Mid-Week Musings

If you've got slightly more than a minute to spare...or plenty of time to kill..

That's Kaitlin attempting to self-feed! If you realise..there actually isn't any food in her spoon..but she continues to try and feed herself. So cute...macham playing masak masak! Reminds me of myself..when I was a little girl! Such a qtpie <3 12 more days till babygirl turns #thebigone :O 

We've been baking everyday..trying to get the perfect recipe and to practice baking Kaitlin's cake for her first birthday! That has resulted in me smelling like cake batter...and having cake every other day. Some of our baked goods also found their way to the bin..cos they were major fail :( Been busy searching for materials here and there as well. Kind of a mad rush..all for the sake of perfection! Oh well..if all fails..I might just throw the towel in perhaps a day before her birthday and just stick to the conventional partyware and decor that I can easily get off the shelves anywhere..and just order food delivery hurhur. She'll probably hate me for the rest of her life cos I ruined her first birthday :( well..I tried! Mommy ain't Martha Stewart you know!

mealtimes @ home

In case you were wondering how mealtimes are like at home for Kaitxz....

Yes! Babygirl can self-feed. However, I mostly  still spoon-feed her during mealtimes at home. 

Sometimes she can be really happy and excited, but that rarely lasts till the end. At times, it already starts off rocky! Of course, I don't have images of those moments cos well who in their right mind would take peektures when you are having a baby situation!

Well, her weaning to solids journey has been a tough one. Sometimes, she refuses to sit in her chair. To date, she has 4 high-chair toys to keep her entertained. At times, we have succumbed to giving her whatever we can find that's near us to entertain her with. It also involved us doing all sorts of things like jumping, singing and dancing to keep her happy and entertained! I even moved the high-chair to different parts of the house to find an environment that she prefers. That worked for a day or two, then it was back to normal. Thankfully, and I really do hope it continues, the process of feeding her has improved!! 

Huge sigh of relief and I really hope we don't have any issues again, cos honestly, it can drive me insane.

Anyway, here are some tips that I've learned through my experience:

- Keep a routine: Kaitlin usually wakes up, showers and then has her brekkie. Dinnertime is after her evening shower as well. This way, she knows what is gonna happen next and it becomes like an everyday thing and she won't be afraid as there is some form of consistency

- Compliment and encourage: If she eats her food and behaves well, compliment her. Clap your hands and say good job! I give Kaitlin star ratings! If she manages to finish half her food or less and makes alot of noise and wants to be carried she gets none or maybe 1 star. If she finishes half her food with minimal noise and entertainment she gets 2 stars & if she finishes most of her food, even with noise in between she gets 3 stars. Superstar level is attained when she finishes her food and has minimal or no noise. 

- Talk: I talk to Kaitlin when I feed her. I tell her Good Morning, it's breakfast time! I tell her what she is eating. Sometimes, I ask her if it's yummy. If I have my computer near me and she is easy to handle, sometimes I will google fun facts of the veg/fruit she is eating and tell her. If she is almost done, I will tell her she is left with a spoon or two. 

- Reward: If she is doing a good job or if she starts to show signs of getting restless, I will reward her with her favourite snacks. 

Oh yes, do expect that your baby might not want to eat and kick up a fuss when they are unwell or teething. It's normal, so just bear with it cos it will pass. Don't force them cos it would just make matters worse and they might resist eating even when they are well again. It's okay if they have just milk for a day or two, cos they are smart and won't keep themselves hungry for too long. 

That's about it! Hopefully this will help anyone who has issues feeding their babies and remember...KEEP CALMMMM! The more annoyed you get, I think the baby can sense it and will get more cranky. Then again, in reality, I understand that it can get really frustrating, so it's fine if you lose your cool. I always tell myself to be more patient the next time and that things will get better and they will! Just stay positive :) 

It's Friday!

Yayy it's Friday! Actually, to be honest, I'm not that excited about the coming weekend, just cos, after this weekend, Lihai will be going to a new camp and gahhh..just me and the baby. Don't know how to get through everyday without him. Sounds so clingy, but hey, that's why I married him right. Cos his the person that makes my day better, and helps me get through anything though. <3

Well I shall not wallow anymore, not like it's gonna change anything! 

Here's what we've been up to the past week:

Kaitlin had some mushrooms growing down there, so I brought her to the clinic! Okay, so it's not that bad, just a case of some fungal rash. Have been doing away with the diaper whenever we can so that there's more air circulation and whatnot so that she gets better faster. Of course, that has left us with quite a number of unwarned pees and cleaning up, but anything just so she will gets better! Though I must say, this girl has quite a big threshold of pain. *THUMBS UP* babygirl!

Been playing with Kaitlin on her new playmat and we all agree it's great! Kaitlin can now crawl, and fall down without us worrying!

