Tag Archives: chhori

Product Review : Jolly Jumper

If you have a baby, you know they are really expensive. So if you are having a baby for the first time, you really need to plan well so as not to spend money on unnecessary stuff.

When we first found out we were having a baby, we did lots of research and decided that the basics like bassinet, cot, change table, car seat and pram are necessary big ticket items but we could leave toys till the end and see how we go.

We haven’t bought many toys for Chhori but she has heaps anyway as we keep getting gifts. She is really lucky that she has been so spoiled and loved by everyone around her.

Chhori (1)

One of the gifts we got before she was even born was the Jolly jumper. I really didn’t know what it was so we googled it when we got it. AS tried to assemble it to get a better idea. It was a jumper bouncer in a four poster frame. You can get the one which hangs on the door frame as well. We were sure the baby wouldn’t use it straight away so we disassembled it and put it away, and then almost forgot that we had it.

When Chhori was around 5 months old, we were shopping at Toys r us one day and we saw Jolly Jumper in the shelves. That jolted our memory and when we came home we unpacked it.

I was not so sure how Chhori would react to it so we tried it out. From the beginning, she was really excited that she was upright without any help because at that stage she had just started to sit on her own. Jolly Jumper gave her a different view of the world and her first taste of upright movement without us holding her up.

Chhori (2)

I couldn’t believe how much she enjoyed it when she realised that she could jump up and down. In the beginning, I was helped her a little but in one day she was a pro. She was squealing and laughing when she jumped making both of us laugh as well. We had a carpeted floor so we knew it would not hurt her tiny feet.

Chhori (1)

From that day until she was around 10 months old, it stayed in our living room. We used to put her in it for around 15-20 minutes a day and she enjoyed every minute of it. Once she started walking with help of walkers, she didn’t like it any more as it restricted her so we packed it away.

It was one of the best toys we ever had. It’s a great way to give them a bit of exercise and to build strength in their tiny legs.

We always made sure we never left her unsupervised. It was so fun to watch her play and when we had visitors, they got a laugh too.

I read somewhere that they may harm baby’s legs but I think like everything in life, if you make sure it is used in moderation, it is not a problem.

Did your kids used Jolly Jumper or something similar? Is there any other toys your kids loved a lot?

Take care everyone,

from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

Some wise words for new parents

If you have been following my blog for a while, you know that I love my beautiful daughter, Chhori so much. She is one person in this world for whom I can do anything. She has replaced her dad (sorry babe) as the most important person in my life.

1D2A0729-horz

But despite the love and care I have for her, she does manage to irritate me from time to time. I know it may sound like I am a bad mumma as she is only one year old. Most of the time it is my fault that I get upset or angry as she is just a baby but she still can make me mad.

I think most of these situation occurs when I don’t know what she wants. After trying every possible solution and if she is still crying, then I don’t know what to do. AS knows about these situations so he sent me this article from news.com.au. It really made me understand the situation a little better so I am sharing some highlight from the article hoping it might help someone else too.

Even as adults, we can be prone to tantrums, tears and wanting to give the world (or particular people in it) an almighty spray sometimes. For the most part, we can hang to the dramatics and anything that might land us in trouble, but even with all of our experience, our fully developed brains, and our capacity to see around corners, it’s hard some days. Imagine what it’s like for our kids.

Understanding what our kids are wrestling with and the developmental goals they are working towards will make their more ‘frustrating’ behaviours easier to deal with. Things will run smoother if we can give them the space and support they need to do whatever it is they need to. Of course, none of this means the total surrendering of boundaries around what’s OK and what isn’t in terms of behaviour. What it means is responding with greater wisdom, clarity and with more appropriate consequences. Life just gets easier for everyone when we are able to take things less personally.

Here are some important developmental stages and the difficult behaviour that might come with them. You’ll often find that their behaviour, though unruly and baffling at times, is completely normal and a sign that your child is flourishing and making his or her way through childhood or adolescence exactly as they are meant to.

INFANTS AND BABIES (0-12 MONTHS)

  • Everything will go in the mouth — hands, feet, food, toys, shoes — you name it.
  • If they are crying, there is something they need — a sleep, a cuddle, food, changing. They don’t yet have the words to communicate, but crying is a spectacularly effective way for baby humans to get big humans to move mountains for them. One of the beautiful things about babies is that they will never ask for more than they need.
  • Wary of strangers and might get upset when familiar people aren’t close by.
  • Babies will stare. They love faces and will stare at faces in real life, in books and in mirrors. Oh to be at an age where staring at other people is socially acceptable — and cute.

 The support they need

Babies have an important job to do — they need to learn whether or not they can trust the world and the people in it. For their part, they will work hard to give you the opportunities to show them how safe and secure they are. They might not have much of a vocabulary but they are masterful little communicators when it comes to letting you know when something isn’t quite right. Be consistently attentive to their needs so they can feel the world as a safe and secure one for them. Feed them when they are hungry, comfort them when they are scared, cuddle them when they need to be with you. This will form the foundation for their exploration of the world, their independence, their confidence and self-esteem and their relationships.

