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#MondayMommyMoment 38:Shopping on a Budget & Saving Money

By Dr.Amrita Basu(MBBS,MS) on September 18, 2017 34

The best way to shop is when it’s a challenge and when it’s with friends.I avoid the jostling crowds that shop with religious fervor.With a kid in tow and hubby looking progressively mutinous , shopping for me is best done in the comfort of my home, online.

The immense amount of stuff that keeps accumulating with a child growing up, has made me a careful shopper.I buy after making a list.Window shopping online can be even more dangerous than in shopping malls.The websites will then keep on sending you emails with various price versions and you will be seeing that same product everywhere(called retargeting), till you give in and buy.

I have short to-dos when I go buying

I make a list of what I want to buy.I am a list person.I have lists for everything.There’s a deep-rooted pleasure in checking ut something on a list, with a red pen is
Keep an approximate budget.Buying and being guilty about it spoils the fun.
I check my home for similar items(happens for clothes, mostly) and think about why I want to buy.This I do because I love shopping and hate the process of finding a place to squeeze in the new purchases.It’s a dream that one day all the stuff will magically fit in.That’s why I always declutter before going shopping.Online or offline.

Disclaimer: There are affiliate links in the following part.This means if you click on a link and buy something I will make a small commission, which in no way affects the price you pay to buy it.Your help is the best way to support this website.Read my full disclaimer.

Shopping on a Budget and making money :3 steps

1)I keep a watch out for the heavily discounted sales on Amazon.Check out my curated list of Amazon sale seasons.The last 5 years of my experience with Amazon has shown they have the least price across all categories.The Great Indian Shopping Festival is coming up on the 21st.It will be running until the 24th.Make a list and shop smart. Get my list of must buy books to do more here.

2)I use Amazon Prime.

3)I have a Cashkaro account.How does Cashkaro work?

It’s pretty simple.

Make your own account.
Search for your product.
Find the list of sites with best deals.
Shop at the online portal which you love and money will be credited to your account as NEFT in the bank/Amazon vouchers/Flipkart vouchers.
Check it out here.

Cashkaro :What you need to do — Cashkaro : What you need to do

Cahkaro :Get real cash — Cahkaro : Get real cash

Cashkaro:How can cashkaro give you cash back? — Cashkaro:How can Cashkaro give you cash back?

Did you know the cash gets tracked to your account within 72 hours?Cashback generally gets confirmed
within 4-12 weeks and you get paid.This waiting time was the biggest con for me .

They are responsive to Twitter messages and have an easily navigable site.

Cashkaro:Show this to your hubby when you shop online next time — Cashkaro :Show this to your hubby when you shop online next time

Durga Pujo is for worship and the prepujo days are for shopping!Shop smart and shop carefully.Money saved is money earned.Buy things which you need.

Warning from an ex-shopaholic

Avoid buying plastic and non-ecofriendly products
Do not buy makeup in bulk.They expire soon and are harmful when used beyond expiry date.
Invest in quality accessories and clothes which are classics.
Make it a game with a friend.The best deals you can find and on a budget.

Share with me on Twitter , by tagging me.I would love to know what you shopped for.Writing this for #MondayMommyoments.

MondayMommyMoments prompt 38

Share with us your mommy tips about shopping on a budget

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Disclosure: If you decide to buy or make a purchase, please do so after carefully reading the terms and conditions of the portals mentioned.This is my personal experience with these sites.Read my full disclosure here.

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Does Royale Atmos by Asian Paints stop Indoor air pollution?

By Dr.Amrita Basu(MBBS,MS) on September 17, 2017 26

I love spending time at home. For me, it’s important to have a clean and fresh home. A few days back while getting a bookshelf painted, I made sure they took it to the shop, to get it done. Extra expenses, but these paints are full of nasty chemicals called VOC which spread all through the home. It is very harmful to children and adults too. I started researching VOCs from the time I was pregnant. That’s when women start having worries about the environment, air quality and the world in general. Our feeling of mortality and the world we are leaving for our child. India ranking among the top 10, in having most polluted indoor air didn’t make me feel happy.

