Flavour Of The Day With Noora

My baby (10 months old) is going through some horrible separation anxiety. When it happens with strangers or distant friends, it is not a big deal. But more and more, it is happening with his grandparents and close family members who are so eager to play with him. It is even happening when his baba tries to spend time with him.

The moment he is out of my arms and I am out of his sight, he keeps on whining until I carry him again. He hides his face from people and directly starts to cry if anyone touches him!

Help! It is a bit embarrassing and people are starting to think that my sweet and otherwise adorable baby is annoying and spoiled.

I know that most babies go through this at some point or another, but, any ideas on how I can speed up the process?

Flavour Of The Day With Noora

There is not much you can do to entertain a ten-month-old baby. After watching cartoons, playing with toys, taking an hour-long bubble bath, plus nap time, I run out of ideas of what I can do next. By the time it is 5pm, both my baby and I start feeling a bit restless.

Recently however, I have started to go out for a walk, and it has been a blessing. I strap my baby into his stroller and head out for a sometimes relaxed, sometimes intense walk around the neighborhood.

I was surprised to see the number of people out in the street! Some are walking with their baby, just like me. Others are in great shape, and are jogging to make sure they stay that way! While many more are just strolling to the supermarket to grab a snack.

It is refreshing to see all those people out and about; and since the weather is lovely these days, both my baby and I are greatly energized afterwards. I have to admit, it has also added a nice sense of familiarity to see the same faces everyday. I am saying hello to people I would have never recognized if it weren’t for my daily walk.

Today, my mama’s advice is this: the next time you feel bored, restless, or just want to get your kids away from the TV or video games, don’t take them to the mall or any other indoor play area. Go out for a walk in your neighborhood and get some fresh air. Trust me, it will really go a long way in helping you connect with your kids and feeling great about yourself.

Flavour Of The Day With Noora

My son is now ten months old and I still have not had a relaxing night of deep sleep since he was born!

Initially, I used to put him in his crib and he would fall asleep on his own. As he got older, I really started to enjoy the quality time we would spend together right before bedtime. Therefore, I willingly created the habit of personally putting him to sleep.

In the beginning, it was sweet. I would cuddle him and he would be asleep within twenty minutes. But lately, it is has been taking him up to 2 hours to fall asleep! Yes, two whole hours of me sitting by him until he finally sleeps. Throughout the night, he also wakes up a few times looking for his pacifier, another habit I willingly developed and am now regretting.

Ironically, on a good night, when my baby is deeply asleep without any interruptions, I still find myself walking to his room, making sure he is covered, and heading back to my bed in total exhaustion.

It seems to be a common habit of mamas to frequently wake up at night and make sure that their child is tucked in under the covers and is soundly asleep. I have heard many mamas complain about how much they miss a night of uninterrupted sleep. Not that their children wake them up, rather, that they cannot seem to break the habit of late night check ups!

It is funny to think that before I became a mama, I used to spend long hours at the office, stay up late to work on a presentation, and wake up extra early to prepare for an important meeting. Yet, I do not remember it being as tiring as my baby’s sleep routine.

Any mama’s with good advice on getting a better night’s sleep?

Flavour Of The Day With Noora

One of the most difficult decisions I had to make when I became a mama was the decision to leave work. The question was never if I should or shouldn’t quit my job, rather, the difficulty lied in leaving something I loved so much.

Before I started writing for Family Flavors, I specialized in Marketing. My job was very exciting but very demanding. It was obvious that the ridiculous deadlines, long hours, and crazy work demands would not in any way, fit with being a new mama.

When my son got a little bit older and I felt more comfortable with motherhood, I decided to go back to work. After all, every mama truly needs and appreciates some time off from mama land! So, I pursued another one of my passions, something I could do from home, and became a writer.

I thought that working from home would be a piece of cake. As it turns out, being a mama by day and a writer by night is not that easy, it is actually pretty hard! If I am working, then I feel guilty about leaving my son; and if I am with my son, then I am constantly worried about missing a deadline.

Juggling work, children, marriage and a household is the reality of every working mama. Although it may never become less demanding, it will always be a self-preservation technique for many.

