It’s when you feel blessed to have someone in your life, when your heart heaves a sigh of content everytime you hold his hand, when just a smile on his face brightens up every gloomy nook of your soul; it’s then and only then, words scatter around you in such captivating harmony that it warms the heart of every beholder!Scattered words right from my heart for my dearest husband on his birthday!It was ‘Daisy’s time’,The daffodils dancedThe swaying lilacs resonated the valley with euphonyAnd then you came into this worldPreceded by the hot summer showers;The sprinkles tingled your slushy skinKissing the scarlet blush on your piquant chin:And today I kiss them with utmost delightAs I stare into your alluring eyes,And with every passing breath a silent prayer skips,‘May the lovely Angel fill your lifeWith all the bliss, with all the bliss!’ 

For a lot of reasons but primarily because finally, in 35 years of my life, I love going to the gym.

Today I can tell you confidently that my gym phobia was all due to cardio- running on the treadmill mindlessly for 30 minutes and still not seeing any results simply drove me crazy.So, have I seen any results in my new workout regime in just a week?

Now, how does weight training help me achieve my goals better than cardio?

Also, weight training helps you to tone up your muscles whereas cardio leaves you with loose skin.

Reference link: https://www.healthstatus.com/health_blog/body-fat-percentage-calculation/is-weight-lifting-better-than-cardio/My personal realization, in just one week, is that, weight training makes your body stronger!

My legs have always been a problem, heavy and weak!

I have had a busy day being pregnant and need to do it tomorrow again.’ That’s exactly how I felt throughout my second pregnancy.

And like that’s not enough, there are a plethora of things to deal with post-pregnancy, one of them being pregnancy weight.Now, if you are a breastfeeding mom who has healthy food habits, you have nothing to worry about.

But moms like me who don’t breastfeed (have some health issues) take like forever to lose the extra pounds and sometimes just get stuck with it.

Now, getting stuck is not my type So I enrolled myself under the supervision of a nutritionist and trainer, Swapnali Bansode, on fittr and have started my weight loss journey.Fittr, a partner of the popular Facebook group SQUATS, advocates quantified nutrition along with resistance weight training.

Not so much as you start getting used to it.Day 1 of Quantified Diet and WorkoutHere’s how my stats look like on day 1: Weight153 lbs/68 KgsWaist36 inchesHips45 inchesTighs21 inchesArms12.5 inchesThese are all the areas that I will be working on with the help of my trainer.DietFor breakfast I had spinach scrambled egg with a cup of milk tea without sugar.My ArsenalFor lunch I had rice (quantified) with vegetable dal and paneer tikka and repeated the same for dinner.

The measurements given to me is based on my BMI, health issues and my weight-loss goal.Note:The measurements and the diet itself differs from person to person based on individual BMI and health status.

To help out all you newborn fathers and save you the trouble of poring over parenting guides page-by-page, I am listing down a couple of newborn essentials along with things that can wait.

Read on and thank me later!Dressing Your NewbornMy wife and I bought clothes which are comfortable, trendy and suited the weather.

Dress your newborn in the same layers of clothes you wear, plus one.

You can go for cotton onesies with mittens and socks and maybe add a soft cotton cap when you’re taking your newborn out for a stroll.

Check them out on adenandanais.comNewborn Skin CareNewborn babies have very sensitive skin which is thin and prone to irritation.

My wife used it to pump out her breast milk so that I could feed the baby alternatively.Bottles: Choose the feeding bottle wisely, the nipples should match your newborn’s age.Infant Car Seat: For safe and comfortable car rides with your baby in tow, a car seat is a must-have.

But as winter is deserting Delhi, I am clinging to my last few sips of hot coffee.Four families met during Dussera (a larger than life festival in India during the monsoon season) and became so genial that a road trip to Jaisalmer did seem like the most obvious thing to do.

So, there was the enthusiastic us, our animated kids, and the high-spirited parents- all excited about setting their foot on the golden sand.Six couples and 3 kids were comfortably packed in Mahindra Scorpio, Maruti S-Cross and Hyundai Elantra-Hyundai Elantra taking away the award for ‘The Car of the Trip’ for giving an excellent mileage of 20 plus on the highway when driven at the speed of 120 to 140 KM per hour.We started our mini escapade at 12 midnight from Noida, sector 78.

Unfortunately, for the starving souls, that stop didn’t happen till we covered almost a 100 KM.

I will tell you where we made a mistake here;We did not curb at Gurgaon in a haste to get rid of the traffic caused by the trucks on the Highway.

Finally, we ceased at a Dhaba but witnessed some rift between two men and ran away.

Some reviewed the places from the point of view of rating, some were dogged by luxury ambience while the others looked at moderate pricing with a tasteful stay.

It wasn’t my first pregnancy but I was still stumped while shopping for my maternity clothing and essentials.

So, I read books right from parenting for dummies to parenting toddlers.

Simple, large t-shirts were my go-to for everyday use and I’d pair it with maternity jeans which are super comfortable and stretchy.

A little lovely dress that would stretch around your bump would make for cute date night wear.

Maternity stores would have clothes according to different maternity sizes.

It might be difficult to understand the sizing of maternity clothes, so my hack for it (considering how many times I’ve repeated the word in this one paragraph) is to buy stretchy clothes.

Like all things baby, we ended up giving a cute nickname to a relatively distressing phenomenon in our parenting life- colic, or should I say ‘Colic the Monster’?For stressed-out dads like me, colic is when your otherwise healthy champ is bawling his eyes out for more than 3 hours a day and 3 days in a week.

