Monthly Archives: May 2017

Travel Stress free via flight with my 10 tips to fly with a toddler.

I always love to travel and explore. Lucky to have found a partner who enjoys it as much and now with a baby its more hard work to travel but we won’t give it up anyhow!

I have observed that most parents get super hyper when it comes to traveling with babies and kids especially on an international flight! If you plan it well, then it can really be managed and you no longer have to wait for them to grow up before you can continue exploring your passion for travel.

I don’t take any guarantee but I can surely say this – with a little planning ahead you can absolutely have a wonderful family time on an international trip! Many of you have also asked me on how I managed an international flight with a baby? So today am sharing our experience and as a result, some tips to fly with babies.

traveling with toddler

traveling with toddlers

 

 

 

 

We took our first International trip to Bintan Islands in Indonesia in August 2016 and Kenisha was then just 15 months old. She was still crawling on her knees and we knew we had to carry her around in our arms if we have to hop over from one place to the other.

Our journey was quite tiring – starting with a 6-hour flight from Delhi to Kuala Lumpur, connecting flight of 3 hours flight to Singapore and then immediately rush to catch a Ferry to Bintan Island straight from the airport. Door to Door, we were traveling for close to 20 hours! With our experience and learning here is a checklist for new parents that we came up with. It will be our go-to list for the upcoming travel too

1. Baby on Board – Firstly check the flight details and check their website on the allowance for baby luggage. Ideally, you will be paying less for babies under 2. Most international flights allow easy to fold strollers. But do read up about your destination and if its stroller friendly? Else you will be carrying a useless piece of equipment. Next – Ensure it’s tagged correctly! Ours went missing in a connecting flight! Luckily I was carrying an Ergonomic carrier by Kol Kol Carriers that helped!

2. One for the Road – Planning and then some extra planning – Always good to carry extra than repent! Make a small baby bag with extra clothes, wipes, bibs and whatever you usually need on daily basis. Ensure you carry an extra t-shirt for yourself too! Trust me you don’t want to smell of vomit or even worse if anything happens during the travel. Don’t forget plastic bags (for disposing of the diapers and in case of clothes get really dirty)

3. For the Rainy day – Put enough in your carry-on bags for the first day or 2 of your trip. We had a nightmare when we found out that one of our suitcase (carrying baby and my clothes) went missing. I had exactly 8 diapers left and one t-shirt for the baby. We struggled hard and luckily our suitcase came in the next connecting flight and was handed over to us the same night! Phew. Lesson learned.

4. Pick the right seat – Ask for a baby-friendly seat. If you are a breastfeeding Mom like me you can do with some privacy at a window seat or also take a seat in last few rows to access the toilet for regular diaper changes without bothering anyone. It’s also a great spot to pick up a crying baby and try to calm them down without disturbing too many passengers.

5. Check in early – This one goes without saying. Don’t follow the mom standard time. Calculate 1.5 hours extra and check-in. It can help with sudden bouts of sleep regressions, unexpected diaper explosions, and more such issues. Make you of the early boarding calls especially for travelers with kids. Get in quickly; stack up your luggage with easy access for later use. Plan your spot and then sit and relax.

6. Keep the Meds handy – Now with a baby ensure you carry a copy of his / her vaccination card plus any other test reports you may think is needful. Have all your OTC medicines ready especially common cold cough and fever. I prefer to make a list of medicines and prescribed dosage after consulting without pediatrician. This should be in your baby bag and always in your reach.

7. Stuff up some yummy Food – Since Miss K was still breastfeeding it was the perfect way to help with takeoffs and landing. In case of formula, always carry an extra pack and a bottle in case you lose one. Apart from that arm yourself with plenty of travel-friendly snacks. I picked small packs of flavored yogurts and kept simple fruits!! It is worth bringing a few candies or lollipops to help with the pressure change during taking off and landing). Some child-friendly cookies from Slurrpfarm would be my next bet for the upcoming travel!

