Teach your children how to explore a new place on vacation with their senses.

When we went to India on vacation this time, I asked my kids to think about New Delhi, India with all of their senses instead of just the things they could see. This is the list of things we came up with together as a family.

It’s been a fun way to think about and remember things we did on vacation. Perhaps you will think about doing this when you go on vacation in 2014 !

Smell: calming scent of incense in India, yummy food being cooked

Taste: the different types of food you enjoy – spices, kebabs, dal, paratha, roti, butter chicken, kulfi, mango ice cream, gulab jamun

Hear: the honking horns singing together in harmony, peace, laughter yoga, music

See:  multiple people riding on a motorcycle,  beautiful paintings in the National Gallery of  Modern Art (New Delhi), stray dogs happily walking on their way, lots of people everywhere, organized chaos, monkeys, cows, lots of traffic

Touch:  the beauty of the temples, the warmth and hospitality of the Indian people, the elephant ride on Christmas Day, hugging family members we don’t get to see so often

Laughter is the best medicine…Try laughter yoga :)

I feel so energized today. Still on our family vacation in India and had the opportunity to do a laughter yoga session at the local park in New Delhi.

Laughter yoga started in India less than 20 years ago when Dr. Kataria (the father of laughter yoga) was writing an article about “Laughter – The Best Medicine” for a health journal. He discovered many modern scientific studies, which described in depth, the many proven benefits of laughter on the human mind and body. For more information on laughter yoga and laughter yoga clubs in your area, go to www.laughteryoga.org

Laughter yoga is a breathing exercise where you pretend to laugh without purpose and it makes you feel happy and good. You don’t have to stretch your body into different traditional yoga poses, but just laugh and do what feels comfortable for you. Good hearty laughter gets rid of stress and worry. Laughter triggers the release of endorphins, the body’s natural feel-good chemicals. It’s the same sense of overall well-being you get when you finish a workout.

Parenting life lesson: Whether you are doing laughter yoga or laughing for another reason, it will lift up your spirits and generate positive energy. If you’re happy and less stressed out, your kids will benefit and be happier too. Ho…Ho…Ha…Ha…Ha…

Make it a day filled with laughter!