3 steps to early literacy

1. Books

Picked up a book on animals from Darul’s bookstore. The text is rhyming and pictures large and colourful, Hana enjoys it.

Some of my other favourites:

Sandra Boynton: All her books I’ve bought have been really fun

Karen Katz: All the books I have are lift the flap, I haven’t really read much as its difficult for me to hold Hana and manouevre the flaps. I think she’ll appreciate it more when she’s bigger.

Eric Carle: The illustrations are beautiful and the text very musical and repetitive. I love all his books!

This book is her bedtime story. I read it to her during her last breastfeed before she sleeps. For all the other books, Hana and I read together flipping the pages as they are short and sweet. This is a super sweet book but rather lengthy for Hana at this age so I read it above her head while she breastfeeds. When she’s older I’m sure she’ll appreciate the pictures and the book more.

2.Poetry and rhyme

There is overwhelming evidence that early learning of nursery rhymes and rhythmic poems, songs, and chants significantly enhances early reading skills and phonemic awareness.  In fact research highlights phonemic awareness as a strong predictor of a child’s reading success.

Warning: Too much poetry and rhyme (I haven’t tried any chanting yet) can make you feel less of an adult. The cure? An occasional pear flatie from Cedele with honey nut ice cream with girlfriends in town. Check this out for their 100% almond cupcake recipe, sounds tempting!

3. Flashcards

I combine flashcards with tummy time.

Tummy time is so important to the motor development of an infant because it allows him to gain head and trunk control. Motor control develops in a cephalocaudal fashion. This means a baby first gains control of his head, then his shoulders, then his abdomen, and so on, all the way to his feet. Developing head control first allows a baby to visually explore his environment. From there, he can then learn to sit up and actually move through his environment. Babies can be placed on their tummies as newborns during supervised, wakeful time.

Cloth diapering: Outside the home!

I bought a dry sack  from The Planet Traveller at Marina Square to store her soiled cloth diapers. Its a cool bag, waterproof and hopefully odourproof too! Its light and can be tucked away in a compact shape into your diaper bag. You can unfold it, fill it with diapers then fold it down to size. You can then hook it onto your bag or pram.

 

I started cloth diapering out of the home out of necessity as currently Hana is getting a rash with disposable dipes. I’m in the midst of searching for the right diaper for her as I can’t live without disposables! I need them at night and they’re just convenient when we go out. I’m currently testing out a few brands and will keep you updated. She’s never had this problem before so I’m a little puzzled.

Strrrrreeeetch

When Hana wakes she does this series of wierd contortions which fall into the category of stretching. She does it with her eyes closed and proceeds to stretching every single small neck muscle with vigorous side to side and craning head movements then proceeds to frantic stretching of her arms with vigorous kicking of her legs and arching of her back. Its like she’s trying to shake and shimmy every muscle awake. Her eyelid muscles are stretched the last with slow fluttering open and close and sometimes they remain closed for awhile, giving me hope that its a false alarm and she’s not going to awake therefore more minutes in bed for me! But slowly and surely two dark eyes stare at me as the morning rays peek thru my blinds. Sometimes I “pretend” to sleep hoping she would follow suit by mimicry (hey babies learn by imitating parents rite?). When she doesn’t seem to follow and starts making soft cooing sounds, I turn my back towards her and roll the other side hoping she would know I REALLY want to sleep. She would then patiently make small scratching motions at my back. As I proceed to ignore this too, she would start fussing and crying. I would then roll back facing her and try to feed her HOPING it would let me catch some shut eye. It doesn’t usually work. In the morning she wants to play before breakfast.

 

Finally I drag myself out, check her diaper for a change and the one thing I’ve  always never been able to figure out is– how does she always manage to get both legs into one leg of her sleepsuit (those long sleeved long legged suits with the feet attached that babies wear as pjs)…?

 

By the way, 6.30 am is the time I’m up everyday! Weekday and weekend!!

Mom and baby exercise!

All these images were from howstuffworks.com

I combine exercise time with diaperfree time. I place her on an adult exercise mat with a prefold lain under her to catch any spills. A lot of times though she remains dry the entire time as she’s had her series of poops and pees in the morning. I usually start with bicycling of her legs as shown above. I sing her this song: The wheels of the bus go round and round, round and round, round and round. The wheels of the bus go round and round, all day long! I then do several repetitions substituting different vehicles like train, bike, car etc. Rhymes and repetition are great for language development and early literacy! More in another post.

I then bring her arm across her chest and wide open as shown above. I sing her the Barney song sometimes when I do this because it seems apt, at least the great big hug part! This exercise feels like she’s giving herself a great big hug.

I unclasp her grasp to encourage her to open her fingers.