8. Check for the kids’ play area – Long flight at odd hours cannot always be avoided during international travel. Our Flight to KL was at 12 am. So to keep K busy we found a small yet super awesome play area at the Delhi International Airport. She had not yet started walking independently then but she was very enthusiastic to walk holding my hand or with support and enjoy all the rides! She crawled all over the place and it helped to tire her down! No points guessing that she slept through the 6-hour flight!

9. Comfort First! Don’t get cute and dress your little girl in a fluffy tutu or fancy bows. An uncomfortably dressed child is an unhappy child! T-shirts and loose pajamas are best. Ensure you carry layers for the airplane air conditioning may give her chills! Even better, carry a light blanket or a stole that doubles as a cover when breastfeeding as well

10. Entertainment makes it fun – In-flight, entertainment can come to a rescue but just in case your kid is not in a mood, make sure you are equipped to handle a bored and restrained tod! Especially with babies it’s tough to contain them in a limited space.

More than real toys, mine is happier with stickers, tapes or just random catalogs on flights as she loves books. Keep small yet simple toys and hand them over one at a time only to keep it exciting. If there is a favourite toy, don’t forget to carry 2nd favorite for the return in case it’s lost.

These ideas did work for us and we are still learning with every trip we make with our little girl. I will be very excited to hear about your travel stories and how you worked on ideas for your baby?

In case you are looking for a quick getaway, this summer vacation do read about our experience to a 3 days trip to Amritsar and things to do HERE

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Books for kids- Now Personalized with their name!

Finding perfect books for your kids can be a daunting affair especially when you were never a reader yourself. But with little research you can find a beautiful list of books and I will be sharing more about the books Kenisha has enjoyed reading as a baby.
When someone cribs that their children don’t enjoy reading kids books. Which books for kids are suitable for what age? They ask. Well, it’s now! I always quote -“There is no such thing as a kid who hates reading. There are kids who love reading, and the kids who are reading the wrong books.” James Patterson

As a child, I never developed a habit of reading books, outside of my study curriculum. Which compelled me to ensure I help Kenisha develop an affinity towards reading from an early age. This desire took me on a journey to experiment with various types of books ever since she was just 2.5 months old – picture books, feel and touch books and very recently graduating to storybooks.

 
 

While doing my research, I recently stumbled upon a brand which is adding a personal touch to this learning experience. Bookyboo allows you to customize story books for children where our child becomes the protagonist. You should have seen how excited Kenisha was to see her name and how the storyline instantly got itched onto her memory. The level of customization works at two levels:

1. My Adventure Bookyboo – This is a personalized storybook based on the letters that constitute your child’s name. The protagonist is none other than your little devil, who is on a treasure hunt across India to discover letters which will help them complete their name. While uncovering clues on this quest, they meet various characters which become a part of the story telling experience. I am told that this book caters to children in the age group of 0-8 years.

2. Fun Family Bookyboo – As the name suggests, now you too will have a skin in the game! While the child remains the protagonist, you have the family members also getting space in the canvas – be is two children or a single parent. The story takes your child on an adventurous journey through a jungle to rescue the parents from the cruel Evilor. Through the storyline, children are taught aspects such as family values, life values such as love, kindness and courage, building relationships and teamwork. At the same time it is aimed at enhancing their vocabulary. This version is ideal for children in the age group of 2-9 years.

Finalizing my selection was an easy process for me. Not only could I preview the complete customized book online after punching in details such as name, age and gender of Kenisha, but I also knew how much she loves animals. No points for guessing that I opted for Fun Family Bookyboo! The delivery was pretty quick as well.

Before introducing her to the new customized bookyboo, I tried to create some excitement. I explained explaining Kenisha that we will be getting a new book about baby Kenisha and her Dino, who will have to collectively find her Mumma and Dadda with some help from a few animals. It immediately caught her attention because she saw this little girl on the cover whom she calls Kenny! And she is fascinated with Dino off late (I think it’s post watching some parts of Jurrasic Park on TV)

Its been a month now and Kenisha absolutely enjoys reading this book with me. Her favourite sections in the story are the Crocodile ride across the river and meeting the chimpanzees, one of whom is named Cheeky. Introducing and warming up to a new book is an important task with younger children. Once they absorb and understand the story you will be surprised as they try to narrate the same to you on your next read!

