Author: Supriya

Mama’s made dinner

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This mama has learnt to cook for her baby. And is super proud. Preparing baby food is really simple. But I must have done hours of reading before gathering the courage to actually make it myself and feed it to my baby girl. Here is one I prepare for dinner which she loves. Stage 1 Homemade Baby Food – Sweet potato with carrots 1 cup diced sweet potato – washed and peeled 1/2 cup diced carrots – washed and peeled Add ingredients into a saucepan and pour water just enough to cover the food Cook until food is soft – soft so that carrots and potatoes are nearly disintegrating I usually use a pressure cooker to cook allowing for at least 3 whistles. In my first two attempts, I did not cook it enough and ended up with a not-so-smooth puree and my LO basically choked on her food. Failed big time there (and I nearly got a heart-attack) Strain the water out but do not throw it Puree the cooked veggies into a smooth paste. Use the …

Sharing space

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Its been over 5months since Oscar has had to share “his space” with a new human in the house. This has meant a bit of adjustment not just for Oscar but for us as well. But we are getting better everyday. Oscar’s (almost) daily walk continues which he loves. We walk about 4.5km. Its great workout not just for him, but for me too. I have not been able to loose the baby weight yet 😦 He is also more comfortable around baby AS. He has stopped jumping up to see her or sniff her. And gives the most gentle licks to her feet – of course, with our supervision. We do not leave the baby alone with Oscar. Ever. He is more free to roam around the house. Of course there are still restrictions such as the couch and bed. The twist in the story now is that baby AS is more interested in Oscar. She will bend over backwards – literally  – to see Oscar. Has her giggles going when Oscar follows. We have even …

Crunchy salad mix – Nepalese style

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I’ve got no name for this dish. But it’s my mum making and its super yum. And best of all, its so easy. What you need: 1 cup julienned carrots 1/2 cup julienned white raddish 2 cup chopped cabbage 1/2 cup chopped onions 1/2 cup chopped tomatoes 1/3 cup chopped coriander 1/3 cup peas 1/2 lemon 1 tblspoon fenugreek seeds 1 tblspoon sesame seeds 1 tblspoon sweet chilli sauce 2 fresh green chillies chilli powder salt Preparation Soak the fenugreek seeds overnight. Dry roast the sesame seeds and grind it on a pestle. Then mix all the ingredients together, squeeze some lemon, salt and chilli powder to get some kick in. Then toss. That’s it! Fresh as spring! This would be perfect to go alongside a bbq or grill.  

Oscar lately.

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With the bub in the house, Oscar realises that he is no more the centre of attention. Fortunately, this hasn’t made him angry or aggressive but he definitely feels we are not giving him  much time. Call me crazy but I can “see” him show his emotions.   Oscar is a very affectionate and loving dog. So if there is a little bit of jealousy about the love for him being shared with someone else, it is very understandable. Playtime and cuddle time has reduced and his access around the house is restricted and this change is not a happy one for him. I try my best to make time for him – and only him – everyday. Hoping this change wont be too long for him. Can’t wait for these two babies to become friends!

WeMo, the smart switch

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Let me get straight to it. I love the Belkin WeMo switch. This little smartie is a wifi enabled switch that allows you to turn on or off electronic devices. And as simple as its description is, so is it’s usage. Plug the switch into the power outlet and connect the device – the tv, the heater, fan & what have you, to the switch. Then install the WeMo app (android or iOS) to control the electronic device using the app over wifi or mobile network. The simplest function available is to turn device ON or OFF but beyond this, it is also possible to create additional rules to turn devices ON or OFF automatically following certain conditions. So you can start getting creative. I’ve found this specially useful to control devices that need running overnight. We’ve used this together with fan, night lamp, light in Oscar’s room, and recently to control the heater & vapourizer for bub. Basically, we have both the heater + vapourizer connected to the same WeMo switch via a multiplug and …

Experimenting with Home Assistant

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The home automation side of our world seems to be a bit quiet at the moment. But not really. There are things “cooking” in SS’s head right now. Usually we talk about what he is planning on but lately with my pregnancy and the new bub, we have hardly had time to talk anything other than nappies, poos, sleep, settling etc. Anyways, I thought I should update a little on what is happening. SS is trying something new. Yes, we are experimenting. Yet Again. This time SS is trying out a new home automation software called Home Assistant. This will essentially replace OpenHAB that we are currently using. OpenHAB has been working perfectly fine, as far as I know. But I it is the curiosity in SS to try something new –  basically to code in Python – that has let to trialling out Home Assistant. Okay, let me correct that. We are past the trialling phase. We are definitely moving to Home Assistant. I will perhaps put up a post on his comparison between the two systems, …

Oscar learning to wait for hugs

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Oscar is 19months now and his capacity to learn new commands is getting slower. One of his bad habits is jumping up on anyone new that walks into the house – not with a intention to bite though. He is just super happy to see a new human being. And you can imagine his excitement when his favourite human walks through the door after work.  In this video, we are teaching Oscar to contain his excitement and basically wait to get his most awaited hugs. It’s a work in progress. View this post on Instagram Oscar learning to contain his excitement on seeing his favourite human come home from work. #beagle #beaglepuppy #beagles #dogsofinstagram #pupsofinstagram #puppy #dogsofsydney #dogtraining A post shared by @ ourgorgeouschaos on Jul 29, 2016 at 3:49am PDT This command will be most useful, now that we have a little human in the house as well! If you have a furry family member and are teaching him new tricks and commands, I’d love to know!

Methi ko Achaar

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My mum is currently over in Australia living with us for a few months. And while she is having a ball taking care of her first granddaughter, I am trying to take advantage of her presence in my kitchen and take note of any of her Nepalese/Newari cooking. This particular pickle doesnt just burst with flavours, it literally explodes! And a big hit on the table. As with most of the Nepalese recipes on this site, I warn you, its not for the faint hearted as this one is spicy!  (My Nepalese brothers and sisters craving for more spice, you are welcome 😀 ) Here we go: Roast & grind the seeds: 1 tablespoon fenugreek seeds 1/2 teaspoon thyme seeds 1/2 teaspoon sesame seeds Roast them all and grind them in a pestle Heat 1 tablespoon oil in frying pan. To that, add in 3 cloves of garlic and about a 1cm of garlic sliced, 3 dried chillies broken into small pieces, a pinch of turmeric. Remove from heat, once the garlic is slightly charred. (Keep your exhaust …

There is going to be more chaos!

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Wow, it has been over 3 months since my last post. Time flies – at supersonic speed. Lots has been going on and I just haven’t had a chance to log them all as much as I want to. One of the biggest is that we have a new addition to our world of chaos… a baby girl..wohooo! This new mum and dad are over the moon 😀 She is just a couple of weeks old and as you can imagine our lives currently revolves around poos, wees, nappies and some crazy sleepless nights. Lets just say, the last few days have been “adventurous” and we are learning everyday. We have given her a beautiful Nepalese name, but will refer to this little bundle of joy as AS on this blog. Needless to say, there will be more chaos in the house.