They recommend this for older infants but I’ve been doing this exercise with Hana since the day she was born. It involves holding both of her hands together while she’s lying down then pulling her to a sitting position. Her head will flop backwards as its really floppy (its called the head lag right Aunty Quizas, see I remembered some paediatrics ). As she grew, the head lag became less marked and now she moves her shoulders upwards as I start to pull her up.

I tried this when I saw this exercise but it doesnt work for a younger infant, her face just flops forward and it looks uncomfortable.

Check this out! It has infant massage, baby exercise and mummy exercise guides. I can’t wait to use her as an exercise gadget!

How to make diaper changes quicker at night

Get some leg warmers to wear with your long sleeved romper instead of those sleep suits with rows and rows of buttons up and down the legs! Leg warmers bought at moomoofarm.

Hana in a prefold and Bumwear diaper cover.

Wave “hello everyone!” with both feet.

Wave with your left foot.

Now wave with your right.

Time to nap now.

Cloth diapering:Prefolds

The thing about cloth diapers is that there are so many ways and options. What works for you might not work for someone else. I also find that how I cloth diaper differed when Hana was younger and now as she approaches 2 months of age. I initially wrote a very bad review for prefolds. As a tiny infant wets small amounts and very often, I struggled with Hana when she was in prefolds and I ended up not using them very much. Then again, different babies have different thresholds to that wet feeling so perhaps another baby wouldn’t fuss so much when their diaper is just a little wet. I knew that Hana HATED that wet feeling so I avoided the prefolds unless I was feeling super energetic and in the mood for frequent diaper changes.

As Hana grew and started wetting less often but in larger amounts, I started using prefolds again as she was dry in between pees. I also started practicing elimination communication with her or natural potty training. I’m really amazed at how it teaches you to read your baby. It really really helps you understand your baby. Like babies will not poo and pee while eating, just like adults. If you’re a mother, you would notice that babies “fuss” when feeding or “pop on and off” the breast latching and unlatching. For my baby, unlatching during a feed and eye contact is a definite sign that she has to go. With a prefold and diaper cover on, you can feel the warmth if your hand is on her diaper at the exact moment when she wets. To observe other signs that your baby needs to go, diaper free time  is essential.  Thats when I usually use a prefold just flat and under her. I then go thru our morning routine of bath time, then a massage and some books, flashcards and physical exercises. She has at least an hour of diaperfree time per day and I watch her poo and pee signals then. I offer her the potty when I notice this signs, at each diaper change, after a long breastfeed, after a nap and when I notice her diaper is dry.

This is my favourite way to use a prefold now. I just fold the cloth in thirds, stuff it into a cover and velcro it on.

Hana with her Bummis diaper cover under her Fisher Price mobile.

Babywearing

Photo from here with instructions

 

I wear my baby all the time. At home, so I’m hands free like right now as I’m typing this post. When I’m out and about, Hana sleeps so soundly in the sling rocked by the motion of my body that H and I often joke we forget she’s even there! Of course meals are entirely different.. Since I’m not moving, she wakes and often wants a meal of breastmilk, often at the time when the waiter comes with food! I always wonder, is it the smell of food that entices her? Anyway with the sling on, I feed her in it discreetly in public and often eat at the same time.  

 

I talked about different holds for nursing a couple of posts ago. The different holds results in different muscles of your arms and shoulders working and by rotating nursing positions you can avoid or minimize aches and pains in the early weeks of nursing. I then realized that different holds with my baby in the sling would be better for my back, neck and shoulders! I had initially thought that the only way to hold my infant with her soft floppy neck was in a cradlehold as shown above. I carry Hana only in that position but usually I let her go and she hangs snugly while my hands are free. I started searching for other positions suitable for infants and today I tried the vertical carry!

 

She  cried a bit while I struggled to put it on while reading the instructions on screen. But as soon as I tightened it around her and let my arms go, she nodded to sleep like she always does when she’s in the sling. I saw little ‘Umar do the same while Hana was still in my tummy. Somehow as soon as baby smells the sling and feels the warmth of your body, she quietens in a few seconds and falls asleep. This is a very useful trick when your baby is fretful around well meaning relatives and they keep on insisting she is fussing because you “don’t have enough” milk. I will usually say she’s tired, slip her into the sling and she magically quietens. To all the mommy’s to be, if you have latched your baby on since birth and are patient in the first 2-3 days with your baby, your milk supply will come in and in the next few weeks you’ll be spewing milk like a fountain. Still, each time your baby cries, when she’s tired or when she’s wet, you will be told you do not have enough milk and be advised on formula or even starting your infant on solids. Anticipate such comments and look at in in a positive way by knowing your baby, learning to read and communicate with her. Wearing your baby is the best way to have her always close to you and learning to understand her body language and the tones of her cries.

