The end of my breastfeeding journey

Yes. Finally.

Since my first mastitis episode in Eunice's 14th month, I had it again on her 15th month, 17th month and 18th month. It's definitely not fun. I am not sure why it kept coming back but the only possible reasons that I can ruled out are: 1) stress 2) previous infection wasn't cleared well. So this time, I went back to my gynae (I went to Panel clinic the last 2 times :P) and make sure I followed the instruction correctly this round to clear off all infections.

And I took the opportunity to wean off Eunice at the same time.

I had stopped pumping in office for 3 weeks, and only let Eunice direct latch in the morning, and before she went to bed. And on one fine day, I have decided to stop letting Eunice latch on. I got EG to help me.

First night, she cried, hugged my legs, and asked for neh neh... My heart melted. I seriously thought of giving in but thank God EG was around to help me. I told EG to please carry her away with my really weak voice. When Eunice saw EG coming, she ran into my kitchen (with all lights off) and hid at the corner. My heart broken. EG then carried her with her milk bottle to the room. She looked at me, cried, extended her arms to me asked me to carry her, but all that I did was just telling her byebye, and good night. :(

After a while, I heard her laughing happily upstair and she drank her milk, and fell asleep.

Next morning when she woke up, first thing she asked for neh neh again... I showed her her bottle. Of course she cried again, shook her head and her hands. She must be thinking what she has done wrong and why isn't she getting anymore directly from me. :(.. EG asked me to go bathe and few minutes after I went into the bathroom, she drank her milk. When I'm out, she's all happy again.

But I think she can feel that she's not going to have the intimacy with her mummy anymore. When I went to prepare her milk, she asked me to carry her and I did, and she held me close and tight with her two arms. This is the first time she did this to me. I just felt SO.SAD.

The crying continued for the next 3-4 days. Sometimes in the morning, I had to go to the guest room to sleep in order for her to drink her milk in the bottle. When she climbed onto me to ask for milk, i lifted up my shirt and showed her my bras, and asked her, where is neh neh? no more neh neh dy....

On the 5th day, she didn't cry anymore when I gave her bottle for her morning feed. She drank it happily. I took back the duty to sleep her at night and she is drinking her bottle happily.

She FORGOT about my breasts already. In just 5 days!

In a way, I'm happy that the weaning process wasn't as tough as I would have imagined. But I felt a very strong loss inside me. The tinge of sadness never seems to go away even till now - 2 weeks since I didn't let her latch on. Sometimes, I actually forgot about it and still thought of feeding her. I feel like I "broke up" with someone that I really love.

No, I didn't cry. But everytime I think about this, I teared. But I keep telling myself that I have done my best to feed her up till 19.5 months, and I have hit my target of 18 months. And she has grown up and now it's a whole new chapter for both me and her.

So, I have graduated! And hooray to my breasts, they have finally gotten their freedom. :)..

But I'll miss this experience dearly. I'll miss my little girl asking for neh neh, and came to me, and auto lie down in my arm, pointing at my breast and tell me "this is neh neh" before she latched on to drink. I'll miss this dearly.

All the breastfeeding moments will be remembered forever, only by the mothers though.

Pray Pray

Something so cute happened just now that I just couldn't wait to write this down to remember.

Eunice was playing at the door while EG parking his car. Suddenly, she looked up and stopped moving. I saw a lizard on the ceiling. Then, the lizard moved. Next, Eunice started to run to me, and told me "ba ba" (*bao bao).

As usual, I asked her, "why bao bao?"

She answered: "sted sted.." while patting her hand on her chest. (*scared scared). I carried her up.

EG came into the house and asked me what happened and I told him. As a lizard killer, he started his actions.

Suddenly, Eunice put her hands together, and told me: "pray pray.."

I couldn't get her at first - I thought she wanted to clap her hands to scare away the lizard. Then she told me again, "pray pray..." then I got her this time.

So I said a short prayer: "Dear Jesus, please remove the lizard from my house. In Jesus's name we pray...."

Eunice shouted "A-Meng!"

Then, she pointed at the floor, "walk walk...."

:)

I didn't know that my little one knows the power of prayer too! This is just so cute. :)

Eunice's First Miri Trip

It was Eunice's first trip back to her mummy's hometown at Sarawak when she's 18 mths old, to attend my brother's wedding. :).. I was excited for this trip since February and been counting down the days since then. Well, packing was a nightmare as I was so worried that I forgot to bring her important stuffs - and I brought incredibly lots of stuff including her snacks, cookies, pastas, etc. I managed to borrow a playpen from my friend but I need to bring my own mattress back too! So, we ended up with 1 huge bag, 2 small bags, a stroller, a backpack, and a diaper bag. OK I admitted that I over packed. I'll be more efficient in my next flight trip. Hehe :)

Overall it's quite a good trip, though very tiring for EG and me.
On PG-KL flight, the air stewardess gave Eunice a packet of Dutch Lady. She was happily sipping the packet drink throughout the flight. We had to transit for abt 2 hours in KLIA. While planning for the trip, EG already told me he'd prefer KLIA as it has more space and he feels safer for Eunice to run around. Well, it was a public holiday and hence there weren't much price differences on air asia ticket vs MAS ticket. But of course, I also prefer KLIA over LCCT.

From KL to Miri, the flight was 2 hours. She slept for the 1st hour, and woke up the next hour getting restless. I had to entertian her by carrying her up to watch over other passangers (as if she was playing hide & seek with them @.@), or carrying her up and down the aisle. But lastly, we fed her with a very sweet crackers that the air stewardess gave and she finally was occupied for a while before we landed. :)

The little girl just loves to explore the travelator

Wandering around herself - not feeling scared at all

In Miri, my sister and mum were helping out to entertain her, so my load was lessen. I just need to cook for her. Sometimes I just let her eat whatever that my mum cooks. :).. However, the trip was kinda hectic as we had dinners with relatives almost every night. Most of the time Eunice didn't sleep long enough for her nap (still adjusting i think), and hence she'll get cranky on most of the dinner time when the dinner ran late. That also explains why not much pictures on Eunice as we were just so busy entertaining her.

