candid diaries of a dogged mom

It is said that children grow fast but second babies grow even faster. The days are really long but the years are flying. I just celebrated my daughter's 2nd birthday. She's already a runner and doesn't want to be around me like she used to. When my older one turned three, I missed the baby years so much that I decided to have another baby so I could pause time often and tell myself to make the most of it. I wanted to recreate those magic moments, go to the same places, read the same books, spend more time kissing the baby.  Not all of it has happened the same way. Because I have an older one in the picture, the experience is different. Throw in the pandemic, I have not taken my daughter to many places where I would have loved to. Instead, she has had different experiences. She has an older brother in the house so her excitement and learning and absorbing levels are an all time high.  There is always advancement. While I waited for my son to take his first step and talk his...

Image Source : https://www.123rf.com/  You know that space where nobody, literally nobody, can enter or peek inside. You know that space that is reserved just for you. That space which begins to take form and meaning once your turn four or five. Mine took awfully long to exist. Still don’t know what I am talking about? It’s your mind! That’s the only private space we are entitled to keeping of  our own. It’s where you can fill up thoughts – gossipy thoughts, revengeful thoughts, worrying thoughts, good and happy thoughts, super private thoughts (which I will let your mind fill with whatever you like). Ever wanted to peek into a mommy’s head to see what she does in her private space? I’ll tell you, because, as I see it, my private space, is not private anymore. I’ll tell you how this happened. I wake up at 6 am to complete silence. Randomly, this thought of goodness creeps into my head. I imagine myself sitting on the couch with a cup of coffee and a book. Honestly, ...

  This week, a good friend Megha Vishwanathan  from Massachusetts has contributed this article to tell us about her life with twins! I hope you like it as much as I did. As a twin mom to extremely naughty and giggly 20-month-old girls, I often get asked how do I do it?  So, here's to all who always wonder how I get through my day. Honestly, I don't know. I don't even know if I do it or if it just happens.  Life with twins is challenging. It's not for the faint hearted. As a first-time mom, I'm often looked at with awe for being extremely laid-back and a calm parent. The truth is, I truly believe those of us with twins have an extra gene that allows us to adapt to the dirt, bugs, tree climbing, and acrobatics times two. We have adapted to feeding two at once, to soothing two at once and we have learned not to sweat the small stuff. If I worried too much about the dirt my twins ate, I’d be in a mental institution. If I worried about the stained shirts, mu...

  From being a cool ice-cube to having a nervous breakdown (if you’re curious, I broke down in the middle of the road on a friend’s shoulder), a lot has happened lately. I guess it’s the combination of having kids+ covid which is a new kind of challenge. For someone like me, who thought that just being with little kids is hard, throw in a virus like covid, and I found myself going bonkers in late March. I still held my head high, as I got used to seeing the faces of my husband and children all the time. No really, when do we get to miss each other? Image source - alamy.com So, I juggled between a babyhood and toddlerhood as I told myself that this is the hardest year ever. I complained and fretted to friends and family. Well, the upside is that most people are going through similar problems – all are facing the new normal so we usually have the same complaints. And also, the upside is that everybody is at home so I am not envious of people who usually go on vacations. Still, by...

In December, when I was flying back to the States, I was pretty terrified of what lay ahead. My son would be doing preschool just a couple of hours a day. Which meant that he would still be home with me all day. My daughter, who was turning a little more than six months old, wouldn’t be mobile anymore. Like any baby, she wanted to explore. Come March, there is a pandemic declared. I often wonder about how different lives are for other people now because of the stay-at-home orders. How do lovers manage to keep the flame alive? How do people, who were still climbing their way towards love, manage to keep things going? How do sports freaks keep it going? How do teenagers manage to live undercover under their parents’ noses? How do, people like me, manage to live with little kids who have a ton of energy?   Okay, I do get it that the world is going through some serious stuff right now which I won’t go into detail. You already know a lot about it. Way more than needed. Are ...

  Image Source - www.clipart.email I generally do not try to venture outside with two kids at all. One is okay. It’s human to be able to take one outside because with two sets of eyes, you can only see as much and looking at just one kid is eyes-full. But then when is the right time to be out alone with two? That’s what I asked myself when I decided to do grocery shopping with my munchkins. So, here is the thing. I drop-off my son to school at mid-day around 11.30ish every morning. It works good for us, gives us time to wake up late, endure brushing battles, fill their tummies with food, do diaper changes that occur every 30 minutes, endure toddler drama that begins only when it’s time to leave the house. One day, there was enough drama rising up. The baby refused to go down for her morning nap (because she didn’t want to miss the fun) Really? What’s more fun than sleeping? I could miss anything for a night’s sleep. And the toddler decided it was his turn too becau...