I thought only burning wood and other biomass caused poor indoor air quality. The Narendra Modi government has subsidized LPG gas and has helped millions switch to healthier cooking gas options.But what about VOCs?That’s present even in urban and affluent homes. In fact, the indoor air may have five times more such pollutants than outdoor air.

But what exactly are these VOCs?

Formaldehyde, benzene, toluene(VOCs) are VOCs.Some of these VOCs are suspected carcinogens.VOCs or volatile organic compounds are emitted by a lot of products used in homes.

They include:

Paints, paint strippers, and other solvents
Wood preservatives
Aerosol sprays
Cleansers and disinfectants
Moth repellents and air fresheners
Stored fuels and automotive products
Hobby supplies
Dry-cleaned clothing
Pesticide

VOCs, evaporate into the air when you use these and even when they are stored.In fact, pressed wood furniture can emit VOCs several years after they are made. But why are VOCs bad?

What effect do Volatile organic compounds have on your body?

VOCs have a wide range of strange effects on your body. They can irritate eyes, nose, and throat. They may cause headaches and make you nauseous. Long-term exposure can damage liver, kidneys, and are cancer causing too!

Unfortunately, in India, emission standards for VOCs are not mentioned. Ask me why? The government forgot to make it mandatory. That’s why you end up inhaling VOC s in various amounts from many unknown sources. None of which are documented openly.

These are scary thoughts but you can still do a lot to make your room air fresh and clean.

7 Things I will do to make my new home air clean and fresh

1)I am getting my home painted with a lead-free eco-friendly paint option. God’s were listening because while before only a few brands offered this option now there are at least 3 well-known brands having an option of lead-free paint. But what has made me really happy is the new Asian paints Royale Atmos. The company claims the wall paint is not only lead-free but has an activated carbon mechanism to actively remove VOCs from room air. How effective is it?That I will need to find out.

Photo by Kimberly Niesz – More bedroom photos

How cool is that? I was very happy to hear this. Now my plan is to save enough money to be able to afford it for my new home. With innovations like this, I am excited.

2)I plan to keep a cute open container of baking powder in all the wet areas. This helps to decrease damp and mold. Mold can also make the room air of poor quality. It causes allergic rhinitis, asthma, and other allergic tendencies. Also, one wall getting damp can spread throughout the home. Mold problems are very difficult to get rid off. Prevention will definitely help.

3)I have also planned Vertical indoor gardens for my balcony, living room and maybe the guest room. That again will depend on the total budget.I can start small, right?

Photo by Architology – More dining room photos

The places where I can’t have a vertical garden I will have potted plants with low water need.

How many plants per person is adequate to give fresh air?

1 to 3 per 100 square feet is adequate.NASA very helpfully prepared a list of indoor plants which are efficient at improving indoor air quality and produce oxygen even in low light conditions indoors.

Photo by Kuth / Ranieri Architects – Search entryway design ideas

4)I will only use homemade pesticides for my plants. That’s what I do even now.

5)I plan to check the emission standards of my electronic appliances and act accordingly.

6)Buy sustainable eco-friendly furniture. Pressed wood has a very high quantity of VOC.So I am planning on using reclaimed wood or bamboo.I already have several wrought iron and reclaimed wood pieces. Definitely no leather sofas. There goes, my dream recliner! But it’s for good health. Right?

7)I am also going to avoid dry cleaning as far as possible. The fluid used for dry cleaning emits the VOCs for a very long time.

This is my 7 step plan of action for my new home. One to four I have decided, five is going to be challenging, six fun researching. Tell me in the comments below how you keep your room air fresh and clean.

Disclaimer: Writing this for an Indiblogger campaign with Asian paints.#CleanAirBeautifulHomes after loving the idea of Royale atmos.

Click to see the video, if you are too busy to read now. Don’t forget to subscribe!

