I am starting ‘The Mom Series‘ on my Blog for the month of November, where I am inviting moms and moms-to-be to write their stories of motherhood and parenting. So, if you think you have something to share with the world, drop me a message on my Facebook Page – Growing With Nemit and I will get back to you with all the details.

Have you ever seen an ant struggling to push a crumb of food much bigger than her own size? Or ever seen a little pup trying hard to climb the stairs for the first time? What do they have in common? PERSEVERANCE! They keep on trying to achieve what they want with complete dedication ignoring the many failures on the way.

This is what I used to hear from my Mom, every time I failed at something. She would give me examples like these to lighten up my mood but I would not listen to her and bundle up myself in a cocoon for many days altogether. Then at one point in my life, I stopped trying at all because of the fear of losing. It would take a lot of effort from my family and friends to make me agree on trying something new.

Things started changing when I became a Mom. I saw my little baby trying hard to get feed on his very first day of life, it was a struggle for him to get that perfect latch but he didn’t fear failure. Then at 3 months when he started trying to roll over, at 5 months when he tried to achieve another milestone by pushing himself up on his elbows, at 7 months trying hard to sit with a balance, at 9 months putting in all efforts to walk without support and it’s still a struggle for him at 21 months, daily he’s trying to learn something new and achieve new milestones. But never ever I see the ‘fear of failure’ in his eyes. And this is what changed me for the better. I dropped all inhibitions and started fighting with my fears.

I always wanted to learn and try new things but every time the fear would overshadow the passion. Once I regained my confidence (all thanks to my little munchkin), I began trying new things that I always wanted to do. One of those things was writing! I started blogging when I had no hope of any talents in me. I still don’t consider blogging my talent but I am trying hard to learn this art, I still have some hidden fears but now I don’t allow my fears to win over my dreams.

I have written 2 posts on how I started blogging and what was the motivation behind. Click on the links below to read my story.

Mommy turned to Blogging – PART 1

Mommy turned to Blogging – PART 2

Coming back to the present, as I said I am still learning and with every challenge comes a new fear. I took the 9 Days of Womanhood Blogathon Challenge in September during Navratri. It was my first ever writing challenge and I had no idea about ABC’s of Blogathon.

The great news is I won this Blogathon for their microblogging challenge on Instagram. And I am writing this post as a reminder to myself that I took a challenge which was not meant for me but with hard work and true dedication I came out of it with flying colors. You can read my 5 entries for Blog writing  >> Here <<

If I can do it, you can do it too.

If no one can do it, then you must do it and teach them how to do it.

I am sharing the Instagram Posts which I did for this Blogathon. I hope you all will like these too. There were 4 prompts on Womanhood/Motherhood and we had to write a post on each one. Click on the Insta Handle on the top left of each picture (growing_with_nemit) to check my page and to read the complete Insta Post click on the Instagram icon on the top right of every picture!

PROMPT 1 – Why being a girl is cool and fun?

(Click on the right arrow to see more pics)

PROMPT 2 – One tip on Pregnancy

(Click on the right arrow to see more pics)

PROMPT 3 – How was it when you held your baby for the first time?

(Click on the below picture to watch the cute video)

PROMPT 4 – One message for your baby

(Click on the below picture to watch the cute video)

And you know what I won?

This Blogathon was sponsored by The Moms Co., this company creates high-quality natural products for moms and moms-to-be. You can check their products at themomsco.com. I received a beautiful hamper of 4 products from The Moms Co. on the auspicious Diwali day. Click on the below picture to see what I got!

Hope you liked this post as much as I enjoyed writing and sharing my journey. So what are you waiting for? Find out what you always wanted to do, get inspired by your babies to always keep trying until you achieve what you want. I can now proudly say I am no more a loser! My next challenge is to learn photography.

Share with me in the comments below about your fears which you want to overcome or your accomplishments which you never thought you could have ever achieved. And if you liked this post, do share it to show some love.

The post How being a mom changed me for the better – Being Fearless! appeared first on Growing With Nemit.

I know I know, I am very late to post this, September is already past and we are almost nearing mid of October. But, its never too late to share the good things with people whom we care about.

As many of you know the last few days of September were quite busy as I happened to take part in 9 days of Blogathon which was my first ever Blog writing and Insta micro-blogging challenge. I did not anticipate the Blogathon to be that much tedious and tiring.

But the name says it all, Blogathon is Blogging Marathon and these are supposed to be hectic as well as challenging.

Well, I am happy and a little bit sad too, happy because I took the Weight Loss Challenge, and sad as I was not able to complete it as planned. I updated about my workout journey till the 2nd week, (>> Click here << to read about it), but I almost ditched the last 2 weeks, although not completely but there was no fixed schedule that I followed neither was there any Cardio that I did.

I am writing this post to share the final snippets of my September journey, people behind it’s success and the much awaited results.

