Microwave "Accident"?

Today, as I was about to pump, I discovered a milk white blob on one of the cups. I thought it was because I didn't clean up properly and it's moldy.

When I tried to remove it, it is surprisingly rock solid instead of soft and powdery. Then it dawned on me... The plastic blew up. Or expanded. Am guessing super hot spot on some milk fats that caused it to melt and expand. Always suspected oil and plastics spell disaster... Luckily only 1 small bit melted. I washed and rinsed with hot water, then microwave 90s to sterilise.

Must visit Philips Service Center for replacement, hope it's not too expensive.

Help! It's Getting Harder to Fall Back to Sleep

I have been feeding average 5 times a night between midnight and 6 am for the past week, and the feeds are not short either. The last few nights I can hardly sleep after the first feed. My fuse is extremely short. What can I do? I don't know how long before I fall asleep involuntarily in the day...

Am thankful at least I don't have to carry him around to soothe him to sleep. Thankful that Lougong helps soothe him at the last feed before daybreak so I can nap at least an hour. *muAcks*

Bottle-feeding Attempts and Progress

20/04 1520: Fed 15ml of 100ml
Last feed was 4 mins at 1434.
Next feed at 1909 for 6 mins.
Used Pigeon bottle and S (small) teat
He sucked at beginning but thereafter just played with it.

21/04 1510: Fed 10ml of 60ml
Last feed was 24 mins at 1355.
Next feed was 25 mins at 1545.
Used Pigeon bottle with M (medium) teat. He tasted but didn't suck. Rejected, thereafter had to soothe him before he slept.

22/04 1830: Fed 5ml of 60ml
Last feed was 11 mins at 1638.
Next feed was 48 mins at 1907.
Used L (large) Pigeon teat with glass bottle. Accepted teat, even sucked few times, in addition to normal playing with teat, but spit most milk out deliberately. Suspect flow too fast. Try M again.

At this point, Lougong suggested trying a few times daily and portion out milk instead pouring away 50ml each time.

23/04 1620: Fed 5ml of 20ml, cold.
Last feed 1527 17 mins.
Next feed 1705 15 mins.
Used M, significant interest and accepted readily.

23/04 1846: Fed 2-3ml of 25ml, warmed.
Last feed was 1705, above.
S, rejected quite quickly. Think he's ready for bed. Fed him in bed right after.

24/04 1100: Fed at least 5ml of 35ml, cold.
Last feed was 1035 for 6 mins.
Next feed was 1153 for 35 mins.
Used wide mouth Pigeon bottle with SS teat. He likes and takes the teat readily, could be due to milk served cold. Once room temperature, he lost interest.

N.B. This is getting more challenging. Time to get expert help.

Last attempt with NUK latex teats also found strong protest from the little one. My dual pump also got downgraded to single because of the microwave incident with the funnel, so I am taking a break for now. Plus, lack of sleep past week, am feeling giddy by 8ish.

Transition from Breast to Bottle

I have been reading, pondering and planning the transition since Ning would only do certain things with me. Okay, most things, from bathing, to brushing her teeth, eating and going for her gym classes.

I feel that the baby shouldn't go out for the short trips out like gym or grocery shopping where it is crowded. Lougong can feed/ care for baby at home, while I bring Ning to gym instead of bringing the whole entourage including baby gear out.

So yesterday, I thawed and warmed, 100ml of milk and tried bottle feeding, more to let him try the sensation of having the silicone nipple in mouth. He didn't reject it, though he managed to drink 10ml in the first 15 minutes after pushing, mouthing, licking, sucking and spitting out loads of saliva. By the end of 1 hour, he only emptied another 5ml.

Will try again today during the afternoon feed. Got tips? Leave me a comment ok?

Our Kids!

Way is 3.5 months, Ning is 5.25 years...

Happy.

Loomband Charms

Today was loomband day.

We almost broke the rack I bought from Amazon, and painstakingly imported with Vpost only to discover it isn't an original!

Apparently, the original bands and racks are more durable. We did however, make 2 daisies, a ring and a cherry.

Hope to make some bracelets for her Teachers on her own initiative...

Punching at Gym

3m 13d: Baby Way has been doing some new things recently. One of them is pulling my thumb or finger towards his open mouth and trying to suck or gum it. We didn't let him. So we got him some "bananas".

Next, he is putting both fists in the center of his lower chest, sometimes holding fingers or hands, a little like the Machurians of old.

At gym, he no longer has arms on side, trying to swipe. Now he punches the suspended toy and ring like a little Rambo in training. Cute!

Do First Charts

Recently it's been getting harder to hold my patience or temperature with the routines. So I suggested charts to remind her. She was enthusiastic and drew the second chart. We drew these yesterday. Hope it works, longer term. 

Can you guess what she's supposed to do in the charts below?

The above, brush teeth and wash face on waking and before sleeping. Mummy drew this.

Ning drew this. Finish breakfast, please put on uniform then go to school. 

Toilet and Butt Shuffling

This is the way we bring Way to the toilet. He had just passed motion and urine.on the toilet, this was about 7.30am after Mummy washed up.