Posts in this series

Plastic pollution population:Hard truths

Delhi pollution

Indoor air pollution

Indoor air

Greening the planet earth

Car air purifier: Why I want it

Lead paint and pollution

Sound pollution

Hearing and Headphones

Say no to plastic water bottles

noise-induced hearing loss

Environmental pollution awareness and strict action

Environment, Health, Home health, Lifestyle

Is the Air you Breathe Indoor Killing you?

By Dr.Amrita Basu(MBBS,MS) on September 16, 2017 31

India ranks among the top 10.Excited?In what you ask?
India’s cities and towns have the highest level of indoor air pollution amongst the world’s top cities.Sad shocking and totally disturbing.This WHO REPORT shares national disease load due to indoor Air pollution.India has more than 1.5 million deaths per year due to indoor air pollution.

Important facts about Indoor Air Pollution

3 billion people cook and heat their homes using open fires and simple stoves.They burn biomass (wood, animal dung, and crop waste) and coal.
4 million people die prematurely from illness due to household air pollution, from cooking with solid fuels.
50% of premature deaths due to pneumonia among children under 5 are caused by the particulate matter (soot) inhaled from household air pollution..

Causes of Premature deaths are:

These include noncommunicable diseases like stroke, ischaemic heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and lung cancer, which are partly attributed to exposure to household air pollution.

Premature deaths and poor indoor air quality

Premature deaths due to indoor air pollution :

12% are due to Pneumonia
34% from Stroke
26% from Ischaemic heart disease
22% from Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD),
6% from Lung cancer.

Photo by – Search living room pictures

Western countries have indoor air quality guidelines.It’s 20 micrograms of particulate matter per cubic meter. In India, it averages 375 micrograms per cubic meter.

The burning of solid fuel is a big culprit,the section of society using biomass as fuel needs help.For this, we need Government help, subsidies.Thankfully it’s happening slowly but definitely happening.

But what about urban indoor air pollution?

Do you have any idea about what your home, office, shopping malls air contain?Unfortunately, there are no well-defined emission norms for Air conditioners, refrigerators, toasters in India.So the data is not easily available.
Quality of indoor air affects children more often.
Asthma ,allergic rhinitis , has reached shocking levels in children.

What can be your solution for this?

Choose your home paint with care.Avoid lead in household paint.
Be careful about emission standards of household products.
Have indoor plants and your own indoor garden.Have balcony gardens.Have window gardens, have plants everywhere.Plants are great indoor decor option.

[bctt tweet=”“The purpose of life is to contribute in some way to making things better.” ― Robert F. Kennedy” username=”misra_amrita”]

Balcony garden with Chikoo plant

The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Indoor Allergen Committee in a 2010 report recommended that allergists consider indoor air filtration to be part of a comprehensive strategy to improve respiratory health.

Indoor air filters and air purifiers with HEPA filters can help.
But that’s just sweeping the dust under the carpet. It doesn’t address the greater problem of a more comprehensive plan to remove air pollutants.But HEPA filters are expensive and not a solution to the Indian problem.Indoor Plants are cheap, easy, pretty, low maintenance solution to this serious problem.

How plants improve air quality?

They can absorb ambient VOCs , improve the quality of air and produce oxygen.They purify ambient air and produce fresh oxygen for you to breathe!

Photosynthesis is the method by which plants produce oxygen.It depends on the presence of Carbon dioxide, light and water molecules.
Indoor air plant can produce oxygen even in low light conditions .
They also remove air pollutants like formaldehyde, benzene, toluene(VOCs).Some of these VOCs are suspected carcinogens.

Photo by – Search bedroom design ideas

VOCs are emitted by a wide array of products used in homes including:

Paints, paint strippers, and other solvents
Wood preservatives
Aerosol sprays
Cleansers and disinfectants
Moth repellents and air fresheners
Stored fuels and automotive products
Hobby supplies
Dry-cleaned clothing
Pesticide

VOCs, evaporate into the air when these products are used or sometimes even when they are stored.

What effect do Volatile organic compounds have on your body?

Irritate the eyes, nose, and throat
Causes headaches
Nausea,
Damage to the liver, kidneys and central nervous system.
Some of them can even cause cancer.