But, before sharing anything else, I want to let everyone know that I am feeling much healthier and my stamina has greatly improved which is like a bonus of losing weight. So, the whole credit of the month goes to my mom and my hubby for being so supportive and understanding at every stage.

They are the ones who motivated me each day to keep going and they are the ones who encouraged me with all the love and good vibes which I needed every day.

As you know, I stayed at my mom’s house for the whole month of September and that means a lot more work for her and no rest at all in return. She took the complete responsibility of taking care of Nemit from making him feed healthy nutritious homemade food to playing with him and keeping him engaged in so many educational activities. I can never do this at her age, her energy level is commendable. Thanks, Mumma.

And my hubby, he is a real hero and a sweetheart, no I am not saying this just like that. I really mean it. Sumit never stays away from us, if I come to mom’s house he accompanies us and stays with us, even if that requires him to travel 2 hours to reach his office. But this time I wanted him to stay at home with Caesar and after much discussion, he agreed. We took this pic on a Friday when he came directly from his office to the Sports complex to pick me up. It was a pleasant surprise. Thanks, hubby.

Alright now coming back to the weight loss challenge, let me first introduce you all to the lady behind The Tabata. (What? Don’t you know what is TABATA? Oh My God, then you are missing on everything. >> Click here << to get enlightened).

My aerobics trainer ‘Rekha Sharma‘ is the person who introduced me to the Tabata workout for the very first time and included this in our daily aerobic sessions, which I consider to be the main reason for my weight loss.

She is a true inspiration to many women like me as she herself has a story to tell about her weight loss journey.

Can you believe she is a MOM and has 2 teenager kids. If you will meet her you will say she has the energy level of a teenager. She’s been gyming since 10 years now. What a transformation!

Her mantra for weight loss is –

• Fitness – Follow a workout routine
• Lifestyle – Bring in a few lifestyle changes
• Passion – Make workout your passion

She says she has nothing special about her but that’s all about being modest. Isn’t it? She is a personal trainer and a passionate dancer. I can bet you will drool over her brilliant dance moves. You can check out her Insta handle here >> Click <<

The BIG REVEAL

You all must be thinking I am talking about everything and everyone but the results. Yes, the result of Weight loss September challenge. Oh and yes the result of Blogathon too!

I took the September challenge to lose 3 Kgs weight in 30 days but I got the opportunity to participate in Navratri Blogathon which I didn’t want to miss, so I had to leave my workout mid-way. But I was not sad as it was a win-win for me, 20 days of Workout and 9 days of Blogathon. (2-in-1 fun)

And the Results of September Challenge are –

20 days of Workout – I lost 2 kgs + 2 inches (followed mindful eating with regular workout which included swimming and aerobics)

You can read all my September challenge – workout posts >> HERE <<

9 days of Blogathon – Won the Insta Microblog Contest and will be getting a hamper from The Moms Co.

You can read all my 9 Days of Womanhood Blogathon posts >> HERE <<

I am thankful to my family and friends, who were always there to support me through my September Challenge and I am so grateful to my lovely readers who liked reading my posts and blogs which motivated me and kept me going through the whole 9 hectic days of Blogathon. Thanks for all the love!

And special thanks to the Blogathon Hosts for making this whole event a huge success – Mummasaurus, My Little Muffin, The Mom Sagas, The Reading Momster. 

This Weight loss and Blogathon September challenges that I took part in were life-changing experiences for me. Have you experienced anything like this, which was totally unexpected and changed you for better? Anything that left you motivated to try more new avenues and test your limits. Share with me in the comments below! Would love to read your stories.

The post September Challenge – Weightloss and Blogathon appeared first on Growing With Nemit.

The prompt for today’s post is ‘My Delivery & My Baby’. Whenever I take a walk down the memory lane to the day I was admitted to the hospital for the final verdict, I get a twinge in my heart, those 16 hours and that hospital bed, witnessed me in the worst of agony and distress. But, today, I am going to laugh away that pain and look for some humor in that.

It brings me immense pleasure to share that I, along with 24 other bloggers are celebrating #9daysofwomanhood throughout Navratri. I thank Gagandeep Kochar for introducing me. Her blog is named as My Diaries and I loved reading her blog on the prompt for today ‘My Delivery & My Baby’.

When I delivered a baby in January 2016, I was already a mother to a 9-month-old pup, Caesar, but I did not bring him into this world, he is my baby born from another mother.

So, when I got admitted to the hospital, I already had a little idea what being a mom is all about but what I did not know was, what is it like to give birth to a baby who had rented a place in my tummy for 9-long-months. Though I had read a lot about childbirth and seen numerous videos of live deliveries both natural as well as cesarean but nothing could prepare me for the climax.

