Happy Mother's Day!

"Your arms were always open when I needed a hug. Your heart understood when I needed a friend. Your gentle eyes were stern when I needed a lesson. Your strength and love has guided me and gave me wings to fly "- Sarah Malin

When God sent us to earth, he promised us an angel who would love, care and nurture us. That angel would teach us everything we need to know and we would call that angel - Mom - Dedicated to my mother and sister (mum to be  IA  , all prayers for her). Love you both unconditionally. I can not even begin to thank you for the things you have done for me. Love you always xxx.

Here's to all mums and mums to be :).



Happy Mother's Day!!

Product Review: Two life saver products

 

Hey Everyone! These two products are absolutely life savers if you have a baby or a toddler at home. It will take care of ANY stain, yes any, it works magic. BTW its for clothes :P. An absolute must have. 

I dont bottle feed my baby so the electric sterilizer i bought is currently sitting in the cupboard. Hopefully i get to use it later. For now, i find the Milton anti-bacterial very useful. I can treat all his toys, cereal bowl spoon etc and it is an easy process too. Check out the products from their website for more information. Google it :)

Reading to your baby

It's never too early to read to your baby. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends reading aloud daily to your baby starting at 6 months of age. By then he or she will really begin to enjoy looking at what you are reading. But Jim Trelease, author of the Read Aloud Handbook, says that you can start as early as your child's a newborn. So why would you read to your newborn? Apart from the obvious that your child's vocabulary will start to build up it will also improve his communication skills and is good for their growth and development.

I started reading to my baby at about 3 months. You can start earlier than that, if i knew i would have. When Ibrahim looks at the book, he wants to eat them but he certainly enjoys the colorful pictures in the book and if i am reading a story he tries to grab the book. I love when he follow the pages when i turn them as if he totally understands with whats going on. When i was looking for material to read to him, i came to know the benefits your baby will get from reading as he grows up. Entertainment is part of taking care of your child, just as you hand them their favorite rattle to keep them busy, reading should be another one. Make reading fun, you can improvise like i sing his favorite song when i show him pictures of farm animals. He loves "Old McDonald", perhaps the sound of EE-I-EE-I-O fascinates him :).

For the first few months, your infant will be picking up on the rhythm of language, rather what you reading, he wouldn't understand a single word you will be saying:) but as he hears you speak in a routine he will start to enjoy. So when it comes to reading materials, anything goes, children books, a magazine, or even a novel. Your baby may be fascinated by pictures with bright colors and sharp contrast, though, so stock up on picture books.

Links to check out. I pasted the one for newborns to 6 months but the main site has sources for other age groups too.

-> http://www.babycenter.com/0_starter-library-for-newborns-to-6-month-olds_6606.bc

Recommended Reading:

http://www.babycenter.com/0_reading-to-your-baby_368.bc

Bye for now. Happy Reading

Getting ready for your Newborn.

I went through different internet forums and YouTube video's for essentials when i was getting ready for my little one's arrival. I never prepared a list until now. I hope it will help mums to be, especially new mums to get sorted.

Baby's Essentials Checklist:

1. Clothing: Body Suits ( 5-6), Long-sleeved Grow suit(5-6), pair of mittens, beanies and socks (5), comfy sleepers suits(5-6), pants (3-4), jackets or cardigans (2-3), Napisan (Laundry Detergent).
   
2. Feeding: Breast pads, feeding bottles, cleaning equipment, burp cloth and bibs.
   
3. Changing/Bathing: Baby bath tub, towels (2-3), wash cloths (4-5),Nappies, changing accessories (wipe, cotton buds, rash cream, baby bath.
   
4. Sleeping: Body Wraps/ receiving blankets, Cot and Cot accessories, Blankets.
   
5. Going out: Car seat, Pram.

Other useful items if you can stretched your budget:

• Baby's grooming kit ( Nail clipper, digital thermometer, etc).
• Breast pump and extra bottles.
• Nappy Bag with a change mat.
• Sleeping bag
  
• Baby monitor.
• Play-gym for tummy time.
• Feeding pillow and wrap.
• Baby carrier/sling.
• Baby change table.
• Bouncer/Rocker.
  

Things for the baby in the hospital:

• Most hospital provides new born clothes but if you prefer your own clothing, pack a couple of bodysuits (half sleeved and full- sleeved),body wraps in your hospital bag. I also packed a couple of mittens, beanies , wash cloths, grow suit and going home outfit.
  
• The hospital provide nappies and wipes too but you never know so packs enough for your baby's need.
• Even if you are planning on breastfeeding, it is always a good idea to pack newborn feeding bottles and formula just in case. If not breastfeeding, bring along all the feeding essentials.
  
• Travel bathing essentials (which i found it so useful even now, they are always in my baby bag in case i need them), towel, etc
• A blanket. Hospital provide this but not for taking home :).

Mum Things to bring to the hospital:

• Change of clothes and essentials (comfy ones, prepare for at least two nights), more if you live far from the hospital just in case they ask you to stay longer.
• Something comfortable to wear before the delivery i-e nightie or a loose shirt, you don't mind throwing away.
  
• Breast pads if you are planning to breastfeed.
  
• Toiletries: depending on your needs, tooth brush and paste, lip balm, moisturizer etc
  
• I also packed a small makeup bag, makes you feel good :)
• Your entertaining must-haves: magazines, laptop, movies etc whatever your preference, they keep you busy when you wait for the bub to arrive.
• Make sure you pack your camera and baby journal if you are planning to write one. Don't forget the charging equipment.
• Medical card, birth plan or any documents you might need.
• Slipper. Trust me , you will thank me later.
  

I tried to accumulate as much information as i could, if i left out anything or if you want to add anything feel free to comment. I have tried to generalize to cater personal preferences :)

Bye for now!

Things to consider while buying a Stroller

Buying a stroller was an experience! There were too many type of strollers in the market and I had a hard time comparing functions for each one. Anyways, we were going to buy it for one baby but later on we thought it would be better to get one that can hold two kids (future proofing). So, we looked into the extendable strollers and I think we got a pretty good one. Things we considered before buying the stroller were:

1. Reasonable price
2. The infant carrier for the newborn that could be used as a car seat.
   
3. Main from birth and onwards.
   
4. A stroller that can hold two babies.
5. The stroller MUST BE easy to carry. If you drive then it will be YOU who will fold the stroller and put it in the car and then again get it out (easy to fold and unfold too)
   
6. Suitable space to put baby's and mum's stuff in the stroller.
7. The maximum weight it can hold
8. Easily adjustable stroller handle (up and down).
9. Easy Maneuver is another thing to consider.
10. A pram that we could fit in our car's boot :).
    
11. Canopy is always understated; my opinion, the bigger the better.
    
12. Bonus like sun cover, rain cover etc.
    

We ended up buying the Strider Plus Traveling system (This is what its called in Australia, Google it for other regions).

Disclaimer: I am not paid to talk about this stroller. I bought this as a personal choice and find it perfect for my baby.

Time for solids??

My Baby is five months old now. How do you decide to start giving your baby his first solids ? I decided to give him now as he was controlling his head strongly and was opening his mouth at about everything pointed at him. LOL My cousin is a doctor and she advised me to start with baby rice cereal as you never know babies could be allergic to dairy and what not. So i got rice cereal for 4 months plus..yes there are for different age groups starting from four and from six months...I didn't know that!!! My birthday is in about two days so i decided to mark the day with his first solids too..yay!

P.S: For a quick read, I found this very useful.
http://babies.secretbest.com/21946/when-is-the-best-time-to-start-your-baby-on-solids/

Bye for now!