 

I still have loads to write.. more cloth diapers, I promised you more about prefolds and also I’ve been wanting to write my thoughts on elimination communication, I’ve been learning so much. Meanwhile, as some pre reading before the next post, read everything on this site!

 

I’ll be back soon, to those close to me, you know I’m down with a cold.. Hana is fine today but I’m watching her closely. I’m still practicing strict handwashing but somehow it seems impossible to put my baby in a bubble.. away from germs.. I’m keeping my fingers crossed..

These are my hands and feet.

Hana at 4 weeks old with hand and feet rattles

 

I was thinking about what someone said to me recently about how things on blogs are filtered. We filter all the bad and nasty stuff and write only about warm and fluffy things. I totally agree. In reality, looking after a baby is hard work. Its hard work but satisfying at the same time. It can suck at times and sometimes I feel lonely. Sometimes I feel like people think I’m a little bit nuts especially when I talk about potty training (elimination communication or EC) my baby from newborn. On the blog I talk about cloth diapers and EC and flashcards. But in reality I do have “off” days on which my baby is in disposables, I don’t offer her pee breaks and I don’t flashcard at all. I just concentrate on getting us both bathed. When H comes back, sometimes we eat pizza in bed cos I’m breastfeeding and too tired to get up! I guess the key thing is not to get too stressy about it. I don’t flashcard when I don’t feel like it. I put her in disposables when I’m too tired to cloth. Its easier to parent when you don’t take the whole thing seriously. And I always think  whatever we do or however we parent, the end product or how the child will turn out is not in our hands.

An email from the Middle East to the Far East

Hello Farhan,
How are u dear?
well alf alf alf mabrouk – congrats..
 
She is really wonderfull…
She filled my eyes tears, we all wished we can hug and kiss her , u know
the mixture of fareast and lebanese realyy gave a wonderfull child
 
May god bless her….
U can’t imagine how dad is happy.. she is the first grand daughter…
 
Hoping you are better, and feeling fine.
My regards to my dear brother and tell him that we all miss the young dad..
 
 
Regards to your family and many kisses to Aunt 
 
Reine

 

An email from my sister in law. Today I learnt that Singapore is included in the Far East(note that I highlighted and underlined the word fareast and it wasnt in the original email)! I’ve always thought that when people referred to the Far East here it meant China, Japan, Korea etc

But from Wikipedia:

Significantly, the term evokes cultural as well as geographic separation; the Far East is not just geographically distant, but also culturally exotic. It never refers, for instance, to the culturally Western nations of Australia and New Zealand, which lie even farther to the east of Europe than East Asia itself. This combination of cultural and geographic subjectivism was well illustrated in 1939 by the Prime Minister of Australia, R. G Menzies. Reflecting upon his country’s geopolitical concerns with the onset of war, Menzies commented that:

“The problems of the Pacific are different. What Great Britain calls the Far East is to us the near north.“^[3]

Far East in its usual sense is comparable to terms such as the Orient, which means East; the Eastern world; or simply the East. South East Asia and the Russian Far East might now be included in the Far East to some extent due to recent Chinese migration to Russia, and the Korean diaspora in Russia.

Just a little teaser..

 

The next post is going to have cloth diapers and photos!

 

I’ve also been wondering, since my blog now has nothing to do with food (except the banana leaf photo in the last last entry which was an attempt to post something food related, I took the photo with you in mind)  and everything to do with BABY, are you still reading?

It seems that you are, based on my stat counter. Are you an old reader who just reads along? Are you interested in babies or are a mummy/mummy to be yourself? Are you reading hoping for a recipe or some food (I miss cooking n baking so so much..)? Who are you? Let me know!

 

PS. my blog needs to be cleaned up and some parts updated! I’m not sure when I’ll find the time!

Cards and such

Some handmade cards that Hana loves. The high contrast black and white cards are her favourite compared to the math cards (red dots on white background) and her reading cards which are colourful words.

I have been meaning to write about her first month but its such an overwhelming task, I just don’t know where to start! I have a couple of friends who are expecting their first baby soon and when they visit time is too short to permit me telling them all the things I wish I knew about looking after a baby.

So here goes..

Things I Learnt in the First Month

1. Baby cries a lot in the first week

This is the toughest period as the baby is unhappy just by being out of the womb. I felt like she was crying all the time. Old Malay belief was that she was crying as her umbilical stump hurts and it would stop when the stump dropped off. The stump usually takes about a week to drop off and this would be the time the crying stopped! The first week is tough as you’re still recovering from the pain of labor and having to deal with the responsibility of caring for a newborn. In the first week, my baby cried for hours on end at night and slept the entire day. I was exhausted. Having help around the house and a confinement lady to care for me really helped.