After my brother's wedding dinner, we had a small family gathering with my father's siblings to celebrate his birthday. And thank God she was all happy that day after her long nap! And finally we managed to get a nice picture of her with her grandparents! :)

Eunice and her grandparents

My sister brought out all our soft toys over the years and let Eunice play with it when she was home. Oh she loves them so much. And she also watched Chipmunk throughout the whole 8 days in Miri - watching 6-7 times a day! Yea, we all can memorise the show already. But she still loves it.

Watching Chipmunk with her soft toys

I always love my home trips. This round, though I went back for 8 days, but I still feel I didn't get to spend too much time with my parents as they were too busy preparing for my brother's wedding and entertaining the guests from outstations. I hope I will go back again soon. :)

As for Eunice, I think she loves it too. She was calling "Yi Yi ar.." all the time when she sees my sister's pic in my phone after she's back to Penang. Sometimes she'll make me call her and she'll just listen to my sister's voice for a while then she'll feel all happy. :). How sweet. And recently, she also pointed at my mum's pic in my phone and told me "ah ma ar..." :)... but I din have to chance to let my mum hear her beloved granddaughter calling her yet. :)

While coming back, it was slightly easier. Eunice slept through the 2 hours flight from Miri to KL. And she played around in KLIA again during our 3 hours transit. And eating throughout the 45 mins flight from KL to PG. On that night, Eunice slept at 8.30pm all the way till 7am the next morning. I think she was as tired as us. :D

I wonder why my timid girl was not scared at all in KLIA with all strangers around

But I think, Eunice is a bit too big size to share a seat with us. :P... Though her parents are not big size. I never complain for MAS seats before until this trip - because I'm sharing it with an active toddler. As for EG, he told me, no more trips with flights until she's bigger. If we have to, then pls get a seat for her. We were both exhausted when coming back - carrying all the luggages, strollers, bags, and an active toddler who keeps wanting to walk!

So, our oversea plan will now have to be on hold! :)

Nursery & Kindy Scouting

Yeap, you read it right. We're scouting for Eunice's nursery / kindy at her 18 months. Kiasu? Hmm... I called up a nursery and she told me the earliest she can put Eunice in is in July 2013! Waa... I don't mean to be kiasu but I don't like the hanging feeling (typical me) and hence I started to ask around and look around last month.

After much scouting & "interviewing" (friends, colleagues, some short listed nurseries :P), then only I realise it's not an easy decision - it's something that will make a difference in my child's first going-to-school experience. However, the fee is another factor to consider. There are some nurseries which are very affordable, but some can charge up to double of the normal ones.

EG and I had some discussions among us, and we decided on a few:
1. Study Environment - We prefer the kindy not to be too academic. I have heard some kindys gave spelling test / ejaan / 听写 (chinese spelling test) every week for the children as young as 4 years old! I think this will not only give the stress to the child, but also the parents. However, I don't expect the kindy to be too relaxing too as it'll be a problem when the child goes primary school - when nowadays primary school's homework can be as stressful as my job! :P. So, there should be a balance.

2. Languages - I'd want Eunice to learn all 3 languages. I admit that I'm quite a failure in teaching her chinese while I myself is chinese educated. She doesn't know any chinese word, except "bao bao" maybe. :P. So far, we found that most kindys will teach all 3 languages.

3. Teachers - I have heard too many scary stories of the teachers suddenly lost their mind and started to whack the child. I know taking care of one active toddler is hard, what more a bunch of them in school. But still I cannot accept any teacher who will lost their sane while teaching. A friend told me once her niece came home with a blue black buttock from school and showed me the picture. I was really really shocked. Imagine the terror on the child! So, I'll ask about the teachers too.

4. Discipline - Though we don't want the teachers to "whack" our child, but there should also be discipline - to teach them what's the right things to do. One of the nurseries that we checked out uses very good disciplinary actions to the child. The principal told me sometimes they will even have "court cases" when she'll be the judge. They treat the children like adults.

5. Teaching methods - Of course most of us went through the conventional way where 1 person talks and the rest listen. But we found there're some kindys that allow the bigger children to cook, or do planting and etc and they believe the children learn through these activities too.

6. Class size - For us, we prefer the class size to not to be too big so that all the children will have the equal attention from the teachers. Having said this, if the class size is big, then we'll want to know how do the teachers make sure that all children can progress at the same speed.

7. Teaching materials - A kindy that we went to showed us the teaching materials that they used for the students - and we were truly impressed.

In the end, we have sort of decided to send Eunice to a kindy that we both like, though the fees is more expensive than the others. We both hope that it'll be giving Eunice a good first learning experience in her life.

:)

Cameron Trips

This is a really long due post and I have decided to combine my two cameron trips into one post.

We went to Cameron Highland last year July, when Eunice was only 5 months old. And a year later, we went again. EG is a big fan of Cameron Highlands - some said it is a boring place, well, that's the reason why EG loves it. He said, because it's boring and there's nothing much to do there. And for him, that's the real holiday. Ya, weirdo, I know. :)

Anyway, back to the trip. Last year when we went, Eunice was only 5 months old. Some friends actually said that we're very courageous to bring a baby for a trip. Now that I think back, yea we indeed were brave. During then, we just wanted a break for all the baby-taking-care and thought of doing something different. Anyway, it was just a 2 days 1 night thing. So, the itinerary was simple - reached Hotel, lunch, BOH tea farm, buy some snacks to eat in the room, dinner, and Eunice slept at 8.30pm so EG and I were reading & watching tv in the room while snacking on the junk food that we bought. The next morning, after breakfast, we went for strawberry ice cream and we left CH.