Been bringing Kaitlin out in a baby carrier, but it's really rather painful to the shoulders! I much rather prefer carrying her normally. Guess it is a matter of getting used to it. Babygirl likes it when we run while she is in the baby carrier. Filmed it down for you guys to see!

Kaitlin tried Sweet Potato puree for the first time!

There was an Early Learning Centre sales, so the Auntie in me came out and yes, I bought quite a number of educational materials for Kaitlin. I steered away from the toys okay! I was rather pleased with my buys and showed them off to Lihai! Hurhur. There was 50% off everything okay! Plus, I managed to get flashcards at $2! On top of that, there was a 5% off! I truly sound like a cheapo auntie, but hey! When you can save, SAVE! Then use the savings to buy other awesome stuff right! Plus, I was not the only one who was being kiasu! There were so many mommies there too and expat moms too! I even got hit in the head by an expat mom cos she was taking some toy and she did not apologise! Thought that was pretty rude, but it's okay, I was happy with my buys so that kinds makes up for it!

Kaitlin lost her first story book! Gave Kaitlin her story book to entertain her while she was in her pram, cos she simply does not like the pram so it's kinda hard to stop her from crying. Well, of course the babygirl decided to throw her toy somewhere and when I discovered it, it was too late! She probably thinks it is fine to throw her toys on the floor cos we always pick it up for her, but this time we didn't notice it so there goes the book! I walked from Ion to Forum, back to Ion to try and search but I could not find it :( I even when to the numerous helpdesks at Ion to ask if they had found anything. Before I left Ion, I even went to fill up some form for lost and found objects. The guy initially gave me a lost child form to fill which I thought was pretty funny! I think I sound damn lame and ridiculous filling up some form cos she lost a story book! It's not that it was a story book or what, but more because it was HER FIRST STORY BOOK! I'm a very sentimental person okay! So I was pretty upset about it :(

Not forgetting, the Macs Hello Kitty craze going on! Yes, I've joined into that craze as well! The only Hello Kitty I'm missing out on is the Birdie one which well everyone else is trying to get desperately! People online are selling it for $50! Pfft! I would not pay $50 for a kitty cat toy! I can't believe people are so thick-skinned to sell it at such an exorbitant price, when you can just get at below $10! It's really quite disgusting to see how Singaporeans are so greedy! I mean I'm fine if you wanna sell it at like a profit, but like at a profit of 5 times the price is abit too much don't you think! Oh well, guess I will just have to settle for an incomplete collection then! 

Here's why I think Kaitlin has a thing for Hello Kitty as well (hee hee!):

She kept playing with them until I stopped her for fear of her ripping the plastic open! Hurray though cos Kaitlin seems to like Hello Kitty :D Now, it won't be like me forcing Hello Kitty clothes and toys and other objects to her, but more like Kaitlin liking Hello Kitty and me just giving her what she wants so she will be happy! :D Also, I think Kaitlin likes the colour, Purple! It's not the first time she's chosen the purple option when given two similar objects.

Looking forward to the husband's return and it's the weekends! :) TGIF guys!

Kaitlin's first puree!

This did not happen recently, and in fact, I should have blogged about this a long time ago..back when she was 6 months old! #badhabits

Kaitlin had her first puree back when she was 6 months old and it was Avocado and I still give it to her now just cos I think it is an awesome fruit and I don't like her to eat stuff that's very sweet if not she will develop a sweet tooth and want to devour cakes like me. That was also the same reason why I chose to give her Avocado first, instead of carrots, bananas and pumpkins which are also recommended first foods to give your babies! Thankfully she likes her avocados :D

Avocados serve as great first foods to start babies off with! What's more, it's super fuss-free! You don't need to cook it and get it blended into a smooth puree. All you gotta do is cut the fruit open and scoop it out and mash it with a fork/back of a spoon. Easy peasy, esp with a baby who cannot wait!

I rolled it before I cut it open cos I read somewhere that it is easier to scoop out the flesh or something along those lines..but not much difference in my opinion.

Since Avocados are not ripe when they are plucked..it's important to know when it's ready to be eaten!
It's gotta be:
- dark green or even brown/black for some varieties like the Haas avocados
- should be firm, and yet soft to the touch (careful not to press it too hard as it might cause bruising)

Tips on how to make Avocados ripe faster:
- place them outside, no in the fridge (they ripen faster at room temp)
- let your Avocados make friends with bananas!

Kaitlin's sixth month

17 March = KAITLIN'S SIXTH MONTH!

Hooray to turning half a year old my little one! It's sure been a journey ever since you were born in September, and really, HOW TIME FLIES. 

