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Ramya Sheshadri

@the_ruggedrani

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Free spirit.

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Tell me you have an artist at home without telling me you have one, anything can turn into a canvas 😁😂🫢..
These mangoes with such swag and innocent faces are indeed difficult to eat 😊. by @the_ruggedrani

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4 months ago

I want an I-phone!

A - Appa, get me an apple I phone.
Appa - Not now, when you really need one we can buy it.
A - Okay than I will make my own Apple I phones including a flip phone.
Appa - Good, go and do.

Ruggedrani thoughts - Though I found the conversation amusing, A actually did end up making these squishy paper phones to play with. It was delightful to see her make more such squishy phone to few of her classmates too! by @the_ruggedrani

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4 months ago

Movie inspired Art work - K -Pop demon hunters weapons.

A likes to recreate art from the movies and shows she enjoys watching. This 👆 was one such task she took up for fun in December 2025. She completed all the 3 weapons and gave 2 of them to her friends from school. She kept Mira's weapon for herself 😊.

Though, I missed taking the picture with Zoey's weapon ☹️, I am in my full element with Rumi's and Meera's weapons 🤭, can't stop flaunting them 😬. by @the_ruggedrani

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5 months ago

A, titled this art work as "Bloom Bubbles of Sunset Sunflower"

Painting done with a friend during a sleepover. The team work even with limited supplies of paint is commendable. They actually ended up using wall paint when they run out of acrylic paint to complete the painting. 😊

Kids can always find ways to solve a problem if we allow them to take the lead and give them the space to experiment. by @the_ruggedrani

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5 months ago

Reading Slump Continues!

Me - A, I see you have started reading this new graphic novel. This is one of the nice way to spend your summer holidays 😊.

A - Amma, no I don't feel like reading right now, however let me try to draw the character Katie from the coverpage 😬.

Ruggedrani thoughts - Though, I wish she finishes reading the book once she starts reading them. I also realise that reading habit should be for the joy of it and she should not think of it as another task just because I keep insisting that she reads as often as possible.
Like, Vaishali always mentions in her posts it is important to allow space, give time, create independence and let the child develop the joy for reading a book. Even if it means they never complete reading a book or choose to read the same book multiple times or just take a break from reading!
Only then will they truly understand & develop the ability to appreciate the true joy in reading a book for life. Some of my favorite posts by @ammatoday I revisit to cool my nerves eveytime I overthink 🤭.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DWEgAikmrcn/?img_index=1&igsh=MXc0ZHBmdnM4ZTdpaQ==

https://www.instagram.com/p/DU-zWe0k5bc/?igsh=bTFhNmszbnN4eDJy

https://www.instagram.com/p/DWy1PpdGnbs/?igsh=MWRpNGYxcTV2ajA5Mg==

https://www.instagram.com/p/DYUm7somnLq/?igsh=MTBrd2x5Ym1ncmwyaQ==

https://www.instagram.com/p/DXPGsiyGisq/?igsh=MXh4d2kyOGtnM2lpMg==

https://www.instagram.com/p/DWgwl2xmqXg/?igsh=dnVjZGtiYWk0aTd6

https://www.instagram.com/p/DUTHYSikwYd/?igsh=anl6aWkyZDlxZnpi by @the_ruggedrani

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5 months ago

Book Inspired Art Work 😊.

A, titled this art work as "Escape into the Paradise of Loneliness".

A was inspired by "A Shelter for Sadness" book cover page authored by @anneboothauthor and illustrated by @david_c_litchfield and ended up making this painting. A book we always go back to everytime we feel very sad.

As she continues to overcome the loss of her friendship because her best friend moved out last year...the missing continues.

Ruggedrani thoughts - As a parent it is very difficult to see your child struggle through this feeling of loneliness and despair. Yet, I am trying my best to hold space for her deep feelings. by @the_ruggedrani

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5 months ago

Glad for just being thought of...

Me - A do you know your mama got you a lego set while on his work trip. However, it may not be to your liking so you will have to adjust.

A - Amma, the very fact he remembered and thought about me makes me feel very happy. It does not really matter what he got me.

Me - That is true...I never thought about it that way.

Ruggedrani thoughts - This conversation made me realise how we take relationships for granted and never notice these acts of love and care from our near & dear ones. We need to understand what truly matters is the intention and thought behind the gesture. by @the_ruggedrani

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6 months ago

I saw a parenting trend on Insta few months ago and I tried that with A and her answers were amusing & heart touching.

Me - I GAVE BIRTH TO YOU...
A - To love & cherish me.

Me - AS LONG AS YOU LIVE UNDER MY ROOF...
A - I am like a seed you guide me to become a tree.
Also I am a kid to be nurtured & loved by you.

Me - GIRLS SHOULD...
A - Girls are everything they can imagine they can be. Also, girls are strong, unstoppable, powerful & speak for themselves.

Me - BOYS CAN'T....
A - All are equal, have same interest and desires, there is nothing he or she can't do.

Me - GIRLS SHOULD NOT...
A - There is nothing girls should not do, the only thing everybody should NOT DO is bullying & hurting.

Me - JUST WAIT UNTIL....
A - I am going to be the most powerful & amazing person and I will give you all the love you give me today.

Me - WHEN YOU HAVE A CHILD YOU WILL KNOW...
A - Their feelings and perspectives.

Me - I AM YOUR PARENT & NOT YOUR?
A - Not a Bestie.

Me - I AM HERE TO SPEAK AND YOUR HERE TO LISTEN, UNDERSTAND & ACCOMODATE....
A - Children should be seen & understood.