2010 July - My little girl still on the rear facing car seat on the way to CH

2010 July - Eunice only knew how to turn then

2010 July - and she sat in her stroller while we're going out

2010 July - my 5 month old portrait at BOH tea farm

A year later, on the same holiday weekend, we have decided to go Cameron Highlands again - after a year. This time, my Eunice was already 17 months old. The packing was more challenging - as I need to pack her food along! And not knowing what exactly we're going to have in CH for meals, I actually brought up my slow cooker in order to cook for her. Yea, very kua cheong, I know. :). But I feel more peace in heart doing that. :)

This round, we stayed for 3 days 2 nights. And we paid more for a better hotel to make sure my little one has a comfortable place to rest and sleep. We visited more places this round - BOH tea farm (sure-go place), butterfly farm, the smokehouse, pasar malam, and etc. And we also could go more places for food as Eunice is now bigger and we do let her try those food that we ate too, though her main meal was still her porridge.

See how much my little one has grown over a year.

2011 July - my little girl now on front facing car seat and snacking all the way to CH

2011 July - now she walks :)

2011 July - We no longer put her in stroller now, she walks

2011 July - my 17 month old portrait at BOH tea farm

2011 July - and she walked around happily with her cheeky face

2011 July - And she really enjoyed her favorite food in CH

We really love to bring her around. She's such a joy in our lives. :). And we really thank God that she's not a very difficult baby. And she still follows her schedule while she's out - sleep & eat at the same time. Both the trips are so memorable to both EG and I though Eunice might not remember anything. :)

Eunice @ 17.5 months

I read back the last post I wrote on Eunice's speech. It's really amazing to see how fast our little girl has grown up. EG and I have been telling each other that she is now a big girl already, no more a baby. :)

For the past months, she'll wave good bye and fly kiss to us everytime we drop her at babysitter's place. And when we're picking her up, she'll be standing at the door happily waving and pointing at us while babysitter packing up her stuff to give back to us. And sometimes, she'll even say bye to her other friends there, or some other older toddlers will come and say "Goodbye Eunice". It makes us feel very relief sending her to the babysitter's place knowing that she has her friends there.

For her speech development, she can say more words now. She picks up fast. She used to say "bish-bish" but now she can say "fish-fish". :). Every morning when I change her diaper, I'll tell her this is diaper, she'll answer me back "ah-ple"... but when I showed her apple, she also told me "ah-ple". :). And any yellow animal in sitting position is "duck duck". And she loves to play with "ball ball" too.

She has a tigger in the room. We always ask her where's the tiger? She'll go hit the tail. And when we brought her to Parkson today, I saw tigger's picture on the wall and I asked her what's that? She said "Tai-tai"! She now recognises the "Sss-tar" shape. And she loves to eat bananas, she calls them "Na-na!". :). She showed me a yellow color card that day, and told me "Na-na!". I was truly surprised.

I pray for her every night before she sleeps. Amazingly, she'll lie down quietly, eyes open wide with a smile on her face everytime I say my prayer for her. When I end my prayer with Amen, she'll be eagerly saying "Ah-mi" too. I'll tell her, Good night girl, time to sleep sleep, see you tomorrow, and give her a fly kiss. And she'll return a fly kiss back to me, and started tossing in her bed till she falls asleep herself.

She imitates us nowadays. Once, EG passed gas in the toilet in the morning. She heard it, and she made the same sound using her mouth, then looked at me, and started to giggle away. Gee.... :)... And when I did something extraordinary, I'll tell EG Ta-daa.. and she repeated after me. So, we have to be really careful with our speech nowadays so that our little one won't pick up any bad words. Hehe....

She suddenly loves soft toys very much. She will smile happily when I gave her her Patrick the dog. And when I gave her my big doggie that sleeps with me since the past 3 years, she'll be even happier. The doggie is as big as her but she'll sleep on it. So, she took over my doggie. :(. And as of date now, there are 5 soft toys in her bed sleeping with her now.

As she grows, she became more manja recently too. When she dirty her hands while eating, she'll make a kind of face, shouting "Ooooooo....!" and give you her hand, and we'll HAVE TO clean it for her before she can continue eating. And if she accidentally trips or falls down, she'll make the really sad face and run to us to "ba ba" (bao bao, i.e. hug hug in chinese :P).

I finally has started giving her formula. And after trying anmum and enfa, my babysitter told me she could drink enfa faster (probably tastes nicer since sweeter). I have also tried making the first formula milk for my girl last weekend and to my surprise, she's taking it VERY WELL. No rejection at all. Once we went out, she pointed at my breasts and told me "neh neh", I told her to wait till we reach the car. And when I got into the car, I made the milk in front of her and gave her the bottle. She said happily "neh nehhh" and took the bottle and started to drink. Looks like weaning is not very hard for me. :)

And EG said, now she has personality already. She doesn't let other people carry her much. She'll fold her arms together and put her head away on our shoulder. :D. And she doesn't simply smile to anyone now - unlike when she's young. She's not that friendly anymore. Well, the daddy is actually happy about this as he thinks it's safer this way. :)

Our little girl has been bringing smiles to our faces everyday. We really thank God that she has been growing up well. :)

Eunice's Speech

Eunice has been "talking" since she hits 12 months old. I remember a day before her birthday, I pointed at the bear on her cot and said "bear bear", and she actually said "bear bear" too. Then, I asked her, "Girl, how to clap hand?", and then she started clapping her hand.

I was truly surprised!

