Once upon a time,
In a land far far away
There lived many little babies and their mommy.
Luckily for her, she knew how to put them to sleep - so she too could sleep peacefully at night.

This would probably be a fairy tale that many of my girl friends would weep over - happy tear, tears of hope.

I'm going to share a secret here. One that is actually quite well known, and practiced widely worldwide. How to put your baby to sleep.
How did it all come about? Being one of the youngest among my cousins, I have many nieces and nephews. One December, cousins who had just entered parenthood a few months ago, brought with them their 5-month-old baby girl. That trip was the first "vacation" for that little thing, but having come from a cooler place, not to mention random people poking at her and carrying her, she struggled. My cousins were tired, 5 months of little to no sleep can do that to people. Luckily for them, I knew the secret that isn't quite a secret - How to put a baby to sleep.

The Secret?

Read to him/ her. 

Sounds too simple to be true? Well, it is though. 

It's not the story or the adventure that puts them to sleep, it's the rhythm. 
Read a bed time story softly, slowly and with a constant pace, you'll have the baby sleeping in no time. It's almost like an easier lullaby for those who are tone deaf 😉
This is also much less stressful and tiring than trying to rock your baby to sleep or other means. 

Another essential Characteristic of Bed Time stories is how they begin. 
Have you noticed that so many fairy tales begin with "Once Upon a Time"
Did you think that all writers in that era started their stories with those four words? Nah. It was edited into the story by the fairy tale book publishers. 
Why though? Conditioning. 
Conditioning is not a negative thing. It can be just a comfortable pattern that our brain gets used to sometimes. When a child hears "Once upon a time" or when a baby hears the tone with which you say those words, and that particular pattern on sounds, after a few repetitions of this event, they'll know it's sleep time. 

It doesn't have to be a fairy tale for a baby. When my niece was crying, I used to read her articles from a magazine that was available! You can read the news! Just start it with Once Upon a Time.

Disclaimer: Of course there has to be one! 😉
If your baby is crying because of hunger/illness, this method won't work.
It most other situations of unrest, this will at least calm babies down, if not put them to sleep completely.

Try it, and let me know if it works! :)
Sweet dreams!

My Love affair with notebooks

I love food and I announce it often times, proud and loud.
However, that I love notebooks is a quieter thing that very few know
I am in a way ashamed of it even
Not ashamed that I love notebooks,
But that I don't love them right

I could be compared to a cruel man
Who collects gorgeous women
And keeps them locked away
Cruel, not because he doesn't love them
But because he collects them believing he would love them right at some point
And never feels any moment is special enough
For that amazing occasion

One souvenir I get myself
From almost every country I visit
Is a notebook, (or two, more like - just in case, you know?)

I have notebooks of all kinds
Tall ones, fat ones, tiny ones
Ruled...unruled
Locked, easy to open
In a box
Hard bound, spiral bound
Many pretty pretty ones

I keep them safe and neat
In my cupboard
Often finding an old one,
And spending a moment smiling at how beautiful it is
Promising it that one day, I will write something very special in it
But I become like a protective father then
Like no man is good enough
No occasion special enough to start them

I have used many notebooks
Bought them for specific purposes
And left them forgotten

So all these heartbreaking realizations later
Earlier this month,
I made a very difficult decision
I decided not to buy myself anymore notebooks
(Yes that's the sound of my heart cracking)
I followed it up with an even more difficult decision
That I would start using my notebooks
Before I get another new one
(Crushed to pieces, that's my heart)

I've even started clearing my table
Cleaning it, so only the special notebook can sit there proudly
I came to terms with not buying new notebooks for a long time

Last night,
My dad came home
he tossed a really pretty notebook right next to me
My hands itched to touch them
My eyes were analyzing them already
It however felt like a cruel joke
Like being taunted with that carrot you don't deserve
"Take it. I don't think I'll use it" He said
"Why thank you, I really appreciate it"
I let out the breath I hadn't realized I was holding in.
It all felt right again.