However, the question will always remain: is a stay-at-home mama better than a working mama?

Flavour Of The Day With Noora

I come from a somewhat big family and so, I am used to being surrounded by babies and children.

As I watched my nieces and nephews grow up, it never crossed my mind to think of how soon they crawled, clapped, said their first word or accomplished any other achievement. I was just very happy to see them do something new.

When I had my son however, I was suddenly introduced to the world of milestones! There are countless sources, charts, and books that explain what a child should achieve at every age.

There are also less scientific measures that might constantly remind you of what your son should be mastering. I am of course, referring to the occasional annoying remarks from people who love to comment: “why hasn’t he crawled yet? You should leave him on his tummy more often before it’s too late! Don’t take this lightly or he will never crawl!”

As amusing as it might be to see how people love to interfere, it can be a little worrying to think that your baby is behind schedule. This is especially true for first time mamas who lack the experience.

Although all the scientific sources stress that each baby is unique and will meet milestones on his own pace, an excited mama cannot help but want her son to be an early achiever. Once a milestone is finally met, it becomes the most adorable achievement ever!

I remember taking a ridiculous number of pictures of my son sitting on his own. I couldn’t resist showing everyone what my son could do and how cute and grown up he looked!

Thinking back, I am sure it might have been a bit boring for my friends to see so many pictures of the same pose, just from different angles. But, when my son learns to master another milestone, I have a feeling that I will do the same thing again!

It is also funny to see how addictive it is to share notes with other mamas. Over the past nine months, I have engaged in conversations about nap times, sleep training methods and feeding schedules with every other mama I know. It's not that we do it on purpose, it just happens to be our favourite topic!

I wanted to write about milestones today because my baby just learned to move his hands when I sing “twinkle-twinkle little star”. It is safe to say that I will be sending a mass video tonight!

Flavour of The Day With Noora

As I was parked in front of a mini market, I noticed a man running out of his car towards a taxi. Within a matter of seconds, this huge and very angry man was attacking the taxi driver while he was still in his car!

I could not believe what I was seeing! In fact, I started to look around to see if other people were noticing what was going on, and if so, was anyone going help?

After about ten seconds of constantly punching the taxi driver , the raging man opened the taxi door, kicked the driver and tried to drag him onto the street. At this point, the taxi driver was holding on to the steering wheel with all his might, knowing that if he did get out, the worst would happen.

Again, I looked around in shock, waiting for one of the cars to stop and intervene or for someone to "please help this man!" But, no one did.

Suddenly, I found myself opening my car door and stepping out. In less than a second, however, it hit me, my baby was in the car with me, and this man could easily come after me as well and my baby would get hurt. So, I turned around and stayed put in my car.

At no point did it strike me to call the police, my mind just went blank. After about 3 minutes, which is a long time when you are being beaten up, the taxi driver managed to close his door and drive away full speed. That was that.

I was speechless! What had happened to me? A few months ago, I would have run to help. Now, I just stayed in my car, locked the doors and painfully watched the taxi driver get beaten. Even though I knew I was only protecting my son, I couldn't help but feel really bad about my inaction!

For the rest of the day, I could think of only one question: has becoming a mama made me a coward, or shall I say less courageous? Should I have personally helped or did I do the right thing by staying in my car?

Does being a good mama sometimes contradict with being a good person? Because, a good person would have helped!

What would you have done?

Flavour Of The Day With Noora

Welcome to my Diary!

My name is Noora, a recent mother of a baby boy, and a new addition to Family Flavours.

The story of my diary began when the editor and I decided that we wanted to interact with our readers, beyond the magazine. We were looking for something real and stimulating. We needed an idea that would bring you into my home the same you bring me into yours each month.

So, I decided to invite you into my life to share my thoughts and my daily experiences. I might have questions in need of answers, or simply just feel like chatting.

Please join my blog and follow my posts. Tell me what you think, how your day was and how I can help.

I look forward to meeting you soon.

On behalf of Family Flavours, welcome to "Flavour Of The Day With Noora"