From then onwards, I've been trying to tell her and show her as many things as we can, and talk to her like an adult (well, not really :P). As of now, my 16 mths old Eunice can say a few words already. Those that which are frequently used:

- neh neh (nen nen)
- mum mum / mem mem (food)
- ba-bai (bye bye)
- Ang kiu (thank you)
- wou wou (dog)
- ngiau (meow / cat)
- walk walk (she can say this well)
- baby (she can say this well too)
- bak-bak (bird bird)
- day-dee (daddy - and squeeze her eyes when say dee :P )
- mummy (she only says this when she wants to :(, unlike daddy :( )
- neh ma (no more - just picked this up)

Besides, she also started to understand what we're telling her since she's 14 mths+.

- When we tell her, "Girl, let's go wash your pet pet..", she'll then walk to the toilet and stand at the door waiting for us.
- It's 8pm+ and I tell her, "Girl, want to go sleep already?", she'll then go to the staircase, half climb with only 1 leg up the staircase, and wave and tell me "ba-bai..."
- I can now also tell her to pass things to her daddy, or daddy tells her to pass something to mummy, she'll come look for us then.

And she also have been "talking on the phone" since 13th mths onwards (just doing the talk on the phone gesture with ANYTHING that she can get on her hand), and recently, she will say ba-bai before she "put down the phone". :)

Recently I had a conversation with her. :). We went to QBM after work to have our dinner and when we left the shopping mall, she wanted some milk.

Eunice: Neh neh
Me: Mum mum (trying to change her mind)
Eunice: Neh neh (get louder)
Me: Mum mum (still trying)
Eunice: NEH NEHHH..... (starting to get irritated)
Me: Mum mum la girl... u want mum mum?
Eunice: NEH NEH NEH NEH NEH NEH NEH NEHHHHHHHH.....!!!!!!!
Me: OK OK! Neh neh!
My cutie lil' pie. :)

Eunice's Coloring

Recently, we noticed that Eunice likes to ask us to give her a pen / pencil and she started to scribble. She'll shout if you don't let her do that. We got an imitated Aquadoodle for her but I guess the area wasn't big enough for her to draw. So EG bought some non toxic crayons and a drawing block for her to scribble.

When Eunice first started holding the crayon to scribble, I noticed she didn't really have strength to "write". She was just scribbling some faint lines on the drawing block. We'll normally hold her right hand and write something.

Last week, I drew a small birdie for her, and told her "bird bird", then I drew a bear and told her "bear bear". To my surprise, she started to use a crayon to "color" the bird. And after she's done with her "coloring", she told me "bird bird". :).

And next, she went ahead to "color" her bear.

Eunice's first coloring a birdie

Coloring a bear

I took a video of her trying to scribble but she wasn't holding the crayon properly.

I was so surprise and so happy with her new milestone. :)... At the same time, I'm also headache with the next challenge - my little girl is using the crayon to draw on the floor too!

Cloth Diapers

A friend, who is going to be a mummy soon, asked me to blog about cloth diapers (CD) since she saw me using cloth diapers on Eunice, so, I complied. :)

I read about cloth diapers from a forum before I delivered Eunice, and took some time to find out what it is actually. But I didn't buy.

Reasons:
1) there are SO MANY brands out there
2) The price ranges from as cheap as RM20 per pc to more than RM100 per pc, which really really confused me what the differences are
3) I'm not sure if I'll use it since it's not that cheap, I never like to spend on things that I don't use

During the first two months, since Eunice is breastfed, she poo-ed almost every time after she drank. During then, disposable was the most convenient. But when she started going to babysitter on her 7th week, I noticed her poo poo time reduced to 2-3 times a day, comparing to 7-8 times in the first month of her life. So, after reading up, and some recommendation from friends, the first cloth diapers that I bought was GH (Gift-From-Heaven) brand.

It was a pleasant surprise when I used it. It is not that hard to use, and it's soft - makes me feel that it's gentle to my girl's bum bum. :P. Then, after reading up some reviews again, I got 2 more from Autumnz online. Oh I fell in love with CDs then. A friend coming back from US when Eunice is almost 5 mths old, and I got 3 more CDs from US (just wanted to have a feel of what is the difference between US brands & local brands) - namely Bum Genius, Happy Heinys, and Fuzzi Bunz.

All the CDs allow us to adjust the size - that's why it's called One Size CDs. I can button up the CDs to make it smaller, or unbutton all to make it bigger. That's why CDs are supposed to save cost - since it can be used from S to L. Most CDs can fit toddlers up to 15kg - 18kg.

After comparing, personally, I felt there there's no difference between local brands & US brands. And I think Autumnz has really good reviews, and their price is affordable and reasonable. Besides, they have nice patterns and they give free postage for purchase more than RM50!

Now, I have total of 8 pcs of CDs actively in use, and that's very little actually. I've seen ppl with 20+ CDs to 50+ CDs! Since Eunice is much bigger now, I only use CDs for her during weekend since she normally will have a clean disposable from babysitter that can last her until I change her to sleep. Well, I can actually use CD for her for overnight, but I was too lazy to do the rinsing in the morning esp it's always rushing, so I still use mamypoko.

I have been using CDs since Eunice is close to 3 months old, up till now. They do save me a lot of $$ for disposable diapers since they can be reused over and over again. Of course if I can do exclusive cloth diapering it'll be even better, but I admit I'm lazy, esp. on weekdays. :).

So, some pictures on my little girl on CDs.

Eunice @ 7 weeks with Autumnz CD,
noticed that the CD was folded to S size

3 mths old Eunice with Autumnz CD

6 mths old Eunice with Happy Heinys CD

9 mths old Eunice with GH CD

11 mths old Eunice with Autumnz CD

1 yr old Eunice in Happy Heinys CD

Oh, my watermark blocked the diaper.
Anyway, if your eyes are sharp enough,
this is the most recent pic of
my 15 mths old girl on Autumnz CD
(the one she's wearning on 3rd mth pic)

Some asked me, is it troublesome to clean the cloth diapers? Well, it depends. Whenever I change Eunice's CD, I'll rinse it off. If it's just urine, then it's easy. If she poo-ed, then I'll just rinse off to the toilet bowl, and rinse it a bit so that it won't stink my whole toilet, and put them into a pail. In the end of the day, I'll just wash all the CDs all together and hang them dry. Not exactly troublesome but just some extra steps to do. EG encourages me to use CDs a lot as it's environment friendly, besides, like I mentioned, the materials are soft and he feels that his precious girl should feel very comfortable in CDs - esp when they are also breathable.