These harmful chemicals are removed from the indoor air by absorption through the stoma on leaves.

They are then broken down into simple chemical components which are harmless.For example, take formaldehyde.It’s strongly suspected to be potentially causing cancer in humans.Plants can break it down to Carbon, oxygen and hydrogen atoms and make it harmless.

Sources of formaldehyde at home:

Pressed woods
Some types of foam insulation
Paper products
Some paints and varnishes

How many plants per person is adequate to provide fresh air?

1 to 3 per 100 square feet is said to be adequate.

So What kind of plants are best?

NASA report compiled an interesting list of plants.

English Ivy(Hedera Helix)
Golden Pothos
Epipremnum aureum, also known as devil’s ivy: reduces air levels of benzene and trichloroethylene.
Boston fern(Nephrolepis Exalta Bostoniensis)

Ferns had the highest formaldehyde-removal efficiency of all the plants tested, especially Osmunda japonica, commonly known as Japanese royal fern, or zenma

Bamboo palm: removes benzene and trichloroethylene(Chamaedorea Elegans)
Dragon tree: (Dracaena Marginata)removes xylene
Peace Lily: Spathiphyllum
Lady Palm: Rhapis Excelsa
Spider Plant: Chlorophytum Comosum
Snake Plant: Sansevieria Trifasciata

Photo by Beth Kooby Design – Search bathroom pictures

What happens when you are not home?

That’s the biggest problem that stumps indoor gardeners.
Another problem with container gardening is providing optimal nutrition.

The good news I found a solution.

The Fairytale story…..

While watching Egiye Bangla an interesting program on ZEE BANGLA promoting entrepreneurship, I heard the most wonderful idea.It was an Urban gardeners dream.The winner Jayabrata Bhaduri was one of the 4 entrepreneurs behind Capacloud a startup company.

They had a solution to increase green friendly biophilic designs.I was so excited I tracked down , this Bengali entrepreneur Jayabrata Bhaduri on Facebook.Sent him a message and requested a meeting, to see how in the world did they do it.Very kindly he arranged a meeting with their mentor and guide.I turned up at the designated meeting place with my hubby, who was by now quite shocked that he had agreed to meet a stranger in their home/laboratory about gardening.
Nothing to do with medicine.But everything to do with health.Yes, that was my winning argument.

The time spent in the laboratory/workshop and terrace garden was pure magic.The extent and scope of their innovation was mind boggling!

Their winning idea:

Lego-style tiles(Ecotop) made of some special material(Top secret)
This tile is incorporated with special nutrients.
This tile can be placed on almost any surface, to make growing green anywhere a distinct reality.

Experiments suggest they can provide a well-balanced plant nutrition, through their special technology for up to 5 years.Yes, that’s true 5 years!

Indoor Vertical Garden:Image courtesy Capacloud

Vertical Gardening +Hydroponics+Something special=Capaclouds new innovation.

Managing corporate orders is the top priority of the company right now.But they are planning to bring it to the indoor gardeners in the very near future.

Their upcoming project involves the United States Embassy in Kolkata.A young company already going places!

So how exactly Capacloud’s innovation, can revolutionize Urban gardening?

1) You can have improved air quality in

Schools
Hospitals
Hotels
Home
Offices
Public places
External walls

Vertical Garden :Biophilic design

Image courtesy Capacloud

2) Garden anywhere!

3) It’s supremely aimed as a biophilic interior design option.
4)It’s inspirational, restorative, and healthy.
5)Its design can adapt to the functionality of the place Seamlessly integrates to interiors.
6)It provides nutrition to the plants for 5 years with an easy method of replenishing it.

7)Its innovative tile design makes it suitable for all surfaces.

8)The nutrition mix is just right for bountiful growth.

Photo by Janet Paik – Search bathroom design ideas

No problem of plant sitters when you go for trips.Have your own urban jungle if you want.Eastern India leads in the incidence of nonsmokers with lung cancer.How many of you plant trees?How many of you have your own window boxes of greenery/balcony garden/terrace garden?

