Power of praise..try it with your child

Last week I was waiting for my turn at a doctor’s clinic, when I chanced upon an article in a magazine. It made me think about a topic I had never associated with parenting..praise. The article speaks about how praise, if used in the right way, plays a vital role in boosting your child’s confidence levels. As human beings,we all have an inborn need to feel loved and appreciated. As parents we some times forget that children define themselves based on what their parents or peers think about them. They are more likely to turn out into what they constantly visualize themselves to be. I found the ways  suggested by the magazine, to weave praise into our daily lives, very practical and doable. Here are a couple of them. Instead of saying vague things let him know what exactly you are appreciating. So if he helps you lay the table, instead of saying’ you are the sweetest child in the world’; try “that was very helpful of you, mama felt very happy when you helped” This will help the child understand why he  is being praised. In most cases appreciation works better if done privately, rather than in front of everyone. This will avoid situations where the child will feel embarrassed or spark sibling rivalry. Another thing most parents need to be aware of is what they speak of, behind the child’s back. Put off discussing negative behavior till you are sure the child cannot over hear. So try tapping the potent power of praise. You will be surprised by the results.. I was!!!

Sneaky ways to introduce healthy snacks for kids

For most of us mothers, unhealthy snacking among kids is a reality we face on a daily basis. Fuelled by a daily dose of advertisements and peer pressure, all kinds of processed food find their way into their daily diet. My son was also introduced to this kind of snacking when he started preschool; so it was like “Amma, Nikhil has got chips for break time I want ‘just like that only chips for snacks’.. you get the picture. There were nights when I would lay awake wondering which of the “forbidden foods” he would be introduced to the next day!!! Finally it dawned on me that “if you can’t beat ‘em join em!!!”. That’s when I began to look out for alternative home made substitutes. It is a slow process but the results are worth the effort. My son enjoys these two substitutes most times.

When he wants something crunchy like potato chips, I entice him with chatpata puffed rice chat –sauté puffed rice in a little oil until crisp (don’t over fry), keep aside. Sauté shredded carrot, boiled sweet corn kernels (I use saffal frozen corn), thinly sliced yellow and red capsicum for color... basically any colorful veggies in bite sized pieces in a little oil; add a little chat masala, salt and lemon juice. Mix with the puffed rice and serve hot.

Whole wheat crackers topped with flavored cheese spread with a topping of your choice and zapped in the microwave is another option.

When he wanted ice cream every day I tried out a recipe I read in a magazine and it was very successful. Mix pureed fruit pulp into yogurt, add honey and freeze and scoop out servings into a bowl using an ice cream scoop (to retain some level of authenticity!!)

Please send me any sneaky snacking recipe which you may have tried out!!!!

Let us join hands in this noble endeavor!!!!

Unlikely Hero

If any one were to ask my son, about his favorite superheroes (yes he has a list of them)

they would be very surprised. Of course there is the ‘chota Bheem” “spiderman” “BenTen” array; but among them, one stands out for the mere reason that my “superior adult mind’ would never have put him in this category. He is my son’s auto driver or auto uncle as he is fondly known as. It all came to light when a well meaning guest asked nachikaet what he wanted to be when he grew up. pat came the reply..”auto uncle’ . The guest and I were equally bewildered. To him, the way his auto uncle maneuvers around traffic to get him to school on time, screams at people who dares to delay their daily jaunts, allows him to drive the auto on by lanes is nothing short of heroic. It set me thinking that if we allow ourselves to look at world around us, through our children’s’ eyes once in a while, I’m sure we can see a hero in the most unlikely places. My son made me realize that the world we live in has so much to teach us if only we choose to open our eyes and ears to its marvels

An ‘after school energizer’ smoothie for kids

Last week my friend’s 8 year old came home exhausted from school at 4pm ..what with sports , extra curricular and projects children nowadays are seriously loaded with work. With a quick “hi’ to me he flung his bag down and yelled”Amma no snacks today gimme energizer” My friend gave me a triumphant smile and sailed to the kitchen. This is what she whipped up:

1 .Banana (med sized ) ripe – sliced 2
2 Cottage cheese(panner) ½ cup
3 Milk 1and ¼ cup
4 Dry fruits of your choice ..i used 1tsp almond powder(almonds roasted without oil and ground in a dry mixie jar to a fine powder ..can be stored for 2 weeks) and 1tbsp lion dates syrup)
You can use whole dates, presoaked almonds, figs,apricots..what ever your child fancies.( 3-4 nos)
5 Seasonal fruit of choice ½ cup
6 Ice cubes, large ½ cup
7 sugar/honey (optional)

Method
Wrap the banana slices in a foil and freeze them over night or for a couple of hours.

Mix the frozen bananas with the milk, fruits, dry fruits and cottage cheese. Blend till the consistency is smooth, adding more milk if required. Add ice cover and blend again.
Refrigerate this mixture if using later or serve immediately. You can garnish it with strawberry or slivered almonds or chocolate shavings(grated chocolate)

This is a thick shake. It provides energy and hydration when children are not in a mood to eat normal meals. Nachikaet loves this shake. I’ve invented a name for it and he thinks it’s a magic potion which will grow muscles. It is a sight to see him run to the mirror immediately after drinking to see if his biceps have “grown”.. will post the picture soon

a delicious lunch box recipe

Apple and carrot sandwich
This is one of my son’s favorite lunch box meal. I chanced upon it in one of my mom’s Tarla Dalal cook book collection. At first it seemed like an unusual combination but my doubts vanished when it got rave reviews from my son’s expanding English vocabulary
(He used up the two words he knows to express delight .. ‘wow’ and ‘too good”). This makes a tasty, nutritious and filling lunch box meal on those time strapped mornings

Ingredients
Bread – 9 slices
Apple spread
1 small apple grated
1tbsp cheese spread
Salt and pepper to taste
Carrot spread
¾ cup grated carrot
2tbsp cheese spread
salt and pepper

method
1.Lightly warm the bread slices
2.Apply apple spread on one slice of bread. Sandwich with another slice
3.Apply carrot spread on the slice and sandwich with a third slice of bread
4.Repeat to make two more sandwiches
5.Remove the crusts and and cut into triangles
6.Can be served warm or cold..tastes good either way.

Dinosaur mania

It all started when my son stumbled upon a copy of child’s first library series in my in-laws’ place. It had been a gift given to my husband and occupied a place of pride in a locked glass cabinet. I let him choose a book and he chose a book of dinosaurs, mesmerized by a giant “T-rex” on the cover. That was the beginning..he was completely hooked. The dinosaur book replaced all the time tested favorite reads. It was bedtime stories , before school stories, lunchtime stories all rolled into one!!! Soon we were having conversations that would put any self respecting paleontologist to shame. So it was apatosaurus with an 80 bone tail, and stegosaurus with bony plates and maiasauras with materanal instincts that ruled our little world . The icing on the cake goes to…well his b’day cake which was(no marks for guessing!!) a menacing looking T Rex…the last thing those cute frilly frocks piggy tailed girls who attended it might have expected..still it was a great cake..take a look. The mania rages on...

Back with a bang!!!!

I’m back in "blogosphere' after a brief hibernation; the reasons for which are just too long and boring to waste my time (or for that matter anybody’s time) detailing it. So its back to business from today. Happy blogging!!!