When Eunice is on CDs, I normally don't wear pants for her since she looks really cute in those prints. :)... But for the CDs on velcro, she knows how to take it off. So, I have to put on pants for her for velcro CDs.

PS: There are a lot of information online on how to use a cloth diapers. You can also find it in Autumnz website too.

Breastfeeding @ 14.5 months

Ya, Eunice is still on breastmilk... *shy*....

After the mastitis episode, though I have recovered after my course of antibiotics, my supply drops 20%-30%. I used to be able to pump out 10oz - 12oz in my 2 pumping sessions in office, but after my mastitis, I could only pump out 6oz-8oz. Each pump session reduced from the usual 6oz-8oz to 3oz-4oz. Once, I only pumped out 1oz from both breasts. Imagine my terror!

I was so sad, and heart broken. I mean, though I know I'll have to wean off Eunice soon but I didn't expect the day to come so fast.

Now I understand why everyone has been saying that having stock is important. Even though I don't supply enough as per Eunice's daily intake, I know my stock can last her for some times.

My hard worked stock in my fridge as of 6th May

I had to use some time to tell myself that it's OK, I have done my best, she has grown up, it's OK now to give her milk powder, etc etc. After 1-2 weeks of self psycho-ing, I'm slightly OK now and been planning that I'll give her her first try of milk powder when she hits her 15 months, though I still haven't decided on which milk powder to give her. :P

But just when I finally persuaded myself to finally give in to milk powder, my supply went up again since yesterday. *Grin*. I think my supply has came back to normal again.

Now, I'm in dillemma again. Should I continue breastfeeding until I'm really ready to wean her? Or should I go on with my previous plan to start my weaning process at her 15 months?

*Dillemma*

Eunice's Growing Diary

I always look back at Eunice's pics when she's small, and am always amazed how fast my baby grows. I saw a friend showed the pics of their baby from month to month and I thought that's a good way to remember my baby's growth too. :)

Toddler's Food

Found some useful information from some forum & babycenter, and I thought it'll be useful to share to others (or a reminder for myself for my next kid ;))

7 Superfoods to boost kid's diet
"Superfoods" are packed full of nutrients that have wide-ranging health benefits. Some critics think it's misguided to focus on only a handful of healthy foods, but nobody argues that these foods pack a powerful nutritional punch.

Bottom line? Even if you can only wrangle one of these onto your kid's plate, you're doing good — and you may initiate a food habit that will help your child's health throughout her life.

1. Avocado
Avocadoes are the only fruit laced with monounsaturated "good" fats that may lower "bad" LDL cholesterol, which can harm the heart. The avocado is also a super source of soluble fiber, which helps stabilize blood sugar. And it's full of vitamin E, which protects your cells from free radicals.

"Try mashing avocado with a little lime or lemon juice and yogurt and using it on quesadillas or tacos — or as a dip for raw vegetables," suggests Jessica Seinfeld.

2. Blueberries
Loaded with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants — substances that slow the body's release of chemicals that can damage cells — blueberries can help lower cholesterol, sharpen memory, and fight certain cancers. These little fruits offer big health benefits, whether fresh or frozen.

"I make a purple puree filled with blueberries and spinach that I add to tacos, burgers, pancakes, cookies, and brownies," says Missy Chase Lapine. "Wild, organic, frozen blueberries are one of the most versatile nutrient-rich foods you can disguise in dishes."

3. Oats
These mild-tasting, versatile whole grains help prevent blood sugar spikes and crashes, will keep your child feeling full, and aid in escorting bad cholesterol out of the body.

"Serve oatmeal for breakfast," says Chase Lapine. "The old-fashioned rolled oats, not the quick-cooking kind — they offer more fiber and longer-lasting energy. Cook them in milk, rather than water, and top with blueberries for a well-balanced start to the day."

4. Salmon
This cold-water fish contains healthful fats known as omega-3s that can lower the risk of heart disease. These nutrients may also help improve mood and prevent memory loss.

"Make your own fish fingers," recommends Jennifer Iserloh. "Choose wild salmon to reduce your child's exposure to toxic substances such as PCBs and mercury. Adults enjoy these lightly crumbed strips too."

5. Spinach
An excellent source of iron, calcium, and folic acid, along with vitamins A and C, spinach is great for growing bones and brains.

"This versatile vegetable has a mild flavor and cooks in a flash," notes Iserloh. "Stir it into hot soups, toss it into your tomato sauce, and tuck it into quesadillas."

6. Sweet Potatoes
Packed with vitamins B, C, and E, plus calcium, potassium, and iron, sweet potatoes are also rich in complex carbohydrates and fiber, which keeps digestion moving along properly.

"Sweet potatoes are good at preventing a sugar crash, thanks to those complex carbs," says Chase Lapine. "They also add a subtle sweetness to sneaky recipes and work hard to cut the acidity of tomato that some kids dislike in pasta sauces."

7. Yogurt
Rich in calcium and a good source of protein, yogurt helps build strong bones and teeth. It also aids in digestion and fights bad bacteria in the gut.

"Buy plain low-fat yogurt and add your own fresh or frozen fruit to it," recommends Iserloh. "That way, you'll avoid the sugar that's in flavored yogurts. It's so creamy and comforting that most kids go for it."