So how indoor plants do?

Produce oxygen
Absorb Carbon dioxide
Removes volatile organic compounds: nitrogen dioxide, benzene, and formaldehyde & others.
The plants remove all the poisons from the air and make your air breathable.

So how exactly does increased oxygen improve your health?

Improved cardiovascular health Decreases diastolic Pressure and calms out sympathetic system which is responsible for psychological and physiological stress .

Plants enhance job satisfaction in office workers
Improve mood states =increased feeling of wellbeing.Helps stabilize mood.
Enhance cognitive health
Improves clarity of thought= more productivity
Increased creativity=you have brilliant ideas
Improve immunity and healing.

Why Indoor air plants?

Plants are a useful way of improving air quality.
Easily available.
Maintenance is easy.
Suitable for all environment.
Plants provide an actionable option in situations where other more expensive technology may be grossly inadequate.

My take:

I think it’s time you took back your lungs.Do something for yourself. For the air you breathe.

For your children.It’s not about the future.It’s about the present.The world you live in is slowly being turned into a wasteland.Air, water, soil, sound pollution.The critical balance between the different elements of our ecosystem is terribly distorted.The possibility of this restored in the ecosystem is gradually decreased.Honestly, nobody is stopping, to think that only plants produce life-saving oxygen.

You can live without the internet, but how long can you live without breathing?No life will be possible on earth without plants.Artificial sources of oxygen are just that artificial and are only temporary solutions.If you made your home green soon your city, country and eventually mother earth would be green again.Let’s go green!

Updated:September 2017

I decided to update this post because I am getting work done in my new home usindg some of these ideas.You will know the truth behind all the claims .Also Capacloud is now doing home spaces too!.Must check out their website for more details.

Brand stories, Environment, Health, Health solutions, Home health, Wellness

Lead free paint in India :What you must know

By Dr.Amrita Basu(MBBS,MS) on September 15, 2017 29

Writing and researching my next book on nature and play for daily wellbeing

Dr.Amrita Basu(MBBS,MS)

I am an ENT surgeon by profession, previously working at a Medical college. I believe the Internet is God’s way of providing health and wealth information for all. The important thing is to find the right information.

My home is three-quarters done. Now I need a good lead-free eco-friendly paint option in India. That’s why I am aggressively researching paints and services. I have already written about Lead poisoning a few years back. That needed an update. Since that time our government has decided to pass laws to restrict lead paint in household paints. But is that enough? A few questions need answering.

How is Lead used in paints?

It’s used as pigments. Lead carbonate or white lead makes the paint a white /cream color. Lead tetroxide is used to create bright red paint.

Why is lead used in paints?

Lead helps in drying quickly.
It makes the paint durable.
Makes the paint moisture resistant.
Its cheap

This made lead paints popular for use in homes, on metal exposed to the elements, and even children’s toys. Shocked?I was too when I researched for this article. Only lead paint at home is not a problem. Children can get exposed to industrial paints from various sources.

Both children and adults are at risk when exposed to lead paint. Paint applied to roads, highways, steel structures, industrial buildings, vehicles, and farm equipment all need to be free. When these paints grow old, it degrade, flake off and chips fall. This is the culprit behind long-term slow air pollution (by lead dust ) and soil contamination. This is a bigger problem when the paint is removed. The workers at these places are exposed to lead and take home this poison in their clothes, hair, skin.

The problem is industrial paints are applied to homes, schools, and consumer products. Where are the laws to stop schools and public places from using lead in paint?

Brands which have embraced lead-free and low VOC paint options include

Kansai Nerolac
Asian paints: Many products. They started their green assure product range 7 years back. They have also launched a new product Royale Atmos which absorbs VOC
Berger paints Breathe Easy Emulsion

(Any other? Let me know. I will update)

The Indian Government has fixed the content of lead in house paints to less than 90 ppm. That’s a great initiative But more decisions need to be taken, quickly. Lead is a poison. It’s difficult to remove. It poisons the air, water, soil, and your food.