ONE-TWO YEARS OLD

  • Will become more interactive.
  • No understanding of intentionality — they see, they do without thinking about why or what it means. For example, when they bite, it is not to hurt, when they grab toys from other kids it’s not to cause upset, it’s to … well, everyone knows that things are for grabbing, right. Or eating.
  • Will follow their curiosity and will pull things down or apart to see what happens. Ditto with throwing anything onto the floor.
  • Not developmentally able to share.
  • Might seem bossy and selfish, but keep in mind that anything they are interested in or considers to be theirs will be seen as an extension of themselves. Of course nobody else is entitled to take it!
  • Beginning to understand possession, and developing a strong sense of self.
  • Two of their favourite words to say, ‘Mine!’ and ‘No!’
  • Two of their least favourite words to hear, ‘Mine!’ and ‘No!’
  • Will often wake during the night.
  • Towards the end of this stage, they may become more defiant as they start to experiment with their independence. May tantrum because they become frustrated by their lack of words and their lack of ability to communicate.
  • Tantrums will also be driven by their experience of big emotions (frustration, anger, sadness, shame) that they don’t have the words for.
  • Will be more likely to play alongside other kids, rather than with them.

 The support they need 

  • Their attention span is still fairly short, so use distraction to direct them away from what you don’t want them to be doing.
  • When you give them a new rule or direction, it’s likely that the old one will be forgotten. Sometimes you will love their short attention span. Sometimes you won’t.
  • Be positive when you see them doing the right thing.
  • Start letting them know the things that aren’t OK.
  • Ignore the small stuff. There’s so much to learn so it’s best not to overload them. Let them get used to the important things first.
  • Your child will be starting to understand what you are asking but for the sake of your own sweet sanity, let go of the expectation that they will do as you ask. Keep asking and guiding, but don’t take it personally if it doesn’t happen straight up. Or at all.
  • Be kind and gentle when correcting. They are doing their very best with what they have. If you ask for too much you might end up with a more anxious or more defiant or less confident three-year-old.
  • Help them put words to what they are feeling, ‘It’s upsetting when you have to pack your toys away and you want to keep playing isn’t it.’

Give your child the freedom and space to play and encourage their experimentation with physical and imaginative play.

If you want to read the whole article, here is the link.

 Take care everyone,

from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S: Do not forget to nominate your favourite blog . NEPALIAUSTRALIAN’s Blog Award 2015

I miss my baby

I am sure I have mentioned it here before that Chhori is not a great sleeper. She has very short naps 30-45 minutes at a time and even at nights she wakes up multiple times. So I always wish that she would sleep a bit longer so I can do something but there are times I don’t want her to sleep long.

Today, for the second time this week, she was fast asleep while I left for work. I really wanted to wake her up but didn’t do it. She looked so peaceful sleeping that I wished I had longer time at home to see her wake up and smile at me.

IMG_1383

If I leave home late, I get stuck in traffic which will increase my travel time so I try to leave home early so I can come home to Chhori early . But the days when she is still asleep, I don’t get to interact with her at all in the morning and that makes it really hard to leave home.

Normally I don’t say good bye to her when I leave in the morning anyway even though she is awake. AS takes her to a room before I go out of the home so she doesn’t see me leave and start crying but I still get to spend 20-30 minutes with her while I get ready for work. But the days she that doesn’t wake up, I get no time with her in the morning and it breaks my heart. All I can do is look at my sleeping baby.

Being a working mum is a really hard thing to do. I know I have so many reasons to work and I am lucky to have a job to come back to but at the same time I feel so sad that I have to spend so many hours away from my baby. Thank God my parents are looking after her so I don’t have to drop off a screaming toddler at a day care but not being able to hold her in the morning makes me sad the whole day.

I don’t know how to make this work. Any suggestion from all the wonderful mums out there is welcome. How do you all do it? I think I am still getting used to coming back to work after a year.

I am so glad it is Friday today so I get to spend two full days with her. So looking forward to the weekends. I am sure weekends going to be even more precious from now on.

Have a great weekend everyone.

from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S: Do not forget to nominate your favourite blog . NEPALIAUSTRALIAN’s Blog Award 2015

Kids and their toys

Anyone with kids know that toys are every expensive. From the day babies are born, you spend money on one thing or another. Of course how much you spend is up to you but there are basics you need to have.

Anyway, once having Chhori, we discovered that toys for kids are quite expensive. Before, we used to buy them as gifts so we didn’t think much as we are buying one at a time but now we need to buy more often and they need to be age appropriate too.

