November 12, 2019 - Raising World Children

Easy 5 min Daily Self Care for Mothers Everywhere

Want to take your day from blah to fabulous in five easy steps? Follow the below and you will certainly make your days brighter. It took me a while to go over what exactly it is that keeps me going on a positive note. “It’s not how good you are, it’s how good you want to be.” these words are a great motivator to becoming a better version of yourself.

Every single day, we strive to get through all our tasks. Wouldn’t it be better to enjoy those very tasks with a healthier, better version of ourselves?

So, today I share the easiest life hacks that made a world of difference to my life and I’m sure they will help you too.

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

Find a way that works for you to better yourself. Listen to a podcast, read a book, drive around with an audio book playing. 10 minutes in the car on a way to a meeting or in the shower. Take time to better yourself. Use tips by others to better your mind and body.

HEALTH HACK 101

I take my vitamins: This one is so important and it’s so easy. It literally takes 10 seconds, and it prevents so much. You being healthy is one of the best ways you can take care of your kids. Remember that time last winter when you were sick, and you still had to take care of the house and the kids? Yeah, it sucked big time. So let us try to prevent that this winter!

WORK OUT

Stretch & Meditate and/or workout. This is the easiest way to have a positive start or end to your day. Who doesn’t need to lower their blood pressure and increase patience? Plus I’m old, my body does not move like it used to! Stretching & meditating for a few minutes in the morning makes a huge difference. Even if it’s only for 5 minutes, it still helps a lot.

WATER – THE LIFE GIVER

The majority of your body is made of water so staying hydrated just makes sense. I’m not going to lie; it’s a challenge even for me. I get busy, and pretty soon it’s 7:00 pm and I haven’t had a drop. So here’s what I do for both my son and I. We have our water bottles and the go EVERYWHERE with us. I don’t care where we go or for how long, the water bottles come with us.

GRATITUDE

Reassess your day. Every night my son and I say what we are thankful for. Some nights it’s our time spent with Grandma and other nights it’s macaroni and cheese. The point is, I want my son to know that there is always something to be grateful for. Some days are easy and some days are tough, but at the end of the day, there is always a reason to be thankful.

What do you ladies do to help improve your day? I would love to know so I can add them to my daily routine.

Find out MORE ways you can Empower YOUR Motherhood —

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Simple Travel Tips You Often Forget to Use

Traveling with children can really be lots of fun. Even in the midst of unexpected emergencies and I am here to tell the tale!

The reality is, I am an anxious travel companion. I will own this! I now have three children and a husband to travel with and I pack for myself and kids, and he packs his bag.

When my daughter was born I admit to the packing three times the necessary items and using none of them except the baby bag items.

Breaking down on the side of the road going to visit my parents in the country

1.5hours from a phone reception
On my own with two small children (4.5months and nearly 3years old).
It was dusk at the beginning of winter.
The road had limited traffic (maybe 2 cars an hour)

changed my thinking about packing. Again we only used our working bags, emergency blankets and food stash.

So, whilst living in Australia flying to Kuwait to meet family we unexpectedly spent 26 hours at Abu Dhabi airport caught by a sand storm. Both grandmothers were close to frantic but I can honestly say the only panic I had was at hour 19 when I went to see how much longer they expected all planes to be grounded and the lady at the counter said “I need you to bring your children to the counter please!” I can remember looking at her incredulously and saying “They are both sound asleep. Are you serious?” Her kind response of, “I do apologize but yes please.” They had organized accommodations away from the airport before our flight arrived but as we were delayed they had been unable to even send us anywhere by bus as the sandstorm hit early. They had kindly organized dinner, breakfast, and showering facilities for all families with children.

After my previous experience I had already worked out my contingency plan for emergencies.

Clear packing tape – can be used to fix just about anything. Eg. Hems, shoes, bags, broken car windows, or making kids craft.
Pencil and eraser – sometimes pens just don’t work in ice cold weather.
Notepaper – I find a kids 64page exercise book is great. You can take notes, keep details, rip out pages for kids to draw on or make origami during long delays.
A spare long scarf. It folds up easily or tie it around your waste. Uses: As a mat for the floor, light blanket, bandage, sling, or a towel if necessary
Small light towel
Torch
Watch – phones are great but you don’t want to miss a flight because your battery went flat or the time zone did not adjust.
Hand luggage – pack all the above plus basic essentials for each person: two days clothes/underwear, toothbrush, hand cream, mini hand sanitizer, baby wipes, mini shampoo and conditioner.
Medication – I like one set in my hand bag and one in my luggage (just in case). ( Dont forget medical certificates in duplicate from the doctor too).
Snacks that your kids will eat. Sometimes especially with fussy eaters or allergies it is hard to find food kids like to eat.

I like to travel as lightly as possible. I think I have all possibilities now covered!

Enjoy your trip!

A Perfect Bathroom for a Child With Physical Disabilities

A child’s home should be both safe and allow freedom of movement. That can be tricky to arrange if the child has a physical disability that impairs their mobility. One way to ensure a child’s freedom of movement is to put the most important rooms, like their bedroom and bathroom, on the main floor, so they won’t have to try to navigate stairs. However, the bathroom is a small space to navigate for any child with physical disabilities. Here are a few ways you can upgrade your bathroom to make it less hazardous for them.