Your mind says, if others can do this, you can do it too, whereas your body shouts back at you, “Shut the f*** up mind, we are going to die any moment“. And your poor heart has no idea what emotions to exhibit.

Yes, I felt like I was going to die any minute, I was shouting at the doctors and the sisters for not listening to me, as I wanted them to go-ahead with the surgery and bring the pumpkin out through C-sec, I didn’t care about the pros and cons of anything at that time, actually it didn’t matter at that stage.

It was 6 a.m. when I was almost drained out of energy, words had lost their way, and I hated everyone present near me including my mom. I asked my hubby to bring me something to eat, I was hungry. He went off and suddenly, I felt the urge to poop, (yes, poop and the urge was quite strong), thankfully the doctor was around.

But within a few secs, she started calling the sisters and giving them instructions to prepare the delivery room, while I could sense the panic in her voice, I was smiling because I knew the climax was near.

And, then, I heard her saying, ‘we are not yet prepared and the baby’s head is already showing up’. Oh my God, what did she mean by that? Weren’t they supposed to be prepared all the time? She turned to me and said, “Just hold on for few minutes, and don’t push”. Wow, I always thought one was supposed to push as hard as she can but there the scene was different.

It was 6.30 am when the doctor looked at me, smiled and asked me to push. And I was excited to do that, many delivery scenes from the movies flashed in front of my eyes. (Push, Push, Push harder). But, for me, it was just the second push and the naughty one popped out.

My hubby was back with the packet of chips when I heard the baby cry for the first time. What a timing!!!

There is something which I remember from that day, once the baby was out, I was anxiously waiting to have a glimpse, when doctor brought the baby near, she whispered, “It’s a Boy” and for a second I thought how? I finalized Tisya as the name, and my instincts told me it will be a Girl! Snapped back from the thought train, I kissed my baby and exclaimed, ” And he looks like his Papa!”

So, guys, don’t depend too much on your instincts, they can deceive you. My baby was niether a girl nor looked like me!!!

Hope you liked reading my delivery story and didn’t feel any pain. Do share your experience of childbirth with me in the comments below. I LOVE IT WHEN YOU SHARE!!!

You can also read My Pregnancy Story here- The Roller Coaster Ride.

Now, I would like you to meet Sumira Bhatia, my friend and co-blogger who blogs at The Cuckoo’s Nest. Read her touching and full of life Blog on today’s prompt, Hello Baby! Welcome on the Outside! Check out her blog now!!!

The post PAIN that left a SMILE – My Delivery appeared first on Growing With Nemit.

The prompt for today’s post is to write about ‘My Pregnancy’ and as every other mother, my pregnancy too holds a very special place in my heart. Those 9 months are still fresh in my mind though I am almost going Ghazini day by day. It’s a great opportunity to pen down my memories and retain them forever.

It brings me immense pleasure to share that I, along with 24 other bloggers are celebrating #9daysofwomanhood throughout Navratri. I thank Misha Jain for introducing me. I loved her blog Freshlybakedhead on the prompt for today ‘My Pregnancy’.

May 2015 – Newlywed and The Drama!!!

It was just 3.5 months of our marriage and I was still trying to understand how things work when suddenly you were made in-charge of your new house, my life was set on full exciting mode, knowing that I was finally free to live as I wanted. (Haha, that was my presumption as a newlywed). We were a happy complete family with a month old cute little furry baby – Caesar.

I was not used to working in kitchen but I found satisfaction preparing meals for my family (my husband-Sumit and baby-Caesar) but, that one day was different, I was getting irritated without any reason and got even more irritated to see that Sumit was not noticing what’s happening with me (thanks to the hormones).

And then the unusual happened, our first fight after marriage (no, not the Dhishoom-Dhishoom) and the next moment we were sitting in front of my parents, answering what and why behind all the action and drama. I was crying don’t know why and I was crying even harder if anyone was asking me Why. So that was one weird situation.

Thankfully, my mom is an angel, she interpreted everything was normal and we should do a pregnancy test. However, we were quite positive that the drama had no connection with pregnancy. I was dead sure the whole scene was created because of Sumit not understanding my emotions, he should be able to do that just by sniffing the air around me (again the faulty hormones). Mom’s advice was ignored!

June 2015- Hug, Tears and A Go Ahead!!!

But, for how long? We had to clear the doubt. I spent good 30 mins to read the instructions on the pregnancy kit, somewhere at the back of my mind I was counting my chances, can it really happen this easily with someone who had PCOD? Those 2 pink lines, cleared all dark clouds of thoughts. Strangely, I was emotionless in that moment, didn’t know how to express, I was clearly not prepared for anything. But that hug from hubby changed everything. Oh, my God, I can still feel that tight squeeze, I noticed tears in his eyes and that was the moment of realization and acceptance, I knew we were One Soul now!