While we were growing up in Nepal, we didn’t have that many choices of toys and I used to go out and play a lot with other kids. But kids these days seem to stay inside and play with their toys a lot more.

We definitely wanted Chhori to have the necessary toys for her development as every parent wants their kids to be smart. Chhori is definitely lucky that she has got amazing and loving people around her who bring so many toys for her. She has an accumulation so many toys already and she is just 1.

Chhori (1)

But in the last one year, I have discovered that, a kid doesn’t always need expensive toys. They are happy with an empty bottle too. Anything new is interesting to them.

Despite having so many toys, I see Chhori spending hours playing with and empty milk bottle or juice carton or take away boxes. When she was smaller and couldn’t open boxes, I used to put a spoon inside a take away container so it rattled and she used to love it.

Chhori (2)

This has made me question how many expensive toys should we buy her in the future? Until she can ask (demand is probably the right word) for toys herself, I am thinking to keep them to a minimum so that she can explore other things and use her imagination as well.

What is your opinion on this matter? How often do/did you buy toys for your kids? Is there an age where they need to have certain toys?

Take care everyone,

from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S: Do not forget to nominate your favourite blog . NEPALIAUSTRALIAN’s Blog Award 2015

Dubbo – Chhori’s first road trip

As I mentioned earlier, we went to Dubbo during our Christmas/ New Year break.

Dubbo is located 400 km north-west of Sydney and we decided to go there as a few of our friends recently moved there.

Being new parents, both I and AS were not sure how Chhori would cope with on a trip so we decided not to go too far. Google map indicated that it would take us 5 hours to get there so it was a good distance to cover for Chhori’s first road trip. Both of us were a bit nervous.

The packing was a nightmare as I felt like I needed everything for the baby but finally we were sorted and the car was full of stuff and 3 human beings. 🙂

We planned the trip only few weeks in advance and as the day neared I was a bit nervous. But Chhori was good on the trip. We reached Dubbo after 7 hours instead of 5. We had a lunch break and 2 more breaks for Chhori to feed and change. We entertained her with her favorite rhymes and she slept for a few hours. I and AS took turns driving so it was not too much for both of us.

Dubbo was nicer than I had imagined. We were there for 5 days and each day we had something to do. We went on a picnic to Lake Burrendong, visited Taronga Western Plain zoo, Old Dubbo Gaol , Shoyoen Japanese Garden , Terramungamine Reserve, Rock Grooves and Orana Mall.

Old Dubbo Gaol is remarkably complete and intact gaol operated for 119 years from 1847 to 1966 and is still nestled in the main street of Dubbo. There are many interesting exhibits and a lot of information on the many prisoners who were held here. They provide a tour which provides a good over view of the history of the Gaol and also the local area.

dubbo (22)

Shoyoen Japanese Garden is a really great place to visit as it is beautifully laid out with its lake, stream, and paths. The water features that are the centre of the garden, from the waterfall over rocks to the large pond which is full of koi that you could feed; we had a really nice time strolling through the garden.

dubbo (17) dubbo (12)

The day we went to Lake Burrendong, we drove for an hour to this beautiful National park. The place was full with holiday makers fishing and boating. We took food from home and had a relaxing time in the park with the view.

dubbo (8) dubbo (10) dubbo (5) dubbo (9)

We were in Dubbo during Boxing day so we went to the mall and did a big shopping :). We did get some bargains for sure.

Definitely the highlight of the trip was Taronga Western Plain zoo.

The zoo has a 5km road with paths crisscrossing their way around the enclosures. We drove around and it was an easy drive but you could also hire bikes or golf carts.

Chhori was so excited when she saw the giraffes. I didn’t expect that reaction from her as I thought she was too young to get excited. It was such a wonderful experience to get up close to these beautiful animals. We saw zebras, lions, tigers, elephants, emu, koala, kangaroo, rhino, and giant tortoise to name just few.

dubbo (14) dubbo (16)  dubbo (18)

We took picnic lunch from home so we ate in the picnic area right beside the zebras. We bought ice-creams from the café and it was a perfect way to end our lunch.

dubbo (19) dubbo (11) dubbo (7) dubbo (3)

My 8 year old nephew was so excited that he made sure we stopped at every animal enclosure and read about each of them :). Chhori was a bit small to understand everything but was excited for a day out.

dubbo (2)

Over all Dubbo weather was perfect and the place was just beautiful. A fantastic family getaway for sure.

On the way back from Dubbo, we drove through and stopped to do cherry, peaches and apricot picking in a place called Orange :).

Cherry picking (1) Cherry picking (2) Cherry picking (3)

It was really fun and Chhori enjoyed the cherries so much 🙂

Cherry picking (4)

Take care everyone,

from nepaliaustralian

XOXO

P.S: Do not forget to nominate your favourite blog . NEPALIAUSTRALIAN’s Blog Award 2015