With Delhi pollution still a shocking reality, are we going to let our government dilly – dally with a known poison?

Both children and adults are at risk. The Government may do too little too late. Since you know this. What are you going to do now?

My wish :

Clean air, water, soil for all of us.

Dr.Amrita Basu(MBBS,MS)

Environment, Health, Home health, Wellness

Resources:

1)G.S.R. 409(E) [08-04-2016] : Regulation on Lead contents in Household and Decorative Paints Rules, 2016

2)http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/lead-content-limit-should-apply-to-all-paints-experts/article8602249.ece

3) Lead poisoning:What you can do

4)Indoor Air pollution

#ThursdayTreeLove:Balcony Garden ideas in India

By Dr.Amrita Basu(MBBS,MS) on September 15, 2017 19

When I first moved here five years back, the homes in front were bare.Their rooftops had a few plants but balconies which faced me made me sigh.Why didn’t they have a few green plants to grace them?

My hubby insisted there were practical reasons, like letting clothes get sun-dried(that’s more eco-friendly and healthier option than a drier ).But those beautiful sunny balconies lying bare, made my brain go into overdrive.I used to stare at them and imagine how pretty they would look with different plants peeping here and there.

Guess what? The Gods were listening.Though they don’t have a balcony garden, now they have a two story high climber which is bursting with beautiful pink flowers,.They are a pleasure to behold, on hot sultry summer afternoons.My green balcony is always restful, but now I peep outside from between the leaves of my Chikoo tree to see the climbing beauty just across the street.It’s called Madhabilata in Bengali.

Sharing the balcony views from indoor. The first one faces south and the second one faces north (more or less). When the late afternoon sun filters through the green leaves they make me happy.

Enjoy the Garden images from my collection:

Garden image:Balcony garden with Chikoo plant — Balcony garden image with Chikoo plant.They are small now .The size of a five rupee coin .But growing .

Balcony Gareden image India — Balcony Garden India: Ticoma , Alamunda.Jasmine and a lemon tree on this corner

Balcony gardening:A;lamunda for your balcony

Balcony garden image & Ideas — Balcony garden Ideas:Bougainvillea

Garden Image — Garden image: Orange and Yellow Ixora

Garden image:Rose — GARDENING With heart and soul. It’s mindfulness meditation for me

When I see a hummingbird dancing from one branch to another, a butterfly sitting on my flowers, a sparrow trying to eat my chikoo.I know it’s all good. Life is supposed to be this way. When you find what you are seeking, things just fit. When they don’t fit, it’s not meant to be. Plants animals, humans and nature needs to live in harmony. That will create the right environment for health, wellness, and prosperity.

My favorite nature as inspiration quotes

“Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson

Our task must be to free ourselves… by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature and its beauty.”

“I’d rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck.”
― Emma Goldman

“The goal of life is to make your heartbeat match the beat of the universe, to match your nature with Nature.”
― Joseph Campbell, A Joseph Campbell Companion: Reflections on the Art of Living

“Everything in nature invites us constantly to be what we are.”
― Gretel Ehrlich

Nature is my manifestation of God.
I go to nature every day for inspiration in the day’s work.”
― Frank Lloyd Wright

There’s something very enticing about an empty bench under a tree. And if it’s facing a river, that’s the bench for me.”
― Joyce Rachelle

Earth is the holiest place in the Universe, loving the earth, and loving life is the way to generate positive vibrations.”
― Amit Ray

Environment, ThursdayTreeLove

#ThankfulThursdays37 :Thankful for Blogging contests

By Dr.Amrita Basu(MBBS,MS) on September 14, 2017 35

I believe anything that helps me grow positively is for the good and is blessed by God’s wishes.For me writing on my blog has been a self-healing and self-discovery of sorts.Blogging contests fall right where reading, writing, gardening, and thankfulness comes from.It helps me write, it helps me learn, it helps me push my boundaries and grow my blog.

Over the past one year, I have participated in a few contests.I have completed most of them.My take away from them was the community feeling.The feeling there are people just like me, who are struggling to find themselves and their blogs.