So, we soothed our colicky baby and generally displayed our ‘A’ parenting skills but it got worse.

Soon he was crying for most of the day and we were exhausted.

Benefits Of Tummy TimeOne day we discovered ‘tummy time’.

Tummy time helps to strengthen your baby’s head and neck, as well as gives them upper body strength.

Letting our colicky baby lie on his tummy helped to release all that pent-up gas (which was great for him but not so fun for me if you get my drift ;-)).

Written for a dear friend whom I have known for quite some time; loving and kind-hearted, she is a friend I will keep for life!My dear friend, on her wedding day,Clad in her densely woven silk gear,Must have thrust her starry eyelids,From under the web of her netted veil;To cheat a glance at the man standing by her sideWith whom the secrets of her life were to confide;To keep at bay her deepest qualms,Before she walked the aisle to say ‘I abide!’I stood not there to witness this,But today my heart whirls gleefully with bliss,As I stand here to endorse her a happiness;In the arms of the man who reigns her heart,And promises irrefutable loyalty on his part. 

A famous quote from St. Augustine strikes me just now: ‘The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page’.

Our choices of stays in India had always been very kid friendly, with a lot to do for adults too and daddy dear beams with pride whenever he shares his travel stories with his friends.But October 2015 was a little different.

Our first destination outside India was Phuket, Thailand.While we could have easily taken up a package and joined a group, all traveling to the same destination, (people say that’s the safest and the best when you are journeying overseas for the first time) I was quite reluctant.

But because we chose not to take up any package tour, we had to face multiple challenges and this is where Booking.com came to our rescue!

Let me tell you how!So, we researched on various travel websites for almost a month.

We had to look for everything on our own and also ensure that we don’t miss any activities since you don’t travel overseas every now and then.

We always read and hear about how a mom prepares for the arrival of her newborn, this time round let’s look at things from a dad’s point of view!When My Wife Broke the News of Her PregnancyRachel Cohn says in her book, Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares, ‘You should never wish for wishful thinking’.

Well, that’s what I would like to think; because I genuinely believe that on that pleasant evening of March 2018, standing on the patio of my new rental apartment, with a cup of ginger tea, if I had wished to become a billionaire, my wish would have come true!

But instead, I wished for a baby and guess what, come August, my wife pleasantly surprised me with the pic of her positive pregnancy test!Two facts hit me hard right then: first, I was going to wear the parenting hat once again after 10 long years and second, the wish-granting fairy way sitting right next to me that evening!

A lot of throwing up, body ache, and swelling of the legs made it difficult for her to sleep and rest.

Two pregnancy gadgets that helped her sail through this difficult phase were:Maternity Belt: it gave a good support to her growing belly and back, and eased her back ache to a great extentMaternity Pillow: it acted as a cushion to her belly and allowed her to sleep comfortably on her sideAll in all, this pregnancy was a bumpy ride, but we managed to sweep through it!Now, fast forward to the 32nd week, and we realized it was time we started shopping for our little prince who was to join us soon.

While my wife took upon herself to shop for newborn baby clothes and newborn baby skin care products, my focus was on buying the best and the safest infant car seat and stroller for my baby.Choosing for an Infant Car Seat and StrollerComing from a father of a 10-year-old, it may sound weird that shopping for a infant car seat and stroller was new to me.

Growing up in India, most children of my era dream of visiting two bridges in the world, the London Bridge from the popular nursery rhyme and the iconic Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.

Standing amidst the gorgeous skyscrapers, the unremitting Bay and the moonily illuminated Golden Gate Bridge, I felt overwhelmingly satiated.But of course, there is so much more to San Francisco than just the iconic bridge.

Here are some of my favorite spots in this beautiful city.The Golden Gate Bridge Vista PointThe Golden Gate Bridge Vista Point offers a mesmerizing view of the Golden Gate Bridge, the Pacific Ocean in its dramatic blue hosting the notorious Alcatraz Island, and Fort Baker, a former military post.

Once I am done gorging, I also like to retreat to the waterfront to watch the seals yelling at each other and breaking the monotony of human conversation.A Walk Across the Cash-Rich ChinatownChinatown in San Francisco is said to be the largest Chinese establishment outside Asia.

I have never been to China but walking through the streets of Chinatown did feel that way!

Rebuilt to look raw and authentic, Chinatown must be explored beyond Grant Avenue and the souvenir shops.

Part 1- Maternity and Paternity Leave PhaseYou start believing in miracles when they befall upon you after years of yearning; yes, I had been secretly longing to embrace motherhood for the 2nd time for many years but it happened when I least expected it!Miracle he is, my 2nd born, who helped me beat my apprehensions and race my way up to the pinnacle of happiness!

Today he bundles his little contended self up on my lap and smiles with his eyes closed!

At that priceless moment, I know that life can’t be more perfect than this!Everything is different this time.

We are away from our extended family but closer to one another, the four of us!

Life is simple and blissful with no set routine yet it feels more complete than ever before!MorningsWaking up every 3 hours in the night feels facile when your partner rouses you up in the morning with a hot cup of tea and warm breakfast!

While this itself is the newest thing in our 12 years of marriage, something else that’s new is us sitting placidly, welcoming the warmth of the morning sun and making those aimless small talks that we haven’t made for the last decade.NoonsCooking together on weekends after a tiring week of work feels so make-believe after what I am living now!