Me - I BOUGHT YOU INTO THIS WORLD....
A - To make me an amazing, powerful & unstoppable person and to make me love you as much as you do 🤗.

In pictures paintings done by A when she attended online art classes by Seema between November - December 2024. It was one of the best experiances she had and to this day we are waiting for the next online class. Seema @our.creative.quest please announce the next one soon, your guidance is amazing & A loved all your classes. by @the_ruggedrani

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6 months ago

I am ready, Amma.

A - Amma, I think I am finally ready to cut my hair.

Me - Okay, are you sure? You have found your reason to cut your hair?
Also, whether all your doubts are addressed? Like, how I would look if I keep it long versus short? Whether it will suit my face if it is short hair or what if I don't like after cutting it short?

A - Yes Amma, I know why I want to cut it short now and I am ready to go for it.

Ruggedrani thoughts - One of the thing I had decided long before I became a parent was to respect my child's body autonomy. A friend during my hostel days had shared how she always wanted long hair and her mother did not allow due to the hassle of maintaining it. She shared she felt very sad, so that story stayed with me.

So I practised respecting my child body autonomy by giving her choices in allowing her to pick dresses in the colour she liked from the time she was 2.5 years. Giving her options to choose from type of dress amd accessories she would wear and allowing her to decide the kind of hairstyle and make up she wanted to use whenever neccessary (after she turned 5yrs). I also never insisted on dresses or shoes when she said she was uncomfortable wearing them.

However, what I did not expect was her decision to grow her hair long after she turned 5 years, she clearly said I want long hair like my paternal grandma so I will grow it. Naturally, the length of her hair was directly proportional to the time I had to spend in combing her hair.

I was faced with this constant challenge of pleating two plaits everyday while going to school. If we had to attend any functions & parties, I was pushed out of my comfort zone to explore online videos to try the hairstyles she asked for, most of the time I complied. I worked on myself to wake up earlier and ensured pleating her hair was not a burdensome for me, all it required was planning & preparedness on my part.

I remember A asking me multiple times Amma are you okay with combing my long hair, is it difficult to manage, Amma are you okay that I have long hair? Amma, do you like my hair?
Continued in comments 👇 by @the_ruggedrani

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6 months ago

My heart wants to do it.

A - Appa, you forgot to get me the sweet box I asked for.

Me - What do you need the sweets for A?

A - Amma, I wanted to give sweet box along with my hand made card to my favorite teacher. She will not be teaching us anymore & I am going to miss her very much.

Me - A, you have already made her such wonderful card written a letter and gifting her a key chain. I think this itself is more than enough for your teacher. I also think, they would entertain getting gifts from their students like this.

A - Amma, my heart wants to give and do this, what is wrong in that!

Ruggedrani thoughts - It took a while for me to actually get a sense of an understanding of what she said. Her heart wanted to do it and it made me ask myself how many times have I actually felt like this?
In all these years how many times have I ever paused to notice, to know and do what my heart truly wants! Indeed kids are more connected with themselves as they are not conditioned by the worldly experiances.
This moment made me realise I need to listen more instead of always jumping to share what I think. by @the_ruggedrani

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6 months ago

I want my friend to be happy 😊

Me - A, why do you want to gift your friend a lego set for the birthday. It is beyond our budget allocated for birthday gifts.

A- Amma, I want my friend to be happy so I want to gift a lego set.

Me - So you think gifting a lego set to your friend will make them happy?

A - Yes Amma, I think so. Also, Amma allow me to use my pocket money to buy this gift.

Ruggedrani thoughts - Though, initially I was not inclined to agree with her decision. I sat with it and realised if I don't value the emotions and feelings behind her decision and her need to see her friend happy, I may make her feel that her emotions & decisions are not important.

So for this time, we did give her the permission to use her pocket money to buy the lego set for her friend. Only when the child is allowed to see through the decisions they make will they develop self confidence in themselves.

In pictures various paper craft work done by A. by @the_ruggedrani

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6 months ago

Sacred Stories Circle (SSC)

We recently enrolled in the SSC conducted by Vaishali aka Ammatoday. We are already part of her book club and naturally I knew this is something we wanted to definitely try for ourselves. I have been working on my own emotional awareness and trying to also encourage A to know, learn and understand about social & emotional learning (SEL), so this felt like a natural calling to explore.

We have completed 2 SSC sessions till date and both of them have been an eye opening experience for us. Though, A being a tween has too many questions about why she needs to know about mythological stories and its relation with emotions she is slowly getting a sense of an understanding. We have realised it is not their (mythological characters) story it can also be very much our story. The instances chosen from these stories are apt and conveys the intended message in a child friendly manner.

The entire session is not preachy and imposing. The best part is the way the child is gently nudge to think from different perspectives. I love the way Vaishali encourages children to answer questions by saying "Children there is no right or wrong answer". I see every child in the group responding after taking their time to think.

We love the accompanying worksheets, art activity and notes to parents - resources shared in the SSC. It allows us to revisit and retrospect.

To conclude, I think it is difficult to truly share & express in words what we can learn from these stories. These learnings are lifelong and each one of us will gain something meaningful and special from these sacred stories.

Looking forward to more such sessions Vaishali 😊.

P.S. I asked A why did you include drawings in the worksheet?
She said, Amma there was negative space so I decided to fill it. (Vaishali, you know from where she learnt about it 😇, thank you) by @the_ruggedrani

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6 months ago