2. Baby wants to be carried all the time

My Indonesian helper modelling the sling carrier

The warmth of the your body and the sound of yourheartbeat is very comforting to a baby so they want to be carried A LOT. This excludes the time that you’re breastfeeding so she’s in your arms what feels like every single waking minute of your life. This is very problematic when you have to shower and use the toilet. It also causes loads of muscle aches and pains as your arms aren’t used to being in a cradle position for extended periods of time. I ended up with really numb forearms which was where her head rested when I carried her. I also have wrist pains which I’m still plagued with! The sarong sling is a real godsend. I can carry her in the sling and still type with both hands. I can also do laundry and do simple chores around the house. I also have my meals with her asleep in the sling. When I’m active and moving around she sleeps really well in the sling as I think it mimics the rocking motion in the womb. Carrying her is also really good exercise and I go for walks with her inside as well. She usually wakes up only when I stop walking, a lot of times to feed and the sling makes discreet nursing in public really easy. I even walk around with her feeding in it!

3. Well meaning advice can be really annoying

Trust me you’ll get lots. Just listen and nod. And forget about it! I’ve gotten really strange advice from what to do with the placenta to licking my babies face first thing in the morning before brushing my teeth to get rid of her “milk rash”!!

4. I love my breast pump

I started pumping and storing breast milk when Hana was 2 weeks old. This increased my milk supply by a lot when I froze everything that I pumped as my body just produced more milk to keep up with the increased “demand”. This started giving me engorgement problems when Hana started sleeping thru the night. Yes, she sleeps thru the night from 1st week on with just 1 or 2 night feeds. My theory is because I cloth diaper her during the day, she doesn’t sleep for long periods of time at all as she always feels wet and wants a change! Of course this is just a theory.. I’m not sure what other cloth diapering moms observe.

Anyway, When Hana was 3 weeks old I started getting H to give her expressed breast milk from a bottle when he came home from work. This gave me time to shower, prepare dinner and wash up. Something which I really looked forward to at the end of the day. Cooking is never a chore for me! I’ve also managed to leave her with my mom for short periods of time to sneak out for a meal with H and grocery shop. Yup, marriage and baby makes you do really domesticated stuff even when you’re out on a “date”.

Another thing I found really useful is a bustier for hands free pumping which I bought from mums and babes for S$71.  Otherwise it got really boring having to sit with both your hands occupied and just waiting for the machine to do its work.

5. The colic hold is a life saver.

Yati first told me about the colic hold and Hana LOVES it.

We nicknamed this hold the “koala”. So when she’s fussy and we know she’s fed and changed we would tell her we’re going to koala her and as soon as she’s on her tummy she immediately quietens.

See the similarity in the position?

6. Friends are a godsend!

Especially mummy friends. I found out after talking to Nan that putting Hana on her tummy makes her sleep longer. I do this in the day when I’m around to watch her. Its not recommended in general as any another sleeping position besides lying on the back increases the risk of sudden infant death syndrome. So she sleeps on her back at night.

The other thing that I found so mind boggling was breastmilk storage. Of course I got lots of help and tips here.

7. Fresh air does wonders.

Going for a short brisk walk helps both mummy and baby! I try to get a little fresh air an exercise each day and it helps Hana as she’s usually tired out after absorbing all the sights and sounds so she settles down for a nice nap after an outing.

8. Different holds for breastfeeding helps a lot!

Cradle and cross cradle: These are the classic feeding positions and the ones I most often use in the day.

Football: This hold was the best hold for the first few days for me as with good positioning of supporting pillows (plenty at the back and then stacked up under the arm that is holding the baby) you hardly need to exert any strength in holding the baby. Also she was tilted upright so this made her more awake and alert and I found that I could look into her eyes without getting a neckache. I felt I had to flex my head more with the cradle hold.

Tailor: This hold is when I’m too lazy to pull pillows to support her. Its not very comfortable though as I find myself leaning forwar. But its good when I know she’s not hungry and just wants to comfort suckle for a few minutes.

Lying down: This is a real lifesaver which I couldn’t figure out how to do in the first week. I called the lactation consultant and she gave me some advice over the phone. Once I mastered it, my night feedings were a breeze and I also started having short naps in the day. This also helps when you’ve got an episiotomy and are  not very mobile.

 

I found that using all the different holds prevented sore nipples as each hold causes the baby to latch onto the nipple differently therefore different areas of the nipple are “sucked” with each hold.

 

To my friends reading, any first month tips/experiences??