her breakfast and happily allowed me to change her clothes and was more than happy to carry her bag. As we were leaving, she wanted to take her toys with her including the baby shopping cart. We explained to her that the toys can’t go with her but there will be lots of new toys at the childcare and she was OK to leave them at home.

chhori-childcare-2

It was raining that day and that didn’t help my mood at all. We parked and went inside the centre. Once we were inside the child care, she went and played with other kids without hesitation. I was surprised that she didn’t even care if we were there or not, just went inside the room and started playing with toys and mingling with other kids

chhori-childcare-5

It was very emotional for me to see our daughter become a toddler and so independent but at the same time I was very proud of her. We told the teacher to call us if anything came up and we can come back to pick her up anytime.

At noon as there had been no calls from the childcare I called to check if everything was ok. The reply was she is doing really well, had her snacks and meals and a nap. Not a tear for the whole day.

chhori-childcare-3

So we decided to go and pick her up at the end of the day only so that she would get used to the whole day care.

When we went to pick her up, she seemed happy. She had biscuits in each hand.  She came to us said “Mama” and “Papa” and kissed me. I was really happy to hear good reviews form her teacher. She was well behaved the whole day and enjoyed her first day of childcare.

Please share your own experience of childcare and any suggestions you have for this anxious mother to make her stay there better.

Take care everyone.

M from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S.Please vote for  Nepaliaustralian Blog Award

https://nepaliaustralian.com/2017/01/10/nepaliaustralians-blog-award-2016-nominations-announced/

13 Comments

Posted in Being Mum, Our daughter

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