Size matters

In order to accommodate a wheelchair, the bathroom will need at least 30 by 48 inches of clear floor space. The toilet seat should be no higher than 19 inches, and the sink and countertop should be no taller than 34 inches. The latter should also have space for the wheelchair to roll under them. The faucets need to be designed so the child can turn them with only one hand and a force of no more than five pounds of pressure.

Support rails

There needs to be support or guard rails near the toilet and in the shower within easy reach. They will provide enough support so the child can get off the toilet or in or out of the bathtub with little trouble. Most support rails or grab bars can support a person who weighs up to 250 pounds. Sheltering arm grab bars are attached to the toilet on both sides; many also have legs that extend to the floor to provide extra support.

Showerhead

The showerhead should have pressure balancing or anti-scald valves to reduce the risk of being burned by hot water. A pull-out or hand-held showerhead will allow the child to wash themselves while seated. Some showerheads have slide bars that allow the user to adjust the height.

Gel mats

Gel mats will prevent the child from slipping on a wet floor. They should be placed in the tub, just outside it, and near the sink and toilet. While this may not be necessary for wheelchair-bound children, others with muscular or mental disabilities can benefit greatly both from the aid against slipping, and the somewhat padded landing surface in the case that they do.

Open shower

The traditional closed shower is located either in a bathtub or is surrounded by walls. The open shower, by contrast, has no enclosures. It opens up space in the bathroom and is much easier to navigate. It is similarly easy to put a water-proof chair under the showerhead. The installation of hydro construction products like floor drains and shower grates can help you achieve this, leaving no bath or shower curbs to hurdle for your child.

Some of these modifications can be expensive. Fortunately, there are grants that people can use to pay for modifications designed to help a person with a disability.

Be Mindful in Nurturing Natural Talents in Children

Each and every one of us has some talent that comes naturally to us. For me, it is Carnatic music, a form of Indian classical music. I always loved music even as a child. But, to be honest, shy as I was, I enjoyed singing in the privacy of my home, more than anywhere else. And then I was introduced to Carnatic music as my mom officially got me into a music class.

I was the only kid in the class, so I had no choice but to sing out loud enough for at least the teacher to be able to hear me. And that was the first time I knew that music was my natural talent. I quickly progressed through the lessons, and my teacher could go as fast or as slow, depending on the pace that I set. Those were some wonderful years that I spent and both my talent and confidence grew, day after day.

I started singing more in public. The shy little girl in me took a back seat, as I started performing more for the audience. I would learn a new lesson, and walk back home with the new song running in my head. I was aware of the people around me staring and I cared less and less about what impression I was making on people walking in the street. To say those were the best times of my life would be an under statement.

But life took over and I ended up stopping my music lessons. I wasn’t aware of it then, but I was making the biggest mistake of my life. I have often wondered how my life could have been different if I had not quit my music lessons. I remember how sad my mom had been and I always wished I hadn’t let life disrupt the most beautiful moments of my life.

Parent’s role

Every child has something that comes naturally to them. For some it may be music, while for others it may be art or they may be an excellent writer. While academics play a very important role in their lives, as parents we also need to find out every single talent that comes naturally to our child.

Identifying the hidden talent

The most obvious talents such as writing, drawing or playing a musical instrument are easy to accept. But talents don’t always come in a very specific pattern. Take the example of a child who has been termed as the class clown.

On the outside, it may seem as if he is wasting away his life just by being silly. But on deeper examination, a parent may find that the child has a natural ability to make others laugh. This child could grow up to be a stand up comedian. As parents, we need to learn to keep an open mind about our child’s abilities.

Nurturing our child’s talents

We are already doing the best that we can to raise our child to be a well rounded individuals. Once the child’s natural abilities have been identified, it is up to the parents to provide the child with opportunities in the form of formal lessons.

This usually involves juggling schedules and dropping and picking them up from different activities. And if there is more than one child in the house, schedules can get very tricky. But the most important thing that a parent needs to remember is giving the child adequate time and energy to practice his/her skill.

Letting the child lead

The biggest mistake that a parent can make is dominating the child’s passion. Children have their own way of following their heart. We often think that just because we are older, we are more knowledgeable.

In the process, we often hinder the child’s natural abilities to make a decision. While it is good to keep reminding children to practice their skill, it works even better when the children are themselves motivated to work on their skill. The parent’s role is to gently shift the responsibilities on their child’s shoulder, constantly reminding them that they are way more capable than they think.

When interests change.

Not every child finds and sticks to one passion. Just like grown ups have changing interests, children are allowed to change their minds too. There are some kids who like to try everything before they pick one ability that they would like to develop. We may be raising a Jack-of-all-trades, and that may not be the end of the world.

As I grew older, I moved on to so many different interests and passions. I found that I had a natural ability to express my emotions in words. I also learnt that I could convert my love for books into another hobby of writing book reviews. Music is still a big part of my life. Both my children have musical abilities.

My older daughter is experimenting with musical instruments such as guitar and actively participates in her school chorus. My son, on the other hand, loves Carnatic music just as much as I did as a child. And as I attempt to guide and supervise their natural talents, I find myself continuing to develop my own talents and passions.

I have come to accept that learning is a life-long process and it doesn’t have to stop at any particular age.