Bringing up kids in a racially diverse community...

This article reminded me of the time my daughter thought she couldn’t be a princess and wished she too had blue eyes, blonde hair, and fair skin. Oh how far we have come from there...

We as adults think race is not an age appropriate topic to discuss with kids, surely not preschoolers - but that’s not true. Kids see color - it’s only us adults who are great at pretending that we are blind to it.

It is important to discuss color and race and differences as the conversations organically come up - to brush away our children’s observations as “oh no we are all the same” is not right. Understand the context they are coming from, acknowledge how race and color can affect relationships and reactions in the real world, and then assert that that is not right. Educate them about the science - melanin duh! Based on their age, talk about the economics of race.

And very importantly, tell them stories and history of their own culture - let them see not just the oppression but the success stories - the heroes and the heroines from everywhere.

And finally teach them love and kindness and acceptance for all - we are raising our children in a shrinking world - they are going to show us how to embrace and celebrate differences and thrive because of them, not inspite of them.

Isn't white a color?

The other day, my 8 year old asked me why Kamala Harris was considered the first person of color to be the US Vice President - surely there were other people before her and what if they were white - Wasn't white a color - like black, and brown and yellow?

That was a difficult question - Why do we use the phrase people of color for non whites? Isn't white a color? 

This conversation inspired the poem here. 

Happy Holi!

All these years after our wedding, I have been whining and cribbing, and whining how I have not been able to indulge in my favorite festival - Holi , BUT things have changed - I have found my partner in crime...

It was so simple:

Me: Manya it's holi today! Happy holi!

Manya: What is holi, mommy?

Me: Holi is a festival of colors. You put color on each other.

Manya: Hurray, Let's do holi! Happy Holi!

So I whipped up some homemade color (using gram flour, corn flour, sandalwood powder, turmeric, icing flavors). We waited for it to get nice and sunny outside and then played with colors for a long time - I am sure the neighbors thought we had gone crazy - We colored each other's faces, clothes, slippers, legs, and what not. Manya was thrilled - she wants to "do holi" everyday now!

We "wore holi" (some nice colorful Indian clothes) after a "holi bath", which had mommy and dotty splashing in the tub together. We also "ate holi" - potatoes, puri, gol gappas, and suji halwa with puris being M's favorite!

I am hoping we'll get rowdier as the years progress ;).

Art Classes!

First, I think I have not talked about this before but here it is - we have finally decided to skip enrolling M in a playschool/preschool for the time being. So, most probably we are looking at her start a preschool at 3.5y+, which according to me seems "more right" :) - many reasons - she is eligible only for the toddler programs as of now, and I don't find them interesting or exciting in any way - she does a lot more at home with me - preschool programs looked like something she would enjoy but the criteria is 3y+ and potty trained - both of which are still milestones to be reached for us; and most importantly I think I am not ready, so anyways I am shielding her from one year of institutionalized learning :D.

However, her days are long (and tend to get boring), so we have got her enrolled into a weekly art class. (Mostly because she loves spending her time getting messy with colors, play dough and stuff like that at home too, and nothing seems enough!) We did the preview class today and were thrilled. Exactly what I was looking for - one hour of unlimited paints, colors, unrestricted mess, a story time, song and snack included. I have to accompany her ofcourse (I love it too :p). We will also be doing a kiddie gym class (unstructured), for about an hour everyday. 

I think this along with her park trips (that include lot of sidewalk doodling with chalk), library trips, long hours of storytime with mommy, toys, puzzles, crayons, and stuff at home, and the joy (!) of helping mommy in her household chores like cooking, laundry, her day should be covered - oh and I must also add watching Peppa Pig to that list - this is our latest addiction and more about it in another post!

I must add we get to take all the art work home, so now we'll have more interesting garage walls, if nothing else.

Picasso's first masterpiece!

(P.S. No, I don't have any megalomaniac expectation from my progeny to become a Picasso or a Michelangelo. You get what you give and I know what genes I have transferred :D. So read the title in jest, please, lest you think I am one of those mothers who think no end of their children :P.)

So, M surprised us a couple of weeks back by taking a pen and trying to scribble on her book. It crossed my mind that I should get her a non toxic crayon set but then quickly vetoed the idea considering she is still mouthing anything and everything and non-toxic or not, I wasn't prepared to feed her crayons. However, at her 15th month appointment, the doctor happened to mention that she was showing good motor skills and it may not be too early to let her scribble! Hmm. 

I went online and searched stores for safe art work supplies but found nothing. All very clearly mentioned 24 months and above, and one can understand why - choking hazards etc etc. However, I chanced upon this fantastic stamping kit that is big enough for the clumsy grip of a 16 month old and has no coloring parts that are available for sucking or chewing. What is even better is that it works only on the paper that comes with the kit - it doesn't work on walls, clothes or upholstery - and it clearly says 12m+. Yes, looks like a perfect solution does exist :). It's a product by Crayola and you can check it out here. 

Manya thoroughly enjoyed the fun of having to scribble on her own. Here is her working at her first master piece...

And this is the completed masterpiece ;)...

Don't ask me what I think it is - when have great artists ever explained their work? That is the misery of the consumers :D.

Pink n blue n...

... brown n red n yellow n green n black b many more!

Colors excite me. I sincerely believe that if worn in the right material, with the right combination, carrying the right attitude, anybody and everybody can carry off any color. And, babies and children look good in all  colors, yet yet, what I have realized in these months, shopping for Manya - that it is so difficult to dress baby girls in anything but boring pink. Why? Because the stores don't have anything else.

First, let's set the record straight: I love pink. But overdoing any color in a wardrobe makes it dull. I am surprised that baby clothes' makers don't realize this. As of now, we rely mostly on Carter's for Manya's clothes and just checkout the girl's section - it is incredibly boring: mostly whites and pinks. This is most obvious in the physical store, where there are two departments: pink and blue. Though, I have to admit that the boy's section has more variety in terms of style and color. While girls clothing has cute monkeys and teddies, boy's clothes boast of themes such as soccer and jungle safaris and music in bright colors. Why can't my daughter be a rockstar with a guitar or be on daddy soccer team? It's a little annoying, you know!

So guess what I do to bring color and variety into Manya's life (:D): I shop at all three sections: girl, boy and neutral. It is super fun to do so and I often congratulate myself for having a daughter because I very well realize that there is only so much you can experiment with your little guy's clothing!