Top 5 worst foods for your child

From 500-calorie desserts disguised as coffee drinks to greasy, salt-encrusted french fries, we adults usually know when we're making unwise food choices. But often we don't realize that many of the foods we routinely give babies are essentially junk food – high in calories, sugar, or salt, and low in nutrients.

Eating junk food is more damaging to babies than adults. That's because babies don't need many calories, but they do need lots of nutrients. It's easy for them to fill up quickly on junk food's empty calories, leaving no room for nutrient-rich healthy foods, says doctor and American Dietetic Association spokesperson Christine Gerbstadt. The nutrition deficit can even hinder development, she adds.

1) Soda:-
It seems too obvious to mention, but believe it or not, some babies are served soft drinks as early as 7 months of age, according to a survey of more than 3,000 families presented at the American Dietetic Association (ADA) conference in 2009.
Whether regular or diet, soft drinks provide absolutely no nutrients. Regular soda contains a ton of sugar, which can wreak havoc on your baby's teeth. And filling up on either type means babies eat and drink less of the nutritious food their bodies really need.

2) Juice ( Surprise SUrprise!) :-
Sure, it comes from fruit, but that doesn't mean it's healthy. The fiber in fresh fruit is largely lost in the juicing process, and what's left is a whole lot of sugar. "Juice is basically a waste of calories," says pediatrician Ari Brown, co-author of Baby 411: Clear Answers and Smart Advice for Your Baby's First Year.

Using certain types of juice – specifically apple and pear – to sweeten your baby's food isn't a good idea either, says nutritionist Leanne Cooper, author of What Do I Feed My Baby: A Step-by-Step Guide to Solids. The sugars in these juices can speed up the food's passage through the digestive tract. "When food passes too quickly, the body doesn't have time to absorb all those lovely nutrients," says Cooper. It can also lead to diarrhea in some babies.

What about advertisers' claims that juice provides babies with necessary vitamin C? Don't be fooled. "Babies can easily get their vitamin C from one small serving of fruit," says Brown.

What should your baby drink instead? The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that babies younger than 6 months drink nothing but breast milk or formula. Babies 6 to 12 months old can have small amounts of water, but breast milk or formula should still be their main beverage. (Find out more about when babies can drink water.) After the first birthday, cow's milk is recommended.

3) Crackers
They make convenient snacks once your baby can bite and chew, but it won't take many to satisfy your little one's appetite, leaving no room for nutrient-rich foods. Also, just as eating sweet things can help babies develop a sweet tooth, eating salty things can give them a "salty tooth." The survey presented at the 2009 ADA conference found that nearly three-quarters of toddlers and preschoolers get more than the recommended daily amount of sodium.

The ever-popular fish-shaped crackers fall into this category. "What a waste of calories in a snack," says Brown. "Fruit slices are a much better choice." And if you're looking for an instant grab-and-go snack, low-sugar cereals have more nutritional value than crackers, she says.

4) Processed meals (KFC, MCD IS A BIG NO NO)
People define processed foods in different ways, but in general, the more the food is modified from what was originally caught, raised, or grown – and the longer the list of ingredients – the more processed the food. With heavy processing, foods often lose significant nutritional value and gain unhealthy additives.

"The more processed the food, the more nutritional value tends to go down, and the more the sugar, salt, and fat content goes up," says Kate Geagan, dietitian and author of Go Green, Get Lean.

The worst processed foods parents serve up are the ones not specifically meant for babies, such as canned pasta, says dietitian Eileen Behan, author of The Baby Food Bible. "They often contain way too much sodium." You're better off boiling up some noodles and topping them with a few crushed tomatoes.

5) Gelatin desserts
"You'd be surprised at how many people think a gelatin dessert is a wholesome food for babies," says Gerbstadt. Why the misconception? Many people think gelatin contains protein, perhaps because it's made from processed animal bones and cartilage. But it doesn't, says Gerbstadt – at least, not in any significant amount. "What the baby ends up eating is nearly all sugar, artificial color, and artificial flavor, and a trace amount of gelatin to make it wiggly," she says.

True, gelatin is easy to swallow, but then again, so is Gerbstadt's own idea of a healthy dessert: a baked, mashed apple with a sprinkle of cinnamon. "It's naturally sweet and has good fiber, vitamins, and a yummy, smooth texture," she says. "That's what I'd opt for."

Mastitis

Mastitis means that the breast is inflamed, and there is swelling, redness, tenderness and pain. There may be an infection, so it is wise to consult your health-care provider to determine whether or not an antibiotic is necessary.

I read about mastitis ever since I started breastfeeding. I have been very very careful. When Eunice was 3-4 months old, on a night, I felt chilled in my sleep. I woke up, felt my breast very very engorged. I went to kitchen and get a warm towel to do some warm compresses to my breast. And I saw a white blister on my nipple. I pricked it using my finger nail, made sure the milk flow resumed, and direct fed Eunice. I was ok on the next day itself. Later on, I read that that's blocked duct.

I have been breastfeeding for almost 14 months and I never thought that I'll get mastitis at this time! On Thursday, before my usual pumping time at 5pm, I already felt some pain on my breast. I thought why is it so engorged. So, I went to mother's room 30 minutes earlier, thinking I might get quite a lot. But I was wrong. Nothing much came out, and the milk was pink in color! And I couldn't stop shivering in the mother's room, and the pain on my breast didn't reduce even though I tried to pump for 45 minutes.

I decided to throw the 4oz of pink milk away. And I smelled some unusual odor from the milk. Fresh pumped breastmilk should be odorless. The milk from the other side of the breast was ok. When I poured the milk away, I saw some debris at the bottom of the bottle. It looks like some many little pieces of dried milk. I was shaking so badly that I couldn't even hold my phone with one hand. And the moment I left my office, I got fever.