You feel like you belong. These are the people who are trying to do more, with what they have, wherever they are.That’s powerful.

4 Blogging communities which I must mention Write tribe, Indiblogger, Blogchatter, and Blogadda!

How do these contests help me?

Helps me write and motivates me, even when I am busy and have many excuses for not writing!Its like a slow burn.Writing will be a soothing aloe vera gel!
Helps me promote my blog.That’s the power of networking.
Helps me read and discover new blogs.
Helps me learn from other bloggers.
It is the best way to get noticed by brands if you are writing useful content.
Did you know the comment links even when no follow have link juices?So reading and commenting on blogs will help to depend on your niche and the quality of the blog in question.
It helps in my blog’s health and my emotional health.
Helped me write my first two books
Blogging contests help keep the inertia of writing going.

Newton’s First law: In an inertial reference frame, an object either remains at rest or continues to move at a constant velocity, unless acted upon by a force.

In simpler terms it means

An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force.

[bctt tweet=”If you write regularly, you will keep writing .When you stop writing you are at risk of inertia of rest ! #Newton #ThankfulThursdays #Bloggingcontests” username=”misra_amrita”]

The Blogging contests I participate in starting from July last year:

Daily chatter Half marathon by Blogchatter(15 days)
My friend Alexa 1.0(30 days)
Ultimate blogging challenge /Daily chatter by Blogchatter (October 30 days)
The International Ultimate Blogging Challenge in December(30 days)
A to Z in April with Blogchatter this year.
#Tiniature on Twitter by Gayatri_Gadre.
Weekly WOW on Blogadda.
Writebravely in August with Write tribe(7 days Daily blogging).

The secret to the health of your blog is your content.Plan it well make it consistent.Make it count.But in the process don’t fall into the inertia of rest and the myth of perfection.

#ThankfulThursdays Prompt this week

My favorite posts this week are :

Prasanna from Team MocktailMommies

Sathya from team mocktailmommies

Dipika ‘s Instagram post

Thankful heart Appreciation for Prasanna from Mocktailmommies

Rules of linky:

Write on the prompt and Link Up.We have a fun new option.

You can submit tweet links and Instagram posts too.

You can also link up other posts.Just comment on this post and my co-hosts post and any two of the posts in the link up.Share using #ThankfulThursdays hashtag.
We deeply believe in community spirit.Eagerly looking forward to visiting your blogs.

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I have short to-dos when I go buying

Shopping on a Budget and making money :3 steps

Warning from an ex-shopaholic

MondayMommyMoments prompt 38

RULES OF LINKY:

Sharing is good Karma!

But what exactly are these VOCs?

What effect do Volatile organic compounds have on your body?

7 Things I will do to make my new home air clean and fresh

How many plants per person is adequate to give fresh air?

Posts in this series

Sharing is good Karma!

Important facts about Indoor Air Pollution

Causes of Premature deaths are:

Premature deaths due to indoor air pollution :

But what about urban indoor air pollution?

What can be your solution for this?

[bctt tweet=”“The purpose of life is to contribute in some way to making things better.” ― Robert F. Kennedy” username=”misra_amrita”]

How plants improve air quality?

VOCs are emitted by a wide array of products used in homes including:

What effect do Volatile organic compounds have on your body?

Sources of formaldehyde at home:

How many plants per person is adequate to provide fresh air?

So What kind of plants are best?

What happens when you are not home?

The Fairytale story…..

Their winning idea:

So how exactly Capacloud’s innovation, can revolutionize Urban gardening?

So how exactly does increased oxygen improve your health?

Why Indoor air plants?

My take:

Sharing is good Karma!

How is Lead used in paints?

Why is lead used in paints?

Brands which have embraced lead-free and low VOC paint options include

My wish :

Sharing is good Karma!

Enjoy the Garden images from my collection:

My favorite nature as inspiration quotes

Sharing is good Karma!

How do these contests help me?

#ThankfulThursdays Prompt this week

My favorite posts this week are :

Rules of linky:

Sharing is good Karma!

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