So even though the book has 46 pages, it is impossible to read through it all for child under 3 as per me. But the illustrations and pictures are pretty dramatic and full of colour. They instantly attract the child. With some imaginative storytelling I could weave a shorter version of the story to keep her engaged. Kenisha is thrilled when she finally finds mama and dada at the end!

Apart from the personalization I love how we can print a special message for the child on the first page. It makes a perfect gift. And the quality of the paper is absolutely fabulous. Love the thick and sturdy textured paper and the full landscape size illustration spreads on this A4 book.

On a whole I think this book is everything a child would love growing up with. A book about him/her with a special message from a loved one!

I hope you do visit bookyboo.com to experience the beautiful idea of creating a personalized book for your children or even better gift it to someone. Afterall books are best friends for life.

Find more reviews HERE

Customize your own cosmetic product

Would you like to customize your own cosmetic products? Then Read on..

How often have you stumbled upon a personal care product in the market and thought if it could have been customized to your need rather than being bucketed into broader categories? I have a sensitive skin and always longed to have this flexibility. Moreover, an organic version is always a cherry on the cake.

  
customised beauty products

Beautiful Packaging

But there is someone who saw an opportunity in this and innovated an organic personal care product line which allows you to customize a product based on your skin and hair type. Thanks to Bhakti Arora, a 28 year old entrepreneur, who launched the brand Freshistry and introduced us to healthy, organic and customized products delivered fresh at our doorsteps. The passion with which she speaks about the concept, reminds me of my early days as an entrepreneur.          
customised beauty products

customised beauty products

                    A month ago when I was approached to do a trial and brew my own cosmetic product, I was quite excited to try the concept and immediately placed the order online. The website interface is pretty user friendly and I did not have to struggle to figure out the process I have to follow.

Freshistry has 4 core products to offer:

  1. Cream
  2. Hair cleanser
  3. Lotion
  4. Face Cleanser

To customize the product you need to choose your

  • skin/scalp type
  • Herbs to suit your skin/scalp
  • Colours / tinge for the packaging
  • Fragrance
  • And you can name your customized product type as well

I was happy to get my hands dirty in the making of the product and eagerly waited for it to arrive at my doorstep in 4-5 days.

customised beauty products

Apart from the excitement, the first impression was definitely pleasant. Neat and thoughtful packaging with a tag bearing your name. The satin pouches are a total keepsakes.

I had got the Keratine smoothening treatment done 10 months ago and the damages were showing so I wanted to try their hair cleanser. I picked a hair cleanser for Normal scalp with Cream base which helps control the frizz. My chosen herb was Basil which prevents dryness and breakage of hair, exactly what I was going through. After choosing a Lavender tinge and a fruitilicious fragrance I was ready to get my Hair Cleanser brewed! And just for Rs.375? It’s a deal.

 

customised beauty products

I also received a cream with Borage which is a Natural Skin Moisturiser as a part of my kit! Thanks @freshistry. the good part is we can use the same fresh potion with it. Isn’t that so amazing! So basically you need to add the fresh potion to the base whether cream, lotion or hair cleaner and then mix and apply. The potion comes with a dropper top so its easy to use and it would surely last enough for the bottle to finish.

After using them for almost a month now, I have become quite fond of them. The hair cleanser really delivered what it promised. It did help control the dandruff, the frizz and giving me a healthy volume and shine. The cream made my skin a bit oily during the day so I started using it before going to bed and as a result I had a supple soft skin in the morning. Just to set the expectations right, don’t expect your fresh potion rich in aroma as it uses pure hydrosol, which essentially means pure herbal extract with no fragrance.

Lovely concept, effective products which show results. What more do you need? I would recommend that you try them to see if they work for you. Just like the name their products are fresh and exciting! Also they have free consultation guide to help you pick a suitable product. Click HERE to grab a free consultation.

You can find them on Instagram and Facebook too.

Click HERE to read more reviews by us.