Holi Celebrations with #HoliHoppers

Happy Holi!! The ‘festival of colors’ and joy, fun, frolic, delicacies, and love. Like any other Indian festival, even Holi has an amazing story which is passed over generations as a classic example of the victory of good over evil.

Why Holi is celebrated?

Holi is celebrated on the full moon day falling in the month of Phalguna (Feb-Mar). It is celebrated or rather played with the colors and water which is thrown on each other. Music, drums, dance, food, friends, and family are the center of Holi celebrations.

As per the ancient mythology, there is a legend of King Hiranyakashipu with whom Holi is associated. The demon king Hiranyakashipu wanted his revenge from Lord Vishnu for killing his younger brother. He considered Lord Vishnu as an enemy and was furious to learn his younger son Prahlad is completely devoted to the Lord. The cruel king plots to burn his own son to ashes by calling on his wicked sister – Holika. Holika wore a magical cloak to desist from burning, she held Prahlad on her lap to burn him down. He survived the furious fire by chanting Lord’s name and instead Holika burned to death. The legend has it, that Lord Vishnu took avatar of Narasimha – half man and a half lion and killed Hiranyakashipu by his claws.

This signifies the victory of good over evil.

Another popular legend is that of Lord Krishna and his beloved Radha. According to the legend, as a kid, Krishna was fed poisoned milk by demon Putana which made his skin dark blue. His mother tired of his anxiety asked him to meet Radha and color her face with any color he wanted. And ever since then, the day is celebrated as the festival of colors.

The legend signifies Vrindavan’s famous Holi or known as brij-ki-holi.

Celebrate Holi with Kids

Festivals bring special cheer and joy for kids, and especially festivals like Holi. Colorful hues, water guns, school holidays, yummy snacks, and meeting friends is the core essence of Holi. Kids or adult, anyone would fall in love with the festival instantly.

When you have kid/s at home there are few things need to be considered –

• Color – Celebrate Holi with organic or natural colors only. During the festival, markets swell with colorful mountains of dry colors. Make sure you pick the right colors, as chemical-laced powder can damage kid’s soft skin or give reactions.
• Water – We all are aware of the need to save ‘water’, however, one cannot neglect the fun of Holi played with water. Use sensibly, and make sure you do not waste it unnecessarily.
• Snacks – Indian festivals real cheer comes with lovely delicacies. During Holi, gujiya , mathri , namak – paare , namkeen , kachori, etc are the main attraction. All are deep-fried snacks, they can give bad tummy or heaviness. Keep yourself and kids hydrated with loads of water. Let’s kids play colors with a light tummy.
• Clothes – White is the most preferred color when it comes to dressing up for playing Holi. Keep a few old pairs of tee-shirts, shorts, sandals ready for rangpanchami . You can also re-use the same Holi clothes for the next year.

Few more ideas about Home and Kids –

• Home – De-clutter the home from any expensive cushions or furnishings for a day. Spread any old bed-sheet where kids can sit and play. Keep body wash, shampoo, body scrub ready and at easy hand’s distance to clean-up.
• Drinks – Holi’s traditional drink is ‘ bhaang ‘, which is made out of cannabis leaves. Kid’s drink and adults drink must be made separately for any unwanted mix-ups.
• Skincare -Dry colors can make skin extra dry or itchy, the best practice is to use good quality thick moisturizer or skin-oils before playing with colors.
• Haircare – Keep hair safe by tying them in a braid or top bun. Best way to avoid colors going into hair is by covering them, or else oil hair and scalp properly. Oil will not allow colors to seep inside the hair cuticles and makes it easier to wash off. Post Holi Hair Treatment at a good salon is highly recommended.

This post is a part of #HoliHoppers Blog Hop which I am co-hosting with my friends Ruchie, Aesha, and Mandavi.

Some Simple Rules & Guidelines –

The rules are quite simple and we expect participants to take kind note of the same. Please participate only if you can write ONE blog post, engage with other participants, and share the love on social media .

• The theme of our Blog Hop is – HOLI, you are free to write any topic keeping the core as Holi.
• Minimum 300 words, no maximum word limit. Write as much as you want!
• NO Sponsored posts are permitted. Only new posts allowed.
• Add mandatory text “This post is a part of the #HoliHoppers blog hop hosted by Mandavi  ,   Dipika  ,   Ruchie  ,   Aesha and sponsored by VLCC Beauty Products & Phutawan Thailand” in your post.
• Add your post to the linky below.
• The prize of 4000 INR for the #HoliHoppers blog hop 4 winners. Each winner will get cash/vouchers worth 1,000 INR.
• Assured participation gift from VLCC.
• 2 winners will get skincare hamper from Phutawan Thailand.
• Linky is open till 28th March 2019.
• You are free to use the #HoliHoppers creative image attached above.
• For Indian residents ONLY.

Blog Engagement Criterion:

• Subscribe to all 4 websites of Hosts by clicking here – Mandavi  ,   Dipika  ,   Ruchie  , Aesha
• Follow all 4 hosts and both sponsors on all Social Media handles.
• Tag the hosts and both the sponsors while sharing your own post. Use hashtag #HoliHoppers for us to monitor your engagements.
• Reading, commenting and sharing on all hosts + 10 posts before you in this blog hop is mandatory.
• While sharing other participant’s posts you don’t need to tag the hosts or sponsors. Only use the hashtag #HoliHoppers
• The engagements will be monitored on a daily basis via Hashtag on social media and through your comments on the blog posts.

Some examples to make it easy for you –

1. Holi Facts for Kids
2. Holi with the toddler
3. Food and Drinks around Holi
4. How to engage kids during Holi
5. Post Holi binge detox, etc.

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© Dipika Singh. Unauthorized use or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Dipika Singh (Gleefulblogger). With the right and specific direction to the original content.