Constipation Remedies and Fiber Rich foods for Toddlers

As I said in my previous post, I started doing some research about fiber rich foods.
Here is what the kids need in terms of fiber to keep the constipation at bay.

• Toddlers (1-3 years old) should get 19 grams of fiber each day.
• Kids 4-8 years old should get 25 grams a day.

Some of the below foods I started giving Megha are. 

1. One medium pear with skin: Contains 5.5 grams of fiber
2. Small apple with skin: 3.6 grams
3. medium banana: 3.1 grams
4. One TBSP Chia and Flax seed powder: 4 grams
5. 1/2 cup cooked green peas: 4.4 grams
6. 1.2 cups of Spinach: 8 grams
7. 1/2 cup cooked carrots: 2.5
8. 1 cup Broccoli: 5.1 grams
9. 1/4 Oats: 4 grams
10. 1/2 cup moong dal (whole green gram): 3.3 grams
11. 1/2 Toor dal: 1.25 grams
12. 1 slice Whole grain Bread: 2.8 grams
13. Wheat Bran 2 tbsp: 4.5 grams (add to yogurt/milk)

First Haircut tips for toddlers

Megha had her very first hair cut on Saturday the 7th, June 2014. Well, if you dont count her Tonsure ceremony in her 9th month. I wanted shoulder length hair but since she has really curly hair, it was hard for me to brush it everyday. It would have been ok if she let me, but she never lets me do her hair without fuss.
So, Anand and I decided we will get her hair a little short.

When we were little, I remember that my mom used to brush my hair really well before going to the hair dresser. She used to say that since the hair is without any knots, it wouldnt hurt when the hair dresser tries to brush the hair. Its the little things that get passed down by generations isnt it?
I brushed Megha's hair too before going to the hair dresser and told her that mom also did the same to me.

I booked an appointment at a kids salon and we set off!

Before leaving, Anand took a few pictures of her full hair! Here it is :)

Here is megha at the salon...she was sitting in a beautiful red car.

Her very first cut!!! She said, "Oh daddy, where are ya"...when she was cutting the hair.

Here she is after! She hasnt cried one bit! My big girl! So proud of you baby! We bought a few really cute hair clips (but ofcourse) and we left the salon. Here she is!

We also got a first hair cut Certificate!

There was a main street festival going. Since it was just megha and I, I couldnt stop for long. Here she is dancing to the live music on the main street festival.

Did I say First Hair cut Tips? Well, its just my moms tips which I did on Megha and I hope that one day, she would do what I did :)

1. Brush the toddlers hair well before taking her to the salon.
2. Wash her hair after returning from the salon.
3. Dont take her for haircut on Tuesday (old myth).

Constipation remedies

Megha suffers from this constipation every now and then. This morning it was s terrible :( Poor baby was suffering so much! I called my grand ma (Chandra leela tathi)and she gave me a couple of suggestions which helped megha a LOT! Here are some constipation remedies:

1. Prunes (effective, I give this to Megha everyday)
2. Castor oil massage on tummy
3. Bubble bath with extra bubbles after castor oil massage. This was the suggestion from my grand ma and behold...she pooed right away!
4. Well mashed banana with a pinch of sugar. (grand ma's advise)
5. Plenty of water every day.

Recipe for Kajal

As modern as we might all be in every other aspect, when it comes to our own children we don't want to take ANY chances. In South India we believe that, "buri nazaer/drishti/bad-eye" might befall a baby if she doesn't apply a bindi. So we make this bindi at home itself so that apart from benefiting from the fact that this is totally chemical free, it also acts as a coolant.
This post is written in anticipation that some mom somewhere wants to get a chemical free solution for kajal for her baby.
Below is the process of making kajal at home. This process had been passed on from generation to generation in my family and every child in my family had used this. In case your concern is only chemicals for you not to use kajal…here is our families secret.

1. Take 4x4 inch clean muslin cloth.
2. Dip this muslin cloth in sandal wood paste.
3. Dry this in shade.
4. After the cloth is dried, dip this again in the sandal wood paste and let it dry in shade.
5. Repeat this process from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Basically from sun rise to sun set. (The muslin would have accumulated a lot of sandal wood paste by then.)
6. After sun set, make a wick of this muslin and light in Castor oil. We light this in a mud lamp (new, slightly big one)…the one we use to light during Diwali.
7. Take a brass vessel (make sure you use ONLY brass vessel) and cover this lamp, leaving some room for oxygen to assist the lamp to burn. We normally keep a small stone at the base of the vessel for this.
8. Leave it burning over night.
9. The next morning, carefully remove the soot deposited on the roof of the brass vessel.
10. To this soot, add 2 drops of pure ghee (drops depend on how much soot is deposited)…add so many drops which will bring the soot to paint consistency.
11. Store this in a tight container in a cool, dry place.
12. Every time you want to apply kajal/bindi for a baby, add a few drops of water and leave it aside for a few mins. Then, gently rub your finger into the kajal mix and apply a little on your little ones forehead/ behind the ear or what ever is your tradition.

There are absolutely no chemicals in this. This is Ayurveda and is an excellent coolant.

How to clip nails of an Infant

Any mom would be terrified the first time she has to clip her little one's nails. I was no exception; what if I cut her soft skin? what if i make the wrong move and hurt her? All sorts of nightmares started bothering me. I had done a lot of research and took advises from friends and family. Finally a nurse who came to visit Megha advised me that I should not clip infants nails but I have to file them. I was sooooo relieved to hear it! Here is what worked for me; I am writing this down, in case some mom, somewhere is in the same predicament at some time in future.

1. Give her a warm bath; this will soften her soft nails even further!
2. Feed her, burp her and put her to sleep.
3. When she is fast asleep, gently take her (one) finger in your hand and gently pull down the flesh underneath her nail. This step is important so that you file just her nail without touching her skin underneath it.
4. File her nail backwards (file outwards of her nail, you know what I mean?)
5. Make sure you are using the baby nail file which is available in the market.

This will significantly reduce the risk of accidentally hurting her tiny fingers with a clipper. I have been clipping Megha's nails and so far I am very happy with the result.