Thru my heart

A chilly winter evening in December, I stood in the balcony breathing in some air as my little one took a nap. These few moments that I got for myself were indeed a bliss for a new mom. As my mom and I chatted away, I saw her silhouette. A little girl in a skirt who looked barely ten, she could just pass on for any other child in the apartment who was out to play like others of her age. But she wasn't playing or laughing away with her friends. She was pushing the stroller which had a little child seated within .I wasn't  able to see her face clearly. It was clear enough though that she was not a sister of the child but worked as a maid in their house. I feel rather ashamed to make this confession that a thought did arise in my mind that it would great if I could find a maid like that. We as a family have not been used to maids. We have only hired a maid to sweep and mop the floor as that is something we find it difficult to do daily. For any other work we have never hired c...

Body shaming It was a new word for me. I recall people being teased when were kids for being too fat " mota, dhola, fattie" and the thin ones sometimes" sukad bombil, skeleton" and similar names. It was the obese ones who were mostly the butt of jokes. Much has not changed rather things have gotten worst with people stooping down a level lower by liberally expressing their views against someone on Facebook and Twitter trolling.  I read an article recently that a lady who is on the healthier side visited a upmarket designer boutique in Bombay looking for a lehenga. She choose something but was curtly informed that they do not have that style in her size. She then asked where then do I go to buy this and the store assistant told her " go to the gym" she was so stunned and obviously hurt that she left speechless. But her family friend who was accompanying her could not let this matter pass. He posted this incident on Facebook and also wrote a mail to the o...

Though we have come a long way from the days when women's primary responsibility was taking care of the house, rearing kids and cooking for everyone. Women have given wings to their dreams,conquered great heights, learnt to multi task their family and professional requirements, they have shattered the glass ceiling and it makes me very proud to be a part of this revolution. But have you paused and noticed while as women at the workplace we want to give our best shot at all times,there might be situations or circumstances which require us to take a break, pause and give ourselves some time off work. Some of them may be: 1) The most common in most cases is pregnancy where there might be health issues. Even though all woman may not face them, she might face those dull and difficult days where giving her best at work may not be possible.  2) The life changing event of having a baby - linked to the first point. It's a known fact that after a baby comes life changes in a big way...

What do you want to be when you grow up? I want to be a pilot, no I want to be that pop star, or maybe an astronaut who works at NASA or I want to be a scientist and discover something that will change the world. Children and their aspirations. They keep changing and evolving and what a joy it is to see them grow, chuckle at their innocent dreams but as parents it's also important to ask ourselves "are we prepared financially in all respects to fulfil their dreams?" When I was young and was asked this question I once said a doctor and then I was gfascinated by Madhuri Dixit and wanted to dance like her.Well, I ended up as none of these but I think a Chartered Accountant is pretty good and what amazes me is I could complete my professional course at a cost of a meagre Rs50k(I see some wide eyeballs, 50,000 is not a meagre sum i know, but looking at kindergarten fees these days, I would say its miniscule in comparison). The mounting fees- right from school fees to tuition c...

A smile which will melt a million hearts A touch so sweet that makes my heart cry with joy We waited each day to see your pretty face 2 tiny hands and tiny feet, eyes like sparkling diamonds Petite nose and rosy lips Welcome to our world little princess You have brought us joys untold "Its a baby girl just as you wished for"- as  I heard these words uttered by the nurses at Cloud Nine, I broke into tears, tears of such exuberance as I had never felt before, my little Angel whom I had dreamt of was now with me. I had always wished for my first child to be a baby girl.Not that I'm prejudiced against boys,  I would definitely love for her to have a little brother (and wish that they share the special bond that I share with my younger brother). But a girl child always had this teeny weeny extra special place in my heart. I vividly remember the days which I spent waiting for you, the animated discussions mom and I had about you each day , looking  forward t...

4 months of maternity leave 4 months of paid leave. 4 months of paid leave at the world's top investment bank.Wah!Aish hai! This is what I got from most of my colleagues. The guys were envious and probably wishing that they could get such a long paid leave. I too was super excited about having my baby and the 4 long n luxurious months that I will spend with him/her. I was grossly wrong as I discovered very soon. O what a hard hitting shock it was and I was so mad at my mum, my friends and cousins for no one told me the truth about " the first 3 months ". "You are going to become a mother. It's the most enriching experience".that's all they said throughout my pregnancy. Not once did any of them caution me about the dark tunnel.There will be light at end of the tunnel but the dark and dreaded tunnel which seems to stretch so long, well no one spoke about that. Don't get me wrong, being a mother is awesome and I love this new role. But with the aw...