I called up my friend Janice in KL as I know she has one lactation consultant that she always gets help from. I told her my condition and got her to help me to ask her LC what's going on. My main concern was - can I still direct feed Eunice? I talked to a few of my colleagues, but no one had this problem before. I called up a doctor from my church who's also breastfeeding, and another LC from Penang that I found in internet. I even called up to Island Hospital baby nursery room to talk to one of the sisters. All of them told me it might be mastitis, and it's safe to direct feed Eunice still. Only problem is that when I have mastitis, the milk will taste salty. So some baby won't like it, and it'll make things worse as the blocked duct will worsen the situation.

Thank God that Eunice was still drinking like usual! Even the LC Dr Jamie from PG was laughing about it. Guess Eunice is not a fussy eater. She was drinking longer than usual, maybe because it's full since I couldn't pump them out. I took a paracetamol, and slept at 9.30pm. Felt better after that.

I still went to office the next day, but I felt really lousy. So I took MC after settling some work and went to see my gynae Dr Karen. She was shocked to see my breast, commented that it's red & warm and it's infection. She commented that mastitis can happen anytime during breastfeeding when I asked her why. So, I'm now on antibiotics for a week and if it doesn't improve after 3 days, I need to go back to see her.

I initially stopped paracetamol thinking that I don't have fever. But how wrong I was. The pain was so bad that I couldn't walk well, and I couldn't even lift up my hands. I tried pumping and could only get 2oz! So, Eunice was my best breastpump to clear my breast for me.

I'm now on my 2nd day of antibiotics and I felt much better (maybe from the help of the paracetamol to reduce the pain). But I still feel the infected area on my breast. I hope I'll be better by end of tomorrow.

Eunice's First Eating Out

As a very particular mum (and dad also), we try our very very best to let Eunice eat only home cooked food. The only non home cook food that we let her eat are probably cereal, baby cookies or rusks, bread, and maybe some fish or toufu (digged till deep inside) while we're eating out. Even though the websites said we can put some seasoning for toddler at age 1, but EG still doesn't allow me to put any soy sauce or salt in Eunice's food. So, we have been drinking some really really "natural tasting" soup while we are having meals together at home. :)

But last few weekend, we decided to go out for a lunch on a Sunday noon. We went to Chillis. And there's this Kids Eat for Free thingy, so looking through the whole menu, we ordered cheesy macaroni for Eunice, thinking if it's too salty, we'll eat it ourselves. I actually brought Eunice's porridge together with me. So, I had backup plan. ;)

The free macaroni for kids

I'm kind of impressed when the food came. It's a big plate! NO wonder all the parents love to bring kids to Chilis for meals. But it's just plain macaroni with cheese, nothing else. No meat no vegetable. I fed Eunice half of her porridge, then I let her eat the macaroni. :)... We tasted it first and decided to let her try as it's not salty nor it's full of flavoring.

The guava juice

The meal came with drinks also. We changed the soft drinks to guava juice (FOC). But the juice was very sweet. I think it's not fresh juice but it's from some packet drinks. So, I drank more than half of it, and diluted it with Eunice's water.

First row: Little girl eating her macaroni yum yum 2nd row: The small finger prints on the glass, drinking the diluted guava juice, continue eating her macaroni

Oh my little girl loves the macaroni so much. I put some in her bowl and she could pick them up one and one and feed herself while I'm enjoying my meals. It's one of my most relaxing lunch so far. :)...

And I think my little girl is really no more a baby now. I feel more relax while bringing her out (unlike last time when she's younger I'll get all stressed out!). And this coming weekend we're going to bring her for a wedding dinner. Let's see how she's going to behave there. I surely hope she'll be able to sit through the whole dinner. *Fingers & toes crossed!*

Walking

Since Eunice becomes 1, I've been waiting for her to walk, I mean real one, not by pushing a walker or a laundry basket. After her 1 yr old birthday, she did stand up a few times without support, but when we tried to make her to do it again, she refused to stand. So, I said she's a lazy girl. :)

A colleague actually commented that maybe because she's too chubby, so that's why she is not walking yet. EG and I laughed over it, but later we saw this in Wikipedia. :P

• To toddle is to walk unsteadily; the term cruising is sometimes used for toddlers who cannot toddle but must hold onto something while walking.
• On average, a child begins walking between 9 and 14 months of age. The age at which children start to walk can generally be determined by their gender, physical attributes and family genes. Small, light children usually walk earlier than heavy, large children.

Is my Eunice consider heavy & large child? Hehe! :P

But once she crosses her 13th month, she has been trying to stand up without support very often. And whenever she managed to stand up, she'll herself cheer and clap her little hands, and try to take steps. :)

It's not easy to take her video because she always gets very excited when she sees the camera. But we finally managed to take two short videos of her trying to walk before getting distracted by the camera. :)

Part I: Got excited when saw the camera



Part II: Trying to walk to Daddy

First Weight Loss

I love to go for Eunice's monthly check. Sometimes I'll just go even though she's just having some very mild flu or cough, or something nothing at all, but I want to know her weight and her height. So, I'll make up some reason to go for checkup even though there's no monthly jab.

Since Eunice is born, she has been putting on weight. And her weight is very good (according to many friends around me), and of course me as mummy is proud over it. Every mum likes to know that their child is growing well.

Before CNY, Eunice had some mild flu and cough, and knowing that no clinic or hospital will open during CNY, we brought her to Taiping Columbia Asia to get some medication before the public holiday. And we weighed her. With her diaper on, and I think the weighing machine was not very accurate, Eunice weighed 9.4kg! I was so happy.

Then, she had sore throat and went on antibiotics for 5 days. On that week, she couldn't eat well. She basically skipped porridge and drank little milk at babysitter's as well. She only wanted to be direct fed, and that also I won't know how much she's drinking.

But she recovered fast. After 4 days of antibiotics, she's eating her porridge again, and drinking as usual, and went for her first birthday party.

