Once Upon a Beanpod: October 2014

Thursday, October 30, 2014

A Mum's Life

While I was in Jakarta to hide from the haze, I did most of the mum duties by myself. I guess I can now safely say that I've been promoted to a pro mum. You know your have gotten the auto-upgrade when your weight reduces to before you got preggy. lol.

On an ordinary day, my day goes like this...

S wakes up, rolls on me repeatedly to wake me up. Yes. He works like my alarm clock, one that is physical.

S dressed and posing to look like his bedroom kaki, Pokojang.

With sleepy eyes, I hold S on the potty to let him take a dump. Sometimes yes, sometimes only after 3 days, his poo gets so hard it sounds as though it might make a hole in the potty when it drops.

We would go out for a morning stroll if the sun is merciful enough. S faces outwards in my ever-so-satisfied purchase, the Ergobaby 360 degrees. It is really the best investment when your baby starts to put on weight. S loves the walks as he can meet friends in the neighbourhood and of course his newly found friends, dogs, cats and hoppity-hop little birds.

S's First Holiday in Bandung! Remember?

Next, I'll feed S a small portion of fruit and then porridge for breakfast. If you can't get up so early to cook, the alternative might be fruit purees or brown rice powder with homemade applesauce.

Once he is full he will get cranky as he has got to crash. I'll breastfeed him till he falls asleep. It is actually not advisable to do that as it would become a sleeping habit for your baby and he will only be able to sleep when you are around. I'm trying very hard for him to quit it and switching him to bottle feeding in the day. So far so good! Touch wood, touch wood!

Makes myself a cup of oh-why-so-fragrant coffee to perk me up and remain energetic through the entire day. Have a simple breakfast, like a Speedy Gonzales, and I'll be back in my room to make sure S doesn't fall off the bed now that he rolls and crawls around like a squirmy wormy just that he moves at the rate of light. Really one...

Feed S porridge again when he wakes up. Breastfeed him again if he feels sleepy or not allow him to play with his toys till he is bored then play with him and show him attention. Time for a fruit snack. out for a walk. Time for porridge as dinner. Take a bath and read a bedtime story w him. Then, breastfeed him to sleep.

That's my normal routine. If S feels unwell and doesn't sleep much, i will have to be with him for as long as he is awake.

But of course once in awhile there are surprises like,

"Oh! My baby's teeth are appearing!" OR

"Omg! You don't need to nap?" OR

"What! You bit off an edge of your favourite book?" OR

"WHAT"S THAT IN YOUR MOUTH!"

Up to more mischief nowadays. lol

Below is a good read for people who don't appreciate what SAH mums do and those of you who are contemplating on the choice of being a SAH mum: Being a SAH mum is a luxury for your spouse.

Friday, October 10, 2014

Milk Rash Attack!

Do you know that milk rashes are actually ringworms? It is infectious and can get pretty nasty when it gets uncontrollable. If you see red patches that are slightly rough in texture appearing on your baby's skin, it should be milk rashes.

S got attacked quite badly after playing with his infected cousin in Singapore. Her mum's fault, not hers okay. Ok, actually S's fault coz he went to grab her face. It worsened when we got back to Indonesia as I fed him and had to wipe his face with a wet cloth and it spread all over his cheeks and chin.

Ewwwww. Look at those rashes.

I had to consult my ever-so-sweet granny-in-law, since she is the most experienced mum around. Is it how I should call my hub's granny? Upon spotting the rashes, she went around the estate looking for the remedy to this on that very day. She came back happily with a bag filled with Jasmine flowers she collected from neighbours who planted it. We are so blessed to have her around, seriously.

These gentle-looking Jasmine flowers killed the ringworms! OMG!

Tried and tested! Natural method is always the best! It isn't panting ok! It really worked due to some chemical reaction that happened between the flowers and the ringworms!

My granny-in-law showed me how to hold five flowers and use it as a brush and gently brush it on the infected areas. S did not show any discomfort when she did it to him but somehow he retaliated when I did the same. This boy just knows who to bully one. Tsk tsk tsk! So now I just sneakily do it after he falls asleep. No big deal!

This is how it is done! Try it!

Just make sure your baby doesn't wake up as it can get a little itchy-scratchy. lol.

See! It got so much better after three days!

Now, my granny-in-law plants two jasmine flower trees at home to get fresh ones for our little rascal every day. Blessed boy. If you have space to plant it at home it'll be good if you do the same because I heard the flowers in Singapore might have a lot of pesticide which is harmful for your baby. Use the water which you use for washing rice grains for watering the plant, it will bear flowers sooner, according to my botanist granny-in-law. Love her so much!

Most importantly, keep the hygiene level up for for your baby. Always prepare a wet cloth to clean the milk that gets onto your baby's face after every feed. As the old saying goes, "Prevention is better than cure."