Everyday I'd use to think omg, when is it going to be the day where she is SIX MONTHS OLD!!! Please come faster, and well, a part of me, kinda misses her being so tinyyyyyyy and vulnerable. Don't get me wrong! Vulnerable in the sense where she could only lie down and not move about resulting in her less prone to accidents and injuries. The days where she would be sleeping half of it away, for example, sleeping throughout her first month celebration -.- 

So the baby girl finally turned 6 months, and as we have all been waiting in anticipation to start her on her first solid food! Well, the older people around us couldn't really wait and sort of gave her little stuffs here and there to taste/try..kinda ruined the moment for us..the moment where she has all her "firsts". We both got a little annoyed about this, esp since we read up and it has been recommended for weaning to begin at 6 months, though some parents do start earlier. Plus, less things to worry about don't you agree? Like don't have to really be afraid of allergies or if this veg/fruit has pesticide, how was the food handled before it was cooked and after..how to puree it, and how to cook it so that the nutrients are not lost etc etc..so honestly, idk why people are so eager..when well breastmilk has all the antibodies etc and you don't have to worry or fret about constipation and other problems..but oh well...Anyway, to us, 17 March it's still the first time she is trying solids! Or more specifically, her first spoonful of solids if you wanna be anal about it :D

So well, of course I had to use the dining set (is that what you call it?!) oh oh! TABLEWARE? Yeah, point being, Kaitlin's godmother, Enna bought this for her as her xmas present and well of course I was gonna use it for Kaitlin's first solids even though I purchase Skip Hop plates for her as well.

So pretty and PINKKKK! Fit for a princess!:D Not sure if you can see, but it comes with two plates, one bigger and one smaller, fork and spoon, a glass and a drinking sippy cup plus a dining mat! HOW AWESOME!!

Moving on..here is Kaitlin with the new Skip Hop bib we bought!! Superloveeee and super cute:D OWL HOOT HOOT!

Kaitlin trying to eat her bib! As usual..she wants to put everything into her mouth!

A little bit more about the tuck-away bib! Well, let's start off with the fact that it's not cloth/fabric material which makes it EASY TO CLEAN and EASY TO DRY! For now, I feed Kaitlin during lunchtime, and by evening or even a few hours later, its dry and ready for use again!:D So that means I don't need to buy that many bibs! 

Also, it has this catch-all pocket, which well basically collects all the mess that a baby would and could possibly make..so making meal times less messy. If you are out and about, it's even better cos you can store it without dirtying the rest of the stuff in your bag! So how it basically works is that you can tuck the bib into the built-in pouch like this:

TOO AWESOME and with the super cute and loveable animal characters..HOW TO RESISTTTTTT RIGHT?! Just so you know, I've got a Skip Hop bumblebee bag (first Skip Hop item we bought!), Skip Hop Bib and Skip Hop Plates :D KEKE! Wanted the Skip Hop mat but too expensive :((

Anw, look at us HAPPY CAMPERS:D

First solid food: Bellamy's Organic Baby Rice

Yes, yes, organic's the way to go! More expensive but worth it for the baby!:) It's really easy to use! All you need is the rice cereal, milk a spoon and a bowl! Just mix the cereal and milk and you are done! Of course, I'm referring to breastmilk or you can use formula milk. Not cow's milk pls! You are advised to only give cow's milk after they turn a year old.

Using the Nuby spoons my Aunt bought back from the States! It is a little hard to mix in the plate dish, so I would suggest using a bowl to mix food first cos there is more depth so it is easier to mix and stir..and then you can use the plate to feed your babies!

The consistency of the baby rice in the above pic is really thin. Did not want to make it too thick for her first feed as she has been used to drinking milk which is really thin..The trick is to slowly thicken it and increase the amount such that she will differentiate that it is a new food and not milk, learn to swallow without choking and taste new textures. Also, increase the amount till she is able to have one milk feed replaced. I haven't been able to replace a milk feed yet, but slowly trying and experimenting! It's a little hard especially when I've sort of become her human pacifier!

Back to feeding her...

Kaitlin getting all excited! See her hands touching the plate?

That's daddy trying to stop her before she spills everything! Did not managed to snap photos of her eating it for the first time, but well I've got more pics of her eating her other solids for the first time! :D

So far, Kaitlin has been taking well to Bellamy's. I think she got bored of it after a few days..but when she tried it the first time it was still a good experience for her and she seemed to like it! It has this rice smell when you open it, so it kinda gives me the assurance that not alot of chemicals were used..Also it comes in a resealable ziplock form, so it is easy for storing as well! You can get Bellamy's readily at any supermarket. I've seen it in most of the supermarkets I frequent..even NTUC and cold storage, but if you want to be sure to be able to get it, try the marketplace (might be a wee bit more expensive than at ntuc/cold storage from what I noticed). I think the local supermarkets usually stock more on Nestle and other brands, not all will stock organic baby products.  For example, the town NTUC has it, but the one at CCK doesn't. Or you can try places which sell baby stuff and foods like Vitakids or Love For Earth.


Here's the start of her weaning journey and to more food posts ahead!:D