The morning toilet trip is a must and so effective! Have you ever been to the toilet and seen parents of 2-3 year olds washing their buttocks? It isn't something anyone likes to do, especially if you're not the parent! Think child care, kindergartens. The Teachers will love you for not having to wash at least 1 kid's soiled butt!

Erm, with both hands holding the legs. I had to use one hand to take the picture...

"Mummy, look where my butt shuffling got me?" Off your mat, dear... Heading to your gym I see.

3-months Old Baby Boy's Typical Day

It is a little past 3am, I awoke feeling hungry and breathed heavily looking for my Mummy's breast. Mummy turned over, felt my nappy, it was still dry, and she offered me milk from the breast. Hmm... How convenient and fast, don't need to wait. Mummy is snoring a little. I wake her up because the nipple is out of reach. Mummy adjusts her sleeping position and I drink myself to sleep. Yummy.

Sometime later I am awaken again, this time my diaper is full. Baba wakes to change my diaper. He always wipes my bottom even when I did not poo. Oh, and he blows me dry too! Cool!

It is a little past 7am, there is light coming in from the windows. The sky is slowly lighting up. I exercise my arms and legs while my Mummy and Baba sleeps on either side of me. When my Mummy hears me panting, she offers me her breast again. I drink and drink until I suddenly stop. I need the toilet. How do I sign toilet? "Mummy, is it like this?"

Luckily Mummy knows me and my body language well. She quickly signs "toilet" back at me and puts me over the toilet. There I can pass urine and motion, a few times, without getting my bottom all sticky and wet. Thank you Mummy!

After toilet I continue to feed to my heart's content. Then, Mummy talks and smiles at me, and I do the same too. My sister also comes to talk to me. Then Mummy says it's play time and she brings me out to the living room. There I try to catch the dragonflies, and pull the red ring on my gym. I am very focused and excited. I usually workout til I perspire on my hands and feet.

Sometimes, I will call out for the toilet but I forget when I am having fun. When I am tired but not yet hungry, my Baby or Mummy will hold me til I slept. Sometimes, Mummy puts me in a stroller or carrier to walk my sister to preschool. I will try to keep my eyes open but usually I will be asleep before we are home.

I wake again after 10am and after the routine milk and toilet then milk again, it is play time again. This time Mummy put me on my tummy for short periods while I work on my pushups. Look Mummy, no hands needed!

About 1130, I am held to sleep again. I wet myself 1 hour later and drink myself to sleep again. Then again at 1:30pm. Mummy fell asleep with me this time. I always sleep longer when Mummy sleeps with me, maybe it's because she smells so nice, of milk.

It must be after 3pm... Time for more milk and toilet routines before my much looked forward to play time! Mummy, do you have any new games or toys for me? 

Mummy saw me shuffling my button yesterday and laid out a huge soft mat for me to play on today! I am not yet used to it yet. Enough! Hold me. Yawn.

It's a little past 4 pm, my diaper is wet and I am awake. Mummy chooses to give me the breast first and sleepily I take it gladly. After more play, Mummy bathes me in a small tub on a table in the bathroom. 

My sister is back from school at 5.30pm and she and my Mummy takes turns to shower and play with me. After that they have dinner while I amuse myself with the dragonflies mobile and toys. By 7 pm I doze off in my Mummy's arms. I awake again to feed about 8.30pm and have my nappy change. Then sweet dreams for me, hopefully til after midnight! 

I can see Mummy is tired already. She won't be documenting my day for much longer now. Good night, folks! See you tomorrow! 

"Look Mummy, no hands needed."

"Is this the toilet sign?"

"Nice pillow case."

Mummy keeps me busy by putting all those stuff just out of reach. I managed to get the mirror and the yellow smiling rattle! 

Cupcake Day Yesterday

We bought a pack of double chocolate brownie mix and decided to make it yesterday!

It was really easy...
I got my big 18cm diameter stainless steel mug, an egg, the box of mix, measured the oil and water, got a whisk, 2 cupcake trays and some cupcake liners and we're off.

We started with Ning lining all the trays, followed by the cracking of the egg and beating it with the minimum whisk. Then she added the oil and whisked. After that, the water goes in. Whisk again.

I was responsible for pouring the dry mixture into the mug bit by bit as she dislikes getting her hands dusty, or floury in this case. Very soon the mixture became nice and dark. Then I poured it into 12 cup cakes a little over the half way mark. She sprinkled stars on them.

We left it to bake for 20 minutes, this time I did preheat, while I fed baby and she nagged me about baby having enough already. Sigh.

When the time was up... We each ate one. It was heavenly! Strong chocolate! Gotta try with ice cream next!

We gave 3 to her next door friends. With 7 left for breakfast! Fun to do and very easy. Must find more of these rewarding activities!

Siblings. Love at Play

Can you see it in both their eyes...?

Way's Second Longest Ride

We start off walking Ning to school. Way was in the stroller awake at the lowest incline.

Coincidentally he wet his diaper near the bus stop and fussed again. So I changed him quickly and soothed him in my arms for a minute or 2 then told him we were getting a walk. Then I set him down, he started, but I quickly adjusted the back rest to slightly higher so he can see where we were heading, and he stopped fussing.
In fact he was enjoying the view all the way home and fell asleep just before our void deck. How nice!