There goes a saying that every daughter is her father's princess. In my case I have been twice blessed by Almighty as I am the princess of not only my dad but also my grandfather.  It is often said that grandparents love their grandchildren more dearly than parents. "Dadaji" is what I used to fondly call him though in reality he was my nanaji (mom's dad).                             I was the first child in our family and was showered with abundant love by my doting parents and grandparents. For Dadaji it was the birth of a child in the family after 23 years (the last one was that of my mother). He was extremely fond of kids. For the first 2 years of my life we all lived together. Frankly I don't recollect much about those years but my mother always talks of those beautiful memories and how he took care of me. After my younger brother was ...

"I have enough clothes and shoes, I don't need to go shopping" said no woman ever, one of the amusing quotes from Sophie Kinsella's Shopaholic series. For those who are not familiar with the author, a bit of background. She has written the famous Shopaholic series which is a witty and comical book that captures the life of Becky Bloomwood, the girl next door and her immense love for shopping which she can't resist. Of  course she goes to some extremes ending up laden in debt, but Becky is someone that all we shopaholics can identify with. I truly enjoyed reading the series and look forward to more books. I am a shopping buff and am always eager to explore more efficient and economical ways to shop. With the spurt in e commerce, online shopping has become one of the fastest growing trends and gaining acceptance amongst more people. I have been experimenting with it since the past 2 years and have come up with my own list of tips and tricks. I  have no second th...

"I'm going to be a mother. There's a precious little life growing inside me. How amazing." As soon as the good news has sunk in, the first and foremost thought that hits us is finding a good gynecologist. This is by no means an easy task and I request you, please do not take it lightly. In fact exercise utmost care and make sure you have done your due diligence before you decide to settle for someone. For, this is going to be a journey of 9 long months and it ain't easy. Based on my personal experience I feel these 5 points are imperative in choosing the right gynec 1) As most of us are covered by insurance these days, we tend to go to hospitals specialising in birthing or other multi speciality hospitals. I personally prefer a hospital specialising in birthing as it would definitely have all the requisite facilities under one roof. It is imperative that the neo natal unit is in the hospital itself. I've known of friends who had to go through nightmares ...

One of the things that you hear from your new born's pediatrician most probably during your first visit is to give the baby some tummy time daily. To elaborate it, tummy time is placing the baby on their tummy for sometime which has numerous benefits. It gives the baby a new view. In fact to make it more effective, you can lie down beside the little one with your face pressed against the bed so that the baby can see your face in proximity. This also helps bonding. Apart from this, it helps strengthens the baby's muscles at the back which will help the baby roll over, crawl and sit at a later stage.  Of cos this entire activity has to be done under full time adult supervision.  My daughter Angel  enjoyed her tummy time but got restless in few minutes and had to be turned over. One day, out of the blue she turned on her tummy and lifted her head. O what a beauty! The most wonderful mommy moments lie in these little milestones that our babies achieve. The euphoric feelin...

As you grow older you realise that your mom is the best friend you ever had. I read this on facebook a couple of days back and it immediately struck a chord with me. I felt it aptly described my relationship with my mom. It's a unique bond that I share with her not just as daughter and mother but as friends. Someone with whom I can talk with about anything and everything under the sun ranging from my professional life challenges to my personal life anecdotes, my best buddy to go on a guilt free shopping spree, gossip the usual girly stuff, the list is endless. We have gone on holidays, just the 2 of us and o what fun filled times we had! Some people are perplexed when I tell them that I go for movies and vacations with my mom, I have seen surprised stares from some... wish they knew how amazing it is to share such a beautiful bond with your mother. To them I would say you are not fortunate enough to experience this. She is great source of inspiration for me. Her optimistic outl...

At times, when I reminiscence my childhood days, though most of them are filled with wonderful moments , there are those few memories which still invoke some negative feelings and make me cringe. Though I am a matured person now and maybe I should just shake it off as harmless childhood pranks but somehow I am not able to get past it. I am a dusky complexioned girl and we all know about the super crazy obsession of Indians for fair skin, well its sad that this colour bias is so prevalent in our country that even children are not spared. I had to bear the brunt of it throughout my school days. I think it started bit late as in the time I schooled, children were not that fast paced as today's generation. And to add to my woes, I wore glasses. So there comes the chasmis blackie girl. If someone said this to me today, I would give them a piece of my mind and wouldn't mind whacking them as well but when this actually happened to me I think I lacked the maturity and courage to deal...

Undoubtedly,it is a matter of personal choice of working or staying at home. In my case I have always worked and these 4 months of maternity leave is the longest break I have ever taken. Suffering from Monday morning blues is common for every working person and I am no exception to that. The eagerness with which I wait for Friday, and when it finally dawns after what seems an eternity, what a joyous contagious feeling it brings with it. 2 days of no early morning alarm, 2 days to laze around and  while away(not any longer since I became a Mom though).But as always, it ends too fast and when its Sunday evening, the dready feeling creeps in. Despite all this I still vouch for working and these 4months (weren't easy and where the first three were lost in sleepless nights and baby bawls, I still haven't figured out) made me realise that if I introspect on this, there are definitely many perks of being a working woman. Infact I have learnt life's valuable lessons in the corpor...