Tuesday, March 31, 2015

A Bookalicious Tuesday : Alphabet Dressup ABC

Book:  Alphabet Dressup ABC
Author: Nalini Sorensen
Illustrations: Shraddha Pimputkar
For ages: 3-5 years




Why we picked it and what was our reaction: I usually do not pick any Indian publications, just because Z and me haven't taken much liking for them as yet. Books by Fun OK Please are an exception though. I loved the illustrations and concept, hence I picked the book up immediately. The fact that Z is a huge fan of dressing up herself also helped. She doesn't need a costume, she fetches something from around the house and uses her imagination. That is exactly what the book promotes and we love it.


BZM Take: The first thing that we noticed were the super cute illustrations by  Shraddha Pimputkar. This book is super creative and so much fun. 

Being a phonetic trainer, I don't pick many books which use alphabets, because they do not give importance to sound... I can't just tell Z, X is for xylophone for example, just yet. This books is phonetically correct as well. We love the fact that the illustrations in the book are pretty gender neutral. This was a huge plus for me as a mum. 

You can play as you read, one needs to find hidden sounds on each page. There is another game in the end, which adds up to the fun.

The book is associated with The Cuddles Foundation, which works with children whose life has been affected by cancer.

BZM gives Alphabet Dressup ABC an 8/10


Tuesday, March 24, 2015

BZM Bookalicious Tuesdays - Corduroy


Another book I read as a child and now I'm reading it to Z. I love reliving my childhood with Z.

Book:  Corduroy
Author: Don Freeman
For ages: 3-5 years

Why we picked it and what was our reaction: We had to, I never miss a chance of reading a book I enjoyed as a child to Z. I was just waiting for the right time.

BZM Take: I have loved Corduroy and Z likes it as well. I tell her a little story after every page we read in the book and Z loves it. I have so many memories associated with the book. The book has lovely 'old school' illustrations, the story is simple yet beautiful. What I love about the book is its honesty and simplicity.

BZM gives Corduroy a 9/10, its not Z's absolute favorite (I wanted to give it a perfect 10, but let us be fair)


Friday, March 20, 2015

I'm having a bad, that is a reason enough…

Image courtesy: Ask Emma

We parents are known as selfless, giving, emotional fools, who give it all to their children. We can do anything and everything for them.... wait-wait-WAIT. Does that really happen? OK happens often (sometimes), does that always happen... I don't think so.

I don't know what happened in the 'olden days' when we were kids, but now-a-days, all of us are so busy. 
 
We need time for work, we take out time for social networking, we even plan our holidays. All of this adds on to stress in our already busy and stressful lifestyle. I mean even planning a vacation has become stressful, so you need to get stressed to de-stress yourself…. hmmmmm… interesting.
 
What happens when we get stressed? We take it till we can handle it all and then ... boom! It all comes out as rage or anger or a rant and on the receiving end are our loved ones. We take it out on our spouse, (who is expected to act maturely and understand the situation, well s/he does the same…) our parents.  The worst thing to happen is taking it out on kids (especially when they are younger)... easy target, gullible, we can easily apologies to them (or not), and they will be back to normal... I mean, they can't just do without their parents, right? WRONG!!!
 
What wrong have they done? Why should they be at the receiving end? Why should they bear the consequences, because we are stressed? I used to do the same, I used to take it all out on Z, and I can't express how bad I felt when I realized that I was wrong... the good thing is, I realized before it was too late, but the thought of going back there still haunts me.
 
How did realize, well, couple of things, the number of time I shouted at her without any fault of hers increased and Z always responded with  "I'm not talking to you". That broke my heart into a million pieces. I heard Z tell someone, 'Mamma always likes shouting," that was like a slap on my face. I knew, most of the time I shouted was because I was worked up and Z was just acting normally.
 
With Z, the thing is, she goes all out there to make sure, I know she isn't happy with the way I behaved and it was no fault of hers. Now when I want some peace of mind, I just go away from Z for a couple of minutes, these minutes work miraculously to cool me down.
 
In our relationship with our child, aren't we supposed to be the more mature one? The parent? The grown up? How can we just give it out to them, and expect them to not feel bad? These kids are also human beings...
 
At times, we might feel, it is OK to shout at our kids when we are having a bad day, but it isn't... it isn't fair. Your bad day is your problem, not your child's... it's as simple as that.

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

BZM Bookalicious Tuesdays - Madeline

Book:  Madeline
Author: Ludwig Bemelmans
For ages: 4+



Why we picked it and what was our reaction: Childhood memories... lots of them attached with Madeline, I had to introduce this one to Z. I wish, I had the book I owned as a child. I have still not outgrown Madeline, still enjoy it as much.

BZM Take: We love Madeline, I want to introduce other books in the series to her as well. Z has recently learned about Paris and Eiffel Tower, she loves the book all the more now. Some people say its for girls, I would beg to differ. I have seen boys enjoy it as much. Z says Madeline is just like her and I believe so too.

BZM Madeline Moment: As many of you might be aware, Madeline gets operated and proudly shows her scar, I showed Z my scar (I got from the Cesarean), Z said "Oh! Mumsy, you should have let me be in your tummy. This must have hurt so much."

BZM gives: Nothing, but a perfect 10!


Wild Karnataka – Experience

We were ecstatic when we got to know we were going to see  Wild Karnataka.  It was a long trip to Vega City mall, Bannerghetta Road, Benga...