My New Canon SLR for RM1080, plus Photo Printer!

When I was still pregnant, I wanted a photo printer so that I didn't have to either pay $1 for a 4R photo or else accumulate 100 pieces to print at $0.20 a piece. It is outright disgusting the way they price the photos.

So rather than fume over prices or risk not printing at all, I checked with my brother-in -law who works in Mid Valley selling cameras, to help keep an eye out for any good offers or deals. To my delight soon after the following promotion was started!

Canon EOS 1200D with 18-55 IS II
RM1080 (or any selected SLRs) came with a FREE Canon CP910 printer (worth RM350)! Which meant the camera was even cheaper than a point-and-shoot camera!

I didn't have time to fiddle much with the camera or learn to properly be able to use its full capabilities. I must admit my main use for the camera is to capture indoor pictures of my children. Probably the only function I will ever use, at least til I have time to properly get acquainted with a charming photographer like Simon Yam to teach me the finer details of photography, or enrol myself in a SLR photography course, is the QA mode.

I cannot ramble enough about this Creative Auto mode. It is very simple to set up. It takes great photos indoors, blurs out background (see me messing with baby below, camera timed 10 shot bursts with background blur), selectively focus on my subjects of adoration and takes bursts of photos on timer! We can monkey around after the first proper shot without setting the camera again!

And then at the end of the month, I select 10 photos or so to print out and post to the grandparents! Love the Selphy which sits nicely in a shoebox (from Daiso) when not in use under my coffee table. I love it when things stowaway nicely when not in use. Yay!

My New Toilet Addition

Yeah! No more spills and it works like a charm.

This urinal can also be hung on side of the adult toilet bowl or on tiled walls.

Cool!

Going Xi by Way at 3m 1w too

Coincidentally Way is also able to put both his hands together in the middle and play with his hands at the same time as Nine!

I spotted it during the midnight feed last night and woke Logging to see it. Gotta take a picture soon!

Cradle Cap Removal

Way has built up quite a bit of cradle cap. As seen in the before photo. After 3 alternate days of applying baby oil and cleaning with shampoo, the residues are mostly gone.

To clean the scalp, we used a cotton ball, a small bowl and baby mineral oil. Some doctors advised sesame seed or olive oil. We had left over baby oil from 6 years ago... still works.

1. First pour some baby oil into the small bowl.
2. Then dip the cotton ball to dab the oil into the cradle cap. Soak the residues but not til the oil is dripping. Leave it in at least an hour for best effect.
3. After an hour, shampoo gently with coarse wash cloth wet (not dripping wet, just enough to clean up the oil) a foamy warm water.
4. Wash the cloth in sink then repeat til oil is completely gone.

The residues will come off. Do not scrub. If it is still stuck, then scrubbing it off will result in the wound oozing oil and build up residue again.

Let's hope the cradle cap stays away. There is inconclusive research to show that cradle cap is neither due to bad hygiene nor nutrition intake. So, we just take it in our stride since this is all we can do.

Baby Way Finally Latching on in Bed

Just a few days shy of turning 3 months old, I am silently thanking my lucky stars that baby Way is latching on better in bed. He can even spit out and slurp the nipple back in like a lollipop.

Naturally Mummy is happy. Happy baby. Happy Mummy.

My hands wouldn't be able carry him for more than 15 minutes now without going numb... I wonder how heavy he is. Gotta check when our next appointment is...

The Longest Ride

Ever taken on the stroller in peace. We walked a little over an hour with Baby Way on his tummy in the stroller to the amusement of some passers by.

He was sleeping in his tummy in bed when it was time to bring Ning to school. During the transition he fussed only a little and slept back quite quickly. I only had to pick him up into my carrier the last 50m from home.

Lougong, there is hope for using the stroller yet.

Ning's 2nd Dental Visit

Yesterday we took Ning for her 2nd dental visit after her front tooth broke while chewing duck meat a while ago.

We brought her to Sunshine Dental after booking an appointment with Dr Iliyas, recommended for children by the receptionist. They asked what was Ning's favourite cartoon character, I said Minnie Mouse because it was her favourite soft toy and drawing subject. The receptionist was a little surprised, then she prompted, any other? Then I said Sofia the First. Finally she asked, "How about Frozen?" I said, "Bingo!"

We were early, asked if there was an available slot and was informed available. We waited 10 minutes. Then a scrubbed clinic assistant showed us in to the last room on the right. There Dr Iliyas was jovial and friendly, saying what a nice hairstyle Ning had after introductions. But what caught our attention was the biggest Mac suspended right in front of Ning playing the Frozen movie!

Ning was offered choice of kids sunglasses while watching Frozen. During the noisier administrations, the Doc turned up the volume and even sang along to the movie. Ning didn't even notice the 3 fillings that was administered. The visit ended with her choosing 2 take away presents. Ning was obviously happy and raring to return. Baba left mending a dented credit card, damaged by $253, the price for skiving dental visits from age 2.