A week after her birthday, we brought her back to Island hospital for her 1st year old MMR jab. Dr Dan weighed her and told me she's now 9kg. I was shocked. This is the first time when her weight DIDN'T increase. I told Dr Dan that, and he checked his record and found that she was 9.1kg as per last weighed at her 10 months. Then only he found in the older records that she had fever and sore throat last month.

And he told me, "Oh, kids lost weight very fast... but don't worry 9kg is a very good weight for her...".

I didn't know that a child could lose weight THAT fast!

But anyway, I'm not complaining that she's thin. She's definitely not thin. She's chubby. I do think 9kg is a good weight. When my parents saw her, they commented that she's very small size, but is very fleshy! I guess she has my gene! Hehe...

Her height didn't increase for the past 2 months though. I think she's not going to be tall, since both her parents are not very tall. Not complaining as well, shorter girls can find boyfriend easier... Hehehe :)

My Eunice is ONE

Eunice is ONE already! How time flies.

I started planning for her birthday party 2 months before her birthday, looking around for cakes, venue and etc.

In the end, I had it in Strada cafe at Crystal Point. And I got this cake from Funbakez. I gave her the picture of Eunice's stacker with the duck on top, and requested the cake to be in yellow color. And viola, look at the cake. It's just lovely. Many came and asked me about the cake. And the price is very very reasonable too. :)

We had Eunice's birthday during CNY. So, it's rather rush for all the deco stuff. Hence, I kept it really simple. Only gotten some Happy birthday banners, and printed some of her pictures to put on the big windows in Strada Cafe. I got this idea to decorate her high chair while surfing for some birthday party ideas website. Look at the birthday girl. Isn't she sweet? :)


It was a buffet party. I asked for snack but it was actually quite a heavy snack - with fried rice, curry, sandwiches, sausages, nuggets, drinks, & salad. Many told me the food was nice. And since all the friends that we invited are mainly from church and they know each other well, they all had a great fellowship among themselves.

I was also very happy that Eunice was very well behaved that day. I guess she's excited. So excited that she didn't drink her milk at her normal 2pm feed, and she only had 1 1/2 pcs of her biscotti, and some water. And she didn't cry, didn't fuss, didn't get cranky, and didn't sleep as well. She could stay all well behaved from 1.45pm to almost 5pm! And almost everyone could carry her. I think she's just a happy girl that day.


I was very happy with the birthday party. In fact, Eunice might not even know anything about the party, but I felt that the party is mainly for the parents, esp me. I have been a mum for 1 year. And I have been breastfeeding for 1 year too. It's a celebration for me. It's definitely not an easy journey for me but I definitely enjoy all the moments to see my little one growing.

The party was simple. Nothing too fancy. No special agenda. Just eating, talking, laughing, cake cutting, end. :)

Euwing & Win Nee from my church did the below video for me. I think I have been watching it over and over again for almost hundred times. It's very nice. Simple and nice. Just full of love. I hope Eunice will also like it when I show her when she grows up next time.

Eunice's 1st Birthday from Euwing and Win Nee on Vimeo.

Now, my little girl has grown up. And I need to be more relax, and start to live some of my own life now.

First Antibiotic

Eunice has not been feeling well last week, I noticed. She had fever on and off. Having fever is never a good sign. It was low grade about 38.5 degrees and after paracetamol, it went down. Besides, she's eating very little. And at times, she won't eat at all. After a mouth she'll be crying with tears & mucus full of her face. Oh, she has running nose too.

We still sent her to babysitter. When I checked if she's alright on the day, babysitter told me she vomitted after the milk feed and rejected all solid. So, EG and I decided to bring her to hospital for a check in late evening.

During the check, Dr Hwang said she has throat infection. Her throat was red. So, she had to go on antibiotics.

ANTIOBIOTICS!

That word sounds illegal to me. Immediately I asked Dr Hwang why she needs to be on antiobiotics. She looked at me straight, explaining that antibiotics is good for babies as long as it's not abused, and added that "..for some cases, if you don't give antibiotics, babies can die u know...".

Ah... I told EG, after breastfeeding for so hard, Eunice still has to go on antibotics! :(

So, Eunice at 11 months 3 weeks had her very first antibiotics in her life. She has to go on antibiotics for 5 days and today is the 4th day. She's been much better now, though still don't want to eat porridge. But at least, she'll be well enough to attend her first birthday party this weekend! Yay!!

I guess my girl has grown up, and I shouldn't worry so much about her going on medication.

And I should now let her build up her own immunity.

First Walking Attempt

It's my bad that I didn't write much on my parenting blog. Work has been busy, with the little one getting more mobile at home, I'll use the time to blank my mind by surfing or watching tv when she's taking her nap. :)

Anyway, my little one is 11 months old now! She's turning 1 next month and yes, we're having a birthday celebration for her next month. Preparing her birthday party is even more excited than me preparing my own wedding. How ironic. :)...

I was just talking to my mum about Eunice last few days and she asked if Eunice now can walk. I told her No, and commented that her development now is a bit slow comparing to when she's younger. But no, I'm not getting stress out, I'm just going to let her slowly find her new abilities to surprise me.

And on Sunday morning, she's playing herself in the living room, and me washing up her bottles in the dry kitchen, and EG doing some cleaning in the wet kitchen. Suddenly I heard her shouting. I turned back, and saw her trying to push her rocking chair and walked a bit. And when she did that, she shouted again, with joy. Ahh... so cute.

So, later I gave her our laundry basket - which is just nice for her height. And she's happily cruising in around the house.



I didn't get any walker for her after reading up that walker might not be good for babies (actually want to save money also :P) , so I told EG maybe we need to get another laundry basket for ourselves since this one is going to be her walker now.



How fast my baby is growing. I am looking forward for the day when I can bring her to have a walk. :)