Sumit had to attend a training programme for one month at his company’s headquarters in London and he was given a choice to take his family along, now, I had to go, I just couldn’t miss that opportunity to visit the UK. We were waiting at the Doctor’s clinic to get a go-ahead to travel during the 3^rd month of our pregnancy. My gynecologist could see the excitement on my face and after explaining the criticalities of 1st Trimester and a failed attempt to convince me to drop the idea, she gave her consent and wished us luck! (I was flying high)

July 2015 – Most terrifying 15 minutes!!!

Just to fall hard face down! I experienced the worst case of morning sickness, nausea, and vomiting throughout our stay in London, I lost 3 Kgs as I couldn’t eat anything, I had cramps in my lower abdomen and often lose consciousness while walking.

One fine afternoon, I got startled by a sound, it was like a siren, volume gradually increasing to the point I could barely stand it. I was terrified, I dialed the reception but no one picked up the phone, I ran out of the room and noticed that the elevator was not working. I came back to the room huffing and puffing, again dialed and this time someone on the other side of the line informed me that they were having a Fire Drill and all the occupants needed to come out of the building immediately.

I was in pain, I was not able to keep my eyes open, that sound of the siren was deafening and that word ‘immediately’ petrified me, I picked up my mobile and with shaky hands called Sumit and asked him to rush back to the hotel. I gathered some courage (would say courage and strength one gets when they know they have the responsibility of one more life on them) and started walking towards the stairs.

I saw a lady rushing downstairs, she offered me help, which I happily obliged, I was leaning on her, tears were rolling down my cheeks as I saw Sumit entering through the gate and running towards me. I hugged him and cried, he was terrified to see me like that. Those 15 minutes were like a nightmare!

It was the second last day of our stay and till then I hadn’t been to any place outside our hotel because of my poor health but that day was sunny and I was feeling a little better. I asked hubby to take a day’s off and take me to the city tour. The most memorable day of our London visit; spent the whole day roaming around the city, had loads of fun, took hundreds of pictures, the only day I didn’t vomit more than twice.

August & September 2015 – My Grown Up Canine Baby and the Busy Months!!!

We were back to India and I decided to stay at mom’s house that month, we had so much to talk about. This month was the bonding month, we visited our in-laws on all the 4 weekends as everyone was so excited to meet us after hearing the good news. In a month, Caesar had grown from a baby to a toddler and he was too naughty for his age but it was a lot more fun playing with him and looking at his funny activities.

I knew Caesar was a hyperactive boy and would create problems near the end of pregnancy, so I had to spend a lot of time with him to make him feel comfortable with the changes happening around. We had to take the hard decision to leave him with mom till the baby arrives or at least till he gets a little sober and mature.

October 2015 – Baby moon with Family!!!

So, the last month of 2nd Trimester was special, it was Sumit’s birthday and my mother-in-law agreed to come and stay with us for this month. I wanted to make the birthday month special for everyone so planned a weekend stay at a resort in Jaipur which was also pet-friendly. The month was full of activities, I indulged in a lot of art and craft to keep myself happily engaged and came up with another idea of making a big Birthday Card. So, the Trip and the Card were a Surprise for hubby.

Those who want to know more about the Pet-friendly Lohagarh Resort near Jaipur, Click Here!

Last Trimester – Movie Buffs and Parenting Apps!!!

The more I think about the last trimester, the more I realize it was spent mostly in front of the Screen. We are movie buffs and watched a movie or two every weekend on the big screen. Sumit is a great fan of Old Hindi Songs, hence our evenings were spent listening and watching some old melodies and copying the expressions of yesteryear’s beautiful actors, oh I still remember that song ‘Tum agar mujhko na chahogi to koi baat nahi…….’ and Sumit used to act the song and we would dance and laugh, what beautiful memories!

All the other times, when I was alone at home, I would flip through all the pregnancy websites, to gain as much knowledge and information as possible to make my delivery and post-pregnancy experience smooth. There’s no pregnancy app which I hadn’t downloaded.

Sites which I used to surf are Baby Center, Mom Junction, What to expect and now I can add Babychakra App to the list too as I have been using it for quite some time now and it’s one of the best apps I have come across.

19 January 2016 – The Wait is Over!!!

Meet the Dude who spent 9 months inside my tummy and almost equal 9 months inside Papa’s head! Oh and yes, Caesar was not happy at all, maybe he was expecting a Baby Sisterrrr!!!!

Hope you all enjoyed reading My Pregnancy Story. Now I would like to hear stories of your 9 months or something special about your pregnancy. Share below in the comments. Looking forward to getting more emotional!

And now, I would like you to meet Sumira Bhatia, who blogs at The Cuckoo’s Nest. I loved her Pregnancy Story- From the Womb to the World! Check out her blog now!!!

The post The Roller Coaster Ride- My Pregnancy appeared first on Growing With Nemit.